Battery Question
Hi, I have a bunch of questions about batteries, invertors, charging, solar panels, etc. So I'll start off with batteries... My TC came equipped with 2 Interstate Marine/RV Deep Cycle SRM-27 b...
Forum Discussion
Bottom line is, if you don't use much power you don't have to store or generate much.
Microwaves and Air Conditioners use AC power which is usually supplied by ether "shore power" or a generator. Granted enough solar and battery capacity can be added/installed to run them but it gets pretty costly.
Most of the other power needs in a camper/RV are +12VDC which is usually supplied by a converter/charger when plugged into "shore power" or running off the generator. When both of these are not available campers/RV's get their +12VDC from batteries.
How much battery capacity one needs depends on the owners power use patterns. For example in the dead of winter the camper/RV furnace could be running more than not and using a bunch of +12VDC as compared to in the summer time.
For any installed battery capacity the owner of a camper/RV could camp for more days in the summer as compared to the winter based solely on the power draw of the camper/RV's furnace.
Add or subtract different +12VDC power draws and you'll subtract or add days of camping in a camper/RV.
Many of us add solar as a quiet power source to charge our camper/RV batteries without having to carry or run a generator. How much power that can be harvested by any given solar panel depends largely on how much sun it gets. As you could imagine, in the summer months there is more sun then in winter months.
Simply put it all starts with figuring out how long your camping trip is, how much power you think you want and what time of year you plan on doing it.
- Mark0.
Microwaves and Air Conditioners use AC power which is usually supplied by ether "shore power" or a generator. Granted enough solar and battery capacity can be added/installed to run them but it gets pretty costly.
Most of the other power needs in a camper/RV are +12VDC which is usually supplied by a converter/charger when plugged into "shore power" or running off the generator. When both of these are not available campers/RV's get their +12VDC from batteries.
How much battery capacity one needs depends on the owners power use patterns. For example in the dead of winter the camper/RV furnace could be running more than not and using a bunch of +12VDC as compared to in the summer time.
For any installed battery capacity the owner of a camper/RV could camp for more days in the summer as compared to the winter based solely on the power draw of the camper/RV's furnace.
Add or subtract different +12VDC power draws and you'll subtract or add days of camping in a camper/RV.
Many of us add solar as a quiet power source to charge our camper/RV batteries without having to carry or run a generator. How much power that can be harvested by any given solar panel depends largely on how much sun it gets. As you could imagine, in the summer months there is more sun then in winter months.
Simply put it all starts with figuring out how long your camping trip is, how much power you think you want and what time of year you plan on doing it.
- Mark0.
