How Many Solar Panels Do You Really Need on an RV?

One of the biggest questions people ask when planning an RV solar system is, “How many solar panels do I need?” The honest answer is: it depends on how much power you use and how much battery capacity you’re trying to recharge.

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For most RVs, roof space is the biggest limitation. You don’t have as much room as you might have on a house, so a good rule of thumb is to use as much available roof space as you reasonably can, especially if you’re running lithium batteries.

Here’s why. Solar panels produce power during the day, but your batteries are what store that power for later. A 100-watt solar panel might produce around 600 watt-hours on a solid day with about six hours of good sun. A 100Ah 12V battery stores roughly 1,200 watt-hours, so that one panel would only recharge about half of that battery in ideal conditions.

Now multiply that by a larger battery bank. If you have multiple lithium batteries and only a few hundred watts of solar, it may work, but it could take days to recover after heavy use.

Lithium batteries can also accept charge much faster than older lead acid batteries, which means they can actually take advantage of a larger solar array. So if you’re already investing in an RV solar system, adding more panels is usually one of the smartest upgrades you can make.

Need help figuring out what fits your rig? Get your free custom RV solar design at bigbeardbattery.com/solar-design.