Yes - the simplest way is to check the voltage at the battery terminals. If you see a reading above 13.0V, SOMETHING is charging the battery. Of course, you need to have all accessories inside the trailer turned off when you do this, since they can reduce the available voltage.
- Jack
Pick a sunny day. Disconnect the trailer from shore power and and cover the solar panel with something opaque (cardboard, etc.). Check the battery voltage with a multimeter. Uncover the solar panel and check the voltage. You should see a slight rise.
If you don't see any difference, run a few things on the battery for a bit to discharge it some. You can do this by lowering and raising it a few times, running the refrigerator on battery power (not propane) for an hour or so, etc. Then measure both voltages again.
If you see a voltage rise in either case the panel should be working. You may want to use a digital multimeter because the difference may not be enough for an analog one to pick up.
If you don't see any difference, run a few things on the battery for a bit to discharge it some. You can do this by lowering and raising it a few times, running the refrigerator on battery power (not propane) for an hour or so, etc. Then measure both voltages again.
If you see a voltage rise in either case the panel should be working. You may want to use a digital multimeter because the difference may not be enough for an analog one to pick up.
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