Solar Maintenance

Those new to RV solar sometimes wonder: What kind of maintenance routine do I need to perform? Happily, maintaining the RV solar system is easier than taking care of a goldfish. Much easier!

The panels themselves need to be kept clean. How often? That depends largely on your environment. If you're in an area where there's a lot of wind-blown dust, you'll be looking after those panels more often. The main trick is this: Anything that blocks the sun--even a little--can have a large impact on solar panel output. Cleaning your common "crystalline" panels is a simply job: A soft cloth and plenty of water work well. Unless your panel maker suggests otherwise, some find that glass cleaner works well. The problem sometimes encountered in an alkali dust environment is that glass cleaner doesn't always "cut it." You may find that a straight vinegar does the trick of cutting the muck.

The next bit of maintenance? Keep an eye on the system batteries. Check them at least once a month to ensure the electrolyte level hasn't dropped below level. If it has refill with DISTILLED water. Keep the battery connections clean to prevent power loss.

Kofa Wildlife Refuge: Getting Away From Quartzsite Crowds

Going to Quartzsite this season? Sometimes the crowds are just plain oppressive. Need a little break? Not far south on Highway 95--the road to Yuma, is the Kofa Wildlife Refuge. A favorable boondocking spot is at Crystal Hill.

Crystal Hill was pretty popular among the rock hound set, as you could (and with persistence still can) find small crystal formations you can carry off. But more importantly, it's a relatively quiet place off the road, yet not too far from civilization. The refuge is home to desert bighorn sheep and the only place in Arizona where you can find native palm trees--the California fan palm.

The former have a tendency to roam around wherever it is that a sheep's fancy takes them; the latter are found in Palm Canyon--a short hike from the Palm Canyon trail head (clearly marked by signage on Highway 95). We've also been fascinated by rock formations like the one pictured here. This fellow surely reminds us of a bobcat getting ready to set about a little luncheon. Now some will tell you he's quite natural, but a local friend of ours tells us he results from the artistic efforts of Spanish explorers who carved him (and other formations) to point the way to gold mines and other hot spots.

You'll find the road to Crystal Hill between mileposts 95 and 96. Palm Canyon road is 18 miles south of Quartzsite, follow the dirt road to the trail head and thence hike from there--about a half mile. Best light is found around high noon.

Golf Cart Batteries Your Solution?

Many RVers swear by the use of golf cart batteries over conventional RV deep cycle batteries. There are some good things to be said for the golf cart batteries--they have thicker internal plates, which usually makes for a longer-lasting battery bank. Since they're designed to push around heavy golf carts (and heavy golfers) they usually have a much higher amp-hour capacity.

Still, keep in mind a golf cart battery is a six volt battery. To replace the typical RV storage battery, you'll need two of them--twice the footprint--to make one usable battery. The two batteries will need to be hooked up in series, that is, the negative terminal of one of them must be hooked to the positive terminal of its partner. Then the free terminals of the batteries--a positive and a negative--will be hooked to your RV battery leads.

Be sure to get MATCHING golf cart batteries, best new wherever possible. And remember, when you go to calculate your amp-hour capacity in this installation, the two batteries in series DO NOT add amp-hour capacity: Two matching golf cart batteries each with an 85 amp-hour capacity wired in series is still JUST an 85 amp-hour battery. And yes, you can parallel wire banks of series wired 6 volt batteries to increase your amp-hour capacity.

For more information and RV battery mysteries, check out our book, RV Boondocking Basics at the RVBookstore.

Looking for a Free Place to Drop the Hook? How About Rent-a-Guest

Need a place to "settle in" for a little while but don't have the cash to pay high rates at RV parks? One enterprising RVer explains his methodology for developing leads for places to stay in his RV.

He hit a real-estate office in an area where he needed to sit tight. He explained he was an RVer, was basically self-contained, and would be happy to provide "on-site" security for home owners who needed to be away from their properties. He stressed that he wouldn't be sleeping in their beds, dirtying their dishes, or running up their phone bill. All he needed was a place to park his RV and keep watch.

Very soon the RVer not only had a place to park his RV, with free electricity. And since he was able and willing, he also fed the horses and kept the pool up. The owners loved it so much the threw in some nice financial compensation. At other times he's stayed by a farmer's stock tank free, "just to keep an eye out for trouble."

Friends of ours vend out of Quartzsite in the winter, but the summers are too hot for them to, 'earn their desert rat's merit badge.' So last summer they tooled back to the northwest and asked around. Soon they had a full hookup site at a small RV park. Once a week they vacuum the "rec room" and they make sure the swimming pool water is kept aright. They know for sure that the latter is--they get to go swimming whenever they wish. Next spring they'll make the "flip flop" and head back up to the land of golden opportunities.

Yes, you could opt to work through an agency that promotes "work camping." Many are reputable--ask around fulltime RVers, if they've had good or bad experiences, they'll tell you. When you "interview" for a job it's good if your rig looks clean, and the rest of you matches up with the story. Since you're self-contained, you can park just about anywhere you're needed.