Four batteries become one

Today was pretty productive. We managed to get our passport applications submitted and did some more work on the solar installation on the trailer.

At some point in the near future I plan to do a write up on the entire solar install... For now, a short description of what we are doing each day will have to suffice. We only have a few weeks left before we have to be on the road, so lots of time it spent selling off things that we're not planning to take with us in the trailer.

Becky and I worked on getting the new 6V batteries all wired together to make a single 12V battery bank. I picked up some 1/0 wire at the local welding shop. Then we picked up the cable ends at the local hardware store. It took about an hour or so to solder the ends on four 6 inch sections of wire. Most of the time was spent prepping the wire and setting up an area to do the work. It was pouring down rain, so we had to make a work area in the carport. Not the best place to work, but we managed to get the four cables soldered.

Once the cables were done, I hooked them all up to the batteries. I started off by wiring 2 pairs of batteries in series making 12V batteries out of them. Then I connected the two 12V pairs parallel to make a larger 12V battery.

We also did a bit of soldering on the smaller wires that will come down from the panels to the charge controller and then the batteries.

There was a lot of thought that had to go into how to hook up the existing electrical from the trailer to the new battery bank. This evening, we found a way to wire the battery banks together.

More tomorrow if the weather is a bit more cooperative...