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Author |
Date Posted |
Forum
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RE: Field Trip with the Forest Service
Thanks for following this - we are avid campers in Santa Fe national forest.
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jeanspach
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10/01/08 07:34am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Albuquerque balloon festival
If you head north be warned that Rancho de Chimayo had a fire in July and I think is still closed.
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jeanspach
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09/30/08 04:48pm |
Campgrounds, Resorts and Attractions
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RE: MPPT setup question
I might have my generators running to run the A/C at the same time.
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jeanspach
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09/30/08 09:44am |
Tech Issues
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MPPT setup question
Is it OK to hook up a MPPT controller to the 12v side on my 3 stage converter? How do the MPPT and converter work together if I am hooked up to shore power?
Wouldn't both sense each other's voltages and try to adjust their settings accordingly? Am I missing something?
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jeanspach
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09/30/08 08:17am |
Tech Issues
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
Another question: is it OK to hook up a MPPT controller to the 12v side on my 3 stage converter? How do the MPPT and converter work together if I am hooked up to shore power?
Wouldn't both sense each other's voltages and try to adjust their settings accordingly? Am I missing something?
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jeanspach
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09/29/08 10:34am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
It helps a lot, thanks. I'm trying to understand the sensitivity of current output to angle of incidence of the sun.
It varies by the cosine of the angle. If the sun is 90° to the sun, you get 100%. 60° gives .86 or 86%, 45° gives .71 or 71%, and so on.
So there are no coatings on the panel to optimize absorption at a particular angle?
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jeanspach
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09/27/08 08:33am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
Good example and close to my usage except we don't use a coffee maker. It raises a couple of questions.
When you quote the A/H on your battery is that full capacity so that you have to fully discharge them to get it? I try to not discharge below 50%. Am I being overly conservative?
That is the part that is confusing. I just use the rule of thumb that a 120 AH battery is run down at 1/2 charge or 60 AHs. There are folks in the business with better info though. Better to play it on the safe side. Depletion beyond 50% will damage the plates in the batteries.
Also, you said you realistically get 15A out of 21A under ideal conditions. Are your solar panels static or do you try to track the sun to get 15A? I'm trying to figure out whether I want to statically mount panels to my roof.
The 21A is the mathamatical calculation. Most solar panels will put out 24 volts but is regulated down to 12 volts. Based on Ohm's Law @ 12V the panels should put out 21A. I have a monitor and I have seen as much as 18A but that was a nice cool spring day in the desert. My panels are mounted flat on the roof and I don't track the sun. After a days usage and when the panels are in full sun is when I see the peak. During the winter in the mountains I see 10A - 15A.
But then again if it is cloudy or raining, That is when I fire up the Onan.:B
Hope this helps.
It helps a lot, thanks. I'm trying to understand the sensitivity of current output to angle of incidence of the sun.
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jeanspach
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09/26/08 05:14pm |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Honda EU2000i extended run time gas tank
This may be obvious but you also have to make sure that the Honda tanks are absolutely full with fuel to start with. Any air in the Honda tanks makes a good siphon difficult to establish even with tight connections.
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jeanspach
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09/26/08 08:41am |
Tech Issues
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
The answers here are good but you will not know how this stuff works without a little math.
We have been doing more boondocking this year and are working our way through our battery management strategy. We have 2 6V GC batteries and 2 Honda 2000 generators. Our load is such that I think we need to add 2 more batteries and am considering solar. Running the generators all day is not as attractive as I thought it would be. I would like to recharge during the day with solar panels and use generators for topping off and heavy loads like AC and MW.
I'm wondering how many out there have adopted this approach.
Our daily load is typical I think: tv and satellite for a couple of hours, laptop, minimal lights, water heater and pump, minimal furnace at night.
Since you didn’t state the capacities of your 6 volt batteries or what type of television you are using, etc. we will have to guess.
In our situation we have a television w/ satellite receiver, inverter, lights, furnace, radio, coffeemaker, and other stuff that make our life in the RV more enjoyable. Lo let’s take these things step by step.
First total usage:
Our television uses around 100 watts AC. Here comes the math part. To run on 12v dc we must do some converting using Ohm’s Law. Power divided by voltage = Amps. We need to know how many amps we are using at any given time. So 100 watts / 120 volts ac = about .83 amps. That same 100 watts / 12 volts dc = 8.3 amps. Simple stuff.
Now let’s say you watch 3 hours of TV with satellite receiver through an inverter. The receiver will draw around 2 amps, and the inverter will have a loss of about 1.5 amps.
So 8.3amps +2amps + 1.5 amps = 11.8 amps Lets round to 10 to keep the math simple.
10 amps times the 3 hours you are watching TV = 30 Amp Hours from your batteries. Now let’s add in the other stuff.
1 12v light bulb is around 1 amp. Heater fan uses around 10 amps while running. Typically it will cycle on and off so it will run about half of that so 5 amps/hour. Coffee maker is a biggie for us and will use about 500 watts while making coffee but that is once a day for less than 10 minutes. 500w/12V = 40 amps, for 10 minutes = 7 amps.
Now lets add stuff up to get daily usage.
4 lights * 3 hours = 12 amps
TV * 3 Hours = 30 amps
Heater * 3 hours = 15 amps
Coffee maker used once = 7 amps
So for this example our daily usage is 64 amps.
We have 3 120 Ampere hour batteries which gives is around 360 A/H. We also have 2 130 W solar panels to do the recharge duties. 260watts / 12 volts = 21 amps under ideal conditions. More realistically we get about 15 amps /hour from the panels. So 64 amps used / 15 amps charging = will mean 4.2 hours to charge the batteries.
Keep in mind that this is just an example of how the math works and your mileage may vary.
Good example and close to my usage except we don't use a coffee maker. It raises a couple of questions.
When you quote the A/H on your battery is that full capacity so that you have to fully discharge them to get it? I try to not discharge below 50%. Am I being overly conservative?
Also, you said you realistically get 15A out of 21A under ideal conditions. Are your solar panels static or do you try to track the sun to get 15A? I'm trying to figure out whether I want to statically mount panels to my roof.
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jeanspach
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09/26/08 08:32am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Chorizo breakfast
Try adding some red chile sauce.
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jeanspach
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09/25/08 11:26am |
Camp Cooks and Connoisseurs
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RE: Winterize: Antifreeze vs. blow the lines?
I prefer blow out method. I do put antifreeze in the drains and black and gray tanks however.
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jeanspach
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09/24/08 10:16am |
Tech Issues
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RE: High Altitude and Generators
I run Honda EU2000s at that altitude. I recently re-jetted them and they run more smoothly.
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jeanspach
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09/23/08 08:03pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: New LCD TV/DVD mount
http://inlinethumb45.webshots.com/44012/2032348710044062658S425x425Q85.jpg
http://inlinethumb35.webshots.com/25890/2545999260044062658S425x425Q85.jpg
The swing arm allows the TV to go against the wall to view from the sofa, or into the corner to view from the bed. For travel, the TV swings out of the way for the bed slide to retract. I have a padded cover to go over the TV for travel, bumpers on the arm where it may contact the wall surfaces. A bungee cord on the back keeps it pulled tight to the slide frame for travel.
I added a cabinet door over the old TV shelf opening to make a cabinet. The door has a limited opening swing due to the ceiling light fixture, but it's still very usefull.
Great Job!
Where did you get the swing arm?
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jeanspach
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09/21/08 01:58pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
Hi jeanspach,
This is our 8th year being 100% solar for 6mths a year. We do NOT carry a genset with us although I have two generators at home.
I boondock camp at 9000ft for 6 months a year. I use one Unisolar 64watt unbreakable PV, about $325eh delivered, for noraml lights, furnace and water pump useage perday in Arizona. That US-64 was enough for when the sun was out 8hrs per day(solar hours).
When the rainy(monsoon) season hits then I had to add one more US-64 PV keep up as I only get full sun 4hrs a day(solar hours). I use (4) 6v 225amp/hr golf cart battery's have heavier plates and will last longer.
For the past 18yrs or so I been using 30amp/hrs per day with normal 12vdc useage of lites, furance and water pumping. That includes about 15min a day 400w invertor usage and theres where you suck the power down in a hurry. Stick to 12vdc appliances as much as you can. On a Colorado trip and I had no problem keeping my battery's charged at 50º days and 4º nights.
I disagree with a furnace using alot of power. Before our 100% solar set-up, I used two 12v 105ahr battery's and could get three days of run time using our normal above usage, less the inverter use.
Using a single wet cell battery of any type is for RV park use only, and not for boondocking. Some of the $400 12v AGM battery's could be used as a single battery system but not wet cells as they don't have the required amp capicity.
I keep my PV's on 25ft cords so I can park the trailer in the trees and put the PV's in the sun. I also track the sun, move the PV's once at 1pm to face West, once at dusk to face East.
If you don't track the sun then you will need too add to your total PV demand. Tracking the sun makes that much difference.
:C
I like the idea of portable PV panels. What gauge wire do you use for your 25 ft cable?
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jeanspach
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09/17/08 07:13pm |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Using RV generator for house power during power outage
Any idea what a transfer switch and installation would cost?
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jeanspach
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09/17/08 12:12pm |
Tech Issues
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
Great suggestions - I do much of them already. Does anyone know how much the LP sensor draws? Does the water pump draw current even when it is not pumping?
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jeanspach
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09/17/08 10:48am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: How many recharge with solar?
Maybe you can use less power. We have (2) 6volt and we only charge once per day for two hours. We even run a HEPA filter air cleaner on an inverter all night for the DW. Very minimal tv (I prefer to watch a fire), some lights, exhaust fan while cooking, furnace as needed, and basic load to run frig. and sensors.
The other possibility is maybe your converter/charger. What are you charging with that it takes all day?
I shouldn't have said "all day" - more like a couple of hours a day. We have a 45A converter/charger.
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jeanspach
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09/17/08 09:25am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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How many recharge with solar?
We have been doing more boondocking this year and are working our way through our battery management strategy. We have 2 6V GC batteries and 2 Honda 2000 generators. Our load is such that I think we need to add 2 more batteries and am considering solar. Running the generators all day is not as attractive as I thought it would be. I would like to recharge during the day with solar panels and use generators for topping off and heavy loads like AC and MW.
I'm wondering how many out there have adopted this approach.
Our daily load is typical I think: tv and satellite for a couple of hours, laptop, minimal lights, water heater and pump, minimal furnace at night.
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jeanspach
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09/17/08 08:38am |
Public Lands, Boondocking and Dry Camping
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RE: Sweet Corn on the Cob
Pull the husk down but don't remove it. Remove the silk. Pull the husk back over the ear. Secure the husk with cooking string. Soak in cold water for at least 20 minutes. Grill for 8-10 minutes.
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jeanspach
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09/08/08 12:32pm |
Camp Cooks and Connoisseurs
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RE: Another generator question
We have 2 Honda 2000kW generators that supply all the power we need to run everything including A/C and charge the batteries.
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jeanspach
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09/02/08 12:15pm |
Tech Issues
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