Solar or generator for older camper?

[pcoplin]

I have an 89 Lance camper and plan on dry camping with my wife and toddler daughter.

I'd like to know people's opinions on adding solar versus plopping the dough on a Honda Generator. I'd ultimately like to add solar, but this is really just a starter camper to make sure it's for us as a family. Maybe only have it 2 or 3 years before i get one in the 2000s.

Looks like it will be 500 or so for the stiff to add solar. $1000 for a 2000w generator, even if I need one that big.

What are your thoughts? Pros versus cons? Thanks all for your time.

[pnichols]

pcoplin wrote:
I fabbed up a rack to carry it off my front hitch. The Harbor Freight rack is also nice.

Paul,

Is that a Honda EX650 I see in your front hitch carrier?? It sure looks exactly like the EX650 we carry in our small Class C motorhome to backup our Onan built-in ... and the EX650 our traveling friends carry in their small Class C motorhome to backup their Onan built-in.

If so ... what a coincidence!! I've been mentioning our EX650 for years in these forums and I get the impression that very few, if any, RV'ers use them anymore and that even fewer have ever heard of them. Mine is in great condition, and I have an EX1000 in like new condition that I use around home.

Here's a spec sheet on the discontinued portable Honda models. Note the noise spec on the Honda EX650 - only 1 dB louder at it's full power than the Honda EU1000i and EU2000i inverter generators are when they are running at 1/4th load:

http://www.tappedin.com/hop/html/litegen.htm

[pcoplin]

I fabbed up a rack to carry it off my front hitch. The Harbor Freight rack is also nice.

[pnichols]

The Honda EU1000i is very light (less than 29 lbs.) and physically small. Could it be carried on custom made angle-iron rails up inside the body voids between one of the rear fenders and the truck's frame? My pickup has quite a bit of wasted space up in there.

If the room is up in there, this little generator could easily be lifted up (laying on your back on the ground), slid onto the custom made angle-iron rails, and then fastened into place with large finger turned wing-nuts ... for travel. The gas for it could be carried in a jerry can off the front or back bumper ... or maybe even in a saddle-bag tank mounted inside the body void in the rear on the opposite side from where the generator is stored.

The "cleanest look" for generator power in a TC would be the saddle-bag gas tank on one side and a saddle-bag carry of the generator on the other side.

This little generator probably could not power an air conditioner - except for maybe a 5000 BTU one - which might be all that a small TC would require. It could perhaps power a small microwave oven, and of course it could easily recharge the batteries any time of the day and in any weather.

You could also have solar panels on top of the camper, in addition to the much higher powered Honda EU1000i generator.

[scottz]

NMace wrote:
In a smaller camper without a storage compartment, say a Lance 825, where do you store the generator and gas can? I am considering the back seat of the crew cab or in the wet bath. I do not wish to build a rack.

This goes on the front hitch. I also have a smaller bin I can place the gen in and travel with it on the TC floor slid forward.

[NMace]

In a smaller camper without a storage compartment, say a Lance 825, where do you store the generator and gas can? I am considering the back seat of the crew cab or in the wet bath. I do not wish to build a rack.

[pnichols]

It guess it depends upon what you expect out of your RV. If one wants their RV to be ready for anything at anytime, then they have to have the equipment choices on board their rig to provide for good flexibility.

In our case, relative to electrical energy on board our RV, that approach means we must have a source of power on board capable of keeping us cool in extreme heat and/or humidity and a source of power on board capable of topping up the main battery bank without the sun ... just in case we can't predict or control when or where we wind up camping. We don't want to be limited in how we camp, as life's too short for that.

As an example of equipment flexibility, one of our generators in the RV has a simple knob for optimizing it's performance at all altitudes ... just in case we want to camp up high.

[Reddog1]

My TC is a 1988. It has no parasitic load, no dinosaur board (or equal) for the fridge, no smoke detector or CO2 monitor connected to the battery, or other electrical requirements for the TC. I'm thinking the typical 2000 and newer TCs have between 5 to 10 AH draw per day.

In my mind, we each have different wants/needs with the AHs in our TC. A lot depends on winter or summer, and where you spend the winter or summer months. About all any of us can do is state what we have and the conditions under which we use it. It is absolutely silly to say everyone needs what any one of us have.

[ewarnerusa]

I didn't believe it either until I read about it. I didn't notice it either because both campers I've owned had solar. The 12 V draw isn't related to its size or type of camper, it is related to it having an electronic control board. So yeah, a propane-only fridge with manual pilot light does not require or use any 12 V.

[mbloof]

ewarnerusa wrote:
22 Ah/day would barely replace the small draw of running the fridge for 24 hours. Mine is rated at 0.8 A @ 12 V DC when running on propane.

Ed, so your saying that the parasitic load of just your large Travel Trailers fridge over a 44hr weekend camping trip could use 35Ah alone? (ouch!) Better battery capacity up accordingly then.

Least we forget that fridge's installed in smaller and older TRUCK CAMPERS (this is the truck camper forum after all) don't require ANY 12V to operate on propane, (mine surely does not use 35Ah) a 40W solar panel could be just enough to make a difference.

(recall that most Truck Campers are sold with a single 70-80Ah battery - 22Ah is over 1/4 of that capacity)

[ewarnerusa]

22 Ah/day would barely replace the small draw of running the fridge for 24 hours. Mine is rated at 0.8 A @ 12 V DC when running on propane.

[mbloof]

Dakota98 wrote:
mbloof ,

40 Watts of Solar amounts to a good trickle charger. Not nearly what would be needed to do any real good. :B

Again define "adding solar". Define "real good".

40W / 13.2v = 3A

40W / 14.4v = 2.7A of charge current - a bit more than a "trickle charger" I'd say.

2.7A over 8hrs of day light could equate to 22Ah, (quite a bit more in the summer time) which just might be enough so that you won't run your batteries down to 50% of charge over a weekend camping trip.

Just because YOU have greater needs does not equate to everyone having the same needs.



- Mark0

[Dakota98]

mbloof ,

40 Watts of Solar amounts to a good trickle charger. Not nearly what would be needed to do any real good. :B

[mbloof]

Gosh - I get a kick out of this forum.

It took me a whole whooping 10 seconds to find a viable < $2 a watt solar solution for a truck camper:

Amazon-Free Shipping

Then again define "adding solar".

I've seen the 5-10W "solar chargers" on discount for < $2 a watt.
(sorry no current links available) While it would be of little or no use in helping a TC owner dry camping, it IS "adding solar".

So, then we might say that it has to provide some "reasonable amount" of charge current?

40W with Diode

Yes, the above can work however we think "adding solar" really requires a charge controller eh?

I may never consider it but it is a controller.

But... but... but... its not really "added" unless it is mounted on the roof with a installation warranty executed by the local RV dealership?

(sigh)

In 2002 when I added 100W to my Elkhorn camper I paid ~$600 for the panel (which was a DEAL as solar was ~$7.50-10.00 a watt back then) and ~$100 for a 25A PWM charge controller. A buddy liked my install so much he paid the local RV shop ~$1600.00 for them to put 100W of solar on his roof. (he would always claim that his was better as he had a "1yr installation warranty")

As the panels themselves are approaching $1-Watt, (if you are quick and have a good eye for a discount) a "do it yourselfer" with an extra $100 burning a hole in their pocket might be able to add 40-50W to their TC for ~2$ a watt fairly easily.

[pnichols]

pcoplin wrote:
I'm borrowing a friend's Honda 650 generator this weekend to get a feel for it. Will get down to the low 30s.

If you're borrowing the Honda 650 that you might be - the long since discontinued but IMHO outstanding little 650 watt Honda EX650 - then you might be pleasantly surprized. It's specs are shown in the 2nd column from the right:

http://www.tappedin.com/hop/html/litegen.htm

Note that it's not an inverter generator so it runs at 3600 RPM all the time, and also note that it's noise level is only 54dB while running at it's constant speed. The modern Honda EU2000i's noise level is only one dB lower - 53dB, but is only this quiet when putting out 1/4th (400 watts) of it's total power (1600watts).

We carry a Honda EX650 in our 24 foot Class C motorhome as a lower noise and lower power alternative to our built-in generator.

That little Honda EX650 be used for such things as:

- Run the air conditioner's fan system for air circulation.
- Run our 1500 heater on a low setting.
- Run our two 150 watt personal electric heaters.
- Run our vacumm cleaner.
- Run our hair dryer on it's low setting.
- Run our portable fan for air cooling and keeping the bugs away when sitting outside.
- Run all of our electroncs at the same time.
- Run an electric blanket for about five hours on it's 0.51 gallon tank.
- Run a heating pad for sore muscles.
- Run some hand tools.
- Run a crock pot for about five hours.
- Charge our two Group 29 12 volt RV batteries.

You can find these Honda EX650 generators on eBay for around $150-$200. They hum along with a quiet low frequency sound that is not irritating at all outside ... and that can't be heard from inside the RV.

For the best flexibility in choosing when and where to camp in any weather a generator is a must, IMHO. Of course the best RV setup is to have both solar and a generator, probably starting with generator capability first and then adding solar later.

[dadwolf2]

Dakota98 wrote:

pianotuna wrote:
Hi

There are at least 8 free with power in South Dakota. Try http://freecampsites.net/

Roof space may be an issue for some RV'ers, but not in my case. So if I had spent the 2700 bucks on solar I would not have needed the generator.

I still keep hoping to replace the awning with a flexible solar panel. That would be super to have on a TC.

dadwolf2 wrote:
Free/Inexpensive campground that provides electrical power went away a long time ago...or at least is quite rare.

We don't have the amount of roof space to install that much solar on our fairly small roof's and if we had the roof space, most of us wouldn't have the battery capacity. (except for Bka0721) I love my 160 watt solar panel, it keeps me out of the generator running business 99% of the time.

Solar isn't for everyone.

Neither is a generator.

One must choose what works best for "their" circumstances & type of camping.

I vote for "cold fusion" & endless beer for everyone !!!!! :B

I started with and currently own a H2K generator. Now that I've got 160 watt panel with 2 batteries I don't need the generator...99% of the time. Don't forget that I am mostly camping in NV, Southern CA, Utah, Colorado and Arizona and we are very conservative with power use.

I absolutely hate the sound of generators when camping. That's why I only use mine when really necessary and the minimal amount of time. I'd rather do without conveniences than hear my own generator even if I am camping in the middle of nowhere...especially if camping in the middle of nowhere!!!

But since the OP suggested that this camper was a short term trial run, I wouldn't install panels on the roof and the controller in that camper. Something like the Honda Eu2000i is easily moved, fairly quiet and can be paralleled for expansion if needed down the road.