Battery Charging Question
My tow vehicle has what Ford calls an "Extra Heavy duty Alternator" rated at 220 Amps. I am (as the name goes) planning on switching to a residential reefer. We never dry camp or boondock. I am ...
Forum Discussion
I don't foresee any issues with your planning as it was stated in your OP. As someone already mentioned, you would be OK with just 2 batteries as long as you are getting some charge from the alternator to your rig's battery bank. Sure, there is a possibility you might be down a bit upon arrival, with longer trips between shorepower having the most impact.
The sheer fact that you are always plugged in makes needing to know exact consumption and/or total of amps being supplied by alternator impertinent. Just ensure your converter is duly performing it's function as it pertains to fully charging your battery bank, a multi-phase smart converter will accomplish this easily and worth the investment if you don't have one onboard. Verify DC voltages from converter and alternator.
Rigs that come with residential fridges are most often specked with a 1K watt inverter dedicated for that exclusive purpose, you could go larger but you wouldn't even need an inverter with your style of RVing. You have 5 batteries when most only need a single battery to get from one shorepower hook-up to the next, if you want to save some space and weight, when the time comes a pair of 6 volt GC2 batteries will more than suffice for your needs.
The sheer fact that you are always plugged in makes needing to know exact consumption and/or total of amps being supplied by alternator impertinent. Just ensure your converter is duly performing it's function as it pertains to fully charging your battery bank, a multi-phase smart converter will accomplish this easily and worth the investment if you don't have one onboard. Verify DC voltages from converter and alternator.
Rigs that come with residential fridges are most often specked with a 1K watt inverter dedicated for that exclusive purpose, you could go larger but you wouldn't even need an inverter with your style of RVing. You have 5 batteries when most only need a single battery to get from one shorepower hook-up to the next, if you want to save some space and weight, when the time comes a pair of 6 volt GC2 batteries will more than suffice for your needs.
