Solar Panel Connection Point - Swift Tourer Owner's Handbook Manual

S OLAR PAN EL AN D G EN ERAT OR
SOLAR PANEL
CONNECTION POINT
(where supplied - model specific)
A connection point has been included in the
caravan electrical harness to take a 12V supply
from an aftermarket solar panel (or similar
device), to the caravan leisure battery.
The solar panel must provide a fused and
regulated output in order to connect to this
point. The connection point can be found
inside the caravan adjacent to the battery
box, in close proximity to the battery box fuse.
Through the floor close to the battery box is
a cable pass through, allowing a pair of wires
from an externally located device to pass from
exterior to interior to meet the connection
point. This cable pass through will be capped
both internally and externally with a cable entry
gland.
A kit of parts is available from your caravan
supplier which provides the mating half of
the connection point. (The White rectangular
connector found inside the caravan is a two
way JST-LR type connector). For further
assistance in identifying the connection, wire
colours leading to the connector are detailed
in the wiring schematic in your caravan service
book.
EC444 / EC445 / EC455
Solar Energy System
Depending on specification, your tourer may
be fitted with a 20w solar panel and regulator.
This solar panel and regulator may provide
additional 12v power whenever sunlight is
available to the panel. This will be directed to
the leisure battery whether the control panel is
ON or OFF, and regardless of the position of
88
the SYSTEM SHUTDOWN button. If a factory
fitted alarm system is present, that alarm will
in turn be able to use the leisure battery as a
power supply.
Solar power:
Performance
• Output 20 W +/- 1.5% around 1.17A
• Charging current, delivering about 8.5 amp
hours in to the battery per sunny day.
• The system keeps the leisure battery
'topped up' during storage and will
provide a daily boost to the leisure battery
when camping without a mains 230V
supply.
Battery power
As the 20 W solar panel operate depending
on the state of the charge of the battery it may
take a few hours to several days to recover a
discharged battery. For obvious reasons the
solar panel will only work during daylight hours.
Regulator operation
There are two LED located on the solar
regulator. The first is the 'power' LED this
flashes when the solar panel produces energy,
the flash rate increases with the amount of sun
light on the solar panel, this will increase until
the LED is on solidly. The second LED is bi-
coloured. It will indicate the charge condition
when sufficient energy is being received by the
solar panel. If LED is illuminated red, it is then
the regulator is in bulk charge mode
14v plus, if the LED is illuminated green then
the regulator is in float charge mode 13.6v.
Power Supply Unit
The PSU does not need to be switched on for
the solar panel to charge the battery, but if the
PSU has an LCD then this can be used to see
the lift in the battery voltage as the solar panel
charges the battery.
Maintenance and cleaning
The solar panel will require cleaning periodically
in order to maintain the performance of the
panel, a caravan, car shampoo or simple
soap can be used, no abrasive cleaners
should be used.