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xBandit's avatar
xBandit
Explorer
Sep 20, 2014

Using solar while at campground

Hello everyone first post. Im in the beginning stages of purchasing a new travel trailer with the intent to live in it full time. Found a nice campground in Alabama that allows full time right on the lake. My concerns is having a travel trailer being limited to 30 amps . Wondering what you all would think about maybe setting up maybe 250-350 watt solar set up to increase amps you could use inside the RV. I have read it is pretty easy to use all the available power while air conditioner is going. My plan was to put everything but air conditioner, heater,lights,and fridge on shore power and all electronics like tv, computers,toaster, microwave , etc on solar to free up as many amps as possible to keep from tripping the breakers. Is it even worth spending the aprox $1000 to get this set up ? Or am I over thinking it a little haha. Plus I would use the camper when going on some vacations and could the solar for off grid power as well. Any info would be appreciated !
  • pianotuna's avatar
    pianotuna
    Nomad III
    Sep 20, 2014
    Hi,

    It will be cheaper and better to extract circuits from the 30 amp service, and have a "break out box" for 50 amp. My box has a 30 amp outlet on one leg and two 20 amp outlets on the other--each with their own breaker. I use a system of male and female plugs so I can switch back to the OEM configuration in 20 seconds.

    For your idea to work, a hybrid inverter would be needed. Add about 1000 watts of solar and it would work extremely well.
  • Bumpyroad's avatar
    Bumpyroad
    Explorer
    Sep 20, 2014
    xBandit wrote:
    Or am I over thinking it a little haha. !


    yes you are. no problem with 30 amps with a decent EMS. try it and see if you need additional juice then just add a separate line for second AC, etc. I assume the campground has 50 amp service available. could also adapt to using that.
    bumpy
  • Golden_HVAC's avatar
    Golden_HVAC
    Explorer
    Sep 20, 2014
    Hi,

    While it is possible, it will not really save anything on the RV service, and not contribute to the 30 amps being used by the RV.

    If you already had a solar system, then shutting off the 120-12 volt converter can save about 1-2 amps at 120 volts while running lights and any sort of 12 volt TV. Yet to purchase a $500 solar system when you are not planning on boondocking, it will not really save you anything in electric costs or give you the ability to run the A/C any better.

    I would suggest that you get a 30 amp autoformer. Hughes makes one for about $400, and it can boost the 105 volts to 115 again! This will really help out in the summer time to give you proper voltage for the RV.

    You should also get a voltage meter. E-Bay has several listings for Kill-A-Watt, and they run about $20. It can stay plugged in all the time, giving you a clue on the voltage in the RV. Chances are without a voltage booster, it will drop to around 105 volts on a hot day, and could damage the A/C if you do not shut it off below 105 volts. At 105, I normally run my A/C, or plug in my booster at below 108 volts.

    SunElec.com

    Fred.
  • TucsonJim's avatar
    TucsonJim
    Explorer II
    Sep 20, 2014
    Welcome to the Forum!

    I suppose it's doable, but it would be quite a set up to split the power systems. You'd have to deliver shore power to the AC, and then have a separate 120V source (inverter) from the batteries routed to the other elecrical draws.

    My last FW was a 30amp system. I could usually run nearly all of the appliances and electronics at the same time. The only concession I had to make was to turn off the AC while I was using the microwave. Have you tried to see what you can run and can't run at the same time?

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