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RV Solar

LomitaBob

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So after a few trips with our new toy hauler I decided to make some major upgrades to the electrical system. currently we have 1 regular car type battery, no inverter, and have to run the generator a lot. it kinda sucks! I started looking into batteries, inverters, different solar setups, ect to run the TV, DVD, Stereo, water pump, and some lights. I know I will need the generator to make coffee or run the microwave but I think I should be ok now to go most of the day with out the generator. I also wanted to be able to put on the TV at night for the kids and not have to have the generator going all night. Here is what I came up with.

2 oddessy 2150 AGM 12v batteries, I got a smoking deal on them from a friend ( he bought them and didn't end up using them )
Windynation 200watt solar setup
windynation 1500watt inverter with remote control

I was told by Windynation that I can add up to 2 more 100watt solar panels later if the need is there. I figure later on when I got the cash I will buy 2 more batteries also. So far im in all of this about 950.00 and I figure it will probably cost me another 50 bucks in misc stuff to get the batteries moved and everything wired up. im pretty stoked!

any body have any experience with rv solar setups?

does anybody know how much power a treager lil tex elite uses?? It would be nice to take the traeger with us to the desert.
 

Riverbound

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Im interested in seeing your results. when we camp in ocotillo I have full hook ups 50amp and all...but at vail lake we are "dry" camping and run the genny a lot. would be nice not to have to run it as much.
 

Forensic

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A friend of mine, who is also an electrician, did a lot of thinking about his batteries. He went with 4 - 6 Volt batteries for his trailer. He swears by them and told me to do the same.
I currently have a single 12V now with an inverter. It gets me by but I don't have a genny yet. I'm holding out for one of those whisper quiet ones.
 

Uncle Dave

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So after a few trips with our new toy hauler I decided to make some major upgrades to the electrical system. currently we have 1 regular car type battery, no inverter, and have to run the generator a lot. it kinda sucks! I started looking into batteries, inverters, different solar setups, ect to run the TV, DVD, Stereo, water pump, and some lights. I know I will need the generator to make coffee or run the microwave but I think I should be ok now to go most of the day with out the generator. I also wanted to be able to put on the TV at night for the kids and not have to have the generator going all night. Here is what I came up with.

2 oddessy 2150 AGM 12v batteries, I got a smoking deal on them from a friend ( he bought them and didn't end up using them )
Windynation 200watt solar setup
windynation 1500watt inverter with remote control

I was told by Windynation that I can add up to 2 more 100watt solar panels later if the need is there. I figure later on when I got the cash I will buy 2 more batteries also. So far im in all of this about 950.00 and I figure it will probably cost me another 50 bucks in misc stuff to get the batteries moved and everything wired up. im pretty stoked!

any body have any experience with rv solar setups?

does anybody know how much power a treager lil tex elite uses?? It would be nice to take the traeger with us to the desert.

Id do-

Is the windy nation inverter a pure sine wave setup?
Is the controller an MPPT unit or something else.

Don't know about the windy nation product- outback /xantrex/ heart real familiar.

UD
 

2FORCEFULL

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I've done a half dozen solar setups,learned as I went , I used 300w solar panel, 30 amp controller and one 200 amp hr gel battery,and a renogy 3000 watt inverter, the set up I did in my van runs the 120v fridge, coffe maker, microwave,toaster,foreman grill... and will run the roof ac about 1 to 1.5 hours without bombing the battery, I also did a battery isolater to the engine alt...and have a a westing house 2600 watt gen for back up ,..the ac is a 9000 btu coleman that'll freeze you out,..
 

DLC

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I don’t have any experience with solar

we used a small gen set (Like a eu2000 ) to charge batteries and watch tv, use electric blankets at night, etc 1/3 gallon of fuel will run for a few hrs on a light load, we didn’t have to run the big gen set which sucked down the fuel...
 

LazyLavey

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I got 2 Windy City panels with the WPPT controller charging 4 6v Trojans and using an inverter for the entertainment outlets

Plenty of juice to keep the batteries up for fairly regular use (lights, tv, heater, etc) though I still run the genny periodically just to top off the batts

Haven't taken it to the max to see what it will run. You'll have to calculate your smoker amp usage and compare to your solar output and battery amp output. There's A formula I still haven't wrapped my head around
 

LowRiver2

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This guy does great work:


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120 amps on a Seneca:
 

2FORCEFULL

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I got 2 Windy City panels with the WPPT controller charging 4 6v Trojans and using an inverter for the entertainment outlets

Plenty of juice to keep the batteries up for fairly regular use (lights, tv, heater, etc) though I still run the genny periodically just to top off the batts

Haven't taken it to the max to see what it will run. You'll have to calculate your smoker amp usage and compare to your solar output and battery amp output. There's A formula I still haven't wrapped my head around
the first thing I learned by mistake was the amp conversion...2 amp 120v draw is a 120 amp draw on the battery, so it takes 120 amps of solar to match the 2 amp draw
 

Mikes56

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I have a Honda 1000 generator that I run all day and night. It runs 8 hours on a tank of gas in Eco Mode. If I need more juice, I start the big generator. For me it was more effective that all those panels, batteries and controllers.
 
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