Hey guys! I'm going to get solar for my van. I'm wanting to get a briefcase type set up so that I am able to move it about to get the best angle facing south no matter how I park up. (I only travel in Northern europe). I know that having permanent fixed solar is probably better but I don't want holes drilled in my roof..... so my question is: what is the best briefcase solar set up but that anyone knows about and has used....? Thanks!

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the answer would be, what do you intend to use it for?
How long are you going to have it set up for?
They are ok ish for caravans which are parked up and left but for a van where you will be moving presumably, not very good.
What van?

If your looking to charge up a mobile phone then ok, a 150aph leisure battery forget it. Even the big panels which are nominally around the 150w mark are seldom actually left out sufficiently long to make any real difference, you have to constantly move them and carry the things round when not using them.
Really a roof mount is the way to go you dont need to drill holes in the roof to mount them, my 200w panel it set into mounting feet which are stuck on, you can get flexible panels where the whole panel is bonded down with, a silicone mastic, or you just fit to a roof rack. all you have to deal with is a short run of cable which can be run in through vents.

Thanks for your reply! I have a VW T6 4motion.

You raise interesting points. Maybe I should just sikaflex a panel to my pop top? Do u recommend a brand? How easy is it to do? Lensun is a brand I have found.

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Personally, I would probably not use Sikaflex or any other adhesive if using a roof rack was an alternative. The reason being that once you have applied the adhesive it is there for good pretty well - not a problem until you come to sell the van or a solar panel goes down - now which one has gone down ......

With a roof rack you can transfer the panel and charging system to a new van easily, checking out panels is a doddle.

On the other hand there is more wind resistance with a roof rack but the airstream will be disturbed even with panels stuck down. Like many things in life there are compromises. If you were to get a roof rack then you could fit a couple of 300W panels as easily as (and they are more robust than) the thin flexible panels. Swings and roundabouts.

Thanks for your answer, i appreciate you taking the time.

I'm not having a roof rack fitted I don't think. All of my gear fits either inside my van or on the tailgate rack. I will need to power the following:

Waeco CRX50 Fridge.
LED interior lights.
LED exterior work light.
12v charging points x4.
100AH leisure battery.
I also have an eberspacher D2 diesel heater.

Not having a roof rack is the reason I'm thinking of sticking the solar panel to the poptop. I think I'll only need one panel anyway. What are your thoughts?

Thanks.

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Hi, a poptop will never get a roofrack I guess, and you have to care about the weight.

I have a fixed solar panel of 175W, and it weighs something like 20 kilo.
If I would have this with glued on flexible panels, it would only be a couple of kilos. Important for a poptop I think.

I would suggest 2 x 80W panel or 2 x 100W panel, of the flexible type, and find a nice locations to glue it on.
No additional weight on the poptop and no extra wind noise, and not making the car higher. How high is it currently? Close to one of the typical height limitations like 2 meter or 2m20?

Connect them in series to a Victron Blue MPPT solar charger, because it can take higher voltages, and with 2 in series you will reach higher voltage earlier in less than ideal circumstances. And the Victron has Bluetooth built in, so really easy to check power or change voltage cut off, those kind of things.

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2011 Overland from Amsterdam to Nepal and back
2018 Overland from Amsterdam to Tokyo via Central Asia and Mongolia

Thanks very much @Lovetheworld.

Yes my van is a nudge over 2.2m. I will most likely be getting someone to fit it for me as I'm not confident with electrics! But it's interesting that u say to fit 2 panels and not 1. Most people I have spoken to say I will only need one panel at 100w. What's yr reasoning for 2 separate panels other than what u have already mentioned? I'm guessing that redundancy is something to consider as well..... and thanks for the recommendation for brands etc.

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100W should typically be enough, yes. Especially if you don't hang around to long in one place.
However, you are writing that you are mostly travelling the nordic countries (less sun, or lower angle).
And you are using a fridge with a heater. Heater on means the fridge has to work harder. Usually on the days that have a bit less ideal weather.
And I can't look into your budget but if you can spend a bit of money, extra power is always nice.

Putting two panels in series means it is not redundant, but if one fails, you could still change the wiring to bypass the broken panel.

As said, two panels in series will increase voltage.
Normally you put a 12v panel (peak voltage 18v!) on a 12v controller on a 12v battery.
With the Victron Smart Solar mppt 75/15, you can go up to 75 volts and it will charge super efficiently, and you get bluetooth with it to check the function.
By putting the 12v (18v peak) panels in series you get 24v(36v peak). On cloudy days it is easier for the solar panels to reach a higher voltage compared to a single 12v panel, and so it commences charging earlier and more efficient.

But you don't have to do 2x100W. You could do 2x80W for example.

Just search for flexible panels on Ebay or something, anything that fits your roof nicely.
See this for example, as price reference:
https://www.ebay.nl/itm/80W-12V-Flexible-Photovoltaic-Solar-Panel-Motorhome-Caravan-Camper-Boat-Marine/142769937042?hash=item213dc05a92:g:28oAAOSw0wJcNgj b:rk:7f:0
Because you can also go to a boat or caravan shop and pay three times as much for the same amount of power.
Here they are even half the price (from Hong Kong)
https://www.ebay.nl/itm/80W-12V-Monocrystalline-Flexible-Solar-Panel-Battery-Charger-1-5m-Wire-RV-Car/352543562576?hash=item52153bdb50:g:EV4AAOSwF7lcEkC 0:rk:1f:0

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2011 Overland from Amsterdam to Nepal and back
2018 Overland from Amsterdam to Tokyo via Central Asia and Mongolia

as per some of the other replies there is no need to glue direct to the van as if the panel goes down it is more difficult to replace however by the same token, a flexible panel is less weight and very low profile and can normaly be "stuck" down with less permanent fixative.
alternate is something like this

https://smile.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07DLF...=googshopuk-21

you use a very strong adhesive with these and then just fix the panel into the mount, advantage is that the panel is removable, and the rigid panels are more efficient for a given size. I have a 6 meter PVC motor home and use a 150 watt panel hooked up to 2 180 aph leisure batteries, panel is set to trickle charge the vehicle battery and the leisure batteries, I have been off grid for at least 8 days with no issue at all with this set up, using the power for lights, charging lap top (with car charger) TV again 12v power unit charging at least 2 phones and a kindle and it provides power for the fan for the heating system. I made the decision NEVER to use 24Ov stuff unless on mains, no matter how efficient etc any inverter will drain your batteries in no time flat. better to get 12v chargers for everything and 12v power sockets everywhere, as they generally also have transformers in but generally only from 12v up to 19v. Using an inverter to charge a Laptop is very wasteful, 12v dc through inverter to 240v AC, into laptop charger to go back down to 19v DC, what an arse about way to charge something and wasteful of your power, same with my motorhome TV it runs of 19v dc, so using the 12v charging lead is the way to go not the 240v plug.

So I think the bomb proof way of doing it will be mounting 2 x 80w lightweight panels in series, on the roof. Connect them to a Victron 75/15. Connect that to the leisure battery....?

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so long as your happy with electrics, do it yourself I got somebody to do mine for me. I stand to be corrected but normally wire in series you add voltage and amps stay the same, you wire in parallel then your voltage stays the same and the amps are added.
so 2 x 12v 80w wired in series would give 24v I think you need to wire in parallel to maintain 12v but that assumes a 12v system obviously if you have a 24v vehicle then ignore that


Just remember that whatever you battery is rated it you will only get about half of it. DO NOT regularly take a leisure battery down to below 50% it will take the odd mistake where you flatten them but do it more than once or twice and you will screw the battery. As part of the overall cost of a vehicle and running and trip, an extra battery is not much and will save you in the long run.

The Victron Smart Solar 75/15 allows you to go up to 75 volt down to 12 volt. So you can put them in series, because then it is easier to reach a voltage higher than the battery and you have a bit more charging power.

However, you can put them in parallel as well, that will also work, and keep working when one of them fails. Or at least fails in such a way that it doesnt make contact anymore. If you're not getting any solar power anymore you can disconnect one at a time to figure out which one is still working. So you can easily fix it on the road.

__________________
2011 Overland from Amsterdam to Nepal and back
2018 Overland from Amsterdam to Tokyo via Central Asia and Mongolia