How long should a battery last?

BTW this has nothing to do with the connundrum the OP seems to be creating for himself.
And doesn’t matter if it’s Wallydocking or the middle of the wilderness, your refrigerator and other amenities take the same power.

StirCrazy wrote:

ewarnerusa wrote:
If he's boondocking the way I think of boondocking, he won't be in a campground with rules but rather a dispersed spot with only the neighbors he traveled with. I do realize there are campgrounds without hookups so valid points on generator hours/rules.

ahh that's where you Americans have a huge advantage. We cannot just drive a unit onto government land unless it is designated for "camping" and in that case it is called a recreation area or some other name and there are rules and fees of some sort... Sometimes they are free. Otherwise, you're limited to provincial or private campgrounds. Maybe Ontario is different. I do know some private campground where you can run your genny during daylight hours but those are becoming extinct out here anyways and I am thankful for that. To me a genny is for emergency use as there's nothing more anoying than hearing a genny fire up when you're trying to enjoy the fire and drinks. and yes, even the quiet ones carry the sound a long way in the woods.

This can vary a bit with different areas I just know about BC and Alberta. There are places you can go in BC for free and on government lands, but you are limited to hiking and tent camping. there are ways to camp for free in places but it's a gamble if you're going to get woken up and told to move along and its definitely not light a fire and start drinking type of camping haha

Oops , I guess we were criminals…boondocked in BC for a few nights on our way to Alaska….
Didn’t know that Trudeau didn’t allow it…but only thing to kick us out of camp was our alarm clocks and 1 grizzly bear.

Solar powered lithium batteries.

JimK-NY wrote:

StirCrazy wrote:


ahh that's where you Americans have a huge advantage. We cannot just drive a unit onto government land unless it is designated for "camping" and in that case it is called a recreation area or some other name and there are rules and fees of some sort... Sometimes they are free. Otherwise, you're limited to provincial or private campgrounds.

It has been a few years since I made my one and only RV camping trip across Canada. I still remember some of the places I stayed in the Western Provinces.

Stayed on a city street in Winnipeg while visiting a distant relative.

Stayed at rest stop near Moosmin, Saskatchewan. It was a very nice spot with the only good view we had of the northern lights.

In Banff, we stayed several nights in an area within the Park that I can barely describe as a combination of a construction site and a migrant camp. No water, no facilities but safe and convenient.

At the Athabasca glacier we gave up our official camping spot to a young couple and child who came in too late to get a spot. We stayed in the parking lot a couple of nights. It was a great opportunity to take night photos.

At Jasper we stayed in an outstandingly beautiful area designed as overflow camping. No fees, no facilities but with access to the nearby dump station at the actual campground. After a few nights a ranger came by and told us the since the main campground was only partially full the overflow was going to close. We stayed a couple of nights in town across from a church and within a block of a bakery with outstanding bread and donuts. Great smells in the morning.

At your town, Kamloops, we arrived late, stayed in the Costco parking lot and left early the next morning for the Cascades.

I am sure there were other places I have forgotten, but as a quick summary I would guess our stays in the western provinces were outside of designated camping areas at least three quarters of the time.

so only one maybe two if we stretch it, of those situations would I consider boon docking or even camping for that matter.

really staying on the street at a friend's place in the city, or stopping overnight at a Costco, or rest stop is what you consider boon docking. we call that pulling over for the night because you're too tired to drive. I was woken up in the middle of the night from a rest stop and told to move on... Once, there actually were signs saying no overnight parking or such but that was a long long time ago and probably a RCMP having a bad night. years ago when I was young, the Alberta provincial campground used to be all over and they used to be free for Alberta residents, not sure why that changed.

I am not sure what you're talking about in Banff, but if it was not in a designated camping area you got lucky, the parking lot at the Athabaska glacier is actually a designated camping area for rv's over night and it is 16.50 per night, used to be free but I can't remember how long ago that was.

took me a bit to figure out what overflow as there is only one now but used to be a couple or three. The snaring river overflow is Un serviced, no fires, no drinking or anything else allowed and is 16.50/night and will close or open depending on how busy the other campgrounds are. again, not boondocking. When I think about boon docking, I associate that with "free camping" not urban stealth camping or pulling over in a rest stop. There are a few spots in BC, but none that I would give up on a public forum.

StirCrazy wrote:


ahh that's where you Americans have a huge advantage. We cannot just drive a unit onto government land unless it is designated for "camping" and in that case it is called a recreation area or some other name and there are rules and fees of some sort... Sometimes they are free. Otherwise, you're limited to provincial or private campgrounds.

It has been a few years since I made my one and only RV camping trip across Canada. I still remember some of the places I stayed in the Western Provinces.

Stayed on a city street in Winnipeg while visiting a distant relative.

Stayed at rest stop near Moosmin, Saskatchewan. It was a very nice spot with the only good view we had of the northern lights.

In Banff, we stayed several nights in an area within the Park that I can barely describe as a combination of a construction site and a migrant camp. No water, no facilities but safe and convenient.

At the Athabasca glacier we gave up our official camping spot to a young couple and child who came in too late to get a spot. We stayed in the parking lot a couple of nights. It was a great opportunity to take night photos.

At Jasper we stayed in an outstandingly beautiful area designed as overflow camping. No fees, no facilities but with access to the nearby dump station at the actual campground. After a few nights a ranger came by and told us the since the main campground was only partially full the overflow was going to close. We stayed a couple of nights in town across from a church and within a block of a bakery with outstanding bread and donuts. Great smells in the morning.

At your town, Kamloops, we arrived late, stayed in the Costco parking lot and left early the next morning for the Cascades.

I am sure there were other places I have forgotten, but as a quick summary I would guess our stays in the western provinces were outside of designated camping areas at least three quarters of the time.

ewarnerusa wrote:
If he's boondocking the way I think of boondocking, he won't be in a campground with rules but rather a dispersed spot with only the neighbors he traveled with. I do realize there are campgrounds without hookups so valid points on generator hours/rules.

ahh that's where you Americans have a huge advantage. We cannot just drive a unit onto government land unless it is designated for "camping" and in that case it is called a recreation area or some other name and there are rules and fees of some sort... Sometimes they are free. Otherwise, you're limited to provincial or private campgrounds. Maybe Ontario is different. I do know some private campground where you can run your genny during daylight hours but those are becoming extinct out here anyways and I am thankful for that. To me a genny is for emergency use as there's nothing more anoying than hearing a genny fire up when you're trying to enjoy the fire and drinks. and yes, even the quiet ones carry the sound a long way in the woods.

This can vary a bit with different areas I just know about BC and Alberta. There are places you can go in BC for free and on government lands, but you are limited to hiking and tent camping. there are ways to camp for free in places but it's a gamble if you're going to get woken up and told to move along and its definitely not light a fire and start drinking type of camping haha

If it is an absorption fridge on propane it may draw 34 amp-hours per day.

34 x 12 = 408 watt hours.

pianotuna wrote:

swimmer_spe wrote:

ewarnerusa wrote:
If he's boondocking the way I think of boondocking, he won't be in a campground with rules but rather a dispersed spot with only the neighbors he traveled with. I do realize there are campgrounds without hookups so valid points on generator hours/rules.

My initial generator set up will be to run it during daylight hours and evening till bed. Only shut it off when sleeping. However, eventually, I would like to only need a few hours of run time a day.

Two ways to reduce run time.

1. increase battery bank capacity.

or (better)

2. add a solar panel charging system.

or (best)

Do both 1 and 2

Have fun!

I have a small solar panel on the roof.
By the time I am done, I want to have enough that sitting there, regardless of weather, with everything "shut off" the panel is enough. Then I want to get to the point where lights, furnace and fridge is on and the solar panels can keep up in fall. The goal is the only reason for the generator is to run the AC in the middle of the summer heat.

swimmer_spe wrote:

ewarnerusa wrote:
If he's boondocking the way I think of boondocking, he won't be in a campground with rules but rather a dispersed spot with only the neighbors he traveled with. I do realize there are campgrounds without hookups so valid points on generator hours/rules.

My initial generator set up will be to run it during daylight hours and evening till bed. Only shut it off when sleeping. However, eventually, I would like to only need a few hours of run time a day.

Two ways to reduce run time.

1. increase battery bank capacity.

or (better)

2. add a solar panel charging system.

or (best)

Do both 1 and 2

Have fun!

The genny solves all your problems now and in the future.
May as well get one. Plus you’re in an urban area. Could probably score a nice used one for cheap even!
And if you want to upgrade or go solar or whatever, you can easily sell the genny and be out not much or no money.
Bam! all u need is a gallon r 2 of gas and you can pack the fridge full of warm beer or microwave a hot pocket or run the hvac as much as you want!