RV Solar Tilting: Is It Really Worth It To Tilt the Panels?

More Pros & Cons of Tilting RV Solar Panels along with links to our gear on the site here: www.gonewiththe...
If you tilt the solar panels on your RV roof you can get around 40% more power, but is it worth it to tilt? In this video (and the article on our website linked above) we dive into our experience with tilting our RV Solar Panels.
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© Gone With the Wynns 2015

[@mroldskool1990]

Hey Wynns, you do a great job with your Channel. But nobody can know everything. So here is the explanation from an german engineer :-p : The reason, why you see the huge increase of power by tilting the last panel is, that the current has to flow throw all of your panels. As long as the last panel is a little shady because of it's angle it gives the current an internal resistance. Thats whats holds down the current. If you have one panel and shading the upper or lower 10% of it, the current will decrease about 90%! Just because the current has to flow throw the shady 10% of the panel. I hope my english is understandable :D have a nice trip!

[@lastname3924]

I knew it had something weird to do with the last panel like that. Great explanation.

[@chrisstinson2536]

This is one reason I run each individual panel to its own MPPT. I can shade a panel and only loose that system. It is a bit more costly and harder to monitor but well worth the little up front cost.

[@lindapearson3411]

Gerrit Bo So cool an explanation, Mr. German Engineer! English perfect! Thanks!

[@Marvinthecoinhunter]

to summarize a german engineer's response from an American engineer's response, its due to your panels being wired in series.

[@DenDangerously]

This is a result of wiring the panels in serial vs. parallel...

[@nbookie]

skip the bolts and wing nuts and replace with cotter pens. no screwing required. takes about 2 seconds per leg. add one 10 foot "L" bracket to connect all the panels together and then just one cotter at each end and one in the middle and you could have them up/down (all panels) in less than 60 seconds.

[@nbookie]

this is how we did it on our mobile command center (geeked out rv) in wyoming.

[@rolloverriderpgr]

+nbookie VIDEO!!!! let us see how that works!!! PLEASE!

[@nbookie]

I have not lived there in 3 years. i'll see if I have some enough scrap I can build a mock up with.

[@Kayte...]

exactly what I've been thinking and I've looked at several vids and no one is using the cotter pins but I couldn't see any reason not too.

[@MagnusOlssonMalvik]

Great video to show what happens when you have panels in series, the panel that has the least sun determine the max for all the other panels, same things happens if you have a shade from a tree passing your panels.

[@francisdebriey3609]

Tilting is especially needed even in summer when you live very north, or very south, far from equator : canada, island, norway, but also south of chile. At these latitudes, the sun doesn't go as high in the sky as at the equator. I am building my tilting 5x200W Renogy panels, mounted on a 3.5m x 1.65m aluminium frame. Tilting will be controlled by 2 linear actuators on 12V. My objective : spend 1 full year in the arctic circle in Norway. .... yes yes I love cold weather ...

[@ManWander]

i thought the reason you didn't get the max until the last panel was raised was due to your having connected them in series - another great video!

[@douglasgroff7648]

Only guessing that the Go Power panels don't have bypass diodes. The first tilted panel is capable of producing more energy, but without a bypass diode in the downstream panels, the extra energy can't get to the charge controller. This is why only when the last panel is tilted does the power really jump. For the same reason, any amount of shading on one panel will have a significant negative impact on the output of the other panels.

[@mcombsemail]

I thought the same thing. Too bad I'm 3 years late to being the smart guy. An array is only as good as it's weakest link, especially when in series.

[@myjossi1]

Agree, my thoughts too!

[@wildwestunlimited]

KZbin served me this video today..... I'm like, HEY! I know those guys! ..... Oh so young! and your video quality and production values are HUGE better today than when you guys first started. You guys started great and today you're PHOENOMAL!!!! Today, you guys are some of the BEST production value on KZbin, if not, THE best!!!

[@gonewiththewynns]

💙💛💙🙏🙏

[@Maxid1]

I've got a low tech suggestion for your panel tilting. There's a huge selection and array of keeper pins you could use to put your panels into place. I would use the ones that have the spring loaded fin on the end so that you just push it in and then the fin will keep the panel in place even if the wind hits them. The wing nuts look like a pain. You could turn your 10 mins into five mins with much less wing nut and washer dropping. So what wine pairs with panel tilting?

[@cdevidal]

Is there a link to the pin fins you describe?

[@DragonsREpic]

37% increase in power. I'll take that thank you very much! the reason, why it went up till the last panel, is that they are in series. That's how electricity works

[@lawrencewiddis2447]

Thirty-seven per cent increase in watts? Two more panels equals a 50% increase in…power…without tilt.

[@Cantgetusernam]

It's not more power mainly but it's for getting power longer when the sun is rising or setting you panels laying flat no longer getting sun so your tilted panels keep bringing in power longer.

[@enigmaticloremaster1700]

If you put a piece of long angle connecting all the panels together and connected 2 linear actuators on each end, you could control the lifting using a remote control from ground level. Also the angle of lift can be at any desired height. And if you wanted to be really technical you could put a timer on the actuators, and they would track the sun automatically.

[@jimhamman2335]

I will be building a custom tilt mount for my panels. Simple design. Using an aluminum piano hinge to secure each panel to roof along the edge of the panel nearest the mid-line of the roof and an elbow latch to secure the panel along the other edge of the roof. To tilt panel, release latch and push panel up to desired angle (swinging support mounted on hinge next to latch allows panel tilt to be adjusted to desired angle) without climbing onto roof. Easy peasy.

[@garylewis327]

Good video and I completely agree with your conclusion. I spend time near that location almost every year and my test results with tilting have been even more dramatic than yours (I'm assuming that's because I did the testing earlier in the morning than you did). In your test, when your panels were flat you we're getting about 74.5% of the amperage that you get when tilted. Another way to look at your results is to say that you got 34% more amperage by tilting your panels. It's a very worthwhile practice. I do have a suggestion for you to consider though. Leave those struts attached at the panels. When it comes time to take them down for travel, simply remove the bolts at the roof, then fold the struts under the panel before dropping the panels down. That's my method and it speeds things up a bit.

[@garylewis327]

And.....after reading your "Is it worth it" section of your website - I have to agree. For some people it is not worth it. Especially those who are nervous about getting on the roof. They should just get enough panels for their needs based on never tilting, or consider some automated way of tilting. Tilting can save money by reducing the number of panels needed , but there are several factors at play and it isn't a "one size fits all" rule. For people who only camp in summer it's probably not worth it at all. For those who want to be in the shade all the time - forget solar altogether unless you don't mount the panel(s) and instead just set them out on the ground where there's sun (I've seen lots of people doing that). For me roof-mounted tilting works (I don't even think twice about getting on the roof and I spend 4 to 6 weeks boondocking every winter). To each his/her own. Just one more trick to have in the toolbox.

[@ReflectedMiles]

I think their charge controller display in this video is substandard. Looks like it has a poor and inaccurate update rate. Agreed on the struts. The first RV tilt-mounts I bought in the early 90's worked in either direction but many now don't seem to be designed to.

[@VanlifewithAlan]

51A sounds a fantastic score to me. I just prepared a video on the same subject having seen an automatic tilting device at Caravan Salon in Dusseldorf. If you are out in the desert I don't suppose it makes much difference but if you went to the Arctic in winter with a couple of hours light then it would make a huge amount of difference! In the UK I saw tracking systems that follow the sun - I don't know how well they work.

[@IanTheWoodchuck]

I'm working out the numbers for a system driven by a screw-type linear actuator, driven by an Arduino or RasberryPi board connected to WiFi. The plan is that I can open a website running on the board and tap a button on the page.... UP THEY GO!

[@gonewiththewynns]

+Ian Brown That sounds neat!

[@IanTheWoodchuck]

Yeah. Possibly, some day. I think I'll just start with a few limit switches so I don't blast them off the roof. Most of the actuators are stepper motors, so I SHOULD be able to easily program a few midpoints.

[@seanharris8328]

I would add 3 photos diodes positions on the corners and one in the middle. Use the AtoD on the microcontroller to measure the light intensity and write a control loop to maximize the intensity on the middle diode.

[@IanTheWoodchuck]

+Sean Harris Yeah. that would work really well with minimum investment in hardware.

[@tiny11231]

How did you train your cats not to run away! LOL they are awesome! Thanks for the video :)

[@ericminnick5295]

Have believed in tilting for years now since we put our panels on in 2008, our tilt kit if you will has threaded brackets on the roof and into the panels them selves, as well as the tilt brackets, to all I need to take with me if the brackets which have 2 additional "wing nuts, with large black plastic wings" up on the roof no need to fiddle with small bolts and wing nuts and washers, takes less then 30 seconds to tilt a panel, and each bracket has 2 positions for tilting depending on the season, I would caution all to use a small amount of anti-seize compound on the threads though to keep the threads from seizing up on you, also we were cautioned to only tilt up in winds less than 20 mph, no need to have panels fly away and ripping holes in your roof.

[@scottmcintosh2988]

Get some hydrolic pistons like a hatch back car or a tool box then you could have a bracket 60 degree for winter 30 degree s fall spring and summer. If you park south facing your solar panel's. So you would use one bolt and nut to hold down panels when driving and remove the nut and bolt to have the hydrolic pistons would raise the panels .

[@dumbassdriversofdenver9113]

I was wondering why you were watching it before you put all the panels up. You panels are wired in series so they can only put out what the least preforming panel is. If you have 5 running at 100% and 1 running at 60% they will all only give 60%. Thats why I am running mine in series-parallel groups of 2 when I install. Each group of 2 will have to have similar exposure but can be different from the rest. Chances are you could easily reconfigure yours in a short time and see which preforms better.

[@pavel9652]

They were watching because they didn't know what they are doing, which is typical on this platform ;) Everyone is talking about amps and ah, but I like to talk about watts and Wh, because my batteries are at circa 60V. I have 12 panels, wired 6s2p, so two series of 6 connected in parallel on a 20ft container. The first row will shade the second one. Does it make sense to tilt the second row more or should I find the angle that will work for the both series? Right now they are at 5 degrees, mostly for drainage.

[@DaveSquibbSr]

Great job! Being handicapped I cannot get on the roof to tilt my panels so I installed linier actuators to raise them, I love it 😎😎

[@SteampunkSteve]

I've been contemplating how to build a powered tilting unit for when I get to the solar aspect of my buys conversion. Remembering an article from Mother Earth News a couple decades back where they used a car power window motor to turn a planel got me thinking along that line. If it works I'll share the plans

[@cherylhenson2720]

you guys are good at showing & telling exactly like we all need to know it! A+ score on this video. We learn from you.

[@stealeyful]

Cooling the panels in the summer is worthwhile. Hot panels produce a lot less power than cool panels. In the middle east folks use water to keep PV panels cool.

[@johnpuccetti9383]

Yes you came to the same conclusion I did panels need to lay flat. When you park the best thing you can do is keep them out of the shade. But what I tell solar customers cut your electrical consumption and make all appliances as efficient as possible. Change your life style. You changed your life style with the composting toilet!

[@SomedaysHere]

Great vid on the actual increase or potential gain of tilting. I wonder if that works with wine??/ Stop the Madness Start the Adventure

[@docyt]

WTH Nikki?! You climbed off of that ladder like a total pro. When I'm transitioning from the ladder to the roof I look like a total dork. I look even worse when trying to get down.

[@shawnmcewen1718]

not sure if said before already, didnt read all comments, but the reason why you didnt see the incoming solar amps rise until the last panel is because you wired all your panels in series. If one panel sees shade out of the "batch" it makes ALL others in the "chain" suffer" Series is not usually recommended for many RV'ers if you may be changing locations frequently where there may be partial shade hitting the RV... In series if one panel is shaded the whole system suffers, in parallel one shaded over panel does not affect the others performance :)

[@shawnmcewen1718]

But Parallel requires Much thicker gauge wire feeding between the panels and charge controller as the amps are higher. Especially for almost 1000w (i'm sure you guys already know this) Love all your guys' videos btw :)

[@wincrasher2007]

What I don't understand is that from the video, with wiring in series, the controller display should have showed a low amperage (like 8-9 amps) but a high voltage (like 108-126v). A parallel wiring scheme would have had a low voltage (like 18-20 volts) and a high amperage (like the 54 amps). Correct?

[@scottb.innovations4386]

if you use a split bracket then you can leave them on the panels all the time and loosen the center bolt and tilt down and lock back into. a 2 minute complete tilt. Also depending on how you wired array. it will always be the lower amps until all panels put out the same. Law of electricity, the weakest amps will be the total.

[@ashleydeforge]

I'm only here for the Cat...

[@2012escapee1]

On one of mine, they made the wires too short to tilt to the right (OK to tilt left) so I can only park nose E to tilt both panels. :( I find that it mostly just draws in extra power in the early AM and PM. Issues with a motorhome... you have to get it pointed broadside south, and it's not always possible, except maybe in the desert, where you have plenty of room to maneuver. Some places, you can only squeeze in one way, and that's not nose E-W. I've had the tilt brackets for a year, and only used them twice, due to 1) high wind areas and 2) not able to park broadside S.

[@calicojunctionisclosed]

Love the cats they did a good job

[@DavidSmith-bt6qe]

Ok I am sold on the idea of tilting the panels for maximum power output. I really did not think it would make that much difference.

[@gonewiththewynns]

+David Smith Only in winter do you get such a benefit.

[@DavidSmith-bt6qe]

Are you 100 percent sure about that? Have you tried this in the summer already?

[@Itsthekellyschannel]

Great video, we have not installed solar just yet but when we do Im definitely making them tilt. Thanks guys. see you on the road....

[@shepd3]

I plan to run an AC off battery in the future. I plan to buy a mini-split inverter AC. Those have no inrush rating and are incredibly efficient (32 SEER). Also, because the PSU uses PWM for the motor, a cheap non-sine wave inverter provides the best efficiency (technically, if the rest of the unit could handle it, direct application of 170 volts DC would be best). I figure 9000 BTUs will use about 300 watts. Heavy insulation of the RV can make such a low BTU rating usable. We will see next year when I do it!!! (I expect the AC in your rig will not work for long off batteries and solar. You'll need a massive inverter to handle the LRA of a standard AC unit, and you're probably powering an 18.5 kBTU unit).

[@jerrydensmore2887]

Thanks so much for proving that tilting is great. For your setup I think I would tie at least three panels together so that you can raise three at a time. Don't know how heavy it would get to tie all of them to one bar and try to raise. Have an extra set of hands might give it a go. Again thank you for sharing.

[@blkdavid]

So , I didn't see this question in the comments ,but in real world conditions what difference does that make to , fridge ,freezer ,dishwasher etc. thanks so much Guys

[@cunning-stunt]

In a string of panels the output of the whole string will match that of the most shaded, least exposed panel. It's why it is important to have zero shade on any part of any panel.

[@RelaxingHomestead]

I agree tilting panels is worth the effort. But with your fastening system it looks as if you could cut the tilting time in half by leaving the connecting brace rod connected permanently. Just loosen nut enough to lay brace rod flat, and still use bolt through brace rod and securement fastener at the same time. One negative would be that it would be a tripping hazard, but your aware of the rods. You would not have to store them inside. I would buy extra wing nuts for backup. Bound to lose a couple in travel.

[@dn7961]

Niki I noticed that you go on top of the roof from the side and not from the back where the ladder usually is located.You talked about what happens if you leave the panels up when you move.

[@Adam-xv5zz]

hey Instead of wasting so much with the wing nuts why don't you use a pin and clip. I think it would save you time and it would be a lot easyer and faster. just a suggestion hope you look in too it and keep up the good videos. :)

[@SledgeOfHouseHammer]

Do you have an awning on the right side of the truck? It may have been better to put the panels on the right side. When parking with the truck's nose facing east, the awning reduces the amount of direct exposure to the sun on the right wall (which can reduce A/C use), and panels on the right can be tilted to the right. Also the panels will block some of the sun on the roof.

[@vnyeu]

These panel connect in series. Just like bottle neck. All panel received high Amp but it come to the last pannel is low Amp which stop all current flow through

[@BarqB]

I'd just as soon pull out my small generator and supplement with it. Then Im not tromping around on the roof and I can leave my 1600 watt array firmly secured. Nor am I pissed because one of my one of linear actuators died and I have to replace it. There's enough to RVing without adding more complexity to it. I mean if your already in a fuel consuming rv or large van, who cares if you use a half gallon of fuel or some propane to firm up the batteries plus if its hot by the time the sun is over head along with the panels a small gen will run an AC no problem.

[@stealeyful]

O yes, and power varies with the sine of the angle of incidence of the sunshine.

[@PentaxLife]

Great vid and to answer Your question yes you can Run your A/C on solar. Keep rubber on the road!

[@tommy112361]

I read somewhere, that solar panels work better when cooler so the extra air flow just might help. But for the world of me cant remember where i read it sorry.

[@uni4rm]

wingnuts look like a pain if you find yourself tilting often. there are plenty of pins you could use instead. You mention theft possibilities on the website, but in that case, a pin that can be locked would be more secure than a wingnut anyway.

[@rshotrod1965]

4 thumbs down, as of now. What the hell, it is the Wynns!!! What is there to dislike about them?!?!? But like always, another GREAT video, your two.... Keep up the good work and safe travels....

[@LeonAllanDavis]

Question: why would you want to run AC off solar? Or better yet, why would you own an RV and be in an area where you need AC? One of the yuge benefits of RV living is to move with the climate. North in summer; south in winter. If you get it backwards and wind up in Arizona in July, fugiddaboutit. If you do find days when you think you need AC, get a fan and sleep naked.

[@michaelbrown2443]

In the southwest, there can be huge temperature differences with elevation and weather patterns, and even day-to-night. On a particularly hot day (which can happen as early as March), it's nice to be able to run the AC for 20 minutes just before bedtime, just to take the "edge" off and fall asleep quickly.

[@HowieRoll]

well that answered my question thank you... always wondered how much more you would benefit.

[@taurian101_official]

love the information you guys give, the cat on a hot tin (rubber roof) is a great touch.

[@a93h201]

it would be easy to make a tilting system for those panels. just some rails a link bar and a linear actuator per panel.

[@timothy790110]

tilting is a huge differnece in teh winter. i get 1a from my flat mounted 100w roof panel, but the same model that i can tilt gives me around 4.5a in the exact same weather.

[@smacdiesel]

Awesome, seems like a pain, but for extended stay it looks worth it. You two are pioneers.

[@davidklimek7999]

Gone with the Wynn's: I watch tiny house videos so I knew that tilting the solar panels would improve their output , but like you say it is a bit of work to tilt them , so unless you are staying more than a day , leaving them lay down is preferable! David Klimek P.S. I like your videos! Even your solo trip!

[@JD_Mortal]

The reason you didn't get the results, until the end, is due to the fact that you have them wired in series. Your output is limited to the resistance of the lowest cell in the series. Thus, with one down, it has a hard time trying to PUSH the amps through the last cell. Once that was up, the resistance of the whole set drops, revealing your "true gains". If you wired them in parallel, you would have independent gains, with each one raised or "unshadowed". That is what an MPPT is actually designed for, if setup properly. Each cell should have its own MPPT, not groups of cells. That way, if one cell is shaded, it just contributes less power, instead of acting as a resistor, eating-up power. (It will do that in series or parallel, unless it is on its own MPPT controller.) Placing them in series, instead of parallel, will give you more potential usable power, over series. This is because they will output 12v/24v earlier in the day, if stacked to peak at 60v total. Where-as, in parallel, if they peak at 14v/28v, to feed a 12v/24v system, the sun will have to rise enough to be near 12v/24v, which is close to 80% peak (9 AM-5 PM). As opposed to being only 20% peak, in the 60v setup (7 AM-7 PM). The MPPT will just swap the volts for amps, but have a more usable voltage, longer and in lower light conditions, in parallel. This is also why it is better to get "home solar panels" instead of "RV/Marine solar panels", because home solar is setup for higher voltage and lower amps, at the same wattages. Plus, they are cheaper to buy, and stronger, rated for hurricanes and hail. However, sometimes they can be heavier, due to thicker frames. But, that is changing, with new building-standards and building-codes for "roof-weights". Thus, you can run in parallel, with gains like RV-cells in series, without the losses.

[@MsPoprouge]

Love your cat!! OMG he's cute! Great information thanks for sharing.

[@Useitorloseit1]

Guys, you already knew tilting was worth it since you are the millionth video proving such. I would rather watch you install little pneumatic cylinders in the middle of your little panel raising brackets. Creating a scissor hoist lift so you don't have to climb on your roof and you would tilt, all the time because it was so convenient. Power up, spring down. If you were to forget panels were tilted, ignition triggered air solenoid would dump the air charge and panels would drop to travel position. You could also use 12volt linear actuators, with a little thought. One per panel would alleviate potential panel tweaking.

[@johannesk1855]

The cooling effect is for sure one of the benefits, just like your cat experienced.

[@AndrewTubbiolo]

Can you run an AC? at 12V and 52 amps you have 12v * 52 amp = 624 Watts. Assuming a 900 Watt AC unit you'll consume that 624 Watts from your solar, and then draw another 276 Watts from your battery bank. That is ignoring what your lights and other electrics are drawing. So assume you have a 600 Watt-Hr battery bank, you could run your AC for just under three hours before draining your battery. Cooling and heating are the most demanding tasks you can ask of an electrical source. If you want to cool in the summer, what you really need is about 4 to 5 X as much solar as you currently have. Which is not out of line, you'd just lay them out on the ground for a multi day camp. Of course a 10 Kw nuclear power source is your real solution offering up to 20 years of unrefueled high power goodness 24/7. Just don't get into an accident with it, and crossing the border might become a real problem.

[@NomadicSociety]

+Andrew Tubbiolo i would say their roof airs would draw a -lot more than 900 w-so i've been playing with trying to run the most efficient Ac unit i could buy- with my kill a watt meter it runs @ only 386 watts but the main problem is the starting the compressor-up to 5 times that needed or compressor wont kick on- only fan- I still hope to make this work -i have 4 950 cca batteries maybe 135 amp hr each cant remember- i think my problem is i need to spend $300 on a quality pure sine inverter - i tried to go cheap with a harbor freight 2000w 4000 peak one but that seemed to be a total exaggerated lie- like the no name stereo amps from the old days that claimed 1000watts of power - any old school guys out there? so i figured it only had a peak of about 8oowatts from testing other tools with it :( so sad for me unless it was defective-so anyone else have luck with a HF cheapy let me know!

[@RickMartinYouTube]

+Andrew Tubbiolo very helpful thanks

[@FreedomInMindtv]

+Gone with the Wynns I have always wanted to test this out. I only have the one panel on my camper but i might have to install a tilt system now haha

[@davidvermeulen6705]

Why power shoots up with the last panel tilted ? -> serial panels are working on the "weakest" link.

[@turdoly1]

Panel output has many factors. The angle of incidence is one, which is a function of sine. it looks like your tilt is about 45 degrees; so sin (45)*52 = 36.7. This only works using amps because your charger is in constant voltage mode to charge your bank, other wise you would have to calculate the actual power output first. It looks like you guys are just about on the money.

[@joedillier7113]

You guys need to adjust the tilt angle based on your location and the season.

[@crazzylee]

Automate the tilt. Yes, you can run the ac on solar power as long as you have a large enough battery bank.

[@persuethedream9862]

I'm RV's to old to stand on the roof....freaks me out to see you up there! lol. Since tilting is so effective...are portable solar panels better ---if I don't need massive power needs? (no microwave, air conditioner etc) I mostly need power for a small refrig, hot water heater and to power up the computer.

[@gonewiththewynns]

+PerSueTheDream sure, go for the 120watt portable panel.

[@TheRealMercDave]

I wonder if a reflective coating on the top of your pullout will increase your solar output? Grab some aluminum foil and test it :-). Did you consider that tilted panels will increase the length of time each day that you will produce power as the sun nears the horizon (or, really, as the horizon nears the sun)?

[@gonewiththewynns]

+TheRealMercDave We decided to keep this info out of the video in order to keep it as SIMPLE as possible. It's difficult for most people to understand solar and the more info we throw their way it seems to be more confusing :) But YES, we get much more power in the AM and PM that we couldn't' capture with flat panels.

[@darrenedger4552]

Hey Wynn's, Great video as always! Loving the amount of uploads in the past week or so. I have one big Question for you. Will you guys be taking down the RV stuff on you website and on KZbin when you guys switch to being Sailors? Thanks. PS- I'm on 15 and would your website to be still up there for about another 8 years when I buy my first RV. I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!!! BEST KZbin CHANNEL EVER!!

[@darrenedger4552]

Only*

[@kathrynblodgett1969]

+Darren Boggs I have any idea to help you out in long term. Get a USB flashdrive. One that you can upload to more than once. And save all the videos you think you might need in the future. I would like to have a DIY file like that for plumbing and carpentry ideas that I might use in the furture.

[@MikeBrownRehobothBeach]

linear actuators beats climbing up on the roof.

[@RVLady]

There has to be a better solution to going on the roof and manually tilting? I still don't have solar panels for the roof. What was the success/failure of the flat panels, you danced on? Thanks for posting and Be Brave! :)

[@denuijs]

Your tilting angle is way to steap. Therefor your undoing what you aim to achieve. In general 30° is enough, bit less (max.5°) in summer time, bit more (max.5°) in winter time.

[@averagecampers]

Great video guys! We would love for someone in the industry to invent a power solar panel tilt system. Maybe you all know someone that has the skills to make a product like that. Safe travels!

[@MariuszPierog]

Automatic button with auto rotator will help a lot. :)

[@jacknkarenbowden187]

We noticed you have a residential refrigerator. We're hearing good and bad so... how is it working out with boondocking? Is it consuming a lot of power?

[@gonewiththewynns]

+Jack Karen Bowden We plan to do a video on it soon :)

[@madogblue]

Awesome video idea. It made no sense that the amps jumped up only after tilting the last panel. Something is not right?

[@curtwhitaker3660]

I would bet that the current (amps) didn't change until the last panel was raised because they have all their panels in SERIES. The current is the same through all the components in a series circuit, therefore the entire array should be limited to the current generated by the lowest producing panel. The Wyans can test this by either lowering any one of the panels, OR by casting a large shadow completely across any one of the panels, in either of those cases the current through the entire array should drop dramatically. (The opposite of the dramatic gain in current we saw when he raised the last panel to the optimal angel.) I am an electrical engineer, and just wanted to point out there are down sides with series wiring also, they had pointed out a couple of the down sides to parallel wiring in this & the previous video.

[@curtwhitaker3660]

+Gone with the Wynns. I just noticed that I had the worst possible typo in my previous comment: in my haste to explain the down side of series wiring I accidentally misspelled your name. I humbly apologize. And let me take this opportunity to say I've enjoyed your videos for quite a while & hope you continue to entertain & enlighten us for a long time.

[@TommyboyGTP]

Yes, tilting works for sure... but the real question here is how you can trust that your cats won't get spooked by something and run off while out in the middle of nowhere like that?

[@unclelar819]

Looks good except my vertigo would kick in and I would fall off the roof. I am guessing that might be a downside? ;-) Great video though!

[@SuperVistaprint]

the panels on my house bring in more in cold, clear conditions. when the sun is burning down in the summer, the output is alot lower, than on a clear shiny winter day. the hoter the panel - the lower the output

[@cnypilot]

+SuperVistaprint : That is correct. :)

[@SuperVistaprint]

yay :)

[@laneweis1031]

What happened to the flexible solar panels? Do you guys prefer the traditional panels?

[@johncnorris]

If you knew you were going to keep your RV for 10 years would you still walk on the roof as much as you do to set up the solar panels?

[@gonewiththewynns]

+John Norris +John Norris That's a point we made in the post on our site.

[@MikeSheasheaDtree]

What was that outtake 2 videos ago when you were dancing on your solar panels??? what's that about?

[@roadraiderstv1010]

As always, great video! Odd how it went up and even down once til the last panel...then it shot up. Wonder if it's due to the direction of the relay wiring? Maybe doing this same experiment but in reverse order? NO don't do this again lol. I over think things and I'm sure this is yet again one of those times.

[@ctrlaltdebug]

The panels are in series, so they are limited by the weakest link.

[@jameskrivitsky9715]

Hi Josh, I have seen some "tilt brackets " used for hatch covers, probably chromed marine usage. I noticed that your support struts had multiple holes for a few various lengths. Have you come across any "multi slotted or inner / outer adjustable slides " that can be easily adjusted to almost any pitch. If you do, share your connection with us fellow RV'rs. Thanks JK

[@Maxid1]

Personally I was hoping it didn't matter. I'm lazy and, well, my present panel is fixed. The new ones won't be.

[@police1184]

Can't wait for the AC video. Great video as always guys, keep up the great work.

[@brendahawthorne3718]

Your cats are great! I'm a dog person now but those are wonderful traveling cats!!!

[@hwally777]

KEN!!!! BARBI!!!! I thought your RV was pink.

[@jk55.]

Great video 👍 ❤️ 👍

[@rrmerlin3402]

You guy's rock ……. Titling really works!!!

[@nestogonzo1]

Did you guys say something about a boat?

[@skpjoecoursegold366]

good demonstration, thanks.

[@geartwister]

i am curious about runnung air great video guys make more videos

[@OldMan52]

What is your lithium battery Amp hrs capacity?

[@kathrynblodgett1969]

I watched your vid where you said sailing was in your future. But do you have a time line for that? Are you waiting for or searching for sponsorship first? Will you continue with the RVing until sailing is finalized? Putting in my subscription today, after following you, and looking around for the last couple of weeks.

[@NoProGoPronto]

Can you use a hair dryer with the system you guys are running? Thanks

[@pizzaearthpancakesandother2549]

Wow! Is that Justin Beaver and Selena?

[@hellkatkitty]

hey guys. :) watch you all the time. hubby and i are getting a class a rv this month, and he will be working remotely. what do you use for consistent internet? thx!

[@cainrok]

But does it help the composting toilets?

[@rogermiller9661]

Hi you guys are GREAT !!!!!! Thank you

[@jsrcamper]

thanks for the info

[@nicholascherry]

Great video! Very helpful! I'm excited for the next video!