Thus as a practical matter the vast majority of rv owners will never be able to set up their rv in a way that solar could power an ac unit.
Solar powered ac unit for rv.
While it is technically possible to power an rv air conditioner with solar panels to generate enough power a large amount of solar panels and upgrades to the electrical system would be required.
Keep reading my quick guide to using solar power to power your rv air conditioner and you will understand how the process works.
We are talking rv solar here the power source is a 12v battery bank.
And the air conditioner is on a 20 amp breaker not a 15 amp.
You can just drop it over the roof vent hook up the power and enjoy the cool air in your rv.
These two factors along with the size of the panels you install will dictate how many panels you need to effectively use solar power for rv air conditioner power supply.
However the number of panels needed to power the rest of the rv let alone keep the ac unit running all day would be pretty high.
Prior to moving forward it is a good idea if you understand know how solar power works for your rv.
So the air conditioner pulls 150 amps from the 12v batteries the inverter transforms that current into 15 amps 120v and then sends it on to power the air conditioner.
For example many rv air conditioning units require somewhere between 1 700 and 3 500 starting watts and 600 to 1 500 running watts.
Super solar array immense inverter battery size and more are some factors to consider before taking any action.