Solar Confusion

[Khorsam]

I have spent many, many hours trying to sort through the myriad of information on this forum and others about my "solar ready" trailer. Even Keystone themselves are woefully less than helpful about their own product, which I don't understand at all.

So... What I have is a 2018 Keystone Hideout 21. I do know it has a label on the front of the unit that says "Solar Ready" and has a two-prong plug (assuming it is an SAE, not ZAMP because ZAMP seems to label all their plugins). I know it's not Furion (even though Keystone told me it was) because the plug is not circular.

It seems to be so difficult to get straight answers about what the unit has.

Is it indeed solar ready, plug and play?
Does it have a built-in controller, as I have been told it should, but yet I have also been told it wouldn't?
What is it charging? Just the batteries, or am I able to run other appliances, again as I was told it should?
What size of panels should I be looking at? (which probably depends on what the trailer is rigged for)
Why is Keystone not providing manuals about this aspect of their products?

For the definitive answers to these exciting questions, and maybe others.....

I'm hoping to find them here.

Appreciate any and all assistance.

Robert

[Logan X]

I’m fairly certain the solar ready connection only charges the battery. The battery will power any appliances on the 12v DC system. Fridge, water heater, furnace, lights, water pump, slide.

I’m not sure about the type of connector it uses, maybe someone else knows.

Welcome to the forum!

[GeekSquadOfUn]

Let me confirm.

Solar Ready means a SAE 2 pin connector is wired direct to the battery. There is a 10A fuse on the red (+) wire.

That is it.

If you wish to use a Solar Panel, you also need a Charge Controller, as you need to control the amount of charge going to the battery or batteries.

[Canonman]

Our Cougar came "Solar Ready" which meant it had the SAE plug installed on the front of the trailer and wired with a fuse to the Battery. Our Zamp portable solar had an SAE connector that worked perfectly with the one on the trailer.
You probably do not have a controller since Keystone would have no idea what size solar you might want to install. Also no inverter for the same reason.
I chose a very simple set up for us which has worked well over the past 4 seasons.
First, I'd recommend a minimum 100w portable solar kit (Zamp and Renogy are two I'd recommend). 200w if you can afford it. The kits will come with the panels, controller wire and connector to the trailer. Portable means you don't need to attach the panels to the roof, drill holes run wiring etc. At this point you have a really good trickle charger for your battery.
I decided we only needed an inverter big enough to run the tv and charge our phones and laptops. 750w, $35 inverter has done the job quite nicely. I used #10 wire from the battery distribution block to the entertainment center where I installed the inverter. The rest of the Cougar runs off the batteries. One final thought, you'll want two batteries if you don't already have them on the Hideout.
This is a simple easy way to keep your batteries charged and maybe watch a movie in the evening on occasion.

[Logan X]

One note on an inverter, like Cannonman, I only need the inverter to watch the TV. I bought a 300 watt pure sine inverter that plugs into the 12v “cigarette lighter” outlet near the TV. I have been very happy with this set up.

The rest of the trailer runs off of 12v (except the air conditioner obviously)

I also agree with adding a second battery. I have 2 6v golf cart batteries connected in series and I have been happy with that set up. I can go about three days, including watching several hours of TV a day, before I need to recharge the batteries.

Here is a link to my inverter

https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-300Wat.../dp/B07KQ4Q2L5

[Khorsam]

Awesome information; I greatly appreciate everything that has been posted so far.

It gives me far more to work with than what I have gotten from Keystone and the dealers.

Thanks again!

[Khorsam]

Logan X, soooooo.... looking at this picture you posted... I have a round plugin type thing that is up where the TV would be mounted and the wires are that connect to the built-in DVD player.
Are you saying that is like a cigarette plug for 12v power?? I had no idea what that was for... I thought it was for a different type of plug like for satellite or something. Who knew??!!! Clearly the guy that did the walkthrough didn't.
I noticed I already have some USB ports on one wall that I have used for charging my devices. The CD/DVD player also has a USB port. Is it possible that I already have an inverter built in? Somewhere?

[GeekSquadOfUn]

Here's the connector I have, Furrion, available on eBay.

Bought 2 of them for under $12 each. One for Solar Charger and one to power my Viair. Works real well.

[Khorsam]

That's not the type of connection I have; this is:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10pc...788445428.html

[GeekSquadOfUn]

On my 2019, Cougar I have this one. Furrion label.

Yours is the standard SAE that's been around for over 30 years. Available anywhere.

[Logan X]

Originally Posted by Khorsam

Logan X, soooooo.... looking at this picture you posted... I have a round plugin type thing that is up where the TV would be mounted and the wires are that connect to the built-in DVD player.
Are you saying that is like a cigarette plug for 12v power?? I had no idea what that was for... I thought it was for a different type of plug like for satellite or something. Who knew??!!! Clearly the guy that did the walkthrough didn't.
I noticed I already have some USB ports on one wall that I have used for charging my devices. The CD/DVD player also has a USB port. Is it possible that I already have an inverter built in? Somewhere?

I can pretty much guarantee that your Hideout did not come with an inverter.

I apologize if this information is too basic but I want to make sure we are talking about the same things.

Your trailer has 2 separate systems for power.

1: When you are plugged into shore power, that is using the 110v AC power system. Like a regular house, all of the outlets and everything works, including the air conditioner.

2: When you are not plugged into shore power, the trailer is powered by the batteries, which is the 12v DC system. The 12v system doesn’t power any outlets, just usb ports and the afore mentioned 12v cigarette lighter outlet. (Also the lights, water pump, etc)

To power something that needs to be plugged in a regular outlet, when using the 12v power system, you need an inverter. The inverter takes the power from the 12v battery and inverts it to 110v power.

Your trailer came with a power converter. The converter takes the 110v power when you are plugged into shore power and converts it to 12v power to run all of the 12v stuff when you are plugged in. This is so you don’t use your battery power when you are connected to shore power.

So your trailer came with a converter not an inverter.

The USB ports and the cigarette lighter are powered by the 12v battery system. That is why I only have a small inverter to power the TV. Pretty much every other system in the trailer will run off of the 12 v battery system (not the air conditioner or the 110v house outlets)

Anyways, sorry this was a long post. I hope that made sense.

[Logan X]

PS...Robert (Khorsam) yes, the outlet by your TV is a 12v cigarette style automotive plug.

On an unrelated note, there is probably a small button and led light on the faceplate with the 12v outlet by the TV. That is your over the air tv antenna booster. Press the button, the led lights up, the antenna booster is on. Turn the booster off if you are plugged into cable tv using the coax cable.

[Khorsam]

All great information Logan X... I understand most of the basics, but it's good to confirm. So it really helps to know when I consider what kind of solar system I'll need if I just need to keep the batteries topped up.
Thanks so much!

[Scott V]

Could someone tell me how to check that the polarity matches? I ordered zamp, but my hideout does not specify zamp on the plug in.

Somethings I read say that hideouts are wired for zamp, some say they are not.

Just new to the whole solar thing

[LCrabtree]

My Bullet 19' appears to be "solar ready"; but from this thread I gather that only means that there are two wires from the plug to the 12V system (with a fuse) connected somewhere ... seems to me easier and simpler to mount the charge controller where it's convenient but not in the way, and then wire directly to the batteries, disregarding the pre-wired solar ready crap?

Unless, of course the pre-wired solar ready means that there are wires in the fuse box labeled for the solar system that can be accessed and used, along with room to mount the solar charge controller...

Larry

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by Scott V

Could someone tell me how to check that the polarity matches? I ordered zamp, but my hideout does not specify zamp on the plug in.



Somethings I read say that hideouts are wired for zamp, some say they are not.



Just new to the whole solar thing

If the solar prep is hooked up all you need is an Ohm meter. Set the scale to DC and put a test lead in each connection. It will read battery voltage and if it shows (-) minus the leads are reversed.

[FlyingAroundRV]

As a bonus question; If you put solar panels on, don't they generally go on the roof? That being the case, why is the solar connector on my trailer mounted on the chassis? Where am I meant to run the wire?
With that and the absence of a controller, the "Solar ready" thing seems more like a sales gimmick to me.

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by FlyingAroundRV

As a bonus question; If you put solar panels on, don't they generally go on the roof? That being the case, why is the solar connector on my trailer mounted on the chassis? Where am I meant to run the wire?

With that and the absence of a controller, the "Solar ready" thing seems more like a sales gimmick to me.

If you look at the connector it has a label that says something like 10A max. It’s meant for portable which have built in controller if anything.

[GeekSquadOfUn]

Originally Posted by LCrabtree

My Bullet 19' appears to be "solar ready"; but from this thread I gather that only means that there are two wires from the plug to the 12V system (with a fuse) connected somewhere ... seems to me easier and simpler to mount the charge controller where it's convenient but not in the way, and then wire directly to the batteries, disregarding the pre-wired solar ready crap?

Unless, of course the pre-wired solar ready means that there are wires in the fuse box labeled for the solar system that can be accessed and used, along with room to mount the solar charge controller...

Larry

I just posted my setup for Solar in What did you do to your RV today. It may give you some idea.

[bbells]

FYI on an inverter: modified sine wave works fine on anything that converts ac to DC. TV, stereo, microwave, fans, etc are fine. Analog clocks are usually the only thing affected and will run slow or fast.