All Electric Boondocking

I'm with Drew and others, a reasonable solar system will do the job.
And I don't read Handy Bob any longer.

pianotuna wrote:
Handybob is dated, opinionated, and sometimes just plain wrong. No place for a beginner.

Oh, I agree. Bob is most definitely opinionated!

I take it that his opinions don't agree with your opinions?

Handybob is dated, opinionated, and sometimes just plain wrong. No place for a beginner.

Optimistic Paranoid wrote:


I'm going to suggest you also read Handy Bob's thoughts/rants on solar. He ended up fixing a LOT of bad solar installs, and has seen every mistake in the book. Very interesting reading. He also has some very definite ideas on batteries and inverters, which ones are good and which ones are junk.

Making Off Grid RV Electrical Systems Work

ThruTraffic wrote:

Cool! Thanks. Will read.

Also found this to be a helpful thought exercise. https://www.letsgosolar.com/solar-panels/solar-panels-for-rv/

I'm going to suggest you also read Handy Bob's thoughts/rants on solar. He ended up fixing a LOT of bad solar installs, and has seen every mistake in the book. Very interesting reading. He also has some very definite ideas on batteries and inverters, which ones are good and which ones are junk.

Making Off Grid RV Electrical Systems Work

All electric boondocking IS possibly, but you will need a lot of solar panels and I would still have a generator in case you have several cloudy days.

I would seriously look into induction cooking. Either a 2 burner cooktop, or possibly two induction "hot plates". They use a lot of power, but they are very efficient !

If I was desert camping, A/C and a residential refrigerator. Few people can afford the solar panels, inverter and battery bank to run those. This means you will be running on generator power A LOT ! A single 3000W-4000w inverter generator or a pair of 2000W generators should be sufficient.

Solar hot water.

Boondocking means obtaining fresh water and disposing of gray and black water every few days. You are going to need a minimum of 2, more likely 4 five galoon gas cans to keep the generator(s) running between water refill/disposal.

I would aim for 400 to 600+ watts of solar with a compressor fridge.
Likewise 400 to 600 amp hours of battery.

May still need the generator at times so it would be best to review your battery charging system to minimize generator run time. You need to put 14.4 to 14.8 volts on a low battery to get 90%+ charged in three to four hours. Need 80 to 150 amps rating.

> Members Solar Installations With Pics

pianotuna wrote:
Definitely go solar. This series of articles may help: https://freecampsites.net/adding-solar/

Cool! Thanks. Will read.

Also found this to be a helpful thought exercise. https://www.letsgosolar.com/solar-panels/solar-panels-for-rv/

Definitely go solar. This series of articles may help: https://freecampsites.net/adding-solar/

Vitrifrigo Sea Classic DP2600iAC Refrigerator / Freezer

Type: Compressor

Specifications:
Voltage: 12 / 24 Volt DC and 100 - 240 Volt AC (60 / 50 Hz)
Power Consumption: 65 Watts
Current Draw 12 Volt DC: 5.38 Amps
Current Draw 115 Volt AC: 0.76 Amps

So what I'm seeing and hearing from you folks is to keep the marine frig. Looking at specs I'm agreeing with you. I have a friend who thinks I should keep this frig as well and look into using replacement funds for some solar panels.

Thanks for the assist folks!

What sort of a fridge is the 12V/120V one that's there now? Is it a compressor fridge or an absorption fridge?

If it's a compressor fridge, I would try leaving it as it is, as power consumption should be comparatively modest (though greater than a propane fridge, of course). A reasonable solar and battery installation would be capable of keeping it running.

If it's an absorption fridge, go with propane--and it may just be a matter of hooking it up if it's actually a three way fridge.

My hunch is that it's probably a compressor fridge. It's hard saying not knowing, though.