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Old 02-03-2018, 07:48 PM   #1
mikef
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Solar Plug

I have a 2018 Keystone 2400bh and it has a place to plug in a solar panel on the front of the unit. It’s a vertical adapter with two connectors. This is the same as you would see with a trickle charger or a solar panel. (Not the Furrion adapter).

I called Keystone and asked if I could plug in an electric trickle charger and was told it would work. I then hooked up the trickle charger and it flashed for a long time indicating it wasn’t working. I then spoke to two people at the dealer and one said it only works with solar and the other said it should work.

Therefore I thought I would ask the experts in the community. I read about Zamp plugs and that is what it looks like. I read that the positive and negative are reversed in Zamp for some reason.

I am wishing to use a solar panel to keep the battery charged. I am familiar with panels and controllers, etc. just hoping I could simply plug it in versus direct connect to the battery.

I did see another thread on the topic but didn’t see a conclusion. Hoping someone was able get a good answer to the question.

Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks.


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Old 02-04-2018, 01:06 AM   #2
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Have you tried using a multimeter on the connector to figure which pin is positive and which one is negative?
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Old 02-04-2018, 07:01 AM   #3
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No, I haven’t tried that yet. When the weather clears I’ll try to trace the line to the battery and play with it. Thanks.
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Old 02-04-2018, 06:11 PM   #4
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If it's a Zamp connector it's polarity is backwards from the trickle charger and other branded solar panels. Either change the wiring or buy a polarity reverser
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Old 02-04-2018, 07:58 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bill-e View Post
If it's a Zamp connector it's polarity is backwards from the trickle charger and other branded solar panels. Either change the wiring or buy a polarity reverser
I have heard that about the Zamp. Trying to find a way to determine if it is a Zamp or not. Will see what Keystone Customer service can tell me Monday. Thanks.

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Old 02-04-2018, 08:07 PM   #6
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I have a Zamp solar panel and our prewired "SAE" plug on the Cougar works fine. I did trace the two wires from the plug to the wiring block in the battery compartment and did not notice any reversal. Red+ Black-. Did not try trickle charging with my "Battery-Tender" but the plug is the same SAE standard
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Old 02-05-2018, 03:08 AM   #7
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Not trying to hijack the OPs thread, but that brings up something I was wondering about on that supposedly solar ready plug. Is a Zamp solar panel the only brand that will work on those and does a person need controllers also, or does the panel just plug in by itself?
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Old 02-05-2018, 05:05 AM   #8
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Any brand will work but you may need a polarity reverser mentioned above. Most suitcase portable panels come with controller so it is plug and play.

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Old 02-05-2018, 05:14 AM   #9
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As Bill said, the portable suitcase "systems" are equipped with the controller attached to the panel. Ours was plug and play as far as charging the battery goes. I did have to wire from the main battery distribution block to our entertainment center where I installed the "inverter" to run the TV and have a charge center for our cell phones and laptop etc. when off grid.
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Old 02-05-2018, 10:18 AM   #10
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Solar Panel

Has anyone purchased the portable solar panels from Go Power? They say it includes an adapter that works with the Zamp pre-installed connection that is on the Keystone products.
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Old 02-24-2018, 02:13 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bill-e View Post
If it's a Zamp connector it's polarity is backwards from the trickle charger and other branded solar panels. Either change the wiring or buy a polarity reverser
Update: The connector did have polarity reversed versus my trickle charger and non Zamp solar panel. Bought the polarity reverse adaptor as suggested and it works fine. Keystone doesn't label it as Zamp but that's what they used. Thanks to everyone.

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Old 02-24-2018, 06:10 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikef View Post
Update: The connector did have polarity reversed versus my trickle charger and non Zamp solar panel. Bought the polarity reverse adaptor as suggested and it works fine. Keystone doesn't label it as Zamp but that's what they used. Thanks to everyone.

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Can you post a picture of the connector on your trailer? Maybe a close up of it. I've got a Fuzion Impact 303 and have a solar connector on the front also, but have no idea how, what, or why.
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Old 02-24-2018, 06:22 PM   #13
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Can you post a picture of the connector on your trailer? Maybe a close up of it. I've got a Fuzion Impact 303 and have a solar connector on the front also, but have no idea how, what, or why.
https://goo.gl/images/cZ4Fnq

Here is a picture of the connector off a web site.

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Old 02-24-2018, 08:19 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by mikef View Post
https://goo.gl/images/cZ4Fnq

Here is a picture of the connector off a web site.

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Thank you, I'll check mine out tomorrow and see what type it is.
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