At the Tampa RV supershow last week a motor home salesman stated they have a model that is all electric. No propane tanks....nothing runs on propane......I did not think to ask about 12 volt lights etc. I cannot wrap my head about having to camp where there is power connections or listening to a generator run all the time......we have camped in parks where generators were not allowed from 10pm to 7 am plus no water or electric...just peaceful quietness.....

Two possibilities if they aren't counting on you using a generator regularly (and it would be stupid to eliminate the propane system if they expect you to run the generator all the time: - They expect to be in parks with 50amp hookups all the time. - They expect you to use electricity very sparingly.Even with a generator or 50amp hook up, heating will be an issue if you get into any seriously cold weather.

Nothing new, well I guess new to you. All electric motor homes have been around for several years now. Nice for the resort crowd, but not so nice for people who actually like to get away from the crowds and see the world!

You are forgetting about the large bank of batteries in them and their huge invertors. Can power it for a very long time

You would be limiting you options of where to go if you needed a hookup. I guess one night on the batteries through an inverter would be ok, but with propane you could extend a no-hookup-in-the-woods experience for a few days or weeks if you were stingy with water. I guess it depends on your definition of "camping". Full hookup, 50 amp, water, sewer, cable, WiFi could probably be best described as "glamping".

Many high end MH's have this option. The Newmar King Aire for example has up to 18 6 volt batteries that allow the A/C to run off of inverters. There is a large +10Kw generator with auto start and solar to compliment the batteries. Heating is not a problem because these MH's use Hydronic systems which burn diesel using a catlytic system without smell or smoke. So yes all electric MH's are out there, but can you afford one?

All electric no propane needed | Good Sam Community

28 Replies

holstein13
Explorer
Jan 22, 2015
wbwood wrote:
AC would be the only issue, but someone metioned that you could run the AC on an interver with 18 6volt batteries....
That is correct. I virtually never run the generator while traveling because the inverter provides power to one roof AC powered by the batteries. The batteries are constantly recharged by the powerful alternator on the engine and a very tiny bit by the solar panels.

I could see potentially using the batteries to run the roof AC if i were boondocking in an organized group with quite hours or at a primitive campground somewhere, but that would be a very rare circumstance.

I'm not sure why you wrote that the AC would be the only issue, however. All electric or not, most folks can't run their ACs while boondocking unless they run the generator or have 16 batteries and a dedicated inverter. Doesn't matter if they carry propane.
wbwood
Explorer
Jan 22, 2015
Probably far less that boondock that camp with hookups...and even those that boondock for the peace and quitness, would probably not go for a rig built like that.

AC would be the only issue, but someone metioned that you could run the AC on an interver with 18 6volt batteries....
Dtank
Explorer
Jan 21, 2015
donn0128 wrote:
Nothing new, well I guess new to you.

All electric motor homes have been around for several years now.

Nice for the resort crowd, but not so nice for people who actually like to get away from the crowds and see the world!

Ditto the above - and, when not "on the grid" (get away from the crowds), surprising how quiet a well insulated diesel generator can be, as well as suppling all the power needed.

With the fuel capacity of a DP MH, could run for weeks that way.

Banks of batteries & solar can take care of lesser power reqs.

.
DSDP_Don
Explorer
Jan 21, 2015
The future of RVing is all electric. Not in the next year or two, but probably in the next 20. Sooner for the larger RV's. Before someone comes along and says they'll never be all electric in their 25 year old rig, I'm talking about new RV's.
holstein13
Explorer
Jan 21, 2015
sch911 wrote:
Many high end MH's have this option. The Newmar King Aire for example has up to 18 6 volt batteries that allow the A/C to run off of inverters. There is a large +10Kw generator with auto start and solar to compliment the batteries. Heating is not a problem because these MH's use Hydronic systems which burn diesel using a catlytic system without smell or smoke. So yes all electric MH's are out there, but can you afford one?

X2 on this. I am all electric with a 12kw diesel generator, 600 volt solar panels, hydronic heating and 18 batteries. This past weekend I was boondocked with 65 other coaches at Quartzsite and by my estimation, I ran my generator less than anyone else there. Probably only about one hour a day on day two and day three. Not at all on day one.

All Electric seems to me to be a great way to boon dock. And the best part is that I don't have to fill my propane tank, ever. I can't tell you how many times I stressed over my propane level on my old coach (will I make it through the weekend?)

And if I were to run out of Diesel, I'd hop in my car and bring back a 5 gallon tank of fuel and re-fill it. Try that with propane.
PawPaw_n_Gram
Explorer
Jan 20, 2015
Golden_HVAC wrote:
Somehow I don't think I would ever see a all electric fifth wheel, with the expensive diesel fired hydro hot heating system, diesel generator that is twice the cost and weight of a Onan 5,500 watt LP generator, and 10 KW of battery storage.

There may be some.

The 'all electric' 5ers I expect to see will have electric furnace heat based on the 'cheap heat' concept.

Basically no ability to heat the rig if they are not hooked up to 50Amp electrical service.

We all know there are a substantial percentage of the rigs on the road which never boondock, never Wally-dock, never spend a night not hooked up to power. Eliminating propane will be a plus for those type rig owners.

Now me personally, I'll never be comfortable without options. Maybe I'm 'traumatized' by having to spend many nights with no electric power while growing up. Once went three weeks with no electricity due to an ice storm. And we had to go to school after the first couple days with no power and only big natural gas space heaters for heat.

Heck, I didn't even feel comfortable living through the winter in an 'All Electric' house.
PawPaw_n_Gram
Explorer
Jan 20, 2015
2oldman wrote:
aslakson wrote:
Some of the new high-end all-electric coaches are actually listed at 100 amps . . .
That's actually what 50a service is.

There are high-end coaches for sale which state clearly they are not designed for normal campgrounds. They will work on a 50A campground setup but only at 'limited power' for some of the appliances.

Some come with two 50Amp cables and require hooking into two different circuits/ pedestals.

Some require being hard wired into a 100Amp circuit.

Now these are mostly focused at the entertainer and performer crowd. They are not planned to stay in RV campgrounds, but on-site where the owner is 'working'. They are usually driven from location to location by a professional driver.

I got a great tour of one a couple years ago at a Flying J in Texas. That Prevost conversion has FIVE (5) AC's. I asked about power, and the driver says it can be switched to work on a regular 50Amp RV plug - but most of the coach electronics will not operate when switched to 50Amp.

The driver uses 50Amp connections at normal RV parks while taking the coach across country. Then when the coach arrives at the destination - he rents a car and stays in a hotel while the owner flies in to use the coach.

The coach normally goes to special RV resorts which limit their customers to very high-end motorhomes. Occasionally that coach goes to places like convention centers and non-RV resorts where the coach has to be wired into a temporary electrical outlet. The owner is a company CEO who prefers to stay in his coach rather than a hotel suite.

Some of the newer "Luxury Motorhome Only" RV resorts offer 100 Amp service at their sites. Many of these resorts offer lots for sale - and the purchasers want 100 Amp service installed.

The 100Amp coaches and RV resorts are far beyond the ability of most of us to ever consider. But they do exist.
ryegatevt
Explorer II
Jan 20, 2015
mlts22 wrote:
On the small MH front, Roadtrek has been doing a lot with battery storage, alternators and other items to dispense with propane.

Sportsmobile has also done away with propane with optional equipment -- one can get an all diesel Sprinter upfit that uses a diesel PowerTech generator (3000 watts), a diesel Webasto stove, and a diesel water heater and furnace. This doesn't come cheap, though.

Of course, the appliances from Truma starting to be sold on US shores are game changers. They can take both LP gas and electric, and one model functions as a water heater and furnace. The advantage of this is having the ability to have the basement vents while on electric, so when on FHU, the only propane that gets used is for the stove... and some newer Dometic/SMEV stovetops have an electric burner as well.

In some models Roadtrek has an under hood generator option, run by the vehicle engine, as well as full solar...

Finally, there are fuel cells like the EFOY methanol burner and the Truma VeGA propane burner. Either of these will easily handle the battery draw that a compressor fridge makes.

I personally like propane, because it is one of the safer fuels we have, and it can last indefinitely. It is nice to have multiple fuel choices, as with the Truma appliance, so if one has FHU, no fuel needs to be consumed, but while boondocking, the most efficient means can be used, be it a generator in the daytime or propane at night.
JaxDad
Explorer III
Jan 20, 2015
Dtaylor wrote:
Not everyone boondocks. Many only stay in campgrounds with full hookups. For them, perhaps propane is a expense they do not want

Indeed. You only have to read through a 'how far do you travel in a day' thread to see the numbers of RV'ers that only travel 250 to 300 miles in a day and always stay in FHU parks.
MrWizard
Moderator
Jan 20, 2015
we are primarily electric
residential fridge, MW and electric cooking
heat with propane
we are dry camped at quartzite
we ran the generator total about 3 hrs today
2hrs in the morning, 15min at lunch 1hr in the evening at supper

our solar returned 81.87 amp hrs today,, aka 1.18 KWhrs

of course we are not watching tv which saves some power

but its all about conservation and management

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All electric no propane needed

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