Nathanbates114
Lompoc
New Member
Joined: 08/30/2021
View Profile
 Offline
|
Hey everyone,
My wife and I just bought a new 2023 Rockwood TT. It came equipped (from the factory) with an inverter, 2 200w solar panels and we added two Lithium Ion Batteries (100ah). I was under the impression that the inverter would work for everything in the trailer but I guess that is not the case. My wife is a travel nurse and we will be full Timing for the next 8-10 years and wanted to save on our electric bill. My question is, should we add another inverter that would make it to where we can use everything in trailer with the solar and lithium ion batteries and then plug into shore power every once in a while if the batteries and solar can't keep up? Or, if we're plugged into shore power, would the solar and the lithium ion batteries save us any money on our bill? It's very confusing to me as I know the solar keeps the batteries charged but I believe once we are plugged into shore power, that will trump our solar if I'm correct. Thanks for any advice and tips. Much appreciated.
|
rk911
DuPage County
Senior Member
Joined: 05/30/2004
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
Offline
|
assuming your TT is wired like all of the others your batteries will charge when plugged into shore power. be careful, though. some chargers will continue to pour energy into the batteries even when they are fully charged. be sure your converter/inverter is ‘smart’ (multi-stage) and will transition to a ‘maintenance’ or ‘float’ when the battiries finish charging.
our MH has a 2000-watt inverter which runs many but not all AC systems, the roof air cond being one. and not all of the AC outlets are connected to the inverter.
good luck and safe travels.
Rich
Ham Radio, Sport Pilot, Retired 9-1-1 Call Center Administrator
_________________________________
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
'46 Willys CJ2A
'23 Jeep Wrangler JL
'10 Jeep Liberty KK
& MaggieThe Wonder Beagle
|
valhalla360
No paticular place.
Senior Member
Joined: 08/19/2009
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
|
Generally, the inverter is not wired to run everything. Heavy power use devices like the aircon and hot water heater are usually not included as most systems can't keep up with those. 400w of solar with 200amp-hr of battery bank certainly are not going to keep up.
Where solar/battery shines is if you are staying in cool climates where you don't need aircon and you keep your other power consumption to a minimum.
So what exactly are you thinking of when you say "everything"?
The next question is how much do you really think you are going to save in electric bills? Most short term stays include electricity, so it's use it or lose it. Monthly stays are hit and miss in terms of using a meter but even so, it's often pretty darn cheap, particularly when you consider the usable life of a battery bank. Assuming you aren't running the air/con & water heater much, $20-30/month for electric wouldn't be unusual.
Tammy & Mike
Ford F250 V10
2021 Gray Wolf
Gemini Catamaran 34'
Full Time spliting time between boat and RV
|
CA Traveler
The Western States
Senior Member
Joined: 01/03/2004
View Profile
Offline
|
120V devices take a lot of power and you have a small solar battery setup. For example a 10A A/C would require the inverter to draw 100A from the battery, hence you have 2 hours of run time plus a few minutes if the sun is out.
You could save a little but it's very dependent on your AC device usage and DC usage.
Your charger and solar controller don't trump each other. Each contributes to the house loads and any remaining power charges the battery.
2009 Holiday Rambler 42' Scepter with ISL 400 Cummins
750 Watts Solar Morningstar MPPT 60 Controller
2014 Grand Cherokee Overland
Bob
|
naturist
Lynchburg, VA
Senior Member
Joined: 04/24/2008
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
Offline
|
400 watts of solar panels will yield around 1.5 kilowatt-hours of power a day in bright sunshine. This is well matched to the 200 amp-hours of battery you have. On a cloudy day, maybe 1/10th kWh is about all you can expect.
That being said, it is not enough to run "everything." The house lights are 12 volt, thus run directly from the battery. Make a pot of coffee, charge your phones, laptop, and listen to the radio or watch TV. CPAP overnight, all should be fine.
I came across a youtube video in which a guy had a tiny 5000 btu ac he claimed to run on 1,000 watts of solar. 400 watts of solar is not "nothing." It is just not "everything."
BTW, it is necessary that your inverter and shore power never meet up in the outlets in your rig. Explosions and fires result.
|
|
|
TechWriter
Part-Timing Again
Senior Member
Joined: 12/22/2002
View Profile
Good Sam RV Club Member
|
Nathanbates114 wrote:
My wife and I just bought a new 2023 Rockwood TT.
Is it 30A or 50A?
2004 - 2010 Part Timer (35’ 2004 National RV Sea Breeze 8341 - Workhorse)
2010 - 2021 Full Timer (41’ 2001 Newmar Mountain Aire 4095 DP - Cummins)
2021 - ??? Part Timer (31’ 2001 National RV Sea View 8311 - Ford)
www.rvSeniorMoments.com
DISH TV for RVs
|
nickthehunter
Midwest
Senior Member
Joined: 07/18/2005
View Profile
Offline
|
You are not going to full time, comfortably, for 8 - 10 years, on 400W of solar. You’re going to need to be plugged in regularly.
|
pianotuna
Regina, SK, Canada
Senior Member
Joined: 12/18/2004
View Profile
Offline
|
rule of thumb 5 hours @ 400 watts = 2kwh per day on a yearly average.
For me that would be a savings of $0.28 cents per day.
If you are lucky there may be room to add more panels.
Consider adding a diverging load, such as a 12 volt element for the water heater.
Regards, Don
My ride is a 28 foot Class C, 256 watts solar, 556 amp-hours of Telcom jars, 3000 watt Magnum hybrid inverter, Sola Basic Autoformer, Microair Easy Start.
|
Nathanbates114
Lompoc
New Member
Joined: 08/30/2021
View Profile
Offline
|
Hey everyone,
Thanks for the quick responses. I understand everyone's concerns and also understand everyone's input. I guess I shouldn't have been so vague when I said I want to run everything on Solar. I understand you can't run the A/C and other electronics that draw a lot of power off of the two solar panels that came pre installed on our TT. I guess what I'm trying to figure out, is whether my wife and I can convert our Travel Trailer in a way that won't have to run off shore power. Reason being, she's a traveling nurse and we'll be living full time out of it on the road. We'll always be at an RV park, we're just trying to figure out if it would be worth while to upgrade our TT with more Solar... that way we don't have to spend money on a monthly fee for power. As someone else in the comments stated, it might not be worth it because the electric bill would be so insignificant. However, we would be living full time for ten years, would be doing laundry and would be staying in areas where the A/C would be necessary. I'm so new to the RV lifestyle, I don't even know if this is doable off of Solar alone. I'm just looking for advice and any tips to save some extra cash. And if it's not reasonable or it doesn't make sense to get more Solar, please let me know. Thanks in advance
|
Nathanbates114
Lompoc
New Member
Joined: 08/30/2021
View Profile
Offline
|
Hey everyone,
Thanks for the quick responses. I understand everyone's concerns and also understand everyone's input. I guess I shouldn't have been so vague when I said I want to run everything on Solar. I understand you can't run the A/C and other electronics that draw a lot of power off of the two solar panels that came pre installed on our TT. I guess what I'm trying to figure out, is whether my wife and I can convert our Travel Trailer in a way that won't have to run off shore power. Reason being, she's a traveling nurse and we'll be living full time out of it on the road. We'll always be at an RV park, we're just trying to figure out if it would be worth while to upgrade our TT with more Solar... that way we don't have to spend money on a monthly fee for power. As someone else in the comments stated, it might not be worth it because the electric bill would be so insignificant. However, we would be living full time for ten years, would be doing laundry and would be staying in areas where the A/C would be necessary. I'm so new to the RV lifestyle, I don't even know if this is doable off of Solar alone. I'm just looking for advice and any tips to save some extra cash. And if it's not reasonable or it doesn't make sense to get more Solar, please let me know. Thanks in advance
|
|
|
