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opinion:frater_secessus:beginner_mistakes

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opinion:frater_secessus:beginner_mistakes [2024/11/26 20:11]
frater_secessus [believing 100w of panel will make 100w all year] 		opinion:frater_secessus:beginner_mistakes [2025/08/19 22:30] (current)
frater_secessus
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 [[lifestyle:words_of_wisdom|Words of wisdom:]]  "We have a lot of people here who get all excited, move into a van, then quit after just a couple months. The fact that they get disillusioned means they were "illusioned" to begin with. So don't be "illusioned"."  -- lennyflank((https://www.reddit.com/r/vandwellers/comments/el567y/any_advice_for_someone_considering_van_life/fdgq087/)) [[lifestyle:words_of_wisdom|Words of wisdom:]]  "We have a lot of people here who get all excited, move into a van, then quit after just a couple months. The fact that they get disillusioned means they were "illusioned" to begin with. So don't be "illusioned"."  -- lennyflank((https://www.reddit.com/r/vandwellers/comments/el567y/any_advice_for_someone_considering_van_life/fdgq087/))
  
-Note:  this area is for //opinion//, not objective facts. I may be jaded, grouchy, or cuss a bit.  -- secessus+Note:  this area is for //opinion//, not objective facts. I may be jaded, grouchy, or cuss a bit. In normal interactions I strive to be objective and careful with advice but the gloves are off here. -- secessus
  
  
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-==== Thinking like an apartment-dweller ====+==== overcomplicating the power setup ====
  
 +Rube Goldberg has nothing on a subset of new vanfolk.  They dream up weird setups with multiple banks, sometimes of different chemistries.  Strange wiring setups that require frequent human intervention.
 +
 +The main reason for this is a lack of understanding about how the components actually work and what they can do.  This confusion turns into anxiety, which turns into "Ima throw a credit card around and see if that calms my nerves."    The proliferation of //power stations// has made this worse since they often have limitations that really can require esoteric hoop-jumping.
 +
 +The best way to calm those nerves (and get a system that works for minimal effort and cost) is:
 +
 +  - figure out [[electrical:12v:dailypowerrequirements|what you actually need, power-wise]]
 +  - figure out [[electrical:12v:power_mix|how you will recharge the bank]]  
 +  - learn what basic types of product[s] that will you meet those needs, preferably with no continued input from you
 +  - **read the specs and documentation** on the product[s]
 +  - //then// start looking for specific products and deals on those products
 +  - now you're finally ready to start buying stuff
 +
 +If you are a drama addict who needs chaos to function, here's how to make an expensive clusterfsck:
 +
 +  - [[opinion:frater_secessus:beginner_mistakes#buying_random_stuff|buy random shit]] because it's on sale, it looked kewl, because you lack self-control, or are in a drunken stupor
 +  - try to use it
 +  - find out it doesn't meet your needs because it wasn't designed to.  The specs and manuals spelled this out, but [insert beating of dead horse]
 +  - try to add on more parts and complication to see if it helps.  It doesn't, because you don't know what you're doing, how whole thing works,  or even trying to accomplish
 +  - rant online that the random products you bought are "shit", "utter trash", "garbage", etc because they work as designed, not as you wished/hoped.
 +
 +
 +
 +==== Thinking like an apartment-dweller ====
  
 **A van is not an apartment**, so stop thinking that way.  A productive approach is to **start from nothing** then decide what you need to make your vanlife workable. Prefer non-electric approaches to electric ones.  This goes hand-in-hand with the math below. **Wanting all the amenities you had in a house or apartment** will cause disappointment, great expense, or both.     **A van is not an apartment**, so stop thinking that way.  A productive approach is to **start from nothing** then decide what you need to make your vanlife workable. Prefer non-electric approaches to electric ones.  This goes hand-in-hand with the math below. **Wanting all the amenities you had in a house or apartment** will cause disappointment, great expense, or both.    
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   * "I don't use any of my appliances for long" (except "my small hot plate for about 2-3 hours")    * "I don't use any of my appliances for long" (except "my small hot plate for about 2-3 hours") 
   * "What are the **most basic features** that are required to travel/live in a van in the US? I'm thinking something like a bed, **an airfryer**, and some food/ gear storage."   * "What are the **most basic features** that are required to travel/live in a van in the US? I'm thinking something like a bed, **an airfryer**, and some food/ gear storage."
 +  * "we will have a fridge, diesel heater , lights, water pump, awning, and possibly some other little things..."  Later in the thread:  "we have... an AC unit... that... pulls 97A on regular and 52A... on eco mode"
  
 [[rv:build:cardboard|Living in a van mockup]], for example,  //forces// one to assess what one really needs. [[rv:build:cardboard|Living in a van mockup]], for example,  //forces// one to assess what one really needs.
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   * [[http://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?do=search&id=tweaking|tweaking the system]] for max power generation   * [[http://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?do=search&id=tweaking|tweaking the system]] for max power generation
  
-==== Wanting to charging from EV charging stations ====+==== Wanting to charge from EV charging stations ====
  
 While most things are technically //possible//, recharging deep-cycle batteries from EV stations is impractical.  Our batteries are not set up to take the extreme charge rates, and they are at radically different voltages.   While most things are technically //possible//, recharging deep-cycle batteries from EV stations is impractical.  Our batteries are not set up to take the extreme charge rates, and they are at radically different voltages.  
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 ==== believing 100w of panel will make 100w all year ==== ==== believing 100w of panel will make 100w all year ====
  
-Solar harvest is greatly affected by the position of the sun in the sky (see above) and how many hours of that sun are available.  [[https://mouse.mousetrap.net/blog/2021-12-12-Summer-vs-Winter-solar-harvest-.html|Winter harvest will be much lower]] than summer harvest but you'll have to [[electrical:solar:pvwatts|run the numbers for your time/place]] to know specifics.  +Solar harvest is greatly affected by the position of the sun in the sky (see above) and how many hours of that sun are available.  [[https://mouse.mousetrap.net/blog/2021-12-12-Summer-vs-Winter-solar-harvest-.html|Winter harvest will be much lower]] than summer harvest but you'll have to [[electrical:solar:pvwatts|run the numbers for your time/place]] to get specifics.   
 + 
 +Note:  folks who will use the rig year-'round would do well to choose array wattage based on deep winter((typically December in the northern hemisphere)) when yield is lowest.
  
 ==== believing 100w of panel will make 100w in all conditions ==== ==== believing 100w of panel will make 100w in all conditions ====
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 Rule of thumb:  nothing on the vehicle should be taller than the surface of the solar panels Rule of thumb:  nothing on the vehicle should be taller than the surface of the solar panels
 +
 +Unforced errors include mounting the panels 
 +
 +  * on a rack that has ladder retention uprights
 +  * on a rack that has raised sides
 +  * on the bottom of a roof basket
 +  * below a roof basket (!!!) 
 +  * near taller objects like vent hoods, antennas, cargo boxes, awning mounts, etc
  
  
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 Rules of thumb:   Rules of thumb:  
  
-  * if panels are tilted and won't be repositioned they should face south in the northern hemisphere, and north in the southern hemisphere.  +  * if panels are tilted and won't be repositioned they should face south in the northern hemisphere, and north in the southern hemisphere.  Look up monthly tilt calculator to see how they should be positioned. 
   * if they *will* be repositioned then you have to keep up with the moves or harvest can be worse than just facing south.    * if they *will* be repositioned then you have to keep up with the moves or harvest can be worse than just facing south. 
  
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 Be realistic:  if you are a person whose phone battery and gas tank is perpetually below 1/4 you probably won't set the panels out often enough or for long enough to derive much benefit.  This is not a moral judgement -- it just means you need to focus on mounted panel or increasing yield from the alternator.  Be realistic:  if you are a person whose phone battery and gas tank is perpetually below 1/4 you probably won't set the panels out often enough or for long enough to derive much benefit.  This is not a moral judgement -- it just means you need to focus on mounted panel or increasing yield from the alternator. 
  
- 
-==== shade ==== 
- 
-[[electrical:solar:shading|Shade]] will wreck solar harvest.  Beginners often don't pay attention to shade conditions, including shade thrown by objects on the van roof or the rack itself.   
- 
-Unforced errors include mounting the panels  
- 
-  * on a rack that has ladder retention uprights 
-  * on a rack that has raised sides 
-  * on the bottom of a roof basket 
-  * below a roof basket (!!!)  
-  * near taller objects like vent hoods, antennas, cargo boxes, awning mounts, etc 
  
  
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 If you are asking for help don't make the helpers guess: If you are asking for help don't make the helpers guess:
  
-  * exactly gear you have and how it is connected & configured.  Links to the product or documentation will be helpful.  +  * exactly what gear you have and how it is connected & configured.  Links to the product or documentation will be helpful.  
   * whether or not it has ever worked   * whether or not it has ever worked
   * what you are trying to accomplish   * what you are trying to accomplish
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-People across the internet cannot see what's in front of you or what it's doing -- all we have to go on is what you tell us.  So please tell us as clearly as you can.  +People across the internet cannot see what's in front of you or what it's doing -- all we have to go on is what you tell us.  So please tell us as clearly as you can.  If you find yourself having to say "you know what I meant" this is an indicator people really //didn't// know what you meant because your words were not clear.
  
 You may want to start a text document that lists all the installed gear and significant settings so  You may want to start a text document that lists all the installed gear and significant settings so 
opinion/frater_secessus/beginner_mistakes.1732651910.txt.gz · Last modified: 2024/11/26 20:11 by frater_secessus

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