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Post by Van Lifer on Oct 22, 2018 20:50:10 GMT
Hi there,
I'm struggling on darker days to keep my battery charged. What are the sorts of back up plans people have? I'm hoping there's something as easy as a little hardware piece to connect from a normal outlet. I get that it is wishful thinking.
Anyone have a similar pain point or better yet, some ideas/setups that address this issue?
Thanks a lot!
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Post by tattoo on Oct 22, 2018 21:26:48 GMT
I think your system is to small for your usage....
It would really help if you would tell us what solar system you have and how many watts are you using everyday..... I don't have any back up and I'm 100% off grid......
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Post by Admin on Oct 22, 2018 23:28:10 GMT
Hi there, I'm struggling on darker days to keep my battery charged. What are the sorts of back up plans people have? I'm hoping there's something as easy as a little hardware piece to connect from a normal outlet. I get that it is wishful thinking. Anyone have a similar pain point or better yet, some ideas/setups that address this issue? Thanks a lot! Hello, what kind of a system do you have running now? Some options might include expanding your solar setup, getting a backup solar generator or gas generator, perhaps using one of our suitcases to combine with your current system. -Renogy Team |
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Post by bupkis on Oct 23, 2018 0:06:45 GMT
'easy as a little hardware piece to connect from a normal outlet.'
its called a battery charger, many to choose from. I'd suggest a min 10% of battery capacity, ie if you have 100ah battery you'd want a min of 10A charger. Plug into a 'normal outlet' and connect the alligator clips to the battery. ~10 hrs later your battery should be recharged.
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 0:13:41 GMT
You need to expand your system to run what you are running but there is an easy way out depending on how often you can get to a place to plug in and fully charge your battery.
Until I put solar up top I plugged into my garage outlets with a battery charger overnight.
Easy wiring set up, I'll take a picture tomorrow. People call it shore power.
With what you are running you are taking power out faster than they can put it back in.
You'll want to get that battery fully charged or you will lose it. I've killed em, I know.
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Post by thevankongs on Oct 23, 2018 0:21:24 GMT
Hi there, I'm struggling on darker days to keep my battery charged. What are the sorts of back up plans people have? I'm hoping there's something as easy as a little hardware piece to connect from a normal outlet. I get that it is wishful thinking. Anyone have a similar pain point or better yet, some ideas/setups that address this issue? Thanks a lot! Hey there, fellow van-lifer here. I feel your pain. How big is your setup? We did calculations for our two day usage down to 50% (instead of 3 day usage) and ended up at needing 600ah of batteries in the summer. In the winter, similar but with different uses. It's worked out great on days where the third day is sunny, but if it's rainy and cold for three days straight, we rode our batteries down near 50% a little too often for our comfort. We're also looking into a battery charger but haven't gone down that road yet. The other thing to consider is what your usage is and if you can cut back anywhere. Can you give us more details about your system and maybe show us your usage calculations? There are also a lot of people out there with split charge relays so they can charge while they drive. I haven't gone in depth into how adding that piece affects the layout of your system, and what protects your batteries from overcharge, but that's an option a lot of people seem to like. |
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Post by tattoo on Oct 23, 2018 1:35:21 GMT
I sure hope the OP comes back and lets us know what he has as there are several people here interested in helping him....
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 22:16:53 GMT
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 22:51:36 GMT
You could definitely use a split charge relay but the right ones are pretty expensive.
Buy a short 12g house extension cord and chop the female end off
Install a metal outlet box with 20A 120V receptacle ( electrical dept at any home store) inside the van and wire the end of your cord into it
Chop the male end off your cord , drill a hole in the floor and feed the cord through and put a marine grade male plug on the other end.
Secure and waterproof the cord and hole of course
Keep that plug tucked away inside your hitch or somewhere safe from the elements.
Now you can plug that outlet into any ones AC power who will let you and have a hot AC plug inside the van to charge your battery with a battery charger.
Carry an extension cord at all times because if you are plugging in AND borrowing a cord you will wear thin on folks quick
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Post by tattoo on Oct 23, 2018 22:56:02 GMT
^^^^That's a very good idea^^^^^^^^^^^^ I really like the way you have your hidden...
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 23:04:09 GMT
 Of course you will need to bring a + and a - wire from the battery into the van and set it up so you can safely put the charger on them.
I like these but you could go alot smaller. Your local RV shop can supply you with what you would want to use for the connector
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 23:06:07 GMT
Thanks Tattoo
Necessity is the mother of invention
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v10
Solar Advocate
Posts: 81
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Post by v10 on Oct 23, 2018 23:50:23 GMT
Also while charging with the battery charger on shore power, anything you would normally be running off your AC inverter can be plugged into the other outlet and run off of the same shore power source.
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Post by Van Lifer on Oct 23, 2018 23:56:58 GMT
Wow thanks a lot for some great ideas! This is my set up.
Renogy --
Battery: AGM12-200 (only one battery)
Inverter: 1000W pure-sine wave inverter
Controller: Voyager 12 volt 20 amp
Solar panels: 3 - 100W flexi panels
The things running off of it are two Fantastic Vents (10 speed), small fridge, water pump (used very little, basically just for washing hands and water for dogs), then a power strip for charging devices like one phone, one tablet, and a hotspot when needed (normally charge them at the office or while driving).
I'd love to do something like Solar Advocate's hidden plug!
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grumpy
Solar Newcomer
Posts: 40
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Post by grumpy on Oct 23, 2018 23:59:31 GMT
You could definitely use a split charge relay but the right ones are pretty expensive. Buy a short 12g house extension cord and chop the female end off Install a metal outlet box with 20A 120V receptacle ( electrical dept at any home store) inside the van and wire the end of your cord into it Chop the male end off your cord , drill a hole in the floor and feed the cord through and put a marine grade male plug on the other end. Secure and waterproof the cord and hole of course Keep that plug tucked away inside your hitch or somewhere safe from the elements. Now you can plug that outlet into any ones AC power who will let you and have a hot AC plug inside the van to charge your battery with a battery charger. Carry an extension cord at all times because if you are plugging in AND borrowing a cord you will wear thin on folks quick Did something similar, Only I decided on 50 amp service and used two extension cord ends and the 50 amp RV power plug, this way I can also plug into my inverter and send 120 to the full load Attachments:
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