23BHE ongoing projects?

[Famtraveler24]

Greetings all. Bought our 2021 Imagine XLS 23BHE a few weeks ago and am new to the forum. Very interested in anyone with an ongoing install project sharing your setup and experience. We have the new wire setup with the Jaboni box on top. Ours will be a complex install, so trying to learn and research as much as possible. Thanks all!

[TucsonJim]

I think the reason you're not getting a lot of responses to your post is that there's not a lot of 23BHE's out there. If you have any questions or comments that are a little more non-model specific, please let us know. And if you'd take a lot of photos of your job and provide details, it would be GREATLY appreciated by all of us.

Any thoughts yet on what size of system you're going to install? What your battery bank will consist of? Will you be installing an inverter also?

Jim

[Famtraveler24]

Thx for the reply. Phase 1 will be installing a new lithium friendly power center (PD4045KV) and at least 3 100A LiFePo Battle Borns, with the right 3000w Victron Inverter for a 30A setup. Not sure at this point which model to go with. Also will be getting the 712 monitor.

Phase 2 will be as many panels as I can fit on the roof along with 3 more batteries and a Victron controller. Ideally, I want to put the batteries under the bed but need ideas about best placement. With the tongue jack, etc. connected to the existing battery, I'll need some thoughts on rerouting, as well as wire sizes for less than 10' runs.

I'll certainly be taking many pics along the way. Not yet sure how to organize it all, but given I won't have a transfer switch, sub panel, or need for 50A items, I suspect things might be simpler.

Any help from the veterans would be great!

Thx.

[howson]

Thx for the reply. Phase 1 will be installing a new lithium friendly power center (PD4045KV) and at least 3 100A LiFePo Battle Borns, with the right 3000w Victron Inverter for a 30A setup. Not sure at this point which model to go with. Also will be getting the 712 monitor.

Phase 2 will be as many panels as I can fit on the roof along with 3 more batteries and a Victron controller. Ideally, I want to put the batteries under the bed but need ideas about best placement. With the tongue jack, etc. connected to the existing battery, I'll need some thoughts on rerouting, as well as wire sizes for less than 10' runs.

I'll certainly be taking many pics along the way. Not yet sure how to organize it all, but given I won't have a transfer switch, sub panel, or need for 50A items, I suspect things might be simpler.

Any help from the veterans would be great!

Thx.

Why the PD4045KV? The Victron is both an inverter and a charger.

It's early so maybe my brain is still asleep...

Howard

[Famtraveler24]

Good question. I guess I was thinking that I needed it, given I wasn't going solar right away, but yours isn't the slow brain! Guess all my breakers and fuses go right into then Victron? Will that MultiPlus 3000 work for my 30A trailer?

[howson]

Good question. I guess I was thinking that I needed it, given I wasn't going solar right away, but yours isn't the slow brain! Guess all my breakers and fuses go right into then Victron? Will that MultiPlus 3000 work for my 30A trailer?

The way mine is configured (since I have a 50A setup) is one leg is passed through the Victron (when connected to shore power) and then to the Power Distribution Center. I removed the OEM converter. I know per your PM that you've seen the comprehensive drawing of my setup. You won't need anything that large in a 30A trailer.

The short answer to your question "Will that Multiplus 3000 work for my 30A trailer?" is "yes"--but is it the right one for you and why? Do you need/want a 3000W inverter? The answer is derived from understanding the power draws of your trailer and how you'll use the inverter.

Let me put it in a different context. If your question was, "Will that truck work for me?" and you were referencing my 2017 F-350 6.7L diesel dually, I'd have to understand what you intended to use the truck for before the answer made sense. Suppose the response is, "I just need to pick up the occasional piece of lumber." Will the dually do that? Sure it will! But you'll waste a LOT of money buying unnecessary capability you'll never tap. You'll be fine with a mid-sized gas pickup (wouldn't even need an F-150).

Does that make sense?

Scope and understand the requirement (and budget). Then the answers to what to buy will be much easier (and so will the responses from forum members on your options). Some have gone the Victron route, some GoPower!, and then Samlex, etc. None are "right" or "wrong"--all depends on what you expect from the system (and budget).

Howard

[Famtraveler24]

Thanks again! We have friends that exclusively boondock. We want to join them on weekends but here in NC it gets so hot in the summer that we need some air conditioning. So, longer term, I want at least 1200w if not 1500w of solar tied into at least a 3000 inverter, with a soft starter. My wife needs her hair dryer, WiFi for work on a laptop and some TV watching, but main concern is at least to have some air for some period of time to keep from burning up. I realize the constraints but don't want to be tied to a generator. Hope that helps. Thx again.

[TucsonJim]

Thanks again! We have friends that exclusively boondock. We want to join them on weekends but here in NC it gets so hot in the summer that we need some air conditioning. So, longer term, I want at least 1200w if not 1500w of solar tied into at least a 3000 inverter, with a soft starter. My wife needs her hair dryer, WiFi for work on a laptop and some TV watching, but main concern is at least to have some air for some period of time to keep from burning up. I realize the constraints but don't want to be tied to a generator. Hope that helps. Thx again.

You're thinking along the right lines when you start to look at what your usage will be. One thing you haven't touched on is whay your proposed battery bank will be. An AC will draw one heck of a lot of current very quickly. Your primary goal with solar will be to keep the batteries charged up. Any thoughts yet on your battery set up?

Jim

[Famtraveler24]

My original thought was 3-4 batteries under the bed with the MultPlus and monitor in the pass through behind the connection center, which I think (?) backs right up to the under bed storage.

[howson]

My original thought was 3-4 batteries under the bed with the MultPlus and monitor in the pass through behind the connection center, which I think (?) backs right up to the under bed storage.

Mike Sokol's upcoming series of articles may be of interest: https://www.rvtravel.com/rvelectricity32/

[Famtraveler24]

Just a quick follow up. Even after all my looking, I can still not figure out how the DC wiring that is directly connected to the battery (e.g., the slide out, tongue jack, etc) ties in to the overall system and what happens with any ground wire bolted to the frame right now. Any advice? Thx!

[howson]

Just a quick follow up. Even after all my looking, I can still not figure out how the DC wiring that is directly connected to the battery (e.g., the slide out, tongue jack, etc) ties in to the overall system and what happens with any ground wire bolted to the frame right now. Any advice? Thx!

There is extensive documentation in bellis ' thread on this topic https://gdrvowners.com/forum/operati...-and-questions, in the comprehensive diagram posted in https://gdrvowners.com/forum/operati...lts-f-350-mods and finally (and specifically) in the OEM 12v Wiring thread https://gdrvowners.com/forum/operati...oem-12v-wiring

Everything I could type here would just be repeating that information.

I am struggling with how to write this...very difficult to not sound condescending (which is NOT my intent) but I have to ask--have you considered the scale of this project may be a "bridge too far"? If you've read my presentation (there's a link to it in the comprehensive thread) I wrote the following about just the inverter side of the project(!):

DIY or Professional Installation?

I’d rate this project a 4 on the following scale:

1 = A No Brainer (install a Valterra Twist-On Gate Valve)
2 = Easy, but Read the Directions (install a LevelMate Pro)
3 = Doable, but not easy and some expertise is required (Install an internal EMS)
4 = This One is Tough! Consider having it done by a professional
5 = Dealer or Factory Only (wall or slide replacement)

If you're determined to continue expect to spend a lot of time reading and studying to understand. As a suggestion, take pictures of the wiring where it meets the small, self-resetting circuit breakers on the trailer near the battery. Draw out a diagram that makes sense to you and post it showing what, if anything, is not understood.

[gbkims]

My guess is the wiring follows similar TTs.
Saw a 22MLE AC-DC Power Center pict over on GD FB Solar. Lots of crimp and wire nut connections behind the power center.

[Famtraveler24]

Thanks all. Just picked up the 23BHE fr storage today. Will be taking lots of pics, measurements, etc. and will post as I am able. And Howard...no offense taken. This will be a complex project. Fortunately, I have some good help.

[Famtraveler24]

Ok. Attached is my attempt at using SmartDraw for the first time to show the OEM DC wiring in my 23BHE. This is based off the attached photos. In several locations, I have no idea what the wires run to, and in others, I'm guessing based off the diagrams provided by others. If anyone can help me identify the wires marked "unknown," it would be extremely helpful. Also, what changes, removals, updates would folks suggest as I replace my LA battery with 4 BattleBorns in parallel in the under bed storage compartment) and the existing WFCO-8735 converter/charger with a MultiPlus 3000? I figure I'll have to add an additional junction box (or some form of connector) between the existing shore power AC in currently going to the WFCO 30A breaker and the MultiPlus AC1 in, as the shore power wire is not long enough to run to where I want to mount the MultiPlus in the passthrough. So, any advice there would be appreciated as well. Thanks all!