Outdoor Gear Reviews, Tips & Adventure Stories to Inspire an Outdoor Life

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Hands-On Review: Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery

Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery unboxed

Outdoor adventures, whether it’s camping, van life, sailing, or off-grid travels, often require a reliable source of power to keep devices charged and essential equipment running smoothly. In recent years, lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries have gained popularity due to their superior performance, longer lifespan, and enhanced safety features compared to traditional lead-acid batteries. Among the top contenders in this category is the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery. For our Renogy lithium battery review, we put the Renogy 200Ah LiFePo4 to the test.

We installed 2 Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Batteries in our 46ft sailboat, Gratitude, and after 5 months of use, we’re giving you an inside look at how these batteries have performed. In this hands-on review, we’ll dive deep into the features and performance of the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery, examining its suitability for outdoor enthusiasts seeking a robust and versatile power solution.

Renogy 200Ah LiFePO4 Battery installed
Our 2 200Ah LiFePO4 batteries made for a clean installation in our 46ft sailboat.

Throughout this Renogy lithium battery review, we’ll explore the design and build quality of the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery, assessing its durability and ease of use in demanding outdoor conditions. We’ll also take an in-depth look at its performance, examining its capacity, charging and discharging efficiency, and overall power output.

Additionally, we’ll delve into the battery management system (BMS) and safety features integrated into the Renogy battery – important features for peace of mind during your adventures. We’ll also evaluate the battery’s Bluetooth connectivity and let you know how monitoring your battery from your phone works in real-life.

To put these batteries through their paces, we’ve had them running our sailboat’s main 12V power system with a number of power-hungry electronics. Now that we’ve spent some time with these batteries, we can share with you how they’ve worked for us and help you decide if they are right for your needs.

The Verdict

4.5 out of 5 Stars

We LOVE our Renogy 200A LiFePO4 batteries! Their simple, but slick design cleaned up our battery compartment.  They have performed much better than our previous lead-acid batteries and with the increased depth of discharge, give us more usable power overall.  We are obsessed with connecting to the batteries via Bluetooth to see exactly what’s happening on each battery.  We love them so much that we’re already working on adding them to our Overland Trailer. Our only hiccup with these batteries is that we have experienced some misreporting of the capacity status using the DC Home app.

Buy Now at Renogy’s Website

12V 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery w/ Bluetooth

12V 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery w/ Bluetooth

Buy Now at Renogy.com

 

 


Overview of the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery

Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate battery in the box
Our Renogy LiFePO4 batteries arrived and ready for install.

Renogy has established itself as a serious brand in the off-grid power space, specializing in solar panels, inverters, and batteries. With a focus on innovation and reliability at affordable prices, Renogy has gained the trust of outdoor enthusiasts and off-grid adventurers worldwide.

The Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery is yet another Renogy product that shows their commitment to delivering high-quality off-grid power solutions. In this battery, Renogy has packed 200Ah of LiFePO4 storage with a battery management system (BMS) and Bluetooth built-in. Its impressive capacity of 200Ah provides ample power for extended periods, reducing the need for frequent recharging. When paired with solar panels, the time you could spend off the grid is limitless.

The Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery packs a range of features that make it an appealing choice for RV, marine, van, and off-grid applications. The lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) chemistry provides several advantages, including a longer lifespan, faster charging, and increased safety compared to lithium-ion battery technology.

The battery’s compact and lightweight design makes it easy to transport and install in various setups, whether it’s installed in an RV, van, camper, boat, or an off-grid cabin. Its dimensions and form factor have been optimized for space efficiency while maintaining robustness and durability.

The feature that sets the Renogy 200Ah apart from other similar batteries is its baked-in Bluetooth technology.  Using Renogy’s DC Home app (free), you can monitor your Renogy battery in real time.  Being able to know exactly what is happening to your battery at any moment helps troubleshoot issues with your electrical system and gives you peace of mind when it’s functioning smoothly.

By familiarizing ourselves with the key features, specifications, and market positioning of the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery, we can proceed to examine its design, build quality, and performance in subsequent sections. Join us as we delve deeper into the intricacies of this battery and discover what sets it apart from the rest.

Design and Build Quality

Physical design and dimensions
Insert terminals on a 200Ah LiFePO4 battery
The insert terminals on the Renogy make for an easy and flexible installation.

The design of a battery plays a crucial role in its usability and integration into various setups. The Renogy battery’s design aims to strike a balance between compactness and functionality. Renogy’s battery design is simple – a solid black plastic box with 2 posts.  That’s it.  We appreciate the lack of extra curves and cutouts that often cause batteries to collect gunk and make them difficult to clean. Not that you’ll be cleaning your batteries much, but it is nice to have a clean and tidy battery box when showing off your new LiFePO4 batteries.

The Renogy clocks in at 60.2 lbs, which is lighter than our old lead-acid batteries weighing 88 lbs each.  The lighter weight made it a lot easier to install the Renogys than it was to remove the old batteries.

Specifications:
  • length: 20.55″
  • width: 9.45″
  • height: 8.62″
  • weight: 60.2 lbs

Durability is a crucial aspect when choosing a battery for off-grid adventures. Our batteries are strapped down deep in the bilge of our sailboat, so they won’t be taking a beating.  In our case, the IP65 rating means our battery will be protected against everything it will see on our boat. IP65 means that it’s dustproof (the 6) and is protected against light water pressure (the 5).

Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate battery handles
You’ll find handles on each end of the battery that can be easily stowed away once installed.

The Renogy is rated to charge in temperatures from 32-131°F and it’s rated to discharge in temps from -4-140°F – meaning you won’t be out of luck trying to use it to power your stuff in the desert heat or icy winter camping.  This battery does not have a self-heating function like some competitors – so if you plan to use it in cold areas that routinely get below 32°F, you may want to choose a heated battery instead.

While lighter than many batteries of this capacity, the 60lb Renogy battery still isn’t really made for portable use.  It’s heavy enough to demand a solid and permanent mounting location, but it’s light enough to lighten your vehicle load or to save your back a bit while installing. This battery has 2 solid handles at each end to make carrying these less awkward.  The handles stow away into the side of the battery when not needed.

The terminals on this battery are insert terminals, also known as internal threads, and come with 2 M8 bolts.  Out of the box, the Renogy 200Ah comes with 1″ M8 bolts installed, but longer 1.25″ bolts are also included.

Performance and Power Output

The most important aspect of a battery is its capacity and energy storage capabilities. With 200Ah of capacity, the Renogy can charge at up to 100A continuously – leading to ultra-fast charges if you have a beefy charger.  Our batteries arrived at 80% capacity and our 30A charger had them full in under 3 hours.

Renogy DC Home App interface
Renogy’s DC Home app allows you to view data from your Renogy devices via Bluetooth connections.

As far as output, this battery is rated to discharge continuously at up to 200A – valuable for applications that need high power available when required.  The electric winches and anchor windlass on our boat require about 150A to operate under high loads and the Renogy 200Ah LiFePO4 handles them all without issue.  These power-hungry devices typically only operate for short periods of time so the 200Ah capacity isn’t an issue, but the 200A continuous output is a necessity for them.

For most of the 5 months of our testing for this Renogy lithium battery review, they’ve been tasked with powering our day-to-day appliances on the boat.  2 12V refrigerators and a 12V freezer are the biggest power hogs in our system – with the two fridges consuming up to 140Ah of power per day when running nonstop.  The Renogy 200Ah battery has handled these without issue, but with only the 400Ah of capacity these provide, it’s vital to our system that when we’re away from the dock, we’re conserving our power usage.

When we do need to lean on the batteries for a few days at sea, the 80% depth of discharge (DoD) of these batteries is a valuable spec.  LiFePO4 batteries can be discharged up to 80% of their capacity without damaging the battery or shortening its life.  Comparing this to the 50% recommended DoD of lead-acid batteries, LiFePO4 batteries give you more usable power than lead-acid batteries of the same capacity. For example, a 200Ah lead acid battery can only be discharged to 100Ah, but a 200Ah LiFePO4 battery can be discharged to 40Ah – giving you 60 additional amp hours for your system to use.  That’s 30% more power!

Renogy Battery Monitor
Our Renogy battery monitor helps to verify the data coming out of the DC Home app.

In our boat, we have a Renogy Battery Monitor installed that gives us another source of data to check the Bluetooth battery information against. As we powered up and powered down various devices, we were able to view the charging and discharging on each battery and verify that the numbers were consistent with the Renogy battery monitor. The best data the DC Home app gives when connected to the battery is current capacity.  It’s important to know exactly where you’re battery capacity is at – especially on longer trips.  The Bluetooth connectivity gives you the ability to check your capacity at any time.  If you’re like us, you’ll check it every 10 minutes at first because having the data at your fingertips is just too cool to resist.

While we do not have the equipment or know how to properly test the capacity of our batteries, we can verify that the capacity reading via Bluetooth corresponds closely with our actual power usage.

As mentioned previously, the 100A maximum continuous charge rate on these batteries means they can be charged fast.  We recommend a 60A or above charger to take full advantage of this feature and to be able to charge in record time.

The Renogy is rated to last 2000 cycles – meaning it can be charged and discharged (up to 80% DoD) 2000 times before losing performance or capacity. Compare this to the 500-1200 cycles you’ll get from lead-acid batteries and you’ll see how this Renogy battery will last a lot longer.

Since this is a 12-volt battery, it operates between 10-14.8 volts and prefers to be charged at 14.4 volts.  When the battery reads higher than 14.8V or lower than 10 volts, it will trigger overvoltage or undervoltage warnings on the DC Home app.

Safety Features

Battery Management System

Encased somewhere inside the shiny black rectangle that is the Renogy 200Ah LiFePO4 battery is an advanced battery management system (BMS) that intelligently monitors the battery’s operating conditions and oversees its safe operations.  The main benefit of a BMS is that it manages and redistributes temperature across the battery cells to maintain consistent temperatures to optimize battery performance.  The BMS also aids in efficiently charging the battery to speed up charges and get the most out of your charging source. In Renogy’s case, the BMS also reports some of its data vis the DC Home app to give you even more data and control over your battery.  Battery error messages, temperatures, and individual cell voltage can all be easily viewed in the DC Home app.

Auto-balancing Function

The Renogy 200Ah battery has an auto-balancing function that monitors and equalizes the voltage across the individual cells. When multiple Renogy batteries are connected in parallel, this function ensures all batteries will equally charge optimizing and speeding up the charging process.

Energy Saving Mode

When stored or not used, batteries lose their charge over time.  Renogy has given their LiFePO4 batteries an energy-saving mode which it switches to if not charged or discharged for 24 hours. When in this mode, the battery will only lose 3% per month – meaning you’ll have more power available when you’re ready to put it back into use.

Bluetooth Connectivity

The Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate battery includes Bluetooth connectivity allowing you to monitor the current status of your battery via Renogy’s DC Home app on a smartphone or tablet.

in our Renogy lithium battery review, we were able to boot up the Renogy DC Home app on our iPhone and connect to our batteries easily. The DC Home app shows the following battery data

  • Battery data on DC Home app
    The battery data available via the DC Home app.

    Battery Level (percentage)

  • Total Max Capacity (in Ah)
  • Present Capacity (in Ah)
  • Present Voltage (in V)
  • Present Current (in A)
  • Heating Module status (this battery not equipped)
  • Firmware Version
  • Error (messages)
  • Maximum Temperature
  • Minimum Temperature
  • Cell Voltage

Bluetooth on this battery works really well.  We had no problem connecting our batteries once installed.  After downloading the DC Home app and opening it, our new batteries were found and we could add them to the app.  Once added, the battery (or batteries) in our case show up each time the DC Home app is opened.

Our only real gripe with the DC Home app is that the added devices drop the connection each time you browse away from the app, forcing you to refresh the devices once you go back to the DC Home app.  While we wish the Bluetooth connection would remain even when checking our messages or emails for a minute, we assume that Renogy designed this Bluetooth functionality intentionally to save power on your devices and phone.  It’s not that big of a deal – but can be frustrating constantly having to refresh the devices when observing battery data over time.

The only other issue we’ve experienced during our Renogy lithium battery review is that we once arrived to our boat after some time away to find our batteries reading around 50% battery level via the DC Home app.  Our boat is constantly being charged via a 110V/30A charger and we were concerned to find that the batteries were at half capacity and seemingly not being charged.  Checking the battery charger, we found it in floating (maintenance) mode even though our batteries needed a fuller “boost” charge to get to full capacity.  After powering our battery charger on and off a few times, the battery capacities both changed to show a full charge at 100% battery level.  Apparently, our batteries were being properly charged while we were away, but for some reason, the capacity was not reflecting the charging on the DC Home app.  While this is less of a problem than our batteries actually being at 50%, this experience will leave us wondering if the battery level is correct each time we arrive back at our boat.  Luckily, we can verify battery levels via the Renogy Battery Monitor if this problem occurs again.

All in all, having the Bluetooth functionality is worth some occasional bugs, and we’re hopeful that over time, Renogy will release new battery firmware to fix these types of issues.  Using the DC Home app is generally a pleasant experience and we’re thankful to be able to monitor our Renogy batteries and other devices.  We do wish we could view our data over the internet and not just when we’re near our Renogy devices.  Renogy has recently released the Renogy One that locally connects to your devices via Bluetooth and then makes the data available anywhere over the internet.

Pros and Cons of the Renogy 200Ah LiFePO4 battery

Pros

  1. High capacity: The 200Ah capacity provides ample power for extended periods, reducing the need for frequent recharging.
  2. Long lifespan: The lithium iron phosphate chemistry offers a longer lifespan of 2000 cycles compared to other battery types, ensuring lasting reliability.
  3. Fast charging: The battery’s fast charging capability minimizes downtime and allows for more efficient power replenishment.
  4. Compact and lightweight: The battery’s compact design and lightweight nature make it easy to transport and install in various setups.
  5. Comprehensive safety features: The built-in Battery Management System (BMS) and additional safety features ensure safe operation and protection against potential hazards.
  6. Bluetooth connectivity: Via Bluetooth and the DC Home app, the battery offers convenient monitoring capabilities.

Cons

  1. Higher cost: Lithium iron phosphate batteries are generally more expensive upfront compared to traditional lead-acid batteries, though they offer long-term cost savings. The Renogy battery is less expensive than many similar LiFePO4 batteries.
  2. Weight: While the battery is designed to be compact and lightweight, it still has a significant weight due to its capacity, which may affect portability for some users.

2x 200Ah LiFePO4 batteries installed

Renogy Lithium Battery Review: Is It Worth It?

The Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery is a solid option for those looking to upgrade their battery bank. While expensive, its longer lifespan and increased usable power due to a higher depth of discharge make it comparable to less expensive batteries in the long-term.

The Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery has demonstrated several notable strengths. Its high capacity provides ample power for extended periods, while the long lifespan ensures reliable performance over time. The fast charging capability minimizes downtime, and the compact, lightweight design enhances portability. The battery’s comprehensive safety features, including the Battery Management System, Auto-balancing Function, and Energy Saving Mode offer peace of mind during operation. Moreover, the Bluetooth connectivity makes it a high-tech option that lets you keep track of where your battery is at from the palm of your hand.

We hope this review has been informative and helpful in your search for a reliable power solution. Whether you’re embarking on off-grid adventures or seeking a backup power source, the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery has proven to be a versatile, efficient, and affordable option. If you choose the Renogy 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate battery for your RV, van, boat, or off-grid cabin, we’re confident it will power your systems for years to come and that you’ll be glad you went with Renogy.

Have thoughts or questions about our Renogy lithium battery review?  Let us know in the comments.

Buy Now at Renogy’s Website

12V 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery w/ Bluetooth

12V 200Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery w/ Bluetooth

Buy Now at Renogy.com

Choosing the Right Solar Panels for Your Off Grid Solar System

Off Grid Solar Panels

Solar technology really is amazing science. We can harness the energy potential in the sun’s rays to power our life – without the need to be connected to the electrical grid. For those who venture outdoors often, solar systems provide the ability to venture further from civilization without compromising on electrical luxuries. At Outward Spaces, we are advocates for removing any barriers that keep people from exploring the outdoors. Properly installed RV solar panels can help make your RV, van, or boat trips more comfortable for longer – and we’re here for it. Our “Off-Grid Solar Series” gives you the tools to design and build your own solar system for your off-grid needs.

Before purchasing any components for your off-grid solar system, it’s important to plan the design of your system. To help design your system, check out Part 1 of our Off-Grid Solar Series, “Designing a DIY Off Grid Solar System.” Once you have a general design plan for your system, we recommend conducting an energy audit to determine how much power your system will use – and thus how much power you’ll need to recharge your batteries.  In Part 2 of our series, “Conducting an Energy Audit on a Recreational Vehicle”, we walk you through how to run an energy audit on your planned (or existing) electrical system.

Now that you’ve got a general system design in mind and you know how much big your system will need to be, it’s time to choose the best solar panels for your project. In this post, we’ll highlight some of the considerations to keep in mind when shopping for the perfect solar panels for your project.

How Many Solar Panels do you need?

Determining how many solar panels to add to your system can be a complex decision that deserves some careful thought.

If you are building a solar system for an RV, van, or boat, you most likely don’t need a solar system that will allow you to remain off-grid indefinitely.  You’ll probably want to design your solar system to recharge a portion of your battery usage each day, thus allowing you to extend your trip when you’re away from the grid.

If you are designing a solar system for an off-grid cabin, you’ll want your solar system to be able to fully recharge your batteries each day.  These types of systems typically include a larger number of solar panels and produce more watts of power each day than mobile systems.

How many Watts do Solar Panels Really Produce?

Solar panels are rated in watts. A 100-watt solar panel produces 100w of power from the sun… in perfect conditions. Solar panel manufacturers test and rate their solar panels in ideal conditions – full sunlight, optimal temperature, etc. The rating of a solar panel is what the panel CAN produce.  In real-world conditions, most solar panels won’t reach this rating. When planning a solar system, we recommend expecting to get 75% of the watt rating of your solar panel.  While you may often see more watts coming in from your panel (ie. 85 watts from a 100 watts panel), you’ll often see less.  75% is a conservative number that helps project how much power your solar panels will actually produce.

Your location in the world and time of year is also important to consider when calculating how much power a solar panel will generate.  Different locations and different times of year differ in the number of “Peak Sun Hours” they provide. You can calculate your Peak Sun Hours online using this Peak Sun Hours Calculator. Your annual average peak sun hours should be added to your calculations when determining how many solar panels your system needs.

When designing our solar systems, we use the following formula to determine how many watts will our solar panels really produce:

RV Solar Panel Production Formula

As an example, if we were looking at adding 2 100-watt solar panels to an RV, we would start by taking the total panel rated watts (200w) and multiplying by .75 to determine. With a real-world projected rating of 150 watts, we then multiply that by the annual average of Peak Sun Hours in our location, Phoenix, AZ. So we multiply 150 by 5.78 (Peak Sun Hours in Phoenix) to get a total of 867 watts of projected daily solar production.

To convert this number to amp hours (Ah) to compare against your energy audit calculations, simply divide your projected daily solar production (in watts) by the voltage of your system – typically 12 volts. So if we divide 867 by 12, we learn that our 200w solar system should generate 72.25 Ah of power each day.

Formula to convert your projected solar wattage into amp hours - RV solar panels

Define Your Solar Objectives

It’s important to decide the goals you have for your solar system.  Will your solar panels need to recharge your batteries fully each day? Or will they just give you a day or two extra while boondocking?

For most RV, van, and boat applications, we recommend a solar system size that replenishes the amount of daily power you use on average. The data from an energy audit should tell you how much daily power you will use on average. Adding a solar system that matches this amount allows you to tailor your power usage to meet your needs.  Need to make your batteries last for weeks? Reduce your daily power consumption by 20-30%. Only staying off-grid for 48 hours? Enjoy all of your electrical luxuries without worrying about running out of juice.

When sizing your solar system, defining your solar objectives will ensure you build the right solar system the first time – saving you time and money.

Consider Your Install Location
Solarland SLP080-12M Multicrystalline 80 Watt 12 Volt Solar Panel - RV solar panel
Our 80w slim solar panel sits just above our electrical compartment on the front of our trailer

Your solar panels will need to be securely fastened to your RV, van, or boat to protect them from the elements and to make sure they will hold up over the years. The design of your vehicle’s or off-grid cabin’s roof may be a limiting factor on how many solar panels you can safely install.  Before purchasing your solar panels, it’s important to measure and inspect your potential mounting locations to determine what type, size, and number of panels your vehicle can support.

Flat surfaces are best for installing solar panels as they give you the best variety of solar panels (both rigid & flexible) to choose from. Curved or round surfaces (think the top of an Airstream trailer) can also serve as great mounting locations for solar panels, but you’ll probably want to focus on flexible solar panels that adapt to the curve of your structure.

Some Examples

Our Outward Overland Trailer has a wealth of flat rooftop, but most of the area is shaded by our roof rack and roof rack accessories.  As for viable solar panel mounting locations, the trailer only had a thin rectangular space that sits in front of the roof rack.  This area, about 13in by 60in, didn’t give us enough room to place a typical 100w solar panel (20in by 40in).  We found and purchased a “slim” 80w solar panel made by Solarland that measured 13.5″ by 58″.  While it’s not a perfect fit, it’s the best option we can find to get as many solar watts into our system as possible. To add more solar, we purchased a portable 100w solar suitcase from Renogy that we can connect when needed and can “aim” as the sun moves throughout the day.

We recently added solar panels to a 46ft sailboat that was running out of power when away from the dock for a few days.  Having no hard roof structures to mount solar panels to, we decided to add 4 100w flexible solar panels to the canvas bimini cover over the cockpit area.  The bimini roof is made of soft canvas and its structure curves across the width of the boat.  Rigid solar panels weren’t an option for us, but flexible solar panels handle the bends of the bimini perfectly.

Mounting Your Solar Panels?

When researching which solar panels to purchase, make sure to consider how you’ll mount your solar panels. Your RV solar panels won’t stay put when traveling or during high winds unless they are securely mounted to your rooftop. Planning how you will mount your solar panels will help better estimate your project cost and ensure your panels stay put for a long time.

If you are mounting rigid panels to a flat roof, aluminum mounting brackets like these are a perfect and easy addition to your project. The brackets connect to the underside of your panel and provide a flat surface with holes to mount to your vehicle’s roof. Brackets like these give you a low-profile look while also allowing for some airflow underneath the panel – something that most panel manufacturers recommend for cooling purposes.

If you are designing a system for an off-grid cabin, you may want to consider not mounting your solar array on your roof, but on a nearby pole mount instead. Mounting solar panels via a pole mount gives you the flexibility to have more panels than your roof may allow and they can be set at optimized sun angles that your roof may not provide.

You May Need to Get Creative With Your Mounting
Renogy 100w flexible panels installed on boat bimini
Adding solar panels to an off-grid electrical system can help extend trips to the outdoors.

With limited solar panel installation locations on our overland trailer, we chose to mount our single 80-watt panel using a Renogy tiltable mount which lets us adjust the angle of the panel to maximize our solar production. We keep our panel locked down flat when traveling allowing it to produce power while we’re on the road, but we tilt the angle once we get to our destination to get the most out of our panel.

When it comes to flexible solar panels that typically have 6-8 grommets around the edges for mounting, things can be trickier.  The grommets can be used to screw down the solar panel directly to your roof, but without the recommended airflow underneath the panel.  We’ve also heard about a lot of people gluing their panels down with RV roof adhesive to a round roof surface with success.  For our sailboat bimini solar addition, we decided to try high-power magnets to keep our panels secure to the roof of our bimini.  With 6 magnets (100ld holding strength) on each panel, our panels stay put even in high winds.

Rigid vs Flexible

When choosing whether to add rigid or flexible solar panels to your system, we recommend going with rigid panels whenever possible.  Flexible panels should be considered when rigid panels can’t be mounted properly or when weight is a concern.

Rigid Solar Panels

Overall, rigid solar panels will give you the best performance.  Rigid panels have been on the market for decades and have served as tried and true power-generating devices.  They last longer than flexible panels, and are less expensive but are also heavier than flexible panels. Rigid panels are perfect for flat mounting areas but can be difficult to mount on surfaces that aren’t flat or can’t support the additional weight.

Flexible Solar Panels

Flexible RV Solar Panels shine when traditional rigid panels aren’t an option.  Flexible panels can bend allowing them to curve around round roofs.  They are also lighter making them better for installations where weight is a concern.  Historically, flexible panels haven’t lasted as long as rigid panels and don’t perform on average as well, though as technology advances, flexible panels are getting better. In our experience, flexible panels have performed better than we expected, and believe that performance concerns are often more due to the creative installations of many flexible panels rather than their quality.

Choosing the right solar panels for your RV, van, boat, or off-grid home can produce power for your adventures for years to come.  With planning and careful consideration, adding RV solar panels to your system can be done easily and relatively inexpensively.  Make sure to do your homework before buying your panels though.  Make sure you are getting the right number of panels and have a secure location to mount them. Once you install the right panels for your system, you’ll enjoy sitting back and letting the sun provide free power day after day – allowing you to enjoy the outdoors in comfort and extend your trips away from the grid.


View other articles in our Off-Grid Solar System Series:


How to Conduct an Energy Audit on a Recreational Vehicle

RV Energy Audit
An energy audit can help determine the energy efficiency of your electrical system and make sure it’s sized appropriately

When exploring wild spaces in an RV, van, travel trailer, or boat, it’s important for your vehicle to have an electrical system that will keep your systems running for the duration of your trip.  If your vehicle’s electrical system isn’t up to the task or if you want to upgrade your power capabilities, it’s vital to start with an energy audit. A complete energy audit will provide important information about your electrical system to help you make the right choices for your vehicle, usage, and budget.

What is an Energy Audit?

An energy audit is a comprehensive inspection of your energy typically usage used to determine ways to conserve energy or to properly size power systems.  In your home, you may hire a professional to conduct an energy audit to look for opportunities to save energy or to size a solar system.  For an RV, van, travel trailer, or other off-grid outdoor vehicles, an energy audit can help you determine the size of batteries or the number of solar panels you need.

Conducting an energy audit looks at all of your electronic devices, how much you use them, and helps establish a target amount of power you’ll need to power your devices.  For recreational vehicles, this target power number is usually calculated in amp hours per day. For example, you might conduct an energy audit and determine that when you’re boondocking, or camping off-grid, your RV typically uses 50 Ah of power per day.

Benefits of Conducting an Energy Audit on your RV, Van, or Travel Trailer

1. An Energy Audit Determines Your Power Storage and Power Generation Needs

Each of us uses power differently. Some vigilantly turn off lights and other devices when they aren’t in use.  Others prefer to have every electronic luxury all going at the same time.  Conducting an energy audit on your RV, van, travel trailer, or boat based on how you use it will calculate your unique power needs.  Once you know how much power you use, you can ensure your batteries, solar panels, or generator are sized appropriately.

2. An Energy Audit helps you Better Understand your Electrical System

Whether you purchase an RV or build your own electrical system for your van, it’s important to know how your electrical system is designed and how much each device uses.  An energy audit provides you with this information per device.

3. An Energy Audit Identifies What Devices Should be Upgraded to be More Energy Efficient

Knowing what each device in your electrical system consumes lets you make better decisions about your system.  Discovering which devices consume a large percentage of your power will help identify which device upgrades will save the most power and allow you to extend your trips.

How to Conduct an Energy Audit

Step 1: Measure the Current Draw of Each of your Devices

Most RV, van, travel trailer, or boat electrical systems have a battery monitor.  Some smaller or older systems have only a voltage meter (voltmeter) – allowing you to “guess” your battery capacity percentage based on the voltage of your batteries.  To conduct an energy audit, a voltmeter won’t do the trick.  You’ll need a device that can measure the current (in amps) of each device.

Renogy 500A Battery Monitor with Shunt
The Renogy Battery Monitor measures your current draw (in amperage) of your electrical system

If you don’t have a system monitor that can measure amperage draw, we recommend picking up Renogy’s 500A Battery Monitor (Read our full review of the Renogy Battery Monitor). At under $100, Renogy’s battery monitor includes a shunt that you install between all of your devices and your battery.  This shunt measures the amount of current draw coming out of your battery in real time and displays the result on the battery monitor screen.

Turn off all devices in your system

To measure the current draw of each device, start by turning off all devices in your system.  Once all devices have been turned off, your battery monitor should be reading at or near 0 Amps.  If your monitor doesn’t read 0 Amps with all devices turned off, check to make sure you haven’t forgotten any.  If after double-checking, you still have some current draw in your system, don’t worry.  This small amount of power may simply be “parasitic loss” – a small amount of power that your system draws even when off.  If your number is more than zero, simply make note of the amount and subtract it from your measurements of each device.

Measure each device

Once you have all devices off, turn one device on and measure its current draw in amps.  It’s helpful to have a spreadsheet handy for this step to record your measurements.  Make a list of each device in your system and record its current draw in amps next to it.  We’ve created a simple spreadsheet to get you started –download it here. You can add and level each device in the first column and record its current draw in the ‘amperage” column.

Download our Energy Audit Spreadsheet

DIY Energy Audit Spreadsheet
Download our Energy Audit Spreadsheet to record your device readings and to calculate your total system usage.
Step 2: Determine How Much You Use Each Device Per Day

Now that you’ve identified how much power each device in your system uses when it’s on, you’ll need to note how much time you use each device for.

Add your daily usage (in hours) to the spreadsheet under the “hours used per day” column. For devices that are on all the time, like a refrigerator, coming up with these numbers is easy.  For intermittent devices, like a water pump, try to project how many minutes you’re water pump is on per day. If you typically use your water pump 10 times per day for an average of 1 minute, then you use your water pump for 10 minutes per day or .167 hours per day.

Imagine an average day

When determining how many hours per day you use each device, we recommend thinking about an average day. – not a day of heavy use for a particular device. For example, use usage numbers from a typical sunny day where you don’t use your lights during the day as opposed to a dark, stormy day where you might use interior lighting during the day.

Error on the high side

To determine your power needs, don’t cheat these numbers. The end result of your energy audit is the projected daily usage total of your system.  If you typically use lights for 4hrs/day but want to cut back to 2/hrs per day to save power, enter the higher number for this exercise.

An electrical system that is bigger than you need is better than one that is less than you need – provided you have the budget. If you are going to guess on your usage, guess on the higher side.

Step 3: Establish your daily usage numbers

To establish how much power each device in your system uses per day, multiply the amperage of the device by the number of hours it will be used each day.

Amperage X Hours/Day = Total Amp Hours per Day

If you’re using our spreadsheet, it will do the math for you for each device.  In the “Total Ah/day” column, you’ll discover the amount of power each device listed uses in your system.  Because batteries are usually labeled in amp hours (Ah), keeping your energy audit recording in Ah will help more easily determine how your usage stacks up against your storage capacity.

Once you have your daily Ah totals for each device, add them all together to discover your total system needs per day in Ah.  If you are using our spreadsheet, you’ll find this number at the bottom in green and labeled “Total System Ah/day”.

DuFour 460 Grand Large 12V Switch Panel
Using your vehicle’s 12V switch panel, turn on each device individually to measure its current draw

Now That You Know Your Daily Power Needs, You Can Make Better Decisions About the Future of Your System

Now that you know your usage, you can compare that number to your battery capacity.  If you have a 200Ah battery bank, 200Ah of storage divided by 50Ah of daily usage will give you 4 days of power before needing to recharge. If you want to extend the time you can camp off-grid, you may look at adding a solar system.  Let’s say you want to target a camping duration of 7 days with your system. For the 3 additional days, you’ll need to generate an additional 150Ah of power. Having 7 days to generate 150Ah of power means you’ll need a solar system that can generate around 21.5 Ah per day.

Knowing your daily power usage may indicate that you need to add to your battery bank or, if that’s not possible, reduce your power usage by using higher-power devices less each day.  If your current electrical system doesn’t fit your power needs, you only have 2 options:

  1. add more power (storage capacity with batteries, charging capacity with solar, generator, etc)
  2. decrease your power usage (limit your usage, shorten your trip durations, etc)

There are a lot of ways to accomplish either (or both) items above.  In the end, you’ll need to decide what alterations your electrical system needs based on your needs and your budget.  By conducting an energy audit, you’ll now know exactly how much power each device in your system draws, your daily system usage, and how you’re system should be sized.  You’ll have a lot more useful information to make informed decisions to improve your electrical system and to save money in the process.

Download our Energy Audit Spreadsheet

The Outward Overland Trailer: Electrical System Design & Diagram

Electrical System in the Outward Overland Trailer

Jump to the Outward Trailer Wiring Diagram

We purchased a custom off-road trailer to use as a platform to build the perfect overland trailer. We’ve spent the past few years adding an electrical system, a water system, a pull-out kitchen, and a roof rack system to complete the build. In this post, we’ll share the design decisions and wiring diagram of our overland trailer electrical system. To learn more about our overland trailer build, visit the first post in our Outward Overland trailer Series.

Getting Started

Outward Overland Trailer Build Before
The Outward Overland Trailer As We Bought It

We started by calculating our power needs by conducting an energy audit based on our projected electrical needs. To conduct an energy audit, you determine the power draw (in amps) of each electric component in your system and multiply the amount of power of each device by the time per day (in hours) you plan to use it. This gives you a list of projected amp hours (Ah) you’ll use each device per day. Add them together and you have your projected daily Ah usage.

Our list of desired electrical systems included a pressurized water system with hot water, a 12v refrigerator, and lighting throughout the various trailer compartments. Conducting our energy audit on our planned usage, we determined we would use about 20 amp hours of power per day. Our experiences with an airstream trailer in the past confirmed that 20Ah per day was a good target to shoot for.

Planning our 12V Electrical System

Once we had our target daily usage of 20Ah, we could then begin to size our power storage and recharging systems. We determined that an average trip using our overland trailer would be about 3 days – mostly long weekends. 3 days of 20Ah of power usage meant that we needed at least 60Ah of battery storage. When it comes to batteries, more is always better providing the budget and space allow. With that in mind, we upped our desired battery bank size to 100Ah – giving us the potential to spend 5 days out in the wild without needing to recharge.

In terms of recharging our batteries, we first needed a way to recharge them when we returned home to the power grid. We landed on a 10-amp 120V battery charger for recharging the batteries at home. We also wanted the ability to recharge the batteries with solar panels. We calculated that adding around 200 watts of solar would give us between 20Ah to 50Ah of charging capability per day, depending on conditions.

With these numbers, we began purchasing the best components to fit our build.

Main Electrical System Components

Batteries

Batteries are typically the single largest purchase in your electrical system. On a budget, we purchased two 6V 210Ah “golf cart” batteries from Costco. Needing to get these 6V batteries to output 12V, we wired them in series to double the voltage to 12V and keep the amp hours at 210Ah. These golf cart batteries are traditional wet cell deep cycle batteries (not AGM or Lithium Ion) which shouldn’t be discharged to less than 50% of capacity to maintain the health of the battery. So 210Ah at 50% depth of discharge would give us 105Ah of usable power.

To fit the batteries into the front “electrical” compartment in our trailer, we fabricated a battery box out of angle iron and installed tie-down straps to keep them in place.

Battery Monitor
Renogy 500A Battery Monitor with Shunt
The Renogy Battery Monitor and its bright green LCD display in our electrical compartment

To manage our electrical system and to closely monitor our battery capacity while on adventures, it was important for us to install a good battery monitor. We choose Renogy’s 500A Battery Charger with Shunt. It’s inexpensive, monitors power going both in and out of your batteries, and keeps track of your net usage compared to your battery capacity.

To monitor your system’s power usage, the Renogy battery monitor uses a shunt which wires as the first component on the negative side of your battery. To ensure you measure ALL power usage, all charging and discharging devices must be wired behind this shunt.

The shunt then connects to the monitor display via a thin communication cable, which we installed later in the build.

Read our full review of the Renogy 500A Battery Monitor

Battery Disconnect Switch

To have control to shut down our electrical system to work on it or when the trailer is stored for long periods of time, we installed a battery disconnect switch in our system.

Like the battery monitor shunt, the disconnect switch must be wired early in the circuit with all other devices wired behind to ensure all devices can be disconnected from the battery. As you can see on our wiring diagram below, we wired our disconnect switch on the positive side of the battery.

250A System Fuse

Between the battery and the disconnect switch, we added a 250A system fuse on the positive battery terminal. In an event of a short circuit or component malfunction, this fuse will blow protecting the rest of our system. We sized this quite large to allow normal operation to occur without incident.

Bus Bars
travel trailer bus bar electrical wiring
The Wiring & Installation of the Core Electrical Components

Bus Bars, or power distribution blocks, aren’t always necessary but are a convenient way to keep your electrical system installation clean and organized. Bus bars provide multiple mounting posts for components to be wired together and make the installation of larger wires much simpler.

The biggest reason we choose to use both positive and negative bus bars in our build was to create single sources of contact to our disconnect switch on the positive side and our shunt on the negative side. The bus bars allowed to easily wire all other components behind the disconnect and shunt with a single wire between them and the busbar.

Shore Power Charging Components

120V Battery Charging

The term “shore power” comes from the marine industry, referring to a boat or ship being able to plug into the power grid when in port. For camping trailers or RVs, shore power is a 120V power source used for system charging when a connection to the power grid is possible.

For our shore power system, we chose NOCO’s Genius 10 – a simple 10A 120V car battery charger. We installed the NOCO charger into our electrical compartment and wired both positive and negative wires to their respective bus bars.

NOCO 15A AC Waterproof Inlet
With the NOCO plug, we can plug in using a household extension cord in seconds.
Plugging In

Because we installed the shore charger inside our electrical compartment, we needed a way to easily plug in a 120V power cord to charge the system. We installed NOCO’s waterproof 120V plug into the exterior of our electrical compartment and plugged the interior side into the charger. With this setup, we can plug in using a household extension cord in seconds.

With various and automatic charging phases, we can leave the NOCO battery charger plugged in for long periods of time without concern of overcharging or damaging our batteries

System Display/Control Components

12V Switch Panel

To add 12V circuits to separate and protect our various electrical components, we installed a Nilight 5-switch panel with 2 USB charging ports and a 12V “cigarette lighter” port. Protected with a 15A fuse, this panel also includes a voltmeter to verify our system voltage with the Renogy battery monitor.

To wire the panel into the system, we wired its source wires to the busbars, cut a hole into our control panel box and attached the panel via the corner screws.

We currently only use 3 of the switches, leaving 2 additional switches to expand our electrical components in the future. We have switches for our trailer’s led lighting, 12V water pump, and 12V refrigerator. Each of these components can be switched on and off as we need them. Being able to turn individual systems helps to reduce parasitic power waste in each of these systems when they are not in use.

The USB ports also come in handy for charging phones and other small devices while we are at the campsite. We use the 12V “cigarette lighter” port for our air compressor when needed.

Battery Monitor Display

We have the display for our Renogy Battery Monitor installed next to our switch panel and inverter switch in the middle of our electronics compartment. The battery monitor has a large display with adjustable backlighting, allowing easy viewing without having to turn on the lights.

We love that the battery monitor display shows us the net power usage in real-time. It also displays our current battery capacity in both percentage and icon. With the data, we can monitor our power usage closely ensuring we have enough power for the duration of our trip.

Inverter On/Off Switch

Our 1000w inverter has a separate switch installed in our control panel. While this switch we can quickly switch the inverter on when we need it and off when we don’t. Being able to turn the inverter off when we don’t need it avoids a small amount of parasitic power draw that it pulls when switched on. The switch also includes a power led as well as an error led to indicate problems with our inverter.

Overland Trailer Electrical System Control Panel
The Outward Overland Trailer Electrical System Control Panel

120V AC Components

1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter

When designing our overland trailer electrical system, we chose to add a power inverter to the system. Inverters convert 12V DC power from the batteries to 120V AC power to use with most household devices. Pure sine wave inverters create clean and safe power that can be used for sensitive electronics like computers.

For our trailer, we purchased Renogy’s 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter. 1000W gives us enough wattage to use most electronics, but not quite enough to run high-power electronics such as hair dryers, electric kettles, or most heaters. These types of devices use a lot of power and with our desired 20A/day budget, we decided that we didn’t even want the temptation on this trailer. Besides, we planned a propane system on our trailer for cooking and heating.

120V AC RV Outlet
An external AC outlet lets us plug into our inverter power quickly and easily
125A Inverter Fuse

To install our inverter, we wired the inverter’s DC inputs into both busbars and added a 125A fuse inline for added protection. We then ran the small communication cable to the on/off switch on the control panel.

Getting 120V power out

Our inverter has two 120V AC outlets built into its side. Since the inverter is mounted inside our electrical compartment, we installed a waterproof AC outlet to the exterior of our trailer and plugged it into one of the inverter outlets.

Once the inverter is switched on, we can simply plug our AC devices into this plug on the outside of our trailer to get power. The inverter’s second outlet allows us to plug in additional devices to utilize the inverter’s power as needed.

Solar System Components

Solar Panels
Solarland SLP080-12M Multicrystalline 80 Watt 12 Volt Solar Panel
Our 80w slim solar panel sits just above our electrical compartment on the front of our trailer

To recharge our batteries while we’re away from the grid, we looked for the best way to add around 200w of solar panels to our trailer. While the top of our trailer is large and flat, we avoided placing panels on the trailer “lid” due to extra weight and the shadows that our roof rack accessories would cast on the panels. The best placement for a rigid was on the top of our electrical compartment at the front of our trailer. But being only 13 inches deep, typically sized 100w rigid solar panels wouldn’t fit. After a long search, we found an 80w slim rigid solar panel from NAZ Solar Electric.

We installed the 80w slim solar panel using an adjustable mounting system which allows us to adjust the angle of the panel to catch the most amount of sunlight. The cables pass through the roof of our electric compartment using a solar gland to keep water out.

As we didn’t have room to permanently mount all of our solar panels on the roof of our trailer, we purchased a 100w foldable solar suitcase from Renogy to add to our system. This portable solar panel gives us the flexibility of adding more power when we need it and allows us to move and point the 100w panel throughout the day to produce more power.

Now with 180w of solar panels, we purchased a solar parallel adapter cable giving us the ability to connect both panels in parallel with one output to the charge controller. We wired the rigid 80W panel to one end of this cable and connected the other end to a waterproof SAE-style solar input socket mounted to the side of the trailer. The solar input plug adds an easy way to plug in the solar cables from our 100w portable panel when needed.

Solar Charge Controller
Renogy Rover 20A MPPT Charge Controller
Our Renogy Rover Charge Controller sits just above our battery bank

To control the battery charging ability of our solar generation, we chose Renogy’s Rover 20A MPPT Solar Charge Controller. The MPPT controller converts the higher voltage from the parallel wiring of our panels to the best voltage to charge our batteries.

The charge controller is wired to the battery via the positive and negative busbars and also provides multi-phase charging to protect our batteries. We’ve added Renogy’s optional BT-1 Bluetooth adapter which provides the ability to monitor the status of your solar system via a smartphone.

Our controller is mounted just above our batteries in our electrical compartment, which is convenient for the placement of the included battery temperature sensor.

Summary

While we’ll surely add and expand our trailer’s electrical system in the future, planning our system by starting with an energy audit ensured we started on the right track. Our electrical system allows us to spend 5 days in the wild and more if the sun is readily available. It powers our lighting, water system, refrigeration, and device charging while camping without trouble. And when we return, it can be recharged easily and quickly from the grid.

If you are interested in diving deeper into the specific components we used on our build or would like to use our build as inspiration for your own RV, van, or trailer electrical system build, please view our interactive wiring diagram below. You can also download the diagram in pdf format which also includes clickable links for each component.

Interactive Wiring Diagram

Hover/Click on The Components for More Info

Download a PDF of the Outward Trailer Wiring Diagram

Designing a DIY Off Grid Solar System

Renogy 100w flexible panels installed on boat bimini
Adding solar panels to an off-grid electrical system can help extend trips to the outdoors.

These days, a growing number of people are choosing to explore the outdoors in comfort.  Having the luxuries of lighting, refrigeration, and running water can help extend trips in the wild and make them more enjoyable for all.  Whether your outdoor vehicle of choice is an RV, van, boat, travel trailer, or overland trailer like ours, you deserve an electrical system that has enough juice to last as long as you want.  If you are thinking about designing a new off-grid solar system or want to redesign your current vehicle’s system, we can help point you in the right direction.

While every off-grid solar system is different, every system includes the basic components below.  We really love Renogy’s line of electronics and think they match up well with most people building their own DIY off-grid solar system.  We aren’t being paid anything by Renogy to promote their products, we just feel that they offer solid electronics at the best prices and thus have used them almost exclusively in our latest solar system builds.

If you choose to purchase any of the products we’ve highlighted, don’t forget to use coupon code Welcome5 to receive 5% off when purchasing through Renogy.com.

Batteries

Batteries are the heart of an off-grid solar system.  They store the power your solar panels generate for use when the sun isn’t shining. Being the workhorse of your system, they will typically be the most expensive part of your system. Batteries for an off-grid system should be sized according to your daily power need.

Deep Cycle vs Starting Batteries

Standard automotive batteries are built to deliver high-cranking amperage for short periods of time to start your car. Once started, your car’s electrical system depends on your alternator to generate the vehicle’s power needs and to recharge the battery.  Off-grid systems have different needs and thus require different batteries.  Deep cycle batteries are designed to be deeply discharged and recharged regularly and, as a result, are the battery of choice for off-grid solar systems. Deep-cycle batteries will last longer in an off-grid power system and deliver better performance than vehicle-starting batteries.  Motorhomes, vans, and boats typically have both types of batteries on board, while camping or travel trailers typically have only deep-cycle batteries.

Types of Deep Cycle batteries

There are a few main types of deep-cycle batteries available on the market, including flooded lead acid, AGM, and lithium batteries. Flooded lead acid (FLA) batteries are the least expensive but require regular maintenance and shouldn’t be discharged to less than 50% of their capacity. AGM batteries are spill-proof, don’t require maintenance, and can be discharged to 80% of their capacity, but are more expensive than FLA batteries. Lithium batteries have longer lifespans, are also maintenance-free, and can be discharged to 100% without much damage. They are the most expensive battery type, but costs are coming down.

Battery Capacity

Deep cycle batteries have capacity ratings measured in amp hours (Ah).  A 100Ah deep cycle battery can store and deliver 1 amp of power for 100 hours or 1o amps of power for 10 hours. When designing an off-grid solar system, we recommend using Ah to calculate your power usage and your corresponding solar needs.

 

Renogy Deep Cycle AGM Battery 12 Volt 100Ah, 3% Self-Discharge Rate, 2000A Max Discharge Current, Safe Charge, Appliances for RV, Camping, Cabin, Marine and Off-Grid System, Maintenance-Free, Gray
Renogy 12V 100Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery,4000+Deep Cycles,Built-in BMS,FCC&UL Certificates,Backup Power Perfect for RV,Marine,Off-Grid System,Maintenance-Free
Our Favorite
Renogy 12V 200Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery with Bluetooth,2000+Deep Cycles,Backup Power Perfect for RV,Off-Road,Cabin,Marine,Off-Grid Home Energy Storage
Renogy Deep Cycle AGM Battery 12 Volt 100Ah
Renogy 12V 100Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Batter
Renogy 12V 200Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery with Bluetooth
Renogy Deep Cycle AGM Battery 12 Volt 100Ah, 3% Self-Discharge Rate, 2000A Max Discharge Current, Safe Charge, Appliances for RV, Camping, Cabin, Marine and Off-Grid System, Maintenance-Free, Gray
Renogy Deep Cycle AGM Battery 12 Volt 100Ah
Renogy 12V 100Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery,4000+Deep Cycles,Built-in BMS,FCC&UL Certificates,Backup Power Perfect for RV,Marine,Off-Grid System,Maintenance-Free
Renogy 12V 100Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Batter
Our Favorite
Renogy 12V 200Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery with Bluetooth,2000+Deep Cycles,Backup Power Perfect for RV,Off-Road,Cabin,Marine,Off-Grid Home Energy Storage
Renogy 12V 200Ah Lithium LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery with Bluetooth

 

Solar Panels

Solar Panels convert energy from the sun into usable (and storable) power for your system. Solar energy is freely available and is environmentally friendly, making it the power of choice when venturing away from the grid.  When connected to deep-cycle batteries, solar panels recharge the batteries during daylight hours. During the evening when the sun isn’t shining, power is discharged from the power stored in your batteries.  When the sunlight returns, the batteries are recharged again.

The two main types of solar panels are rigid and flexible solar panels.  Rigid solar panels are more efficient, cheaper, and have longer lifespans than flexible panels.  Flexible panels are lighter and can be installed on surfaces that aren’t perfectly flat – like the roof of an Airstream travel trailer or a boat bimini cover. Rigid solar panels offer the best value for standard installations, while flexible panels offer the “flexibility” to add solar in cases where heavy, rigid panels aren’t an option.

 

Renogy Solar Panel 100 Watt 12 Volt, High-Efficiency Monocrystalline PV Module Power Charger for RV Marine Rooftop Farm Battery and Other Off-Grid Applications, RNG-100D-SS, Single 100W
Our Favorite
Renogy Solar Panel 100W 12V Lightweight Semi Flexible Black Division Monocrystalline Bendable Mono Off-Grid Charger for RV Boat Van Car Uneven Surfaces, LTWT-Flex
Renogy Solar Panel 200W 12V Lightweight Monocrystalline Semi-Flexible Bendable Mono Off-Grid Charger for Marine RV Cabin Van Car Uneven Surfaces
100 Watt 12 Volt Monocrystalline Solar Panel (Compact Design)
100 Watt 12 Volt Black Division Lightweight Monocrystalline Solar Panel
200 Watt 12 Volt Flexible Monocrystalline Solar Panel
Renogy Solar Panel 100 Watt 12 Volt, High-Efficiency Monocrystalline PV Module Power Charger for RV Marine Rooftop Farm Battery and Other Off-Grid Applications, RNG-100D-SS, Single 100W
100 Watt 12 Volt Monocrystalline Solar Panel (Compact Design)
Our Favorite
Renogy Solar Panel 100W 12V Lightweight Semi Flexible Black Division Monocrystalline Bendable Mono Off-Grid Charger for RV Boat Van Car Uneven Surfaces, LTWT-Flex
100 Watt 12 Volt Black Division Lightweight Monocrystalline Solar Panel
Renogy Solar Panel 200W 12V Lightweight Monocrystalline Semi-Flexible Bendable Mono Off-Grid Charger for Marine RV Cabin Van Car Uneven Surfaces
200 Watt 12 Volt Flexible Monocrystalline Solar Panel

 

Solar Charge Controller

Solar Charge Controllers accept the power from your solar panels and convert it to the appropriate voltage and current (amperage) to best charge your batteries.  They prevent your solar panels from overcharging your batteries – which can drastically reduce their lifespan.

There are two main types of solar charge converters – Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT). PWM charge controllers are less expensive but less efficient than MPPT controllers.  MPPT controllers are more costly but convert much more of the current available from a solar panel to the appropriate voltage for battery charging. MPPT controllers are up to 30% more efficient than PWM controllers – leading to faster battery charging times.

 

Renogy Voyager 20A 12V/24V PWM Waterproof Solar Charge Controller w/ LCD Display for AGM, Gel, Flooded and Lithium Battery, Used in RVs, Trailers, Boats, Yachts, Voyager 20A
Renogy 30A 12V/24V PWM Solar Charge Controller with LCD Display Flush Mount Design Negative Ground, Compatible with Sealed, Gel, Flooded and Lithium Batteries, Adventurer 30A
Our Favorite
Renogy Rover 40 Amp 12V/24V DC Input MPPT Solar Charge Controller Auto Parameter Adjustable LCD Display Solar Panel Regulator fit for Gel Sealed Flooded and Lithium Battery
Renogy Voyager 20A 12V/24V PWM Waterproof Solar Charge Controller
Renogy 30A 12V/24V PWM Solar Charge Controller
Renogy Rover 40 Amp 12V/24V DC Input MPPT Solar Charge Controller
Renogy Voyager 20A 12V/24V PWM Waterproof Solar Charge Controller w/ LCD Display for AGM, Gel, Flooded and Lithium Battery, Used in RVs, Trailers, Boats, Yachts, Voyager 20A
Renogy Voyager 20A 12V/24V PWM Waterproof Solar Charge Controller
Renogy 30A 12V/24V PWM Solar Charge Controller with LCD Display Flush Mount Design Negative Ground, Compatible with Sealed, Gel, Flooded and Lithium Batteries, Adventurer 30A
Renogy 30A 12V/24V PWM Solar Charge Controller
Our Favorite
Renogy Rover 40 Amp 12V/24V DC Input MPPT Solar Charge Controller Auto Parameter Adjustable LCD Display Solar Panel Regulator fit for Gel Sealed Flooded and Lithium Battery
Renogy Rover 40 Amp 12V/24V DC Input MPPT Solar Charge Controller

 

Inverter

Since batteries are typically 12V, most RVs, vans, boats, and travel trailers typically utilize 12V electronics in their design.  With 12V current readily available via the batteries, 12V lighting, water pumps, and appliances are the most efficient.  If you want to bring along some of the comforts of home, the 12V current from your batteries needs to be converted to 120V.  Power inverters are the devices that accomplish this task.

As an example, if you want to install a TV in your RV or charge a laptop for working remotely from your overland trailer, you’ll need an inverter.  When deciding whether you need an inverter, just think of any devices you want to bring along with you that have a typical household plug.

Power inverters are rated by the number of watts they can produce.  When choosing an inverter, you’ll want to determine the maximum amount of 120V watts that you’ll use at one time and size it above that.  For example, if you will only use the inverter to watch TV that uses 70 watts, you’ll want an inverter that produces at least 100 watts of power.  If you bring your 1500-watt electric kettle along with you, you’ll want to make sure you have a 1500w inverter.  As with most elements of an off-grid electrical system, you’ll want to choose an inverter that’s rated for a bit more power than you’ll use to give you some extra headroom.

Inverters aren’t 100% efficient which means that some of the 12V power they convert to 120V gets lost in the process.  And since inverters typically are used for higher-wattage electronics, using your inverter can discharge your battery quickly.  Make sure to consider this when choosing an inverter.

 

Renogy 700W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Our Favorite
Renogy 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Renogy 2000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Renogy 700W Pure Sine Wave Inverter
Renogy 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter
Renogy 2000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter
Renogy 700W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Renogy 700W Pure Sine Wave Inverter
Our Favorite
Renogy 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Renogy 1000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter
Renogy 2000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V AC Converter for Home, RV, Truck, Off-Grid Solar Power Inverter 12V to 110V with Built-in 5V/2.1A USB Port, AC Hardwire Port, Remote Controller
Renogy 2000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter

 

On to the Next Step

Now that we’ve laid out the various components you need to design a DIY off-grid solar system, the next step is to determine how much power your solar system will need to generate and store. To come up with some numbers, you’ll want to do an energy audit of your RV, van, boat, trailer, or other off-grid application.  If you are redesigning an existing system, an energy audit is as simple as determining how much power you use per day.  If you are building a new solar system, you’ll need to project your power usage based on your plans.  Either way, in part 2 of our Off Grid Solar System series, we’ll show you how to conduct an energy audit on your system.

Review: GOLABS i200 Portable Power Station

GOLABS i200 Portable Power Station
The GOLABS i200 has a 256Wh LiFePO4 Battery and plenty of inputs & outputs to fuel your adventures.

Our GOLABS i200 power station review used a unit we purchased on Amazon as we put it to the test on a recent 3-day camping trip to the mountains of Northern Arizona. In this review, we tested all of the available ports and used them in as many different ways as we could think of to test the various discharging and recharging functions.

When spending more than a few days out in the wild, having a power source can both be a luxury and a lifesaver.  Having the ability to charge a Bluetooth speaker while camping keeps the good times rolling. Being able to keep your phone charged can make all the difference when things go wrong out in the wild.  Portable power stations, like the GOLABS i200, have been gaining in popularity in recent years. As battery technology has gotten better, portable power stations give you the ability to power all of your devices with one portable unit that can be easily carried around your campsite for a variety of uses.  Don’t get me wrong, a portable power station isn’t something you’d bring along on a backpacking trip, but for car campers, portable power stations are a must-have item in my opinion.

The Verdict:

The i200 is my first portable power station.  I’ve watched the technology get better and better while the prices lowered until I couldn’t resist the GOLABS i200.  Power stations come in a variety of battery sizes from around 100Wh (watt hours) to over 2000Wh, but we decided that the 200-300Wh range was a perfect fit for our needs (mainly camping and the occasional portable power needed around the house).  At 256W, the GOLABS i200 fits our needs perfectly. With all of its available ports, the ability to recharge the battery with our portable solar panel, and weighing in at only 8 lbs, the GOLABS i200 has been a welcome and valuable addition to our camping kit.  The i200 is currently listed on Amazon for $199, but we purchased ours a few months back on sale at $120.   At $199, this power station is still a worthwhile purchase, but you may look at other similar models at a lower price.

While our overland trailer has its own 200Ah 12V power system, the i200 is a great compliment allowing us to leverage the solar components we’ve installed in the trailer while extending our power to our tent and other areas of our campsite.

The Design:

Ports on the GOLABS i200

The i200 is a good-looking little unit. All ports are on the front with a blank back and airflow ports on both sides. The left side also includes a bright white led light with 3 modes – solid, slow-flashing, and quick-flashing.  The display is simple and displays battery level and current watt usage, and also lets you know what type of devices are currently using power (USB, PD, 12V, & AC). My only gripe about the display is that GOLABS chose to use a battery icon with 5 bars to indicate battery level.  I would have preferred a battery percentage amount for more accuracy, but at this price, this is about the only downside and it’s minimal.

All in all, the i200 has 9 various output ports along with a single input port.  3 charging cables are provided with the unit that each hook into the input port: a solar cable with MC4 connectors, a 12V cigarette lighter cable to charge from a vehicle, and a 110v cable for charging at home. One of the best features is the 60W power delivery port that can be used to power PD devices AND can also be used to charge the i200 as well.

Overall, the unit is easy to use and just works. For our general camping use – charging phones, drones, cameras, tablets, and powering camping lights – the 256Wh battery size is the perfect balance of enough juice while being easy to handle. And speaking of handling a solid handle is built into the top of the case – so it’s easy to grab and go with this unit.  Just make sure you don’t have something plugged in when you grab or you’ll be bringing it with you, dangling from its cable.

Our Experience:

For our GOLABS i200 Power Station Review, we put the GOLABS i200 to the test by using it to charge 2 iPhones, a kindle fire, a DJI Mavic Air drone, and a GoPro Hero 8 Black.  The 2 USB 3.0 ports allowed my wife and I to both charge our phones at night.  During the day, the i200 kept our drone with multiple batteries all charged via the (pure sine wave) 120v plug.  We used the 12V “cigarette lighter” plug to blow up our air mattress and used the 60W power delivery port to keep my MacBook Pro charged while at the campsite.

We plugged in our 100w portable solar panel using the included solar input cable and charged the i200 easily while at our campsite. With a lot of use, the battery never dropped below the 3 bars level and after a few hours of sunshine, it was full again.

Ports:

The i200 has 10 Total Ports:

1 input port (with 3 included cables for 12V/solar/120V charging)

1 12V “Cigarette Lighter” Port
2 12V DC Ports (10A)
2 USB 3.0 Type-A Ports
1 USB 3.0 Type-C Port (30W)
1 PD 60W Port (In/Out)
2 110V 200W AC outlets (pure sine wave)

Charging:

With an output port for just about everything you’d want to power while on the go, the i200 also has multiple ways to charge its internal battery backup when needed. The i200 can be charged 4 different ways:

  • 12V “Cigarette Lighter” cable (for cars, RV, boats)
  • Solar Panel with MC4 connectors (solar panel not included with i200)
  • 110V outlet (for home/office/generator charging)
  • 60W Power Delivery Port (cable not included)

The i200 also has “pass-through charging” which allows you to power other devices while the i200 is charging.  I have tested charging a device via USB while plugged into 110V power and can confirm that pass-through charging works well on this device.  The only catch is that the PD delivery port doesn’t allow pass-through charging – so if you are charging the i200 via 12V, solar, or 110V, you won’t be able to output through the PD port.

GOLABS i200 Portable Power Station

Best Features:

Below are some of the best features we discovered during our GOLABS i200 Power Station Review.

LifePo4 Battery – Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries are the top choice for portable power stations and the i200 has one.  A lot of power stations on the market are using older lithium-ion battery technology.  LiFePO4 batteries last longer and won’t overheat and catch fire like lithium batteries have been known to do.

60W PD Port with In & Out – with more and more devices coming with power delivery (phones, laptops, etc), the 60W PD port on the i200 ensures it can also handle these devices – utilizing the full (or least up to 60W) of the quick charging ability of these devices.  An added bonus is that the i200 can also be charged via its PD port.  You can charge the i200 with the same charging adaptor and cable as your PD devices.

MPPT Solar Charging – MMPT charging when using solar panels means that the i200 is optimized to handle all the watts your solar panel produces.  MPPT charge controllers adjust the incoming voltage from your solar panels to send the correct voltage to charge the battery without losing valuable watts that PWM charge controllers can.  In short, MPPT charge controllers are more efficient and will utilize more of the solar power you produce.

Pass-Through Charging – A good number of power stations don’t allow the device to output power while it’s charging.  With pass-through charging on the i200, you can power other devices via 12V, USB, or 110V while charging the battery at the same time.  As I mentioned above, the only exclusion to this is the PD port which does not have pass-through charging.

Value:

The GOLABS i200 checked all of my boxes for a portable power station for outdoor use. At $199, there are cheaper power stations on the market, but before pulling the trigger on a cheaper device, make sure it has the LiFiPO4 battery, PD port, and Pass-through charging that the i200 has. These features are often the difference between a solid device that you’ll use for years and one that is cheaper initially but ends up in storage (or the trash bin) early in its life.  Look for specials and discounts on the i200 or a similar device with these features.  I purchased my i200 in April 2022 for $120 and at that price, the value is there and then some.  I think this unit is a value anywhere around $200, but as battery technology continues to advance, look for cheaper power stations that have more features.  If you’re like me, the i200 will fit your needs perfectly as is and when newer better devices come on the market, you can get a second, bigger power station to continue to expand your ability to stay off-grid.

Was out GOLABS i200 Power Station Review helpful? View our other outdoor gear reviews.


Related Products:

The Outward Overland Trailer

Restored 1968 Airstream Overlander Camping in Telluride, CO
Camping in our restored 1968 Airstream Overlander

5 years ago, I purchased and restored a 1968 Airstream Overlander Travel Trailer.  It was a LOT of work, but the finished product provided my family and I with a pretty killer medium for adventure.  We took some great trips in that Airstream and made some memories that we will all never forget. And, at least for me, the process of rebuilding the trailer from the ground up was fun and super educational about how RV systems worked.

We originally purchased the airstream with the idea that it would contain all of the gear necessary for a multi-day trip and that we could hook it up and go anywhere on a whim. After the trailer was ready for use, we quickly learned that our dream of it being the perfect camping vehicle was far off base.  First of all, it was huge.  Towing a 26ft trailer that weighs 6,000lbs isn’t something you do mindlessly.  Ensuring that you’re properly connected, all safety devices are in place and working correctly, and that the trailer is ready for travel takes time – usually over an hour – to feel confident that people and property are safe for the road.  Secondly, large travel trailers are not the most maneuverable vehicles, so proper planning had to be done far ahead of time to know that your destination could handle the size.  Finally, the trailer had a lot of great electrical systems on board – it was clearly meant to have power while being outdoors.  Locating sites that had available power took time and limited the locations to choose from.

Airstream Shell Sunset Reflection
One of the last pictures taken of the sunset reflecting on our Airstream before we sold it

The strongest feeling we had after a few years with the airstream was anticipated.  We missed being outdoors.  We would tow our shiny encapsulated tiny home for hours into the outdoors, only to feel as though we weren’t really in the outdoors.  For some, this is the point.  Having (almost) every luxury that home provides should make camping more comfortable.  But for us, we missed being more immersed in the elements.  We missed the sound of rain on the taut sides of tent.  We preferred cooking outdoors without worry of smoke filling the cabin of the airstream.  We wanted more living space than our airplane on wheels allowed.

So, a few years ago, we sold our airstream and started over.  We purchased a large and long-lasting canvas tent. We picked up a 3-burner outdoor propane stove. We bought a few canopies to give us various spaces protected from the rain – a screened bug tent and a 10×10 popup canopy. We even splurged on a queen-sized air mattress with a frame that’s raised off the ground.  With all our new gear, we were going to do camping right – at least by our standards.

Our new challenge quickly became apparent.  With all of this gear, how would we get it to the destination?  And how would we store it all in our already cluttered garage?

After some googling, I discovered the world of overlanding – vehicles (usually off-road ready) with camping setups that could be deployed far off the beaten path.  Having loved the free dispersed camping spots we had found with the airstream, I instantly connected with the idea of overlanding.  So I started searching for ideas on how to build my own overland trailer.  After watching hours of YouTube videos of DIY overland builds, I was growing excited about the challenge of building my own, but was hesitant to spend the time it would take during the build process. And summer was coming!

Then one day, I stumbled across a post on Offerup for a trailer that I thought could work well as a starting point for an overland trailer build.  The trailer was being used by a mobile auto-detailing business and I thought it was the perfect platform for what I had in mind.  So I bought it and brought it home.

 

The Outward Overland Trailer

The trailer I purchased was a lifted flat-bed trailer that had a 1966 Utility Body Company work truck bed mounted to it. Giving it 3 lockable compartments on either side of the trailer provided multiple blank canvases to build out the necessary systems.  On top of the 6 side compartments, a large front lockable compartment had been built along the front of the trailer and a 4′ x 1′ toolbox had been installed on the trailer tongue.  In all, the trailer came with 8 lockable compartments and had an open-air “truck bed” in the middle with a double-door tailgate at the back. To top it all off, the entire trailer was painted in a grey digital camo scheme that added some great character.

Overland Trailer Build Before
The mobile auto detailing trailer as we bought it

Over the past year, we have added a series of systems and components to make this trailer our basecamp when exploring the wild.  It’s not perfect and it’ll never be “done”, but it’s a constantly evolving hub that allows us to contain all of our needs when away from home in smart and creative ways.  It also can go further off the pavement and deeper in the sticks than most camping vehicles.  Below are the various systems and upgrades we’ve added to the trailer.

Electrical System

Our overland trailer has two 6-volt “golf cart” batteries wired in series for 210 amp hours of 12-volt power. For charging, it has a 120V 10amp battery charger when we have access to the grid and a 20amp MPPT solar charger with 180 watts of solar panels for when we don’t. We’ve installed a 1000watt pure sine wave inverter for the rare times we need 120v power on the go.  It also has a battery monitor to know exactly where our battery capacity (as well as input and output) is at any given time. The battery system is finished off with a switch panel with circuit breakers for the various systems that also includes usb and 12V DC “cigarette lighter” ports.

Overland trailer Electrical System
The batteries, solar charger, battery monitor and inverter switch in our overland trailer

Update: We’ve now added the GOLABS i200 Portable Power Station, a 256Wh LiFePO4 power station with a 200W pure sine wave inverter to the trailer.  It’s great for extending power to other campsite areas without the tether of an extension cord.  We can keep it charged by the trailer’s electrical system – either by utilizing a solar panel or by plugging it into the trailer’s inverter to charge.

Lid

We custom crafted a steel and fiberglass lid to cover the trailer bed and to protect our camping gear from the elements.  The lid is hinged on the front with gas strut lifts on the sides of the trailer to assist in opening and to keep it open.  The bottom of the lid has 3 rows of led strip lighting that illuminates the bed area of the trailer and provides campground lighting when open.  The lid is secured using 2 latch clamps that are lockable with padlocks. In the future, we’ll add a roof rack to the lid allowing for a planned shade awning, shower enclosure and rooftop tent.

Custom Overland Trailer Lid with lighting
With the lid raised, the led strip under lighting provides light to the campsite

Refrigerator

F40C4TMP 53qt 12V Portable Refrigerator in our Custom Overland TrailerIn our front left side compartment, we added a 53qt 12-volt refrigerator. We custom-built an aluminum tray for the fridge and mounted it in the compartment on heavy-duty locking drawer slides to both keep it in place when traveling and for easy access when needed.

To connect it to the electrical system, we use the included 12v DC cigarette lighter charger which plugs into a bed-mounted 12V DC outlet which is switched at the electrical panel.  With multiple compartments and ample space, this refrigerator has been a valuable addition to the trailer and allows us to cook using fresh ingredients when outdoors.

 

Water System

Water Heater and Outdoor Faucet on Custom Overland TrailerOur overland trailer’s water system is built around a 40-gallon water tank installed at the front of the trailer bed. In the right front side compartment, we installed a 12v 2.9 gallons per minute water pump that gives 50PSI of pressure to the system.

For hot water, we have a propane tankless water heater mounted to the back of the compartment door. The heater stows away neatly in the compartment when traveling or not in use.  For showers and for general water needs, we installed a faucet with a quick disconnect fitting made for RV use. We also plumbed hot and cold water to the kitchen on the other side of the trailer using PEX tubing and fittings.

Kitchen

By far the most complicated part of the build so far, our overland kitchen includes a deep rectangular sink with folding faucet, hot and cold water, 3 storage drawers and a slide-out countertop for food prep.

Made of baltic birch plywood, the entire kitchen is protected with flat marine-grade varnish to protect against spills and the elements.  The entire unit is on heavy-duty locking drawer slides.  For the space of one side compartment, we have a well-equipped kitchen that meets all of our needs.

Outdoor Kitchen on Custom Overland Trailer
Our custom-built outdoor kitchen slides out of the left rear compartment

Under Lid Storage on Custom Overland Trailer

Storage

Even utilizing compartments for the refrigerator, water system, and kitchen, we still have 3 compartments for storage on the sides of the trailer.  The front toolbox allows us to keep all of our tools and small miscellaneous gear secure. The main storage are is the area under the lid.  This storage area is 67″ long x 60″ wide and 26″ tall giving us ample room for all of our gear.  This space holds our Kodiak Canvas 10’x14′ Flex-Bow Tent, our Coleman Queen Airbed Cot, 3 awnings, 5 camping chairs, 2 extra water containers, multiple sleeping bags, mattress pads, and miscellaneous camping gear.  Since this space is locked and protected from the elements, we can store all of our gear here when we’re not camping and it becomes usable workspace when we are.

 

Roofrack

Next up on the upgrade list is a roof rack to take the trailer vertical.  We recently decided to purchase and modify this 800lb capacity truck bed roof rack rather than fabricate our own. We’ve received it, but have not yet had the chance to get it on the trailer.  We will be completing the installation in the coming weeks. The added height of the roof rack will allow us to mount an Overland Vehicle System 270-degree batwing awning to provide shade and cover over the kitchen and refrigerator area. Also from Overland Vehicle Systems, we’ll install a shower side room to the roof rack on the opposite side of the trailer that is close to the water system. Also under consideration for the roof rack is a rooftop tent.  If we end up going this route, it’s between the Smittybilt Overlander XL and the OVS Nomadic 3 Extended tents.

Conclusion

Our Overland Trailer has exactly what we need and is laid out exactly as we want – because we are building it custom for how we camp.  The build process allows us to be deeply connected with our systems – if something goes wrong, we know how it’s built and can quickly identify the causes.  We miss our Airstream Overlander for sure.  It was a work of art that got our family out into the woods, but our overland trailer allows us to go further and on our terms.

As we continue to add and upgrade our overland trailer, we’ll post more in-depth details of what we chose, how we did it, and why.  We’ll also be creating a series of more in-depth articles for each of our trailer systems to help those looking to do something similar. Stay tuned and check back often for more.

Gallery

Water Heater and Outdoor Faucet on Custom Overland Trailer
Under Lid Storage on Custom Overland Trailer
Outdoor Kitchen on Custom Overland Trailer
Outward Overland Trailer Build Before
The Outward Overland Trailer As We Bought It

 

 

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