Charging battery from Generator
I plan on a three day trip where I will not have hook ups. I will conserve power because I do not use the TV/DVD, seldom use the lights. The only draw on the new 12 volt battery will be the refriger...
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As others have said, there's not quite enough information to give an answer; it could be anywhere from half a day to half a week or more before you need to charge the battery, and anywhere from a few hours to a day or so to charge it from the generator (that depends largely on your converter).
Assuming you have an absorption fridge running on propane, the control electronics probably take somewhere around 12 Ah or so per day. If it has some sort of climate control system (to keep the door seals from freezing shut) that consumes a good bit more power and should be switched off if possible.
A residential fridge uses somewhere around 75-100 Ah per day as a very rough guide (but, of course, no propane).
Incandescent lights use maybe 1-2 Ah apiece per hour they're used, depending of course on the wattage of the bulb(s). LEDs use a lot less.
The furnace uses a good bit of power when it's running, and none when it is not.
The water pump uses a few amps, but runs so little that it's basically negligible.
The propane detector and carbon monoxide alarm and similar phantom loads might use a couple Ah per day, more or less.
A typical 12V battery used for RVs has about 40 to 50 Ah of usable capacity before it ought to be recharged. A pair of 6V golf cart batteries has a little over 100 Ah. Both of these are to around fifty percent charge.
I have two golf cart batteries in my motorhome. I can go about a week with just the fridge and a few lights etc. without too much trouble before they need charging. With moderate furnace usage overnight, it's closer to two or three days. A few hours of generator usage (thanks to a modern multistage converter) will bring the battery bank up to nearly a full charge. The last little bit takes a lot longer and at least for me is not worth worrying about on generator power.
Assuming you have an absorption fridge running on propane, the control electronics probably take somewhere around 12 Ah or so per day. If it has some sort of climate control system (to keep the door seals from freezing shut) that consumes a good bit more power and should be switched off if possible.
A residential fridge uses somewhere around 75-100 Ah per day as a very rough guide (but, of course, no propane).
Incandescent lights use maybe 1-2 Ah apiece per hour they're used, depending of course on the wattage of the bulb(s). LEDs use a lot less.
The furnace uses a good bit of power when it's running, and none when it is not.
The water pump uses a few amps, but runs so little that it's basically negligible.
The propane detector and carbon monoxide alarm and similar phantom loads might use a couple Ah per day, more or less.
A typical 12V battery used for RVs has about 40 to 50 Ah of usable capacity before it ought to be recharged. A pair of 6V golf cart batteries has a little over 100 Ah. Both of these are to around fifty percent charge.
I have two golf cart batteries in my motorhome. I can go about a week with just the fridge and a few lights etc. without too much trouble before they need charging. With moderate furnace usage overnight, it's closer to two or three days. A few hours of generator usage (thanks to a modern multistage converter) will bring the battery bank up to nearly a full charge. The last little bit takes a lot longer and at least for me is not worth worrying about on generator power.
