Solar Question :::
I'm in Oregon and stretching out my time here but my 90ah agm batt is not getting enough sun and starting to get lower and lower. Considering a generator but my question is this. If I just add anoth...
Forum Discussion
First issue: What do you use per day and how many days do you go between being hooked up to shore power?
If you have a 90a-h battery, that gives you about 45a-h usable assuming 100% charge on a good battery to start.
If you use 20a-h per day, that gives you a little over 2 days.
A second battery of the same size will give you a total of 90a-h of usable power or about 4.5 day but at the end of 4.5 days, you need a way to supply 90a-h. (ideally batteries should be replaced as a unit but if the current one is in good shape, you can probably get away with it)
If your trips are normally 3-4 days and you can plug in when you get home, it's completely viable given the numbers above but you need to get your own numbers.
If you are actually using 40a-h per day on 4 day trips with minimal solar input, you will need another way to charge.
If it's only rarely, consider just up-sizing the truck charging wires and running the truck motor. Not a good option if you need to run the truck 50days/year but if it's 2-3 times per year for a couple hours, it's not going to do any great harm and the extra fuel used is insignificant.
Really best to approach off grid energy systematically:
- How much do I use?
- How much generation do I need?
- If not practical to 100% generate every day, how many days between generation do I expect the battery to carry over?
From there the calculations are fairly simple but it can be iterative if the expectations are not realistic.
If you have a 90a-h battery, that gives you about 45a-h usable assuming 100% charge on a good battery to start.
If you use 20a-h per day, that gives you a little over 2 days.
A second battery of the same size will give you a total of 90a-h of usable power or about 4.5 day but at the end of 4.5 days, you need a way to supply 90a-h. (ideally batteries should be replaced as a unit but if the current one is in good shape, you can probably get away with it)
If your trips are normally 3-4 days and you can plug in when you get home, it's completely viable given the numbers above but you need to get your own numbers.
If you are actually using 40a-h per day on 4 day trips with minimal solar input, you will need another way to charge.
If it's only rarely, consider just up-sizing the truck charging wires and running the truck motor. Not a good option if you need to run the truck 50days/year but if it's 2-3 times per year for a couple hours, it's not going to do any great harm and the extra fuel used is insignificant.
Really best to approach off grid energy systematically:
- How much do I use?
- How much generation do I need?
- If not practical to 100% generate every day, how many days between generation do I expect the battery to carry over?
From there the calculations are fairly simple but it can be iterative if the expectations are not realistic.
