These are 100 watt flexible panels. Me I’m Mr. Overkill and never want my four AGM 6 volt $300 a pop batteries (image 1432) to ever go flat and I always want to have power when I’m out in the middle of nowhere. What kills batteries the fastest is when they go way down and are charged up over and over again. I don’t want them to ever go down and always stay topped off! These batteries can run for a very, very  long time without charging.

 

   I built the battery box myself and one more coat of finish and it wouldn’t have fit inside there, but a tube of K-Y and a couple of shoe horns and it fit like a glove. Had the frames that hold the panels in place (held down by 3-M VHB double sided tape) built here in town and they ran the wiring as well. Down the back (imgage1410), under the rear shell on the left side and down the torsion arm and finally under the trailer into where the old battery box was (image 1411). I did the rest of the hook-up and decided to enclose the controller and breakers in an almost watertight box (image 1428, 1430). You know about water and electricity, right? Since I have installed the panels I have the hottest batteries in the state all the time (image 1432, 1433)! I know because of my Volt Minder (image 1529). It’s one of the very best battery monitors on the market. Even has an alarm if your batteries get too low (mine never do) and it has a nice backlit feature that can be the brightest night light in town. Check them out.

 

   In the back compartment is where the battery box is located as well as the Blue Sky solar controller (image 1430…I think these are the best controllers on the market which regulates the charging of the batteries) and the circuit breakers for that, the solar panels, as well as for the 12 volt power inverter (the alternate power source when 110 volt AC isn’t available) for the entertainment console (TV, Stereo, CD player, radio etc…) and for the whole trailer itself. I did away with the fuse in favor of a resettable 12 volt circuit breaker for the whole 12 volt electrical system in the trailer. All this is enclosed so if I ever spring a leak back there nothing will get wet and short out. (KNOCK ON WOOD!!!)

 

   One last thing….that’s a back-up camera on my rear bumper        (image 1429). I bought a system that allows for two cameras. One on my truck’s rear license plate to help me with hooking up my Trailmanor, and this one on the rear of the trailer. It really comes in handy when people are behind your trailer because you cannot see them plus it helps for those times when a back-in space is all that is available at the campground.