how many batteries

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Sounds like a plan!! By all means HAVE FUN!! What race are you going to? I have camped at Sonoma,Fontana,and Vegas, Only needed the heater in Vegas! Got cold in the desert! Have been to Phoenix,Charlotte and Martinsville also,, I sure wish I could camp at Martinsville that place looked crazy at night! Some day we might rent a motor home and go to Talladega!

elmerfudd51 wrote:
thanks guys for your input. plugged it all in to a spreadsheet (to get a logical result).

1 vote four 6 volts(sounds good)
1 vote two group 31(thats gonna cost)
1 vote three group 31 and party till midnite(im in bed by 9)
2 votes one group 27(two guys agreeing, now were getting somewhere)
3 votes two 6 volt(that was one of my choices)
5 votes two 12 volt(my other choice)

so two 12 volt batteries it is. and if this doesnt keep me warm all nite, i have alternative improvements in mind thanks to you guys.

put more stickers on my genny
get a small solar charger/dumptruck assembly
get a larger solar array/without dumptruck

seriously, thanks to all

Hmmm ..... arent' "two 12 volt" and "two Group 31" the same thing???

If at all possible to fit them, I never use any 12 volt batteries except Group 31. If you can possibly fit Group 31(s) into the battery area ... go for the big guy(s).

Remember the Old Chinese Proverb I made up some time ago: "You can't have two much battery capacity on board .... just maybe more than you can afford or fit". Our current RV uses (only) a couple of Group 31 12 volt deep cycle batteries because that's all that will fit without me stealing storage space needed for other things.

By the way, not all Group 31 batteries are the same .... they range in amp hour capacities from around 100 amp hours each all the way up to around 125 amp hours each. For an RV using lead acid technology batteries - always use deep cycle batteries and always use batteries that are the heaviest in weight for the given size that you want to install.

Hi elmer,

You forgot the vote for an 8D.

Since you decided on 2 12 volt, now you need to decide on flooded or AGM. Be sure they are wired in a balanced manner.

Personally I think there is no such thing as too much capacity. I'm at 556 amp-hours of AGM telecom (used but in GREAT shape).

Good Planning! :)

thanks guys for your input. plugged it all in to a spreadsheet (to get a logical result).

1 vote four 6 volts(sounds good)
1 vote two group 31(thats gonna cost)
1 vote three group 31 and party till midnite(im in bed by 9)
2 votes one group 27(two guys agreeing, now were getting somewhere)
3 votes two 6 volt(that was one of my choices)
5 votes two 12 volt(my other choice)

so two 12 volt batteries it is. and if this doesnt keep me warm all nite, i have alternative improvements in mind thanks to you guys.

put more stickers on my genny
get a small solar charger/dumptruck assembly
get a larger solar array/without dumptruck

seriously, thanks to all

We enjoy more rustic camping and added solar along with two Group 31 AGM's for a few reasons. The AGM's can take a deeper discharge, where lead acids are said to be okay down to 50%. AGM's charge up faster, and they don't need to be vented and water levels are not an issue either. Probably costing nearly twice as much as 6 volts I felt it was a worthwhile expense, but the 6 volts are popular too.

My trailer uses right around 30 amps per day with the battery switch on and the fridge running while in the storage yard before trips so a two battery setup would be nice to have especially if running the furnace is a regular concern.

Our solar setup is 2 160 watt panels and a 30 amp MPPT charger controller, which has allowed us to dry camp numerous nights without the need of our EU2000 for charging, which hasn't been used camping since our solar install.

North Carolina is not Hawaii in January. Not by a long shot.

I've measured furnace fans the drew 7-10 amps. Running the furnace from 6 PM to 8AM is fourteen hours of furnace - in operation. How many hours it is fired is another story. Add other hotel loads. Lights, water pump for NASCAR grade showers, TV or stereo and suddenly a 200 amp hour capacity bank is going to look like a pipsqueak. 250 amp hours minimum rendering a safe 125 amp hour reserve. But this is cutting it too close. Races mean partying and partying means burning lights sometimes to midnight and beyond.

IMHO brute amp hours is a crucial figure here. Three hundred total amp hour capacity suddenly seems rational. This of course is assuming a decent converter will be recharging the bank. I've seen too many instances where garbage converters took 30+ hours to replace most of the withdrawn amp hours. It would't be nuts to claim a run-of-the-mill factory converter would only recharge 3-100 amp hour batteries to 80% in 5 hours gen runtime. Whoopee! Now a 300 amp hour bank has 240-amp hours. Of which 120 are useable. These are points to consider. There is little question AGM batteries would recharge much faster but this means a real budget buster purchase. Three group 31 AGM batteries.

Points to ponder. For sure. A veritable ocean of variables.

I think every off grid RV should have 2 batteries (200 AHs typical) 12v or 6v, don't matter, its still 200 AHs w/o getting all techie.

But between limited life span, and hauling dead weight around, batteries (like horses) eat hay. So my advice is don't have more batteries than you need, meaning, have just enuff to keep from discharging more than 50% each day.

Do have a means of charging those batteries in about 2 hrs generator run time each day,.....even if they don't get 100% charged. If you have 300 watts of solar, and can depend on sun every day, the batteries will take care of them selves, you don't have to even think about them.

smkettner wrote:
One group 27 battery might be fine. I would worry more about how well the converter will charge. Some are very slow fixed voltage chargers.

We have camped for a couple of weeks in the Smokies National Park with an EU 1000 and a single Gr 27 Trojan 12V SCS 200 battery in near (night time) freezing weather running our generator every morning to recharge (WFCO converter). We used a catalytic heater during the night but run the furnace in the morning when we first get up. We don't need an inverter and have all led lighting.

Dick