Advice for my charging situation? Solar?
Hi folks - This is for my minivan. I have: - 24 hour usage around 1 kilowatt, on average. Half a kw on a lazy day (which usually = a cloudy or rainy day, for me). Max I have read on the kill...
Forum Discussion
First, I would not mount a generator inside the van. Even with the most technical enclosures possible, it will not be a good deal. Besides the safety factor, you'll have the heat and smell to deal with, not a good situation.
Solar would be the way to go and after you have everything setup, it is an elegant solution. You should have some more battery capacity to deal with those times of limited sun or bad weather. I have five batteries inside my trailer so building enclosed battery spaces is not that big of a deal. I would suggest to figure out if you want to keep the mini-freezer and tailor your solar around that.
FWIW, I run a dorm fridge with the same electrical draw, approximately. I have 300AH of capacity and a single 235W module. I use a Xantrex 1000W Prowatt inverter. If it looks like I will have a bad spate of weather, I can disconnect the fridge and contents will be cold for a long time. To date, I haven't done that.
I am looking at upgrading my system, adding another 220AH of capacity and another 235W module. This would allow me to run a small A/C for a couple of hours or use other high wattage devices at my whim. Once you get free power, you just want more...
Solar would be the way to go and after you have everything setup, it is an elegant solution. You should have some more battery capacity to deal with those times of limited sun or bad weather. I have five batteries inside my trailer so building enclosed battery spaces is not that big of a deal. I would suggest to figure out if you want to keep the mini-freezer and tailor your solar around that.
FWIW, I run a dorm fridge with the same electrical draw, approximately. I have 300AH of capacity and a single 235W module. I use a Xantrex 1000W Prowatt inverter. If it looks like I will have a bad spate of weather, I can disconnect the fridge and contents will be cold for a long time. To date, I haven't done that.
I am looking at upgrading my system, adding another 220AH of capacity and another 235W module. This would allow me to run a small A/C for a couple of hours or use other high wattage devices at my whim. Once you get free power, you just want more...
