Solar security trailers sized by device load and battery capacity

The Verkada MT81 is a cloud-managed, solar-powered mobile security trailer designed for temporary, off-grid, and high-consequence perimeter deployments across the United States. The platform is constructed on a welded tubular steel chassis with double-eye leaf spring suspension (3,500 lb capacity), 15-inch wheels, a tilting drawbar with a 2-inch ball hitch, and four 2,000 lb corner stabilizer jacks, meeting Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) with a 65 mph highway towing rating. With stabilizers deployed on site, its 24-foot electric-winch telescoping mast rotates 355 degrees and withstands sustained winds up to 65 mph. The integrated power architecture combines an electrically tilted 1,600W photovoltaic solar array, a smart MPPT charge controller, a 375W power inverter, an integrated blue LED flashing deterrence beacon, and a ventilated NEMA-enclosed cabinet housing a Gigabit PoE switch with six 802.3bt Type 4 device ports (480W total PoE budget) and one 802.3bt Type 3 uplink port.

The MT81 is offered in two hardware variants distinguished by usable battery capacity: the MT81-6KWH-HW ($58,000 list) with a 6.6 kWh lithium-ion battery in a single battery enclosure (2,700 lb unladen weight), and the MT81-13KWH-HW ($65,000 list) with 13.2 kWh of usable capacity in dual enclosures (2,900 lb unladen weight). In operational terms, battery capacity dictates autonomous uptime during overcast weather, winter daylight deficits, and high device consumption. In high-solar southern locations (Zone 1: Phoenix, Las Vegas, Albuquerque), both models deliver approximately 99.9% uptime (averaging 10 offline hours per year) under standard deterrence loads. However, in mid-latitude and eastern regions (Zones 3 and 4: Atlanta, Charlotte, Salt Lake City, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, NYC), the 6.6 kWh pack incurs 100 to 500 hours of estimated annual downtime (95% to 99% uptime), whereas the 13.2 kWh model cuts downtime by up to 90%, preserving 97% to 99.9% uptime (10 to 250 hours offline annually). In northern tier climates (Zone 5: Seattle, Portland, Cleveland), the 6.6 kWh configuration experiences 1,000 to 1,500 hours offline per year (85% to 90% uptime), while the 13.2 kWh model halves that offline window to 500 to 1,000 hours (90% to 95% uptime).

Device load significantly impacts real-world runtime. Under Verkada Validated Configuration 1 (core deterrence: two PTZ cameras, one fisheye camera, a talk-down horn speaker, and a cellular gateway), the power draw remains moderate. Under high-density configurations like Validated Configuration 2 (two PTZs, two telephoto bullet cameras for license plate recognition, a four-camera multisensor, a horn speaker, and a cellular gateway), the sustained wattage load requires the 13.2 kWh pack even in sunnier climates to prevent early morning winter brownouts. For deployments where simulated solar uptime falls below 99%, the chassis includes an exterior male NEMA 5-15 plug (15A / 120 VAC) for auxiliary AC shore power charging. Trailer telemetry—including GPS coordinates, solar wattage generation, battery charge level, connected PoE load, and remote power cycling per port—is managed through Verkada Command.

The MT81 trailer chassis provides the power, mast, and network backbone; payload equipment is not bundled. Head unit devices (such as bullet, PTZ, multisensor, or fisheye cameras, BZ11 talk-down speakers, and GC31-E LTE or GW31-E Wi-Fi gateways), pendant mounting caps (ACC-MNT-PEND-1, ACC-MNT-HPEND-1), and cloud software licenses (LIC-MT-*-CAP for commercial Command or LIC-MT-*-CAP-G for GovCloud) are quoted and sold separately based on site requirements. Flatbed freight delivery requires that the destination site have an unloading dock or provide a qualified forklift and operator at scheduled delivery.