Solar power. A practical upgrade for your campervan

Harness the power of the sun

Going off grid ? Upgrade to solar and harness the power of the sun to take care of all your battery charging needs.

In terms of efficiency, solar panels have come on leaps and bounds in recent years. The ability to capture the sun’s energy to power our electrical appliances is truly a modern-day revelation.

At RivieraMotors.co.uk any of our campervans can have a solar panel upgrade kit fitted.

So what are the benefits and is solar the right choice for you ?

The simple answer is that solar is a game changer for leisure vehicles such as campervans. But, if your touring is always going to be on dedicated sites with mains hook up facilities rather than off grid locations, then the argument for having a solar setup becomes less important.

However, solar becomes a great option if your touring plans will take you off grid regularly. By off grid we mean away from mains hook up facilities.

A roof mounted solar panel adds electricity back in to your batteries whenever there is daylight. Unlike a petrol powered generator, solar is completely quiet and it’s a green and environmentally friendly option.

Matched to your energy requirements, a roof mounted solar panel is more than capable of providing enough energy to sustain your leisure battery when using appliances such as the fridge and led lights etc.

Smart options such as dual charge output regulators give the option to charge both the leisure battery and the vehicles engine battery simultaneously.

This works very well for vehicles which might spend lengthy periods of time parked up. With this setup, the vehicles engine start battery will always be kept fully charged. No more flat batteries!

One of our Toyota Alphard campervans showing off its roof mounted 110watt solar panel

How does it work ?

A solar panel harnesses the power of the sun ( energy) and directs it to the vehicles batteries via a smart box called a regulator. The regulator then sends the correct amount of electricity directly to the batteries and does the job of maintaining the correct current.

Why we love solar,

Fit and forget – once installed they provide years of silent maintenance free use

Affordable & hassle free – A quality solar setup costs less then equivalent options to provide off grid electrical power such as wind or generator and without the hassle.

Maximise the life of your batteries – By keeping your leisure and engine batteries at peak performance, a solar panel can prolong the life of your batteries