Short stay boondocking power solution?

[TommyAjax]

Originally Posted by Mustang65

Do you park your TT at home?

If so, you could purchase 2 or 3 residential SOLAR panels (mounted on the TT roof) like you have on your house, wire in a transfer switch that will switch between (A) to your TT batteries (B) to Enphase 250 watt micro inverters wired to your Shore-Power cable (with proper protection circuitry) that is plugged into the house's SOLAR breaker box. Boy, would the local code enforcement group love that idea.

Don

Unfortunately the TT is stored about 30 mins away - I like your thinking though. I'm just not ready to commit the solar panels to the trailer yet because we are thinking that this might be a 3-4 year trailer for us as our kids are growing fast.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by TommyAjax

The battery provided by the dealer is a Deka Marine Master DP24. On the Trojan website there is a document (link below) that flags it as a 65 AH...that's why I want to bump up my capacity. I could just get a single larger capacity battery for one night stays, but figure I might as well get two and have a bit more confidence, especially in the cold.

http://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/Tra...ide_201105.pdf

Sounds like a solid plan. ~200AH @ 12V should give 48 hours of reasonable usage.

Add an inverter to run 110VAC appliances? All bets are off!

[TommyAjax]

Originally Posted by mike837go

Sounds like a solid plan. ~200AH @ 12V should give 48 hours of reasonable usage.

Add an inverter to run 110VAC appliances? All bets are off!

No need to run any AC stuff (would be nice, but not a need). Going back to the original post, I was hoping to keep the single smaller battery on the a-frame, and then mount the AGM's inside to be used on an as needed basis because I don't want add to my tongue weight. Putting two Group 31's on the a-frame instead of the dealer battery would add about 80lbs almost 100% to the tongue weight...means I need to leave a kid at home

[Mustang65]

Originally Posted by TommyAjax

Unfortunately the TT is stored about 30 mins away - I like your thinking though. I'm just not ready to commit the solar panels to the trailer yet because we are thinking that this might be a 3-4 year trailer for us as our kids are growing fast.

I know about the kids hitting their teens, ours did not want to go anymore as it was infringing on their social life... we had a few good trips.. now the big guy is back to hiking/tent camping on the Appellation trail (while we are staying up in the GA mountains.. I am his Uber driver.. daughter is too used to upper level corporate America. Her idea of camping is like mine was, business trips at the Embassy Sweets (ahhhhh happy hour x2) and ducks in the fountain/pond in the lobby. Ate breakfast and dinner in the restaurant (by pond) Just DW, Wink the little Caviler, Amos the Blue fronted Amazon parrot, and finally me. What a crew!
Don

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by TommyAjax

No need to run any AC stuff (would be nice, but not a need). Going back to the original post, I was hoping to keep the single smaller battery on the a-frame, and then mount the AGM's inside to be used on an as needed basis because I don't want add to my tongue weight. Putting two Group 31's on the a-frame instead of the dealer battery would add about 80lbs almost 100% to the tongue weight...means I need to leave a kid at home

"Leave a kid at home" -- There's a problem with that?

An extra 80lbs of tongue weight can be countered with an adjustment of the WDH or moving 40lbs of supplies (food, clothing, etc.) from ahead of the axle to aft of the axle. The farther from the axle, the more the impact on the tongue weight.

[Cdash]

I must not worry enough......

After 9 years with a fifth wheel, I'm still learning. We started out with the crap battery provided by the dealer. We did Wal-Mart overnights, but most stays were with hookups. Killed the dealer battery at some point and put a Wal-Mart Deep cycle in it. Started visiting National Park Campground with no hookups. Would make it a couple days before draining battery. Killed that battery and then hooked up two of the same. Realizing now that I was probably draining them too deep and charging want the best and killing them.

May have been wasting money, but isn't that how we learn? A couple hundred in batteries every 3 years or so wasn't going to give me ulcers or break the bank.

For what you describe, and from my experience, a second battery would do you just fine for overnight stops. Make sure you have charging juice going through your plug while the tow vehicle is running. While it may not be high amp charging, you'll have several hours of it and it will do pretty good.

I'm looking to get a little more "knowledgeable" with our next setup and will likely invest in Trojans and thinking about Solar, but that's a whole different level of confusion. Some people say 100 to 150 watts per battery, then I see others with 250 watts per battery and planning to go to almost 400 watts per battery. Who is right?? I try to figure it out, but never can because you never get all the details with batteries, charge controllers, wiring, power consumption, etc. Makes me wonder if the lower watt per battery is an ideal system and the higher watts is a less efficient system?

At this point, seems like the best idea for me is to try it, with expandability in mind.

[Seann45]

Originally Posted by TommyAjax

Unfortunately the TT is stored about 30 mins away - I like your thinking though. I'm just not ready to commit the solar panels to the trailer yet because we are thinking that this might be a 3-4 year trailer for us as our kids are growing fast.

When I trade my trailer my solar system stays with me!!! It is really not very hard to remove it.. then a dab of roof sealant followed with some Eternabond tape.

[RodgerS]

"May have been wasting money, but isn't that how we learn?" Well, that is how some people learn, there are other ways like...Educating oneself, so you can make considered judgments, which takes both time and money, access to experienced owners and technicians, patience, and buying impulse control.

As to the wasting of money, it is all entertainment money, so it is only wasted if you think it was wasted.

Is there a way to reduce the cost of the entertainment and reduce your downtime/frustrations/breakdowns? - maybe/likely/yes. Those owners who have up-skilled themselves so they can do much of their own repair and maintenance work, and can inspect an rv so they can buy a used rv seem to reduce their costs significantly, avoid a lot of problems, and have few complaints as to how much money they are spending or shop wait times.

I just read an article in the WSJ about RV trends. It was written for someone who is thinking about first timers buying an rv. It was focused on buying new, with comments from a mfg that they are concerned that new buyers think like car buyers as to minimal problems, as if this was a new concern, with no mention of any commitment to change, which would start with applying lemon laws to rvs and the right to revocation, which of course was not mentioned in the article.

By the way, the solution to the post always starts with the sufficiency and appropriateness of the batteries/bank, and a good maintenance and recharging process that fits the situation. There are excellent articles on this subject on the internet that one can access using basic search methods.

[Fairenatic]

One should not mix battery types. I would not leave the lead acid in the loop. Save it for an emergency or stick it in your boat or car. I would not attempt to wire it in parallel with AGMs.

About generators. I do not like using them but I do not see any way around not having one or two. They can be a life saver when all else fails.

[Northern Jay]

When we bought our Northern Lite Camper, we had an 85 watt solar system installed and 2 12v RV/Marine batteries installed. The batteries are 100AH units. In 7.5 yrs we have boondock ed almost exclusively for up to 10 days at a time. We have never had to run a generator or start the truck to charge the batteries. We only converted 2 lights to LED (the commonly used ones) and we do run the stereo, water heater is on constantly, fridge and furnace is used as be essay. The system performs very well and I have only added water to batteries once in nearly 8 years. Both batteries are still top notch functionally.
Happy Camping

[Mustang65]

Originally Posted by Cdash

I'm looking to get a little more "knowledgeable" with our next setup and will likely invest in Trojans and thinking about Solar, but that's a whole different level of confusion. Some people say 100 to 150 watts per battery, then I see others with 250 watts per battery and planning to go to almost 400 watts per battery. Who is right?? I try to figure it out, but never can because you never get all the details with batteries, charge controllers, wiring, power consumption, etc. Makes me wonder if the lower watt per battery is an ideal system and the higher watts is a less efficient system?
At this point, seems like the best idea for me is to try it, with expandability in mind.

A basic rule of thumb for figuring out how much SOLAR is needed for your batteries is to have the same amount of panel wattage as Ah rating of the batteries (T105=220Ah = 250Watt SOLAR panel). That is usually a good starting point. If you do not recharge your batteries to 100% by 2pm on sunny days or 4PM on cloudy days, then you will need to get another SOLAR panel. Keep in mind that if you need to expand, your initial SOLAR charger controller needs to be large enough to accept the additional Amps.

We installed a 250watt (residential) panel with a 60 Amp MPPT charge controller and it has worked fine for our SOLAR CAMPING LIFESTYLE. The panel puts out 9 Amps (30VDC) and the MPPT output is 19-20 Amps to the batteries. I chose the MoriningStar 60 amp for Expansion and the ability to monitor the system on my smart phone, tablets (Wi-Fi) and the price was right at the time. There are a few good charge controllers out there, just research them.

Just remember that the basic rule for amount of SOLAR needed is for a battery Ah, the problem is most people have no clue as to how many Ah their camping life style uses, which is usually more than the Ah 50% rule of their current batteries and that will cause a shorter battery life.
Don

[NVGun40]

My wife and I regularly boondock; in fact we boondock probably 9 out of 10 times. usually 3 to 4 days at a time. We have two 2 group 24 deep cycle batteries mounted. We understand and operate on the mindset that we are staying in a TT. Limited water, easy on the use of the toilet facilities, and careful use of all things battery powered. The longest we have managed to stretch resources out to was 8 days (this in the days before we had our solar panels or small generator). By day 4 we would just back the truck close enough and plug it in and let it run approximately 40 minutes. That would charge the batteries enough to get us another day or two.

Understanding your desire not to add additional payload to your tongue; and moving the batteries inside is a smart move. You should do fine. Everyone will have different experiences and methods. My point is careful use and planning can surprise you how far you can go. Try planning it out and camping in this way: even though you are in a trailer, set your mindset and gear and equipment usage as if you are in a tent and if your trip is for 2-3 days plan for 4-6. Portable battery lights, propane/gas (coleman type) lanterns, etc.

[Bassdogs]

Originally Posted by TommyAjax

So here is my real-world scenario - we live outside of Toronto, Canada, and head down to Florida for 3-4 weeks around the end of January. It is a solid three days of driving. First day I can get down to southern West Virginia (around Beckley) where it can be cool/cold so would need the furnace. Second day, can get down to Savannah Georgia no problem, but at that time of year, the furnace may be nice to take the chill out of the air. Previously, we did this with a pop-up and took hotels for those couple of nights each way, but we were hoping that with the travel trailer, we could Wal-Camp and save that $300-400 on each trip. Granted I have to spend the money on the batteries, but I see that as an investment that lets us get our toes wet in boondocking for a few days here and there (ie. we are only about 4 hrs away from the Alleghany forest and would like to do some dispersed camping there)

For what you're wanting to do, the solution seems bigger than the problem. First, on your trip south or north you will completely recharge your onboard battery [1 or 2] while you are driving [all day]. So 2nd nite you are again good to go with full charge. Same each day as long as your are driving for 5 or 6 hours. 2 batteries are more than enough and a small inverter as little as 400watts will run tv/sat receiver/phone charger etc, everything except the big draws [ac/microW/toaster etc].

Its your call but an extra 50lbs on the tongue doesn't seem to be that much. If you think it is, then put the 2nd battery in the bed of your truck and use quick connects to add it to the house battery for that extra day or two or when you are worried about the furnace in real cold weather.

Your needs are pretty specific and it just seems drastic to do more than just configure a 2nd battery

[theoldwizard1]

I am not a big fan of AGM batteries. Sure there are advantages to them, but you pay the price !

I would go with 2 6V golf cart batteries (GC-1 is the size). These are specifically designed for deep discharge and you can buy them a a reasonable price at Sam's Club or Costco. The premium brand is Trojan (T105).

They do make a battery box that will hold 2 GC-1 batteries, but as pointed out this is a lot of extra tongue weight if you mount it there. The only other idea I could recommend is strap it down well inside the trailer until you get where you are going and the move it outside.


Trojan DOES make a 6V deep cycle AGM battery that they sell under the Reliant™ brand name.

[jackofall]

I've got 2 6v Costco batteries and 2 100W panels that I put hinges on and some foldable legs. For us portable works well so I can move the panels to the sun. Always have 25' of cable. If needed I have a 50' extension I can use. I can go indefinitely on that setup with our use. Have an inverter to run the tv, Blu-ray player, and charge phones/tablet. Typically tv is running a couple hours every other night or so. This summer did 3 week trip with no problems. Week this fall in NM where it was in the teens at night so furnace was running a lot. Total setup was between $5-600.

[canuckowner]

I have camped for 3 day weekends in April and Thanksgiving in October without shore power here in Manitoba. We just have one battery and have never had an issue with running out of electricity. None of my lights are LED so we bring along a couple of battery powered lanterns and use them almost exclusively for lighting at night. So that saves a lot of energy. The battery runs the furnace fan (which is cycling on/off all night and often a few times in the day, depending on weather) and the water pump.

If you have LED lights in your unit then you shouldn't need to worry about using them.

Anyway, just letting you know that unless your battery is a complete dud you shouldn't have any issue cold weather camping for 2 or 3 nights off the grid.