Phil,
When I was part time I managed 5 years very nicely without a generator. Battery life was excellent. Cost savings via boondocking paid for the solar ($1700 for parts) were paid back within the first year. I used my rv 50 days per year. I knew I wanted a large battery bank and anyone who boondocks would also want that--so that is not at applicable "extra" cost. The MSW Cobra 2500 watt inverter served me well for most of those five years cost was $200. Even if I add up all the costs including extra batteries it was all paid for in that first year.
Now with panel prices below $1 solar pay back compared to generator is quite a short time frame. The limitation is space on the roof, and the weigh allowance of the RV.
The generator I chose was $2700 and I paid another $450 to add a remote start/stop to it. I truly wish I had spent those funds on more solar instead.
No one is going to run a generator for 20 kwh of power as it is cheaper to go to a campground (unless they have no choice). As it is--I only filled the genny tank 4 times in 2015. Essentially all the run time was for the roof air.
Another alternative for me would have been to add a 2nd dedicated alternator. That would work as I'm still pretty much a rolling stone driving a 1000 miles per month.
I wish I had a place with one 15 amp or one 50 amp shore power to park. Either would pretty much eliminate the need for a generator for me.
All this depends on the style of camping one does. What works for me might be terrible for you.
pnichols wrote:
pianotuna wrote:
The most expensive is running a generator.
Don .... and as is often the case, the most expensive is the most versatile when it comes down to best self-containment in all situations.
We recently completed a very long (10K+ miles) RV trip wandering diagonally across the U.S.. Portions of this trip would not have been possible without a generator - and we had great weather the whole trip with plenty of sun.
i.e.:
- We had to dry camp in the shade and use the microwave or hair dryer.
- We had to to leave the dog in the rig in moderately warm weather with the A/C running.
- We had to fix quick (but nourishing) meals conveniently via the microwave while sitting in parking lots in the sun while running the A/C or sitting along the road in the sun while running the A/C.
There is no substitute for having BOTH solar and a generator - assuming the generator is set up properly so as to be convenient to use and not irritating. Speaking of which .... I may want to add portable solar into our mix sometime in 2016 for a couple more long trips in 2016 and 2017.
