Solar power math for a custom camper shell on the tri-motor.

[Electruck]

Virtually all truck campers sold today would not fit in the Cybertruck. They would be blocked by the sailplanes. The sides of truck campers go over the sides of the top of pickup beds. You would have to go the custom route, which increases costs 2-3 times.

Also, a truck camper wouldn't have enough room for enough solar that would make it workable. Add on all the air resistance from the truck camper in addition to all the extra rolling resistance, and you would need to plug in frequently.

I've been thinking about putting 2,700 watts of solar on my travel trailer roof with the help of extended solar awnings. It would take around 10 DAYS to fully charge the truck, and that's with no usage for the camper!

Ahhh, there's mobile overland solar kits NOW, which travel as attached to the back of a truck AND transfer to other trucks with a click-n-play simplicity that's out of this world.

Have you been to the SEMA Overland area? You can go there literally, or in YouTube. Established Corporations building for the LandCruiser and LandRover markets of this, for years now. No sure how/where you make these statements?

 

[Zybane]

Ahhh, there's mobile overland solar kits NOW, which travel as attached to the back of a truck AND transfer to other trucks with a click-n-play simplicity that's out of this world.

Have you been to the SEMA Overland area? You can go there literally, or in YouTube. Established Corporations building for the LandCruiser and LandRover markets of this, for years now. No sure how/where you make these statements?

lol those dinky little systems would barely put a dent in charging a 200 kWh CyberTruck. Like filling an Olympic swimming pool with a garden hose.

This 1,300 square foot solar install in direct sunlight has about the same wattage as a Tesla 220V/72Amp home charger:

And would take about three sunny days to fully recharge a 200 kWh CyberTruck...

Any solar you could fit on top of a vehicle/truck camper is tantamount to a "trickle charger" and would barely keep up with the living quarter energy demands let alone charging a CyberTruck.

 

[Unlucky]

I love how there's a ton of replies yet only 1 other answer that actually does the math.

Let's figure out the math peeps. Everything else is a moot point until then.

 

[Blup85]

i think the truck is going to consume around 45Kw/hr per 100 miles. (Model x uses 36kw/h per 100 miles). So for 40miles you would need 18kw/hr of charge. So if you have daylight for 7 hours a day (conservative) you need to generate 2.5kw of power per hour.

i’m horrible at the maths though.

I think your 7 hours of daylight is pretty high. 5hrs is the annual daily average in my area (Northern Ca) figuring in shorter winter days and cloud cover. Your also assuming your panels are oriented at 180deg, and at a 36 deg angle to maximize that 5 hrs, which they probably won't unless you park your vehicle perfectly.
If your figuring on just calculating for summer use, maybe 7hrs makes more sense.
As a rule of thumb though, if you figure 17watts per square foot of solar X the hours of sunlight (5.5 annual or 7hrs summer?) that should give you an idea how big your system needs to be to get the mileage your looking for.
The CT has roughly a 6.5ftx5ft bed, which would generate ~ 4-5kwhrs / day under ideal conditions, and if we assume the truck pulls ~400watts/mile, that's comes to about 11 miles per day less vampire drain of 2mpd, so a net gain of 9ish?
Again, all speculation based on what the efficiency of the CT is going to be, but solar has been pretty static for a while.

 

[ricohman]

Very rough initial sketch of what I'm thinking for my truck camper.

The CG of a TC should be centered on the rear axle. I have no idea how that will possibly work with the forward design.
Also, trucks sold to carry a TC are certified as such by the manufacturer and come with a letter of certification that specifies the actual point where the CG of the camper needs to be placed. You simply line the arrow of the CG on the camper with the point specified. This is why using a LWB camper on a SWB truck doesn't work.
I have no idea how insurance works were you live but here you need the certification to be legal going down the road.

 

[Unlucky]

I think your 7 hours of daylight is pretty high. 5hrs is the annual daily average in my area (Northern Ca) figuring in shorter winter days and cloud cover. Your also assuming your panels are oriented at 180deg, and at a 36 deg angle to maximize that 5 hrs, which they probably won't unless you park your vehicle perfectly.
If your figuring on just calculating for summer use, maybe 7hrs makes more sense.
As a rule of thumb though, if you figure 17watts per square foot of solar X the hours of sunlight (5.5 annual or 7hrs summer?) that should give you an idea how big your system needs to be to get the mileage your looking for.
The CT has roughly a 6.5ftx5ft bed, which would generate ~ 4-5kwhrs / day under ideal conditions, and if we assume the truck pulls ~400watts/mile, that's comes to about 11 miles per day less vampire drain of 2mpd, so a net gain of 9ish?
Again, all speculation based on what the efficiency of the CT is going to be, but solar has been pretty static for a while.

I hadn't even thought about angle. Hmmm.

So what if we added a low Profile camper shell extending up the Apex/peak of the triangle roof. That would add a bit more square footage.

Awesome post

 

[GlynG28]

you might do better with something that you toe behind you. that thing looks like a sail. Your range penalty will be way more than 40 miles.

I’d rather go vertically than tow, as it’ll be difficult enough finding street parking for the large Cybertruck on it’s own in my UK city.

The CG of a TC should be centered on the rear axle. I have no idea how that will possibly work with the forward design.
Also, trucks sold to carry a TC are certified as such by the manufacturer and come with a letter of certification that specifies the actual point where the CG of the camper needs to be placed. You simply line the arrow of the CG on the camper with the point specified. This is why using a LWB camper on a SWB truck doesn't work.
I have no idea how insurance works were you live but here you need the certification to be legal going down the road.

Thanks. I need to research truck camper designing more thoroughly but I have a few years to look into it and figure it out. I've asked on UK truck camper forum about insurance, I hadn't thought about it.

Virtually all truck campers sold today would not fit in the Cybertruck. They would be blocked by the sailplanes. The sides of truck campers go over the sides of the top of pickup beds. You would have to go the custom route, which increases costs 2-3 times.

Also, a truck camper wouldn't have enough room for enough solar that would make it workable. Add on all the air resistance from the truck camper in addition to all the extra rolling resistance, and you would need to plug in frequently.

I've been thinking about putting 2,700 watts of solar on my travel trailer roof with the help of extended solar awnings. It would take around 10 DAYS to fully charge the truck, and that's with no usage for the camper!

Yep, I plan to make a DIY truck camper. I might get a shell built for me but would do the rest of the build myself and it costs whatever it costs. It'll be full time indefinite live in home and I don't mind loosing half or more the 500 mile range. I would plan to put 2-4 KW solar on the truck camper and expect it to cover it's own power needs with maybe a bit left over for the truck occasionally.

 

[ricohman]

I’d rather go vertically than tow, as it’ll be difficult enough finding street parking for the large Cybertruck on it’s own in my UK city.

Thanks. I need to research truck camper designing more thoroughly but I have a few years to look into it and figure it out. I've asked on UK truck camper forum about insurance, I hadn't thought about it.

Yep, I plan to make a DIY truck camper. I might get a shell built for me but would do the rest of the build myself and it costs whatever it costs. It'll be full time indefinite live in home and I don't mind loosing half or more the 500 mile range. I would plan to put 2-4 KW solar on the truck camper and expect it to cover it's own power needs with maybe a bit left over for the truck occasionally.

One thing to remember when designing a TC is the CG is the same when it's off the vehicle. Meaning you should be able to jack it up, drive the truck out, lower it down and live in it. All without the camper tipping over. You should be able to sleep in the cabover when the camper is off the truck without worry of the camper tipping over. A basement design can lower the CG though.
Designing jackpoints for the camper is another thing to consider. You need a stout corner and underhang that can take the weight of the camper, Some TC's have to be kept a bit nose high when unloading and loading. Others are just fine level. I use a remote for the jacks and can work each one independently.
Two of my friends have home built TC's. They are projects of love and serious commitment. One is a hard top collapsible if you can imagine that.
Both are quite heavy.

 

[Tslacg]

I hadn't even thought about angle. Hmmm.

So what if we added a low Profile camper shell extending up the Apex/peak of the triangle roof. That would add a bit more square footage.

Awesome post

Unlucky, have you checked out expeditionportal.com? I'd propose the question there as well. They've got a lot of great topics on customs rugs of all sorts.

As for the math, I can see you adding 25-30 miles a day, but you need 2kw of solar to do it (imo). You'll need to double stack panels and slide out during the day (obviously this won't work during driving but extended camping and the slide out panels could act as a sunshade of sorts.)
My math assumes 500wh/hr per mile, or 1kwh per 2 miles.

Therefore you need 20kwh for your 40 miles.

You could utilize a single model 3 battery module to charge them up during the day (charge 1 module) and then charge your truck at night.

I don't see a way to get you to the full 40 miles tho. Unless efficiency of panels increases a bit more by then.

 

[Nocturnal]

Just spit balling, but if you are building custom, why not use fold out solar panels so you aren't limited to just the surface area of the top of the camper? Park in open area, fold out panels and add an extra 50 or 100% of generation capacity.

 

[Blup85]

Just spit balling, but if you are building custom, why not use fold out solar panels so you aren't limited to just the surface area of the top of the camper? Park in open area, fold out panels and add an extra 50 or 100% of generation capacity.

That will be the big question. Will Tesla allow for additional panel loads for the charge controller in the tonneau cover? Elon suggested that an "expandable" solar panel kit would be an option, so depending on how large a charge controller they use and the input voltage, you could really add some power and ve dry camping and pop popcorn in the microwave! 60volt bus?