Forum Discussion
- big_bird_2ExplorerWe have a residental as well and also have solar and 5.5 Onan. When we dry camp the solar helps during the day a little. We run the gen 2 hours mid morning and 2 hours late afternoon. We are careful not opening the refrig unless necessary. We are also careful using other elect appliances. We have dry camped up to four days in sucession this way. Storage tanks are a bigger problem.
- Michelle_SExplorer IIIWhen we first got our current unit with Res Whirlpool fridge and 2 no-name 12V Batts, I did a test: Ran the Fridge for 36 hours without shore power, but using no other 12V items and Batts were still at 12.5V.
Our Fridge draws 11 amps from the Batteries when running, but only on for a short period per hour. - MerrykaliaExplorerHow far is home? We have driven 3 days with overnight stopping in between and our fridge was still cold when we arrived. I guess it will depend on how topped off the batteries when you leave, outdoor temp, how many batteries you have and lots of other variables. I will say that our batteries died on one trip, but the fridge and freezer still held their cold.
M.R.E. wrote:
Maybe, maybe not. Two well charged batteries and pre-cooled fridge should make a 12 hour stop with minimal time with the door open. Bad time to chill a case of warm beer. Otherwise the battery will be a bit low in the morning but will begin charging from the alternator as soon as you roll. Battery may arrive home a bit low as charging will be slow to none as the inverter will use most of the power from the truck. So plug in and charge 5+ hours when you get home. Two nights in a row could be more of a challenge with no generator.
When I am on my way home, if I stay at a place without electricity, will my inverter run down my batteries too low ?- Cummins12V98Explorer IIII drove 36 hours stopping to take 2 hour naps the frig 38 freezer 0 when arrived. I left the truck running the whole time.
So to answer your question who knows!!! - theoldwizard1Explorer II
M.R.E. wrote:
When I am on my way home, if I stay at a place without electricity, will my inverter run down my batteries too low ?
All inverters will shutdown if the voltage get too low. The question is "What is too low ?" and "Will that damage your batteries ?"
Not enough information ! Make and model of inverter. Make, model, quantity of batteries. - Sandia_ManExplorer IISince there are several variables involved in determining how long an inverter can power an AC load, without pertinent info it's likely you will need to replenish your battery bank if staying more than a day, sooner if you only have a couple of batteries. We do most of our RVing off the power grid utilizing solar and occasionally our genny/Iota IQ4 smart converter to quickly restore consumed amphours to our 12 volt reserves.
- 2oldmanExplorer IIMore information, please.
- LwiddisExplorer IIAdequate batteries and solar charging would make you independent of an electric hookup. Run the numbers...battery amp hours, fridge and other draws...see what you are using.
- CA_TravelerExplorer IIIIt depends upon how much power the inverter uses, battery charge and capacity.
For every 120V amp for inverter output it will draw 11 times that many amps from the battery.
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