afidel
Explorer II
Joined 9 years ago
User Profile
User Widgets
All Activity
Re: Counties in Florida that allow full-time on own property?
The obvious answer to me is to incorporate and open a 1 or 2 spot private RV park. You obviously can stay at an RV park full-time as probably over a million people do so, so file articles of incorporation and open a very small park where you and possibly a friend can stay.25KViews1like1CommentRe: 12v? 24v? 36...48v????
StirCrazy wrote: afidel wrote: Personally I'd run the 12V stepdown converter into a 12V battery, either lithium or SLA. That way peak loads for the slide motors and compressor motor get taken up by the 12V battery and the 12V converter can just top that off. I know there are folks that team a couple of 12V stepdowns together to supply the loads, but it has to be much more stressful on the components in them than if there was a decent pool of ampacity there. Since you aren't actually using it for storage capacity a 50Ah 100A LiFePO4 would work great and they're like $160. The big advantage of 48V is you can use a much cheaper MPPT controller since they're basically priced on output amps and 48V is 4x lower amps for the same watts. Wiring costs are also much lower since you get to drop down to wire gauges which are commonly available instead of double 0 or triple 0 cables. but thats like I said, keep the battery side all 12 volt and use a MPPT charger (more expensive by the way not cheeper) and stack the panels to 24v. you could probably spend a little more and get one that will handle a 48 volt input, but I don't know if it would be worth it for most people in a rv setting. the one problem you do run into with a all series run is shading.. in a home system where you have solar out in the open it isnt an issue, but for a lot of camping it is. I guess you would have to look at the price increase to a 48v input MPPT VS the upgraded wire size for the 24V setup. wiring is going to be an issue anyway you look at it with the size he wants to run so it will have to be resized. edit, I did look at my brand and a MPPT charge that wil handle a 48V input is only 160.00 more canadian (one size biger) so it will be tight as to which way is cheeper, but I would go that way myself four 24V panels in a 48V series / parallel set up get the smaller wire size and you get some protection from shading. What I was saying is that a 30A MPPT can put ~1,500W into a 48V system, to accomplish the same with a 12V battery system requires a 120A MPPT controller which are 3-4x the cost and several times the size and mass.535Views0likes0CommentsRe: 12v? 24v? 36...48v????
Personally I'd run the 12V stepdown converter into a 12V battery, either lithium or SLA. That way peak loads for the slide motors and compressor motor get taken up by the 12V battery and the 12V converter can just top that off. I know there are folks that team a couple of 12V stepdowns together to supply the loads, but it has to be much more stressful on the components in them than if there was a decent pool of ampacity there. Since you aren't actually using it for storage capacity a 50Ah 100A LiFePO4 would work great and they're like $160. The big advantage of 48V is you can use a much cheaper MPPT controller since they're basically priced on output amps and 48V is 4x lower amps for the same watts. Wiring costs are also much lower since you get to drop down to wire gauges which are commonly available instead of double 0 or triple 0 cables.474Views0likes0CommentsRe: Adding Second A/C to 50 Amp TT
Before investing in a second AC I'd tear apart the ducts, look for missing tape, disconnected hose segments, etc. There's a very good chance your AC can keep things cool if it's properly installed, is just probably not installed correctly. A 20' cheap boroscope will allow you check to see if the vent is cut, kinked, or otherwise damaged. In short you probably don't need to brute force your cooling with a second AC, you probably just need to use the cold your current AC can produce more efficiently by fixing the piss poor assembly job done at the RV factory.326Views0likes0CommentsRe: Snoozy Resurrection
Highly unlikely there will be another model, molds are very, very expensive to make and the business was not really viable as it was. Scamps sold in WAY higher volume and the only way they got new molds was business insurance when the plant burned. As far as an awning, you should be able to add the type the camper vans use for the rear. For morning coffee just bring a camp stove, either backpacker style or Coleman style with a 1 pound cylinder. If you have a rare need for heat at an overnight stop a Mr. Buddy Big Buddy heater would be more than enough even in the coldest of weather. Though both assume you're not scared of combustible gas.729Views0likes0CommentsRe: Directv ??? what are they doing???
Ivylog wrote: theoldwizard1 wrote: The satellite version of DirecTV is a "dead man walking". If Starlink doesn't kill it, expanding 5G cell phone service. Both offer TWO WAY communication, something DirectTV can not. Don’t hold your breath that 5G is a solution… it needs an antenna every mile for coverage which is possible in a large city but you can forget it in rural areas. 5G is just a name for a collection of encoding methods and software stacks, carriers can be everything from 600MHz which will cover dozens of miles to 30GHz which requires an antenna every few hundred feet. It's about 10% more efficient than 4G and has lower latency, plus it allows providers to stitch together many more pieces of separate spectrum. Also one of the big advantages of carrier aggregation for rural use cases is that it can upload on lower frequencies where the low power radio in your phone can cover distance more easily while putting downlink on higher frequencies where the more powerful radios from the cell tower might still be able to talk at your phone. Other than cost and currently some battery drain issues there's no real downside to going 5g. That said much of the early hype was vastly overblown because some of the biggest wow moments for 5g were the blistering speeds that mmWave (20-30GHz) allows, but at cost of poor coverage, building penetration, and insanely high buildout costs. All of that is why the only time most people will ever use it is at a sporting arena or similar venue where the providers expect very, very high total bandwidth usage in a small area and where the limited range is actually a virtue because it allows for lots of spectrum reuse.761Views0likes0CommentsRe: How to stay warm in cold weather.
RVER wrote: well made rigs actually have triple pane glass all around, remember your vents loose a lot of heat so put vent pillows in the vent, if on electric a ceramic heater helps a lot. There are ways of making heat with ceramic pots but would not entertain that thought due to fire hazards. Put bubble wrap on windows or better is the foil bubble wrap. Make sure all seals are good to keep heat in and cold out. Some rigs have insulated basements and covered bottoms so air infiltration is low. One thing I've noticed is that the snow melts fastest where the AC vents are. I've been meaning to buy some insulated vent plugs, I've already got pillows for the 14x14 air vents an Reflectix for the windows which helps a ton.727Views0likes0CommentsRe: RV park "STANDARDS"
toedtoes wrote: wildtoad wrote: Lemonis does nothing to assure quality at any of his businesses as far as I can see. Crappy products, bad service, overpriced, no oversight. Just my opinion. As long as people pay their bills, he won’t fix it. Lemonis has nothing to do with the quality of RV Parks. The Good Sam RV Park directory is nothing but a directory. While in the beginning it was advertising as a way to "guarantee" a good park, it has not done that in years. It is like using AAA guidebooks to find a hotel - it gives ratings, but those ratings have no substance behind them. No one from Good Sam (or AAA) is going around evaluating the facilities in the directory. When choosing an RV Park, look at reviews, check out satelite views and don't assume anything based on what it calls itself. An RV resort is no different than an RV park - either one can have great ammenities and sites and service; either one can have absolutely nothing. KOA actually does have definitions and requirements for Journey/Holiday/Resort and if you call to complain about a resort not having amenities claimed the campground has to respond to corporate with an explanation and a timeline for the issue to be resolved. Campgrounds that get lots of complaints can get kicked out of the KOA system, I've seen it happen. Jellystone is similar, though they're a bit more skewed towards the campground owner in that I've read many reports of it taking quite a few years for a campground to have the Jellystone name removed.418Views0likes0Comments
Groups
Bucket List Trips
Bucketlist destinations you just can't miss. Which spots stick with you?Jan 18, 202513,487 Posts Chefs on the Road
Campground recipe recommendations, restaurants, and more!Jan 01, 20252,135 Posts Fifth Wheel Group
Interested in fifth wheels? You've come to the right spot.Mar 07, 202519,008 Posts Full Time RVers
Thinking about becoming a full-time RVer? Ask the experts.Dec 28, 20241,587 Posts Motorhome Group
Join in here to discuss all things motorhomes.Mar 09, 202538,709 Posts
