Hi guys, looking for hands-on recommendations here. Need to provide some background.
Two years back, while planning for a big trip in our older camper van, I bought a free-standing 100w solar panel plus the smallest Victron MPPT and 10m of 4mm wiring and sent it all off to a local installer. The wiring job wasn’t great (see my posts passim) but the system has worked well for our purposes, gaining us a couple of extra days of lights and fan when we venture offgrid.
There’s one problem which wasn’t apparent on delivery. The panel arrived pre-fitted with industry-standard MC4 connectors, and the installer incorporated them into my build. Now, MC4s are great in their place, but they’re designed for permanent installations. When we’re on the road I have to make and break the connections every few days, and the click-in mechanism on the MC4s is wearing out from over-use.
Obviously I can replace the MC4s with any connector I fancy. I just wonder if anyone has recommendations?
I don’t know where you’re located, but I would say Anderson Power pole. These single poles can be combined to a multipole connector. One red and one black, a boot or a piece of heatshrink on the end and Bob’s your auntie.
Thanks, David. I hadn’t heard of PowerPole but 12voltplanet stock 'em – good UK company. But I don’t really need the multipole functionality tho – just one neat pair of connectors would do it.
I don’t have hands-on with this system. I’m inclined to do like Wikipedia says, that is, connect the +ve input on the Victron MPPT to the exposed pin. Look at the photo, and imagine the MPPT offscreen to the left. Its “solar +ve” connection would go to the lower, exposed pin of the left half of the image, and its “solar -ve” to the upper, concealed pin.
If you had more panels, I’d be worried about current handling.
Also the maximum number of insertions might be a thing to keep in mind.
Last, but not least, a connector that can’t be confused with something else you might find on that vehicle.
Shout out to Victron’s MagCode Power Port, they’re cute and I’ve always wanted to use one. No documentation on it’s voltage rating, but current looks ok.
I use ground deployed panels, anywhere from 400 watts to 1000 watts. All my panels are using MC4 connectors. It’s easy enough to cut them off and replace them with new MC4 connectors.
At the camper wall, I’ve used SAE connectors. They’re OK, but many of them are limited to 10 amps. If you wire your panels in series to raise the voltage, then the amps won’t increase. The amp rating on some premade cables with SAE connectors seem to be the rating for the wire, not the connector itself.
MC4 connectors are rated for 30 amps. Never disconnect MC4 connectors when under a load.
