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Battery disconnect switch with solar panel

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becod View Drop Down
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    Posted: 18 Oct 2019 at 10:40am
Is it necessary to hook up a battery disconnect switch with a solar panel on a r-pod 189?  If so, where to place it on the inside?
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Kingskerswell View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Kingskerswell Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 May 2020 at 11:54am

I have only recently installed a solar panel (SP) so bear with me on a 7 month delay to try and answer your question.  As a general rule I believe a battery disconnect is very important on a travel trailer purely and simply from the fact that there is always going to be small electrical loads on the battery even with everything supposedly shut off.  I also feel it is much safer as I am not impressed with the electrical wiring standards on trailers I have worked on. So when our trailer is at its storage location and not being used I always turn my disconnect switch 'OFF'.  

However, during our SP install I found the SP manufacturer (Renogy) recommended connecting battery power to controller prior to SP feed to controller. This created a dilemma with the added battery disconnect switch because upon switching 'ON' it meant I would be ignoring their SP connection protocol. 

So, as a result of installing my battery disconnect switch I now have an additional operation which is to first remove the fuse on the SP/controller feed prior to disconnecting the battery and conversely after reconnecting the battery to re-install the fuse on the SP/controller feed.  My disconnect switch is installed on the outside of my battery box for ease of access.

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