Parasitic Draw on RV?
I am getting ready to add a small solar system to the top of my 5er to keep the batteries topped off when we leave the camper at the lake for extended periods. My wife and I generally pull the camper ...
Forum Discussion
LipschitzWrath wrote:
Except that place {Solar Blvd} is not legit at all.
They are very legit and a popular place to go, if you ask anybody on this forum. Voicemail can be full, yes. Availability of panels in solar stores can be a problem these days, due to tariffs.
My fridge, radio on standby and LP detector draw 11-12 AH a day.
With 400W on tap and our camping lifestyle, we'd probably never have to run the generators except when we want to use 110V appliances (mainly the blender) or the AC.
I suggest you get acquainted with some small inverter, to run a blender. Cost ~$100 for a good one.
Mostly, the reason to run a generator with solar of your size is microwave. If you can handle propane stove, you won't have to run a genny. Alternatively, you could expand solar to 400W (500-600W with some 30A controllers but they don't include those with cheap kits), get much bigger inverter and run microwave off the batteries as well.
Yes, A/C needs a generator. This is the only item that is difficult to have on solar.
A Trimetric {battery monitor} is certainly on the list
All the more reason to throw an entry-level controller away, and to buy Trimetric add-on controller. It is an add-on, doesn't work well without their monitor, but with the monitor it works perfect AND allows up to 600W array, if memory serves me well. It won't output 600/12.6=48A, only 30A, but it will use 600W nicely on cloudy days.
