RV novice with a CPAP

[hopnhic]

Hi everybody, I just bought a used 2020 Jayco 31UL with 4900 miles. I have rented class C’s before and towed a 28’ Sea Ray behind a 2500 Suburban for years. I must say I was a little intimidated when I drove the 31UL, but the wife loved the interior and space with all three slides out. As they say “happy wife, happy life” so here we go. I have been reading this forum for a few days and have learned a lot. I am sure I will have lots of questions as we go along but I’ll start with some on power.
I thought the outlets along side the bed in the master would be on the inverter so they could power a CPAP, but alas they are dead unless on generator or shore power. The inverter is under the master bed so I’m thinking I can connect the outlet I need or add a “dedicated” outlet for the CPAP. Perhaps a second inverter just for the CPAP outlet or larger inverter (currently 1000 watts). I’m concerned about power consumption especially with a 21 cu ft refrigerator that only runs on AC, the book says it requires 3.0 amps. The CPAP transformer needs 110 v AC at 1.5 amps. House batteries are two 6 volt batteries. Should I add two more 6 volt batteries or go to 12 volt batteries? If 12 volt, two or four batteries? The inverter documents say it will shut down at 10.4 volts house power. Also how long do the 6 volt batteries need to recharge on generator? I think the engine alternator will only trickle charge the house batteries while driving or idling. Any thoughts or recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks for reading.

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by hopnhic

Hi everybody, I just bought a used 2020 Jayco 31UL with 4900 miles. I have rented class C’s before and towed a 28’ Sea Ray behind a 2500 Suburban for years. I must say I was a little intimidated when I drove the 31UL, but the wife loved the interior and space with all three slides out. As they say “happy wife, happy life” so here we go. I have been reading this forum for a few days and have learned a lot. I am sure I will have lots of questions as we go along but I’ll start with some on power.
I thought the outlets along side the bed in the master would be on the inverter so they could power a CPAP, but alas they are dead unless on generator or shore power. The inverter is under the master bed so I’m thinking I can connect the outlet I need or add a “dedicated” outlet for the CPAP. Perhaps a second inverter just for the CPAP outlet or larger inverter (currently 1000 watts). I’m concerned about power consumption especially with a 21 cu ft refrigerator that only runs on AC, the book says it requires 3.0 amps. The CPAP transformer needs 110 v AC at 1.5 amps. House batteries are two 6 volt batteries. Should I add two more 6 volt batteries or go to 12 volt batteries? If 12 volt, two or four batteries? The inverter documents say it will shut down at 10.4 volts house power. Also how long do the 6 volt batteries need to recharge on generator? I think the engine alternator will only trickle charge the house batteries while driving or idling. Any thoughts or recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks for reading.

I use mine with 2 x 12V Group 31 AGM batteries, now. I used golf cart batteries before, and they worked great. I just hated the maintenance on them. Either solution works. I purchased the 12V power supply for my Airsense 10. I use that rather than the inverter. It plugs into the cigarette lighter plug by the bed.

I also have a portable 12V backup battery that the power supply can plug into. It provides an alternate female cigarette lighter plug, if I want to preserve the camper batteries for longer stays.

[edatlanta]

I have a DreamStation and I power it when boondocking with a 12v adapter. My 2 Trojan T-105's never seen to know I am using it based on the lack of voltage drop overnight. And my morning generator run for coffee, etc. tops the batteries off enough so the voltage never seems to change after several days off the grid.

[hopnhic]

Thanks, I had not considered changing the power source for the CPAP to 12 V DC. I'll check, the power supply puts out 24 v @ 3.75 amps.

[sturgissteele]

Welcome to the site! My wife is scheduled for her sleep study in Nov. Sure hope that helps her. Happy trails!

[hopnhic]

Here's an update. There are multiple options available. I found Lithium battery powered CPAP power units,

https://www.bing.com/searchq=portabl...ANAB01&PC=U531

from $140 - $400. The higher end ones claim to operate a CPAP for at least 8 hours and recharge from 110 volt AC or 12 V DC in 4 hours. Problem solved!

[madmaxmutt]

Originally Posted by hopnhic

Here's an update. There are multiple options available. I found Lithium battery powered CPAP power units,

https://www.bing.com/searchq=portabl...ANAB01&PC=U531

from $140 - $400. The higher end ones claim to operate a CPAP for at least 8 hours and recharge from 110 volt AC or 12 V DC in 4 hours. Problem solved!

I would still look into an actual 12V power supply. This is what mine looks like:

This alleviates the conversion to AC and back to DC, so it takes the place of your existing 110VAC power supply.

[Riverman]

I bought a 12-volt power cord on Amazon for my Dream Station.

[Jagiven]

I have a Dreamstation, I have a 12 volt plug. Used it this weekend (boondocking). I'm using a single group 31 battery. I did not use the humidity chamber or heated hose. In the morning my battery measured 12.2 volts. We used the furnace for maybe 3-4 hours each night.

What I do not have is a residential frig. Not a clue how much power it consumes.

One thing to note, inverters waste a lot of power converting the power from 12v to 120 volts. If you can, I would skip the inverter if possible.