Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Anything electric, AC or DC

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby TNSean » Tue May 05, 2015 7:58 pm

how many amp hours are you planning on using per day?

How exactly are you planning on using your system? Shore power vs battery only etc....
TNSean
Teardrop Inspector
 
Posts: 16
Joined: Sun Apr 19, 2015 2:27 pm

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wishno » Tue May 05, 2015 11:54 pm

TNSean wrote:how many amp hours are you planning on using per day?

How exactly are you planning on using your system? Shore power vs battery only etc....


I'm not exactly sure because I'm totally new at this but my cooler says it uses 4 amps and 48 watts. Otherwise maybe two LED lights for an hour each night.

I plan to have shore power most places I camp and will plug in wherever I can but I would like the essential systems to run off 12v. How many amps in a charger is ideal?
Wishno
Teardrop Builder
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 6:06 am

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wobbly Wheels » Wed May 06, 2015 8:43 am

If it helps: Watts = Volts X Amps
On your cooler, 48 W = 4A X 12V
On your LEDs, ?W = ?A X 12V
If they're 5W like many are, then 5W = 12V X ?A
Or ?A = 5W / 12V
5/12 = .42A

The cooler won't draw 4A all the time, only when it's cycling. It will take some time to figure out how much it actually draws over 24hrs. That will go up as the outside temperature does as well. You can cut that down by putting a jug of frozen water in there if you can spare the space for it. If it has extra insulation around it, it will also cycle less.

For now, let's assume it's running 1/4 of the time and let's assume four 5W lights are left on for 6hrs/day.
Cooler: 4A X (24hrs X 25%) = 24A in a 24hr period
Lights: .42A X 6hrs = 2.52 A in a 24hr period

So for each 24 hr period with those numbers, you'll use about 26.5A out of your battery. With a 100 A*h battery, 2 days will draw it down to 50%. While many calculate 50% as the max discharge for a deep cycle, it does shorten the lifespan. If you don't draw your batteries down more than 30%, they will last significantly longer.

Personally, I'm doing what we do in boats and using 2 batteries of 100A*h each even though I'm not running any more equipment than you are (not yet at least...)
The batteries will last a long time, though it does require an extra switch, an isolator for charging, and monitoring your usage a bit. For your use, and to keep it simple, you could simply go with a bigger battery.
User avatar
Wobbly Wheels
Donating Member
 
Posts: 1080
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2011 9:51 am
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby kludge » Wed May 13, 2015 12:44 pm

Wobbly Wheels wrote:The cooler won't draw 4A all the time, only when it's cycling. It will take some time to figure out how much it actually draws over 24hrs. That will go up as the outside temperature does as well. You can cut that down by putting a jug of frozen water in there if you can spare the space for it. If it has extra insulation around it, it will also cycle less.


This would apply if the cooler has a thermostat. A lot of them don't and they run continuously.
kludge
Teardrop Master
 
Posts: 177
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:41 am
Location: Indy
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wishno » Fri May 29, 2015 12:24 am

Hey guys I have my battery on the way and was wondering what I should use for the battery cables from the battery to the fuse box?
Wishno
Teardrop Builder
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 6:06 am
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby kayakdlk » Fri May 29, 2015 10:57 am

I used 10 gauge red and black wire with soldered ends connectors

Dan
User avatar
kayakdlk
Platinum Donating Member
 
Posts: 310
Images: 392
Joined: Wed Jun 27, 2012 9:02 pm
Location: Foothills of Colorado
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wishno » Fri Jun 05, 2015 12:14 am

Hey guys I started getting my electrical system together today and I noticed that when I plugged in my cooler the plug for it got kind of hot and didn't run as fast as it does when it's plugged into my jump box. I ran 14 gauge wire to it and a 15 amp fuse. Do I need to run bigger wire to it?
Wishno
Teardrop Builder
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 6:06 am
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby bobhenry » Fri Jun 05, 2015 6:59 am

You will need to install a DC voltage cooler in the line just behind the fuse !
Some are loaded with dry ice. This cold slows the electrons down and with the slower current there is less heat buildup in the wiring.
Growing older but not up !
User avatar
bobhenry
Ten Grand Club
Ten Grand Club
 
Posts: 10354
Images: 2614
Joined: Fri Feb 09, 2007 7:49 am
Location: INDIANA, LINDEN
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wobbly Wheels » Fri Jun 05, 2015 7:53 am

Wishno wrote:Hey guys I started getting my electrical system together today and I noticed that when I plugged in my cooler the plug for it got kind of hot and didn't run as fast as it does when it's plugged into my jump box. I ran 14 gauge wire to it and a 15 amp fuse. Do I need to run bigger wire to it?


Read what it says on the cooler for the current rating. Add 10% for the fuse rating.
And yes, if the wire is getting hot you need to run a heavier guage (bigger) wire.
User avatar
Wobbly Wheels
Donating Member
 
Posts: 1080
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2011 9:51 am
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby H.A. » Sat Jun 06, 2015 11:15 am

......
Last edited by H.A. on Wed Feb 03, 2016 8:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
H.A.
The 300 Club
 
Posts: 461
Images: 0
Joined: Tue Nov 15, 2011 8:16 pm
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wishno » Sun Jun 07, 2015 2:54 pm

I bought a new cigar plug for it to go into so lets see how that works. Also I got my 14 gauge wire in the mail yesterday and it says speaker wire on the wire themselves. Is this safe to use or will I need to find something else?
Wishno
Teardrop Builder
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 6:06 am
Top

Re: Teardrop newbie looking for electrical advise.

Postby Wishno » Tue Jun 09, 2015 12:01 am

I ended up giving it a try and it seems to be working so far.
Wishno
Teardrop Builder
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Aug 22, 2014 6:06 am
Top

Previous

Return to Electrical Secrets

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests