How Many Solar Panels Do You Need for a Camper?

by Gabrielle DeSantis

What if you could make your camper have more of a closed-loop system by relying on solar panels instead of gas-powered generators or campsite plugins for electricity? As solar technology continues to improve, using solar panels to power the devices in your camper has never been more accessible. Still, creating this type of system isn’t as simple as plopping a panel on your roof and calling it good. 

Learn more about using solar panels for your camper, including calculating how many you’ll need to accommodate all of your devices.

Calculating solar panel needs 

One of the first questions you might ask is, “How many solar panels do I need?”

This depends on what you plan on doing with your solar panels and whether you want 100 percent of your power to come from solar or if it will supplement other means of energy. According to Explorist, the number of panels doesn’t matter nearly as much as the total wattage that each can produce. 

For example, you can purchase a 300 -att solar panel or install three 100-watt panels and get the same output. There are several types of solar panel wattages, and you can mix and match them as needed to fit on the roof of your camper, or you can buy a portable solar panel to use occasionally. 

How many watts will you need?

Here comes the tricky part: figuring out how many watts you’ll need to power your camper’s devices. If you already have a camper equipped with batteries, you’ll need to figure out how many amp-hours they can store. If you don’t yet have batteries, it’s a good idea to figure out how many amp-hours you’ll need for your camper to calculate how many batteries you’ll need. Fortunately, Explorist also has a guide for estimating electrical needs. 

Once you know the total amp-hours your batteries can store, you can figure out the total wattage required to power them. A helpful rule of thumb to know is that 100 amp-hours from a 12.8-volt battery typically equals about 1,280 watts of power. How many solar panels you’ll need to generate enough power to charge a battery fully depends on how much sunlight you can get in a day, as well as several other factors. 

For simplicity’s sake, let’s say you can expect about six full hours of sunlight per day. So if you find you need 2,000 watts of power per day to run all of your camper’s appliances and devices, you’ll need at least two batteries. Take the 2,000 watts of daily power usage and divide it by the number of sunlight hours you expect — six — to get about 334 watts. This is the total wattage you’ll need from your camper’s panels. 

Of course, this calculation is only a rough estimate, but it can help paint a clearer picture of how much power we’re talking about. 

Are solar panels on campers actually worth it?

For some avid campers, yes, solar panels are worth the initial investment. However, occasional campers or weekenders are less likely to see returns on their investments. But some people don’t care about getting their money back — they only want to avoid relying on traditional electricity and want to make a positive environmental impact. 

The initial investment in solar panels can be expensive, so many people find it helpful to build their cache of panels gradually to supplement other means of power in the beginning. They can continue to build their closed-loop solar system and begin to phase out less clean power methods instead of having to shell out tens of thousands of dollars at once. 

RELATED: Don’t Miss Out on These Dark-Sky RV Campgrounds

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Are We Ever Getting a New Volkswagen Bus?

by Gabrielle DeSantis

While Volkswagen isn’t an American automaker, many of its vehicles have become very iconic in American history. For example, the VW Beetle has not only been a popular and well-known car but it’s also become the subject of the long-running childhood game known as ‘Slug Bug’ or ‘Punch Buggy.’ It’s a similar story with the VW Bus, and while it’s been gone for a long time, the Volkswagen Bus is finally coming back.

A short history of the Volkswagen Bus

A Volkswagen ID. Buzz model with Nike and Blue Ribbon branding | Volkswagen of America, Inc. Newspress Limited

The story behind the VW Bus, or more specifically, the Microbus, is a long one. Volkswagen started making Microbus models in the late 1940s, but they really became popular in the 60s and 70s. Young Americans at the time, especially those who were involved in the hippie movement, loved the VW Bus. Not only that, but famous bands, such as The Grateful Dead, were huge fans of the Volkswagen Bus as well. 

Due to the popularity of the Volkswagen Bus during that time, the VW Bus itself became one of the many symbols of that period of American history. Volkswagen eventually stopped producing the Microbus, but the VW Bus’ popularity lived on. Not that long ago, Volkswagen announced that the Microbus was back. Perhaps to honor its hippie stereotype, the new Volkswagen Bus will be an EV.

The new VW Bus is still coming

Volkswagen has an upcoming lineup of EV cars that are all part of the ID. series. The new VW Bus is the latest entry in the electric ID. series. The official name of that concept bus is the I.D. Buzz, but here’s the catch. The I.D. Buzz, being a concept vehicle, premiered in 2017 at an auto show. Since it’s difficult to turn a concept car into an actual production car, some have speculated that the electric VW Bus has been canceled. 

Fortunately for fans of the VW Bus, that doesn’t seem to be the case. According to Car and Driver, the currently unnamed production model of the I.D. Buzz is still slated to start production in 2022, but that will be for Europeans. For Americans, the new Volkswagen Bus will arrive in 2023, and it’ll arrive in the 2024 model year.

On top of that, Volkswagen recently gave another update concerning the VW Bus. Volkswagen said that in the summer of 2021, it would start testing a production version of the VW Bus that’s equipped with semi-autonomous self-driving features. That being said, Volkswagen doesn’t expect those features to be available to customers until about 2025. However, this update does show that VW is serious about making the new Volkswagen Bus as high-tech as possible.

What the Volkswagen ID. Buzz may have

Since Volkswagen still hasn’t given the production version of the I.D. Buzz a name yet, its details are still pretty sparse. After all, a lot can change from concept to production. What almost definitely won’t change, however, is its looks. Since the new VW Bus is a throwback to its most famous version from the 60s and 70s, Volkswagen probably wants to keep that design intact.

Similarly, there may not be much of a size difference between the concept and the production versions. The I.D. Buzz, for instance, has about 162.5 cubic feet of cargo space, and unless Volkswagen redesigns the bus entirely, it’ll probably stay about the same. Another aspect that will probably remain the same is its range. The I.D. Buzz concept has a range of about 300 miles, and the production version will likely have a similar range. 

That being said, the new name for the Volkswagen bus will probably be quite boring. For example, the ID. Crozz was the name of the concept car that eventually became the Volkswagen ID.4. The new VW Bus will probably have a similar name once it’s officially released.

RELATED: Reasonably Priced 2022 Volkswagen ID.4 Is a Serious Competitor

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Is it Legal to Display a License Plate in Your Car’s Windshield?

by Gabrielle DeSantis

If you’re a car enthusiast, then you know how ugly front license plates on cars can be. There’s almost nothing worse than modifying, painting, and even cleaning your car to your heart’s content, only to have the front end look of it be ruined by an unsightly number plate. Many enthusiasts choose to remove the plate completely, which can cause them to get pulled over and get a ticket. But is displaying the license plate in the windshield a legal workaround?

License plate placement depends on your local state laws

Con plates front license plate holder on a front windshield | Amazon

There are currently 30 states, plus Washington D.C., where a front license plate is required to be affixed to your car. The states that don’t require a front license plate are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia. So if you live in one of those states, consider yourself lucky.

For everyone else, that front plate has to stay on the front bumper. However, if you live in Washington, Nevada, or Florida, you can legally affix a license plate to another spot in the front of the vehicle if it can’t be mounted in the original spot for the license plate.

That doesn’t necessarily mean the plate can sit in the windshield, though, as every law that we found says that the plate must be securely fastened to the outside of the vehicle. The license plate must also be well-lit and visible from at least 50 feet away. Additionally, having the license plate in the windshield can obstruct the driver’s view, which goes against a different law.

What’s the point of having two license plates?

Officials transfer license plates of the motorcade ahead of the inauguration of President Joe Biden.
Officials transfer license plates of the motorcade ahead of the inauguration of President Joe Biden. | (Photo by Melina Mara/The Washington Post/POOL)

It’s important for every car to have two license plates for law enforcement purposes, reports the Echo Press. If an officer needs to run a car’s plates, then they should be able to obtain the information from either the front or rear of the vehicle. Also, if the vehicle is backed into a parking spot, it’s important for law enforcement to be able to read the plate information from the front of the vehicle.

Alternate ways to display your front license plate

If you live in a state where a front license plate is required and your car doesn’t have a spot, then there are a few other ways to mount the plate, according to CNET:

  • Tow hook mount: Many cars have tow hook sockets underneath a small panel located on the front bumper. While this socket is meant to have a tow hook screwed in for when the car needs to be towed, it can also double as a mounting spot for a special license plate tow hook mount.
  • Quick release mount: If you would rather have the ability to easily remove the license plate, the a quick release mount could work for you. This mount has two pieces; the bottom piece is a plate that screws in under the chin of the car while the other is attached to the plate. When you want the plate off the car, you just separate the top part from the bottom in seconds.
  • Motorized mounts: For the “Houdini of license plate mounts,” you can get a motorized mount that secures the bottom of the front chin. With the push of a button from a remote, the license plate will raise and lower in second “James Bond style.”

Here is an example:

RELATED: Can I Have the Same License Plate Number as Someone Else?

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RV Window Recall: Is Your Jayco Brand RV Affected?

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Imagine taking your Jayco camper out on the road. Whether it’s winter or summer, you’re glad to know the family will be nice and comfortable when they come inside after a day in nature’s elements. But then you realize that the windows seem loose. 

Jayco Reatta | Entegra Coach/ Jayco, Inc.

If there is a chilly draft squeezing in through the failing window adhesive? Is the heat of the desert ruining your portable indoor oasis? Then your Jayco Brand RV might be affected by this RV window recall. 

Camper recall for Jayco brand RV window problems

According to RV Travel and the Nation Highway traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Jayco, Inc. (commonly known as the Jayco RV brand)  has issued a recall. This recall involves window problems in Jayco camper models of the 2019-2021 model years.

Anthem, Aspire, Insignia, Reatta, Cornerstone, and Embark RVs, or recreational vehicles, with Heher 6400-series windows are affected by this RV recall. Reportedly, the adhesive that “bonds the vented portion of the window may fail.” This means the windows may come loose or fall out of their frames entirely. 

The NHTSA recalls products due to possible danger of injury or a crash

NHTSA logo
NHTSA | Nation Highway Traffic Safety Association

According to the NHTSA, this recall issue could put RV owners and users at risk of injury or a crash, which could ultimately lead to a possible fatality. For this reason, the NHTSA finds reason to recall the affected products in order to prevent unnecessary incidents. 

What should I do if I think the RV recall affects my Jayco camper model? 

If you are a Jayco brand RV owner and you believe your model may be affected, there are a few different actions you may take. First, owners will want to contact the dealer and inquire after their particular model. Or, letters will go out to owners in order to notify them of potential window problems. 

Owners can expect the notification letters to go out August 16, 2021, according to RV Travel. There is also Jayco customer service that owners may call so that they may inquire after their particular Jayco Brand RV model. The number for this department is 1-800-283-8267, and the number for this specific recall is 9903569.  

How will the company fix the window problems? 

If your RV or Jayco camper model is affected, it will need to go to the dealer for inspection and repairs. If it proves necessary, the maintenance department at the dealership will replace the window vent. Owners will not have to pay for any repairs that fall under the specifications of this RV recall. 

For any additional information, owners are also able to contact the NHTSA Hotline. This number is 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153). Plus, there may also be information on the NHTSA website. 

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