Tinagtnp
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Re: Dry camping and solar power
Tinagtnp wrote: kerrlakeRoo wrote: At that elevation, especially if you can position to get some afternoon shade, your dog should be fine with a fan running. Earlier you asked about cost, If you only have one battery , and its relatively new, add a second of similar size, If its more than a year old, you would probably be better off canning it and replacing it with a matched pair. 6 volt golf cart batteries are best if you are replacing it, but 12 volt deep cycle will work too. Solar panels work best in bright direct sun, kind of a standard rule of thumb is a watt of solar for each amp of storage, but you can go higher with no ill effects especially if they can or will be partially shaded. Two panels of 100 to 160 watts and an inexpensive charge controller will probably cover your needs on most days. If its extremely overcast or heavy rain for a day you can hook your car to the batteries with jumper cables for a half hour or so to get some power back in or to boost the batteries a bit. Solar kits of 200 watts with a controller from amazon, or a retailer like www.solarblvd.com should run you less than $300, A pair of golf cart batteries are about $90 each and if you only are adding a battery to an existing single 12 volt it should run between $60 and $110 depending on whats there. Hope this helps, This was the most helpful. After doing some further research in the area I'll be dry camping. Out of the 6 months there were only about 20 days last summer that reached 70 degrees, none jumped above 75 degrees. I think a fan would be enough to keep my pup cool. I love the idea of solar power,and thank you for the jumper idea for a quick fix. I won't be using too much power. Just enough to keep my fan running, I can charge my phone etc at work. Also, could I just charge it with my car occasionally for the summer? Are the solar panels even necessary??672Views0likes0CommentsRe: Dry camping and solar power
kerrlakeRoo wrote: At that elevation, especially if you can position to get some afternoon shade, your dog should be fine with a fan running. Earlier you asked about cost, If you only have one battery , and its relatively new, add a second of similar size, If its more than a year old, you would probably be better off canning it and replacing it with a matched pair. 6 volt golf cart batteries are best if you are replacing it, but 12 volt deep cycle will work too. Solar panels work best in bright direct sun, kind of a standard rule of thumb is a watt of solar for each amp of storage, but you can go higher with no ill effects especially if they can or will be partially shaded. Two panels of 100 to 160 watts and an inexpensive charge controller will probably cover your needs on most days. If its extremely overcast or heavy rain for a day you can hook your car to the batteries with jumper cables for a half hour or so to get some power back in or to boost the batteries a bit. Solar kits of 200 watts with a controller from amazon, or a retailer like www.solarblvd.com should run you less than $300, A pair of golf cart batteries are about $90 each and if you only are adding a battery to an existing single 12 volt it should run between $60 and $110 depending on whats there. Hope this helps, This was the most helpful. After doing some further research in the area I'll be dry camping. Out of the 6 months there were only about 20 days last summer that reached 70 degrees, none jumped above 75 degrees. I think a fan would be enough to keep my pup cool. I love the idea of solar power,and thank you for the jumper idea for a quick fix. I won't be using too much power. Just enough to keep my fan running, I can charge my phone etc at work.672Views0likes0CommentsRe: Dry camping and solar power
kerrlakeRoo wrote: OK, so you are going to work daily , that likely means staying in one place for the most part. Is the actual campsite chosen? How hot does it get there in the summer? Can you move a short distance to get to higher or lower elevations? Fans like a fantastic fan are very low consumers of power, something like that can help, a pair of batteries giving you around 200 amp hrs and a couple of hundred watts of solar can come close to keeping up with that if you dont use much power otherwise. If you are parking on private land, can you park in a shaded spot and leave the solar panels out where they will get plenty of full sun? Or are they likely to be stolen? Do you have facilities available for getting water? And for getting your tanks emptied? I'll be at higher elevations, 8700ft. It doesnt get hotter than 80. I have access to public restroom/shower so no worries about water or dumping. I don't think i have to worry about them getting stolen. My dog is short haired, but I'm just worried about leaving her inside without cool air flow in the afternoon hours.672Views0likes0CommentsRe: Dry camping and solar power
kerrlakeRoo wrote: I guess you can see that solar and batteries dont play well with an AC system. But , do you really need them? Are you looking at moving frequently, or largley staying put? What region will you be in? You may not need much if any AC if you will be moving during that time frame to match the weather to your needs. Elevation as well as moving farther north will give you cooler temps. Just realize that the nice shaded spot in a forest is also shading any solar panels you install and reducing their effectiveness. Give us an idea of what your goals and conditions arer and folks will be glad to offer advice and assistance. I'll be in Wyoming so it doesn't get terribly hot here, but I'll have my dog with me and I don't want to leave her in a hot rv while I go to work. Idk about shade just yet, I haven't had an opportunity to scope out the area. I would even be willing to run a fan, but how does that affect my battery / charging options?422Views0likes0CommentsDry camping and solar power
I have a 20ft keystones hideout 177hls. I will be dry camping for 6 months from may to October. The only major issue I'm running into is powering my a/c unit. I understand that my 12v battery won't power it and I don't like the noise of generators. I am wondering what my options are, an estimate of how much the mods would cost, and any revelent information I should take into account. I'm new to RV life and appreciate any info.4.9KViews0likes31Comments
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