First time with stock setup?

KiltDog · 06-30-2014, 07:19 AM

We are considering a long weekend at a rustic camp site. All our camping has been done at CG's with electric and water. Not too concerned about water, but our TT only has one 12v deep cycle w/85 Ah. Haven't done any changes to the factory lights, all stock. We don't have a TV or anything, and we can go without the microwave, ac, etc. but we would be using the fridge, water heater on propane mode and of course cooking w/propane. I'm worried that after a day and a half my battery is gonna die and won't be able to finish out the weekend. Do you think I can make it for three days with only 85 Ah?

Imnaha.Mansion · 07-01-2014, 10:21 PM

By it self, doubtful. If don't use a generator then you could charge it a little with your tow vehicle, assuming it's a seven way plug.

Flyrotor · 07-06-2014, 12:04 AM

Using your 7 way plug is a very inefficient attempt to charge the trailer batteries.

If you find yourself in that situation needing to charge up your batteries, it is much better and more efficient to use jumper cables connected from your truck to the trailer, the same as if you were trying to jump start a car.

The electrical transfer is much greater using the larger wires in the jumper cables than that of the 7 pin plug.

Ultimately, if you are boondocking on a regular basis, it is best to find an alternative method to keep your batteries charged, whether it be solar or generator

KiltDog · 07-13-2014, 03:14 PM

Well, I just booked a site for two nights with no power. Gonna buy another 12v deep cycle (170 amp hrs total) and going to order some led bulbs. Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Imnaha.Mansion · 07-13-2014, 09:57 PM

It best to buy both batteries at the same time. They should also be same type and size. But I understand this is a learning process. Try it out and let us know how it worked for you.

Jagiven · 07-13-2014, 10:28 PM

It is doable. We did it many times before switching to leds. We turn off all the over head lights at the fixture. When we need a light we only turn on the one we need. I also removed one bulb from the double fixtures.

As for two batteries, if they are not matched, just run one then switch over to the other. That is what we do. Works fine. We store the second battery in the back of the TV in a plastic milk crate, when needed it we put on the ground next to the tt and switch the wires over.

Good luck

Fawcett · 07-13-2014, 10:43 PM

I just did a three night trip that saw my family of four doing dishes and bathed the kids one night with water pump running of course. Vent fan running used the furnace (we were in the sub alpine was cold at night) and sometimes leaving pump on. Not even close to draining the battery!

KiltDog · 07-14-2014, 09:52 AM

Just ordered 20 LED bulbs. Anyone have experience with these? At this price my expectations are low, but they get very good positive reviews.

http://www.amazon.com/GRV-24-3528-Su...8+SMD+LED+Bulb

PugetSoundguy · 07-14-2014, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fawcett

I just did a three night trip that saw my family of four doing dishes and bathed the kids one night with water pump running of course. Vent fan running used the furnace (we were in the sub alpine was cold at night) and sometimes leaving pump on. Not even close to draining the battery!

Good info! Our only power use would be electronics for propane refrigerator, water pump (infrequent), an LED light once in a while, and furnace fan from time to time. Looks like a weekend off the grid with this use would be no problem. I'll report back.

Jmooney · 07-14-2014, 11:35 AM

This is an excellent opportunity to track and record your DC power use so that you will know going forward how long you can/should run while dry camping.

Remember that ideally, you only what to go to 50% of your battery capacity, 85amps before recharging, except on rare occasions. Doing so will shorten the life of your batteries

Use a good digital millimeter to check on your battery condition. There are some charts out there that estimate the "voltage" to % utilization. Use these to understand where your use is at different stages of your outing. Remember that the most accurate voltage reading is when the battery is at rest for +30 minutes.

If you can begin to plot typical usage, you can project your run times and when you need to plan to recharge.
Adding a solar panel can also be a great way to top off your battery throughout the day

Kave&Lucky · 07-14-2014, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jmooney

This is an excellent opportunity to track and record your DC power use so that you will know going forward how long you can/should run while dry camping.

Remember that ideally, you only what to go to 50% of your battery capacity, 85amps before recharging, except on rare occasions. Doing so will shorten the life of your batteries

Use a good digital millimeter to check on your battery condition. There are some charts out there that estimate the "voltage" to % utilization. Use these to understand where your use is at different stages of your outing. Remember that the most accurate voltage reading is when the battery is at rest for +30 minutes.

If you can begin to plot typical usage, you can project your run times and when you need to plan to recharge.
Adding a solar panel can also be a great way to top off your battery throughout the day

Here's is a voltchart like jmooney described as posted in another thread by the infamous Roybraddy. I printed this chart, laminated it and posted it in the command center cabinet in our greyhawk. This makes the process so easy
even a "Kave" Man can do it!!

KiltDog · 07-17-2014, 05:01 PM

Just hooked up the second battery. Easy as pie. Just hope my LED's show up from china before the end of the month!

Iraqvet05 · 07-17-2014, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KiltDog

Just ordered 20 LED bulbs. Anyone have experience with these? At this price my expectations are low, but they get very good positive reviews.

http://www.amazon.com/GRV-24-3528-Su...8+SMD+LED+Bulb

You may be disappointed in the light output of those. You will need a 48 smd light to get the lumen output that is close to the stock incandescent bulbs. A 24 smd light will probably work above the bunks and bed where you don't need a bright light but they will be too dim for the main task lighting.

SkyBound · 07-22-2014, 06:00 PM

I ordered those exact same ones. For the price you can't go wrong - but I am suspect that I'll need a few of the larger panel style LED lights for the main lighting. It will be nice having two different brightness options for bulbs since some of them were too bright to begin with.

UPCamper · 07-22-2014, 07:39 PM

You should be able to do most of it on one SRM 24 battery. We rustic camp a lot and we do a few things to help. Obviously keep the light use to a minimum, we have battery powered lanterns for inside. We take showers, but the navy style. We also use the water heater to take showers, then wait for it to reheat the tank. Once it's complete, we shut it off for the day. It stays hot for a while. Big blue jug outside for handwashing and tooth brushing. If you don't use the furnace it'll go for several days. We can get about 6 days out of our SRM 29 battery doing this. You can use the furnace but it does draw a lot of power for the fan. We often bring a little buddy heater with us if we think we will need heat. We easily do weeklong trips on 2 batteries. Using the furnace through the night with one 29 battery is about 2-3 nights for us.

troutslayer · 07-22-2014, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KiltDog

Just ordered 20 LED bulbs. Anyone have experience with these? At this price my expectations are low, but they get very good positive reviews.

http://www.amazon.com/GRV-24-3528-Su...8+SMD+LED+Bulb

I have some of these in my 5er and they work very well however, I did have two of them burn out, but after 2 years the other 8 are just fine. The output was the same (or better) as the 921 bulbs. As a matter of fact, I only have one LED in several of the two-bulb fixtures because they were so bright.

KiltDog · 07-25-2014, 07:37 AM

New LED's arrived yesterday. The box was so small I thought they only sent me two, not twenty. Bulbs are much smaller than I thought they would be. Installation time took longer than I thought it would too. You really have to force them in which made me nervous. I will say that every bulb worked. I've read online reviews saying several bulbs wouldn't light but I did not have that experience.

Once they were installed, I didn't notice that the light level was any less or more. In the one picture showing a LED next to the stock bulb, the LED looks dimmer. Not as noticeable when you are standing in the space, IMO. Very happy with the bulbs. For $46.50 a very economic option to extend my dry camping.

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