I have a 2016 Eriba Troll 540 Touring and am about to fit a solar panel (or two).

With regard to the initial routing of the wires from the panel, I'm considering three options: -

Option 1; Drill a hole in the pop-top near the wardrobe (the Schaudt charger unit and Schaudt solar unit are in the wardrobe). Cover the hole with a gland-box and route the wires though this box and then down the back of the wardrobe. This has the advantage of the shortest cable run but the disadvantage of having to cut a hole in the pop-top.

Option 2; Route the solar panel wires over the side of the pop-top and drill a hole in the roof of the main caravan near the chimney. Again using a gland-box to make the hole watertight. This has the advantage of getting the wires closer to the back of the wardrobe but two major disadvantages; first, there is a long run of unsecured cables on the roof of the caravan that could flap and chafe in the wind when towing and secondly, the hole is drilled into the main body which increases the chances of damp creeping in.

Option 3; Fit a solar panel on the solid roof behind the pop-top. This has the advantage that a more efficient mono-crystalline rigid panel could be fitted (rather than a flexible one on the pop-top). However, the space available is quite small, therefore limiting the power output of the panel and also there is the same thorny problem of where to route the cables!

Does anyone have any advice or experience of fitting solar panels to an Eriba?

Thank you

Don't know anything about solar panels but I used to use this type of deck gland in my boating days.

https://www.marinescene.co.uk/product/1546/cable-gland-6mm

Might be better quality than from a caravan store.

Eric

Eric

Thank you for the product information. I'm looking for a gland I can stick down, rather than drill more holes, also I'd like one streamlined so that the cable entry is not facing into wind when towing.

Graeme

I follow a number of bloggers on the net who travel in their campervans. A number of these have freestanding panels like books that they set up once they stop. Most of these folk never stay on sites , wild offgrid camping the whole time and they seem to have sufficient wattage from their systems to run lights, a small fridge and recharging facilities for their laptops etc. I wouldn't be keen to be drilling into the roof of my Troll.

Personally, I'm not keen on folding solar panels. Their just another bit of kit to store, cart around, set up, take down, damage or get nicked. My previous caravan was a pop-top Hymer Feeling to which I fitted a 120w solar panel on the roof. In that instance, I ran the cable through a reinforced hole of the pop-top fabric. I like the convenience of a roof mounted panel and the peace of mind knowing that the battery is always fully charged when "off-grid" so I'm prepared to drill a hole somewhere. Even on overcast days the panel was able to top the battery up back to full after a night of 12v use.

I'd like some information/best-practice from EribaFolk who have a panel fitted so I can make an informed decision on how to route the cables before I liberate the drill.

I seem to remember reading about this being done and the cable entered the van through the roof via a gland. The cable was one of those coil style kettle cables from the entry point above the wardrobe and down so it semi retracted when the roof was lowered.

That is a very interesting idea and not one I had considered. I'll start researching coiled cable.

Thank you.

[Regarding]...Thank you for the product information. I'm looking for a gland I can stick down, rather than drill more holes, also I'd like one streamlined so that the cable entry is not facing into wind when towing.

One of these would appear to be what you want.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Waterproof-diam...SZ43AB2VW2JVY1M

Steve

Steve

Thank you, that is the style I'm looking for.

Graeme

by coincidence, yesterday in Inverness I saw an Eriba Troll with a solar panel mounted behind the pop-up roof. German reg, and "in transit" so no opportunity to chat about nuances of power capacity and routing of cables inside the 'van. Thus, Option 3 is valid. AVL Tebay have the knowledge, long experience and technical skills...

Hi eckcan here, just added another pic of my roof showing solar panel after a year of use, see my blog. I intended to take one of the inside but it is pouring down at the moment.

Thank you for the information.

I'm going to use a 100w flexible panel and bond exercise mat type material to the underside of it. I want the set up to be detachable therefore I will attach bungees to the eyelets of the panel and hook them to the lip of the pop top when its up.
I have a small folding aluminium step for this which doubles up as a drinks side table!
The cable can be thread through the pop tops canvas vent which is on velcro which avoids the need for drilling anything. The solar charger will be permanently mounted in the wardrobe and cabled up to the battery. All I need to do is complete the circuit by connecting the push fit connectors between the solar charger and cable from the panel. This way I travel without the panel on the roof and haven't done any invasive surgery to my Van or stuck or screwed solar panel mountings to the roof.

P6290148.JPG - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)P6290149.JPG - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)P6290158.JPG - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)We're using a "Photonic Universe" 40 watt panel which I have fitted behind the poptop on our Triton van, inside I mounted the 10 amp charge controller on a plastic panel which hangs on the rear panel of the cupboard, everything is fitted so as there is no drilling of the van apart from two 4 mm holes in the roof scizzor hinge bracket, the cables coming in through the rear zipped opening in the fabric. I fitted a cover over the panel to "turn it off when not needed" this also protects it generally. With the inclusion of "solar shower" bags, this has worked out to be very handy when without mains hook-up.
Not sure how to include pictures, but they would be beneficial.
Art.

IMG_0515.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)Renology 160w.jpg - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)Thanks everyone for the advice and also the wealth of information and photos on the various Eriba Facebook forums. I've decided to fit the solar panel on top of the pop-top and drill through the roof to get the wires inside (my initial option 1). This is the kit: -

Solar Panel: - Monocrystaline as they are more efficient than polycrystaline panels. ETFE coated, again to increase efficiency and they are easier to clean. Flexible to fit the slight curve of the pop-top and also lightweight. High wattage so that there will still be some output on the more overcast days. Also, high wattage allows a bit of future-proofing should I decide to run an inverter at some later stage. I opted for a Renogy 160 watt flexible monocrystaline panel. Anything larger got very expensive so the watt/£ ratio became uneconomic.

Adhesive: - Sikaflex 252. I don't want to take any chances of the panel pealing off under the aerodynamic load.

Roof Gland and Wiring: - I opted for the double entry, slightly aerodynamic roof gland to cover the 12mm hole in the pop-top with a normal ceiling rose on the inside. Wiring will be 6mm solar panel cable all the way to the solar panel controller. I did like the neatness of using coiled flex between the ceiling rose and the top of the wardrobe to cater for the raising and lowering of the pop-top. In the end I decided against it though as they are only 1.5mm 13A cable, it would have added, along with the extra joints, greater resistance compared to a single run of 6mm cable.

Solar Panel Controller: - Schaudt LR1218. It plugs directly into the Schaudt electrical control box in the Eriba with a supplied wiring harness, very easy to connect.

I start fitting next week so I'll add some more photos when the job is finished