Camping off-grid & batteries/propane/solar

[Chandne]

A few of you are aware that I am picking up a Lance 1575 this weekend. I will, at time, camp in places where I will basically be off the grid in the sense that there will be no hookups. The dealer can do the following:

Replace one Group 27 battery with two Group 24s- brackets need to be welded and propane needs to be moved. That is $350. Maybe I could get a battery box for two batts but the front area is pretty narrow on the 1575.
I could possibly also do two 20-lb propane tanka or could I do a 30 lb propane?
Posting get a portable solar panel to charge the batteries.
Buy a Honda inverter generator for $1,000

So I am not sure which ones would be a good move, since I do not totally understand how things work. I'm trying to do some research beforehand, so I don't get what I don't need. I don't know what is 120 vs. 12 on this trailer either.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. In Colorado, I could go without the AC easily. The fan and lights would be useful to have though.

[Chandne]

Oh, fresh, grey, and black are around 26, 25, and 25 gallons respectively.

[Chandne]

You guys are quite well-informed and experienced. My head is maybe too full of information...need to think through the different scenarios and the associated costs, and settle on some option, even if I do not spend all that money right now. I do tend to do that but life has been very expensive this month. I have probably spent enough to have bought a new diesel truck...which I kinda wanted as well.

[Gjac]

With 2 6 V GC batteries and minimal usage I would worry more about fresh water. How many gals of FW do you have? Can you get FW nearby? You can last a week easy on battery power but with a 20-40 gal FW tank you will be hard pressed if you and your wife want to tank showers every day.

[caseyhoward]

Let me say welcome to the site and you have a beautiful camper enjoy your camping trips ... try things out see what works and go with it. Enjoy camping that's what it's all about .

[trail-explorer]

Converting to a dual tank propane system and dual battery system is a popular upgrade on small trailers, so long as you have space and tow vehicle tongue weight capacity that isn't going to overload said tow vehicle with the added weight.

I did both to my trailer. One requirement I had when shopping was to find one that could accommodate two batteries in the existing battery rack without having to take the rig to a welding shop to have the rack upgraded.

I was able to bolt on the dual propane tank tray, I also added this propane tank monitor

[rexlion]

The 1575 has a listed dry hitch weight of only 225 lbs, which is very light for a 20.5' long, 2650 lb TT. Your batteries and LP on the tongue, along with other gear, will bring that up to maybe 300-350 lbs. Where is the fresh water tank, is it up front? A full tank will add a lot more weight. If that tank is more toward the axle, then I guess I can see why they would say you don't need WD. I towed 350-400 lb hitch weight routinely with an '08 Highlander and it bore up well. Now I have the 4Runner's twin, Lexus GX470. The one thing that still would concern me is the fairly short wheelbase of the tug versus a 20.5' tail. You don't want the tail to wag the dog. Equal-i-zer makes a great product, or the Andersen No-Sway would work for you also. But you could manage ok with just a sway bar, I believe.

With the proposed batteries, 100W to 150W of solar should be enough to keep you dry camping for several days, unless you hit a long stretch of overcast days.

[ctilsie242]

My two centavos:

Even camping in Texas, the furnace will chew through a single battery and spit it out before you wake up in the morning.

I know people give lots of recommendations, but trust me... get the two golf cart AGM batteries. It will make life easier.

Also, start considering a solar charging system. Your TT has at least room for 250+ watts, enough to keep the batteries topped off, and you likely could stick 500 or so watts on it, which will go a long way in countering the 7-10 amp draw from the furnace.

As for a generator, I consider it a good idea. Do it right, get two Honda eu2000i generators that you can parallel, and a kit for them. Especially in warmer weather where A/C is a must.

[westend]

t's funny, i was just reading this interesting tc mag article. It's saying what we are talking about.
http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-tech/camper-batteries-101-the-basics/

Good article for the beginner!

Also: 12v side of life

And: Battery University

The bottom line for the boondocker is that you want to have more battery capacity than a single grp 24 hybrid and you should have a solution to charge the batteries. Solar just makes too **** much sense. Even if you park under dense tree canopy, there will be sunlight along the path you entered. A portable panel or two with a long enough wire will get your batteries charged every day.

Some folks would rather have the absolute confidence that a generator offers for recharging or their lifestyle of high amperage coffee makers, griddle irons, and other high amperage draws makes a generator sensible.

For the average guy taking a weekend off for camping, the generator is an unneeded burden, IMO. A camper should arrive at destination with a fully charged battery bank. The battery bank, if sized correctly, would offer enough 12V power to complete the weekend. IF that isn't possible and power is needed to recharge, using jumper cables from the tow vehicle is a back up solution.

I tend to think solar charging is made for this use. An added benefit is that the solar charging maintains the batteries when the trailer is in storage.

[bobndot]

SoundGuy wrote:

bobndot wrote:
Look at Lifeline batteries. They offer 12v deep cycle in AGM. Compare the amp rate of them to using 2 , 6v's. I'll bet they are close.

Agree, a pair of G31 12 volt batteries are a viable alternative to a pair of 6 volt GC-2s but many find their much longer footprint compared to GC-2s to be problematic. And again, once we start talking about multiple batteries, especially AGMs that can put a good size hole in one's wallet, the charging system being used to maintain those batteries should also be assessed to determine if it can effectively maintain those new batteries according to the manufacturer's specifications ... ignore it and those fancy new batteries won't see anywhere near their anticipated life expectancy. 😞

Yes, good points. It certainly would make good sense to be sure the converter is compatible with AGM.
If the op is buying a new Lance ,the newer converters should handle AGM's float rate. I know my last 2 rv's had charge wizards built into them. Even back in 08 my Lance converter worked with AGM's . Intel 9100 with charge wizard. But yes, by all means, check to verify.

It's funny, i was just reading this interesting tc mag article. It's saying what we are talking about.
http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-tech/camper-batteries-101-the-basics/

[Chandne]

Yeah, this is my first trailer (thanks for the kind and complimentary words) so I am trying to, without much first-hand knowledge) do it the right way by leaning on you all for knowledge and experience. I suspect I will eventually go to a slightly bigger trailer and vehicle but need to use this 4Runner now.

I must admit I was surprised when the dealer kept insisting that the Equalizer with 4-way was overkill and possibly even the E2 was overkill and to simply use the sway control setup for $120. I would think they would try to sell the safest ad most optimal option, especially to a newbie. Like I said, I don't know too much about this stuff (ask me about mtn bike, road bike, Jeeping, etc.) so it is a bit overwhelming. Safety and optimal towing experience is most important to me.

[happycamper002]

SCVJeff wrote:
. . . Why? The OP knows they are short on dry camp power, so knock it out now.

Such an overbearingly arrogant attitude. This is one reason why people are being driven away from this site.

OP is a newbie and he wouldn't know exactly what his needs are until he gets out there and experience it first hand.

He does have the wherewithal to indulge (camping) and enjoy what he perceives to be enjoyable. Granted, he is still in a learning curve in terms of managing his power usage.

He indicated that he is not really a power hog, and that he can get by with minimal resources. You don't know how long his batteries will last until the next replenishment.

So, as a retort to your unfounded albeit denigrating comment, I have to say: you need to stop shooting from the hip thus avoiding yourself from shooting yourself in the foot.

[avoidcrowds]

"Sorry, but that's just a load of nonsense. ...use a properly sized and adjusted weight distribution. Certainly the E2 will serve this purpose"

x2

[profdant139]

OMG, what a beautiful trailer! Wow!!

For what it is worth, we do a lot of off-grid camping (60 to 90 nights a year) with two NAPA deep cycle marine batteries, group 31, rated at 110 amp/hours each. I have mounted them on the tongue, along with two propane bottles. I installed steel crossbars to sit under the battery boxes.

We use one battery at a time and then swap it out if it gets low. You get more battery life if both are hooked up at once, but I do not prefer that method -- what if one of them dies? Then both would be drained. Very few people are as risk-averse as I am, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

We have a Honda 2000 generator that we almost never use. We have a 120 watt portable panel that we use every day -- it usually tops off the battery fully.

(Did I mention that I like your trailer??)

[Chandne]

Okay, I will have to go see what they have tomorrow. So my connector looks like the bottom left one from the outside when I flip up the cover.

I have no problem getting what is best for my vehicle, so thanks for the input. I anticipate keeping the 4Runner as the tow vehicle for a year, before getting a truck or larger SUV.

[PAThwacker]

SCVJeff wrote:

j.p.f. wrote:
all this talk about adding batteries, propane tanks,boxes,adding welded frame work etc.
you had better be careful not to add to much weight to the tongue of your trailer.
any of this work could be done at a later time, I think I would just use as is for now and add/change what I needed later.

Why? The OP knows they are short on dry camp power, so knock it out now.

Single axle trailer 14 inch tires and 3700 gvw. I'd worry too