This installation was completed in April of 2025.  The owner of this motorhome contacted me in February regarding a possible system installation.  We had several discussions about  the process and I sent a detailed estimate with a system schematic for his review.  The customer ultimately chose to move forward with the installation, but on a budget.  The customer chose to pair down the original estimate by forgoing the solar component and removing a few other small items.  He also chose to supply his own, less expensive, batteries to keep within his chosen budget.  The customer and I had several discussions about this in order to make sure he would get everything he needed for functionality and still be able to add components in the future.  Once the customer was happy with the proposed system, we set an installation date.

The customer drove his RV up to me from southern California for the installation.  He arrived the afternoon before the installation start date and stayed in his RV while the installation was completed.  The installation took three days to complete. 

The customer had chosen a compartment on the driver side of the RV as the preferred location for the equipment installation.  He had installed his two new LiTime 230 amp hour lithium batteries on the floor of this compartment with battery straps prior to his arrival.  The compartment was directly across the RV from the OEM battery location.  The RV holding tanks were installed in a dead space between the frame rails and this dead space separated the storage compartments on both sides of the RV.  The new equipment compartment had two levels to it.  The lower level had the batteries secured by the customer.  The upper level was on the same plane as the dead space that housed the holding tanks.  I was able to remove the back wall of the upper level to gain access to this dead space.  Ultimately, I was able to push this wall back a few inches to get access to chases on both sides of the compartment through the dead space to run wires and slightly more floor space for component installation.  Overall, the installation went pretty smoothly.  All of the equipment fit nicely in the new compartment and running wires to this compartment was relatively easy with the dead space access.  I did have to run some wires outside this dead space along the RV frame rails to make all the necessary connections.  This added some complexity to the installation because of the engine and drivetrain of the motorhome. 

The customer was able to watch the installation as it proceeded and even helped with a few minor things.  I was able to explain the installation process to the customer as we went along so he would have a complete understanding of how his new system integrated into his RV’s OEM systems and how everything functioned.  I was able to get the customer connected to all the components through the Victron Connect app on both his phone and his tablet.  I was also able to get the customer signed up with a free VRM account and connected to his system through the VRM portal.  I helped the customer add VRM widgets to his phone and tablet to be able to see what his system was doing quickly at a glance.  I spent time going over how to use the Victron Connect app with each component and how to use VRM to interact with the system via the internet.  I also went over the Cerbo and the GX Touch 70 user interface with the customer.  The customer’s RV had an on board Onan generator and I was able to integrate generator control through the Victron system with an Atkinson Electronics GSCM-Mini.  The customer was not ready to add solar to the system, but he did have me pre-run wire from a new combiner box on the roof to the equipment compartment to make adding solar in the future a simple process.  Because he did not have solar added, the customer chose to ad an Orion XS 50 amp DC to DC charger to help charge the house batteries from the chassis battery and alternator while driving down the road.