Today, the BARC ARES trailer has gotten a major upgrade! Nick Peaden KQ4PXG has engineered a solar charging system. He purchased and installed three large solar panels on the roof of the trailer. He also installed the controllers to charge the battery. I have helped him by buying the large lithium ion battery and help with the install. Nick put together a wonderful plan and a design that really works. We started the project a few weeks before field day. First, we had to remove antennas and the old solar system to make room. We sealed the holes with sheet metal and 5200 caulk. The roof was repaired and repainted. Then the rails were attached on the top to the ribs that support the roof. This was also caulked.
The panels were bolted to the roof. “Pass through” fittings were placed in strategic positions. This allows the wires to be passed below with water tight connections into the trailer. All this was sealed with 5200 caulk and painted with reflective roofing paint (reflecting the heat of the sun). Mounting the panels on rails also allows the panels to have air flow on both sides. This helps to keep the temperature down.
A 4 x 4 junction box had six holes drilled in it to hold all the wires. The front panel had 6 holes placed to hold three fuses and three rocker switches to be able to shut off the panels. These are to be left “ON” or in the pushed “up” position to allow the solar panels to charge and maintain the battery all the time. You can see the green LED light on the solar charge controllers indicate that it is working.
The speakers and other wires were moved to strategic locations. This was done to allow room to mount the junction box. It also made space for the solar charge controllers. The wires were passed from the solar panels, through the roof, and into the junction box. Then, they were cut to length. Crimped ends were placed. Polarity of the wires were marked with red tape on the positive sides to prevent a mix up in wiring. Three solar charge controllers were mounted to the wall. Special fittings were crimped on the end of the 10 gauge cable to connect to the controllers. The other ends went to the rocker switches and another set of wires went down to the battery. This setup was repeated three times, one for each panel. Each controller handles about 100 watts. They all work well together.
A large 150 amp hour lithium battery was purchased and placed in a larger battery box. A special piece of brass was cut. It was then doubled in size, drilled, and tapped. This allowed new binding posts to hold many more wires. These were fabricated in my “man cave” while Nick was dealing with the tracks on the roof. A 110v battery charger was installed and placed on the wall underneath the desk. When the trailer is plugged into 110 power (net or generator), a “Start” button can be pressed. It will then charge the lithium-ion battery to full charge and stop. This 110 V system is a back up to the solar. The battery can get charged in two different ways.
After field day, we did the rest of the work in two days over a weekend. Testing revealed what Nick and BARC members found out at field day. They found that running the panels and the battery during the daytime did not discharge the battery at all. At night, the charge of the battery only dropped by 20% without the sun. They were running two IC7300 and the LED lights. They also used two 12v to 24v converters as power for the laptops. Additionally, an IC2100 2m rig was used as a repeater monitor. We turned on IC7300, IC2100, Alinco 440, LED lights all at once and was drawing only 2.2 amps (about 31 watts). The solar system could support this load and much more. It did not discharge the battery at all. The panels together are rated at a maximum output of about 300 watts. Obviously this was in standby or listening mode. As you transmit, the use will spike. We will have to test this at the next POTA activation. The X2 app on the iPhone connects to the battery by bluetooth. It shows the estimated discharge time and estimated capacity at full charge. It also displays current Amps, power in Watts (in +/out -), Voltage, and temperature. A great tool to monitor your system status.
The above example is a 20 Ah battery in my car running a ham radio to show the software features. The trailer battery is 150 Ah.
The members of BARC need to thank Nick for spearheading this effort. He spent a lot of his time and money buying and installing all this stuff. The trailer has now become an incredible asset. It will always be ready to be deployed whenever and wherever it’s needed. The multiple frequency capabilities of the trailer allows us to communicate on multiple bands without a problem. All we need to do is roll up to a site, set up some HF antennas and immediately get on the air. This is the definition of emergency response. Also, it can be used for POTA activation, field day and many other Ham Radio activities.
There are several other parts of this project that probably need to be upgraded. One part is adding a 440 repeater so that it can have its own emergency communication coordination using handheld radios. Another part is installing a Wi-Fi link or possibly a Starlink antenna at the top. There are also some creature comforts. These include awnings over the doors to keep the rain out. Maybe we could add some 12 V fans. We do not believe we need air conditioning. The painted roof keeps the interior temperature of the trailer at ambient temperature. I hope the membership feels excited about this new addition to the Brightleaf Amateur Radio Club. I also hope they start to use it as it is intended. Once again, I think I speak for the membership in thanking Nick for spearheading this effort.
73 Peter N4PVH
My heartiest congratulations to Dave and to the club. Dave is very deserving of everything he received. I am very proud of my friend and fellow ham.
I really wish I could have been there this year, but circumstances dictated otherwise.
73 to the club!
Byron K4BMH