Can You Install Home Rooftop Solar Panels on an RV?

A lot of people have been wondering if it’s actually possible to make use of rooftop solar panels on an RV.

The answer is Yes, however you need to plan very carefully and also make some much needed adjustments before you are able to mount your rooftop solar on your RV.

Not to worry because in this blog post, we’ll try to explain all the technicalities that should be well considered before you decide to mount these panels on an RV

What Are Home Rooftop Solar Panels?

The solar panels you see on the top of your roofs are called Home Rooftops Solar panels, their designs helps them to get sunlight then change the sunlight to electricity energy that you can use in your home.

They’re usually big and heavy, they’re mostly used on traditional houses since they have strong roofs and don’t move about. So how does it work on Rvs? What Makes RVs Different? we’ll see below.

 What Makes RVs Different?

RVs which stands for Recreational Vehicles are mobile homes that have wheels and can be moved at any time, their roofs are not as big or strong as our normal house roof, they’re well curved.

They come in different shapes and they’re built to be very light so that you can travel easily with it, so when you see all these differences between Rvs and traditional houses, there’s so much reasons for you to be very careful when installing a rooftop solar panels on your RVs

Can You Use Home Solar Panels on an RV?

Definitely, you can install them on your RVs, however there are some points you’ll need to have at the back of your mind before you proceed, we’ll look at some of those points.

1. You should Consider the Size and Weight of the solar panels: 

Normally home panels tends to be larger and heavier than meant for RVs, in essence to that, you should make sure that your rooftop is strong enough to be able to carry the weight that comes with the solar panels

2. Flexibility Matters too

If you consider the fact that RVs don’t only move, but also vibrate and most times face Different weather conditions compared to the house, that simply points to the fact they may not be strong enough to carry heavy panels while driving on a bumpy road with strong winds.

3.Mounting and Installation:

Trying to install panels on an RV is almost always complicated, it’s a fact that home panels are mostly mounted on flat and stable roofs that have very good support structure, on Rvs it’s a different ball game, there roofs can be either curved or uneven, so there’s a possibility that you might need to mount a hardware that will help fit the panels very well.

Read Also: You Put Solar Panels on Mobile Homes? A Simple Guide by Arenahub Global

4. Check the System Compatibility:

Obviously home solar panels are meant to provide more power than you need to have in an RV, in respect to that, the battery and the inverter (which is the main device that helps to convert the solar energy power that’s usable) must definitely be of the same match with the power output of the panels. What this means in essence is that you may have to adjust or even upgrade some parts of your RVs electricity system.

Benefits of Installing Solar Panels on an RV

There are so many benefits that come with installing Solar panels on an RV, we’re going to take a look at some of these benefits one after the other.

1.Generation of your own Electricity

One of the major advantage of getting your own solar panels on your RVs it’s because it allows you to generate your own electricity yourself, you don’t have to worry about where you would find a power hook when you are camping on the road, you can easily travel to remote areas without being bothered about electricity since you can already generate yourself.

2. You’ll Save Cost.

If you are able to install solar panels on your RVs, then you don’t have to spend a dime anymore, although the set up might cost you some money, but it’s well worth it, you’re going to save up on the long run because you no longer have to buy fuel for your generator sets or pay for electricity when at campsite.

3. It’s Good For The Environment

It’s no longer a hidden fact that solar panels produce only clean energy from the sun, automatically you will reduce your need of getting a fossil fuel, this will automatically mean less pollution.

4. Quiet Operation:

Unlike generators that are always noisy and causing nuisance, solar panels works very silently worth producing any noisy, which simply means you’re going to witness a calm and quiet Environment

5. Solar Panels are Very Convenient:

With Solar panels, you are very sure of constant power supply, you can easily Power your lights, charge your phones, even run your fridge, you can do all this without getting worried about power outage

How to Install Home Rooftop Solar Panels on an RV

If you have decided to install Home Rooftops Solar panels on your RV, there are some steps we’ll mention that you need to follow, trust us it’s quite easy and simple.

Step 1: Try to access your RVs Roof and know the amount of energy you’ll need.

To do this start by measuring the spaces that are available in your RV roof, then you check the weight limit of your rooftop so that you can be sure it’ll be able to handle the panels, proceed by calculating how much energy you will be needing daily.

That will help you know the size of solar panels you’ll need, then proceed to getting solar panels of high quality that will generate enough electricity for you.

Step 2, Consider Custom mounting and upgrade your RV’s Electrical System if necessary.

Since RV rooftops are not as flat as normal house roofs, you may need mounts or even custom bracket, it’s best to get flexible mountings that could easily absorb vibration.

Make sure that your battery, the inverter and the charge controller are very compatible with the solar panels you are getting, also you might need to upgrade or even replace some of these components,

Ensure the solar panels are well mounted on your rooftop, then connect the panel to the charge controller, after that you connect to the battery bank and your inverter, test the system to make sure everything is working just fine, you should regularly run maintenance so that things Keep working perfectly for you.