OUR SOLAR INSTALLATION AT SLAB CITY, CALIFORNIA

A RAINY DAY IN BIRDLAND

Good thing I decided not to take the motorcycle out for a morning cruise because a band of thunderstorms formed over the lake & came ashore with thunder & lightning dumping tons of water on the area. Good for all plants though because things were getting a bit dry. TWO BATTERIES UNDER THE STEPS

In a rare shopping mode last week I dropped into the new Habitat for Humanity store in Goderich & bought a dusty old spice rack for 50 cents & a $5 boom box complete with cassete tape deck. Both items well used but I wanted the boom box to play my old cassette tapes that I had painstakenly made from library CD's back in the mid 80's. Also had some natural bird song tapes from my old Stratford Field Naturalist Club days that I wanted to try out on our front yard birds. Worked great yesterday as the taped bird sounds seemed to draw in more birds.

TWO ENCASED BATTERIES IN A BIN BESIDE THE OTHER TWO UNDER THE STEPS

Had an email from some friends in southern Arizona inquiring about the solar system we had installed on our motorhome in December of 07 in Slab City, California. Gathered all the info to-gether & sent them a reply this morning. Figured I would also put that info into to-day's blog plus our photos & blogs from the 3 day period we spent at the Slabs. Leonard Knight's Salvation Mountain is at Slab City as well & we were there..........................
To J & R: Wasn't readily able to lay my hands on the paperwork for our solar installation but the following is my slightly foggy recollection of what we have.

Our solar system was installed by SOLAR MIKE'S SUN WORKS
in Slab City, California. I know we got two solar panels on the roof with numbers like 120 or 130. I think that has to do with watts or something. They are Kyocera panels I think & there should be some pics in our Slab City Installation album which I will put a link in for below. We also had 4 new batteries installed, 1 monitor, 1 control panel, & 1 2500watt power inverter plus lots of wiring. The inverter is bigger than we needed but it was used & had just come out of a fifth wheel while we were there. Those people were going to an even bigger set-up. Our total cost was somewhere around $3,000+ I think. Installation took a day & a half & you can read about it here....
-INSTALLATION DAY
-OUR LAST DAY AT THE SLABS

The photos from our 3 day stay at the Slabs are here...
-http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/35DEC19SOLARINSTALLATIONDAY
-http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/34DEC18SLABCITYWHATELSECANISAY
-http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/36DEC20LASTDAYATTHESLABS

Kelly had done a lot of research on the internet about solar installation & most people on the RV NET FORUM recommended SUN WORKS in California so that's where we went. The LIVE.WORK.DREAM couple had their 5ver outfitted for solar there as well after we did. And Slab City itself is worth a look see just for the experience of being there. You can camp out in your rig anywhere. Lots of colorful characters at the Slabs:))

2500 WATT TRACE INVERTER AS SEEN FROM THE DRIVERS SIDE BIN

Our system has been trouble free ever since & we have never ran out of solar power or even come close to running out. We sometimes run the generator for a few minutes in the morning while coffee is brewing. Wouldn't have to but I like to keep the generator up to speed plus if you have a few cloudy days you can always bump your batteries up with the genny so it's good to keep the generator primed & ready to rumble. We can do pretty well everything with solar that we do with electricity except use a slow cooker or micro-wave for long periods of time. Television, lights, etc all work just the same as if you were in your house. INSIDE SOLAR PANEL MONITOR SHOWING A TYPICAL CLOUDY DAY READING

Photos show 2 batteries under the top step passenger side where the old battery was, 2 batteries in cases in the adjoining bin with the white inverter behind. Next 2 pics are the 2500Watt Trace inverter from the bin on the driver's side. Next photo is inside the coach showing the solar panel monitor. Numbers in the high 1300's mean your drawing in lots of good power on a sunny day. It's cloudy & raining right now so the panels are only drawing 1272. Next 2 pics show the control panel for the system & you can see on the monitor that our batteries are 85% charged. If we have a bunch of cloudy days & they drop into the 70% range I just plug into shore power & they are fully charged to 100% in no time or run the generator to charge them. Driving also charges the batteries. SOLAR CONTROL PANEL IS THE ONE WITH THE BLUE BUTTONS

Hope this gives you a basic idea of solar power. The initial cost is a bit expensive but we have already nearly recouped all that money in saved Park fees over the past couple of years. RV Park fees are one of the biggest money drains RV'ers face. Let us know if you have any other questions & maybe we can answer them. There are some maintenance procedures for the batteries but it's kind of standard I think.....AL. CONTROL PANEL SHOWING WE HAVE AN 85% CHARGE ON THE BATTERIES
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GROANER'S CORNER: A small boy swallowed some coins and was taken to a hospital. When his grandmother telephoned to ask how he was a nurse said 'No change yet'.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.

AFTER A FEW WRONG DECISIONS....HERE ARE SOME OF THE RIGHT ONES:))

BRYCE CANYON, UTAH


Decided to do a blog about some of the things we have done right in our RVing adventures instead of the usual things we have done wrong:)) (orders from headquarters this morning!!)

1. When our Hughes-Net modem died last year in New Mexico we were faced with the decision of getting another modem or moving to a different technology. Because we didn't know what killed the modem in the first place we decided to pack in the whole satellite idea & move to a Verizon Air Card. We have the UM175-USB modem....... That was a right decision:)) http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?item=phoneFirst&action=viewPhoneOverviewByDevice&deviceType=BroadbandAccess%20Devices&lid=//global//phones+and+accessories//mobile+broadband+devices
VERIZON UM 175 PLUGGED INTO THE LAPTOP....And that's what puts you on the internet.

2. Two years ago while in Quartzite Arizona we decided to install a propane heater instead of using the in-efficient RV furnace so we had a Legacy Blue Flame heater put in......... That was a right decision:)) http://www.finesgas.com/cats/Space_Heaters LEGACY BLUE FLAME HEATER

3. We had an awning destroyed by a big Kansas wind while on I-70 one time & had it replaced with an acrylic awning also in Quartzite & co-incidentally on the same day the Blue Flame guy hooked up our heater. The slightly more expensive acrylic awning has served us well. That was a right decision:)) THE BOYS ARE PUTTING THE FINISHING TOUCHES ON OUR NEW AWNING

4. Also while in Quartzite a couple years ago we took out our completely uncomfortable couch, tub chair, & dinette. Sold it all to "The Gambler" in Quartzite. We then went to Ikea in Tempe about a week later & bought all new comfortable furniture plus computer desk for less money than what we got for all the old RV stuff.........That was a right decision:)) THE RIGS DINETTE IS READY TO BE TAKEN & SOLD IN QUARTZITE....in the desert 5 miles south of Quartzite, Arizona

5. When we bought our motorhome in Grand Bend we had been looking at another coach at the dealer there but Ron the owner convinced us we would be happier with the Damon Chevy Workhorse Chassis coach that we have now. He was right, and.......that was another right decision:)) http://www.fourseasonsperformance.com/

6. We spent a fair bit of time looking for a vehicle to not only be towed behind the motorhome but to be a second vehicle at home for Kelly. Finally decided on a 2003 Hyundai Santa-Fe 5 speed stick shift that we spotted on the lot of Goderich Hyundai. This has been a totally excellent little mountain goat for us.........That was a right decision:))
http://www.goderichhyundai.ca/
OUR RELIABLE LITTLE HYUNDAI SANTA FE MOUNTAIN GOAT...Chiricahua Mtns, Arizona

7. The Roadmaster Sterling Hitch assembly we had installed on the car & motorhome in London Ontario has worked well & been trouble free too........That was a right decision:)) http://www.trailerhitch.ca/ HITCHING THE THE CAR UP......(it's a joke, it's a joke:))

7. We eliminated the big blonky television & cabinet from the upper front part of the coach & installed a 23" flat screen on a side wall. That was a right decision:)) Having a woodworking friend of ours do that rather than me, was also a right decision!! 23" FLAT SCREEN TV MOUNTED ON A SIDE WALL

8. We had a Solar System installed (2 panels, 4 new batteries+monitors etc.) professionally in Slab City California a couple of years ago by Solar Mike at Sunworks. That was a right decision & we have had many happy boondocking days ever since:)) http://thesunworks.com/index.htmSOLAR INSTALLATION DAY & THAT'S SOLAR MIKE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LADDER....Slab City, California

9. Wanted to get away from that drab white coach interior so painted part of our coach interior an adobe color.......That was a right decision:)) ADOBE PAINT JOB......done in Casa Grande, Arizona

10. Hooked up a Sirius Satellite radio, Garmin GPS system, as well as a CB Radio inside the coach & that was 3 more right decisions:))

11. Decided early on in our RVing to avoid crowded & expensive RV parks & that has been a right decision:)WHY CROWD INTO AN RV PARK WHEN YOU CAN HAVE THE WHOLE DESERT TO YOURSELF....Darby Wells Road area west of Ajo Arizona

12. Buying a good used motorhome in great condition with low mileage & avoiding all that "new rig" depreciation was also a right decision:))

13. Deciding to spend our winters in the American Southwest instead of American Southeast has also proved to be a right decision & keeping on the move instead of sitting in one spot for 5 months has definitely proved to be a right decision as well:)) YOU WON'T FIND BEAUTIFUL SCENERY LIKE THIS IN FLORIDA...Ajo Mtn Range in Organ Pipe National Monument, Arizona

14. Getting our handy little well made, "Xpress Ready-Set-Go" cooker was a right decision:))
http://www.redisetgo.com/?gcid=S12579x066&keyword=ready%20set%20go_3
CHICAGO STYLE CHILE DOGS AT MILT'S DINER IN MOAB, UTAH

15. And last but not least.......Making the decision to try our hand at RVing years ago?? Well, that was the biggest right decision of them all......................................:))CULP VALLEY NEAR BORREGO SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA

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