Assistance/Advice/Input on thrifty cheap battery power for b

[Pixie Susan]

I would like to add the option of having battery power for when we are unable to camp with electrical hookups. If say we find ourselves without hookups around 25% of the time. We usually camp from 2-5 days with a 2 week excursion once a year. I am, by no means, looking to create an elaborate system like some of you master builders have. I'm looking for the cheapest, dirty and sweet option to get the job done. I can't spend a lot of money on this project but it would be nice to have options. Let me tell you what I have and what I'm looking to power. I've read through various threads and the setups seem a bit more...extreme than my little abode.

I have a tiny home built TD that only has a/c power right now. It has a male 3-prong plug that I connect an extension cord to when we're at a site with hookups. Inside is a 60w light and a single gang outlet. That's it. I don't have a galley. I usually connect a second extension cord to shore power for the a/c unit. I also have a Briggs & Stratton p2000 generator, but as we all know, that can't always be my only source of power.

I'm looking to power the following:

Tablet 2A- 5hrs=10Ah
Phone charger #1 at 2A- 3 hrs=6Ah
Phone charger #2 at 1A- 3 hrs=6Ah
60 watt bulb- 2 hrs
2 Fans@ 2.5W each (4 in single speed usb fans currently plugged into 110v outlet with included a/c adapter)- 8 hrs each
Climateright 2500(480w cooling) @ 4.3A- 8 hrs and seldom used= 34.4Ah
I'd like to add a vent fan...maybe Fantastic, so an allotment for that to run at least 8hr/day

I know this is dumping a lot on you guys, but I'd love your feedback on the cheapest easiest way to go about this. We'll be upgrading our camper situation in a couple years so I'm not looking to get crazy. Btw, I tow with a Scion xB I don't have a giant TV with a big alternator, if that matters.

Thanks in advance!



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Socal Tom]

put this next to your 60 watt bulb ( or at least replace the 60W bulb with an LED that will pull more like 6 watts)
https://www.amazon.com/Fulcrum-30010-30 ... puck+light

use one of these for phone charging ( or similar they are often on sale)
https://www.amazon.com/EasyAcc-20000mAh ... ttery+pack, they might even pull the fans for a night. Charge the battery packs with the car battery.

Cheap and thrifty doesn't allow for A/C.

If you want to run the A/C on battery power you would need to spend $500 to $1000 for batteries, solar panels, power inverters, a cheaper easier alternative would be a small generator like the Honda EU1000. Quiet and you just plug in your trailer to it. 1 gallon lasts about 8 hours.
Tom

[Pixie Susan]

put this next to your 60 watt bulb ( or at least replace the 60W bulb with an LED that will pull more like 6 watts)
https://www.amazon.com/Fulcrum-30010-30 ... puck+light

use one of these for phone charging ( or similar they are often on sale)
https://www.amazon.com/EasyAcc-20000mAh ... ttery+pack, they might even pull the fans for a night. Charge the battery packs with the car battery.

Cheap and thrifty doesn't allow for A/C.

If you want to run the A/C on battery power you would need to spend $500 to $1000 for batteries, solar panels, power inverters, a cheaper easier alternative would be a small generator like the Honda EU1000. Quiet and you just plug in your trailer to it. 1 gallon lasts about 8 hours.
Tom

This is a start and I appreciate it. I have a 2000 watt inverter generator already. There's too many situations where I can't rely on this for constant power (i.e. Parks with generator hours).

When I say cheap, I mean I can't afford the best AGM battery out there and unnecessary and more expensive components (think inline fuses vs a panel). The goal is a 12v battery (or two 6v batteries) in the cheapest configuration possible to power the above items.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bobhenry]

I just threw a 12 volt battery in back wired in a main cut off switch ($12.00 at Advanced Auto) and a 4 circuit fuse block.




When it came time for lighting I just added tail light or license plate bulbs with the appropriate sockets to my modified lights



P.S. Amber bulbs make mini bug lights !



Here is the power port I added to plug in automotive related things like car phone chargers ect.



I found these on e bay for a build a nice area courtesy light with 2 directable reading lamps I think they were about $6.00 each



and here is my home rebuilt ac dc lanterns



You might notice there are two switches high on the wall for the ac & dc porch lights and lower as sleeping height are 2 more for the ac & dc interior lanterns. To be able to determine which was which in the dark I opted for a rotary for dc and a bat lever flip switch for the AC.

[Socal Tom]

OK, so a little math and some rounding gets me to about 10 amps per hour at 120v, that brings us to 1200 watts. So I would probably plan on a 2000 watt inverter to cover these needs. 1200 watts for 8 hours is 9600 watts, which is about 800 amp hours at 12v. If you want the battery to last you should keep it above 50% power so let's plan on 1600 amp hours worth of battery. I use a walmart marine battery that has about 100 ah, so you would need 16 of those to meet the needs listed above.
One 12v battery will not carry an air conditioner for 8hours, but would be fine for everything else you listed assuming you recharge each day.
Tom

Sent from my Lenovo A7600-F using Tapatalk

[Dale M.]

Not sure how simple you want to get.... But there is a whole bunch of "battery jump boxes" out there, and they are charged on normal 120 V AC power and have enough battery power to keep all your tablets and phones and what knots charged (an long as you use "car charger" charging cords) for few days you are with out shore power.... Would be same concept as plugging into car outlet to charge devices... Also can start car if car battery need a jump... Only thing you have to remember to do is charge unit when you have "shore power"...

Something similar to this....



Accessory cords like this may let you charge/run more then one device at a time...



Most of these units have "cigarette lighter sockets" so any 12v to device charge cables will work...

For lighting in TD simple get the battery operated "LED puck lights" you can stick up anywhere... Does not get any simpler...

Dale

[Pixie Susan]

OK, so a little math and some rounding gets me to about 10 amps per hour at 120v, that brings us to 1200 watts. So I would probably plan on a 2000 watt inverter to cover these needs. 1200 watts for 8 hours is 9600 watts, which is about 800 amp hours at 12v. If you want the battery to last you should keep it above 50% power so let's plan on 1600 amp hours worth of battery. I use a walmart marine battery that has about 100 ah, so you would need 16 of those to meet the needs listed above.
One 12v battery will not carry an air conditioner for 8hours, but would be fine for everything else you listed assuming you recharge each day.
Tom

Sent from my Lenovo A7600-F using Tapatalk

So let's take the Climateright cr2500 out of the equation (it's not currently working anyway) and stick to 2 phones, tablet (occasionally a laptop), the 2 fans, and I'd really like to power my one outlet in the event of plugging up a small radio or something else.

Would I just attach the inverter to the battery and then run a short cord from the inverter to my 3 prong male 110v plug? I have nothing hard wired in the TD that's 12v currently. If I add a vent fan, it's going to be 12v (from what I've read). Am I looking at needing a converter to tie that in to my hard wired 110v system for when I'm on shore power?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Pixie Susan]

So you can get an idea of my happy little home away from home.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[PKCSPT]

You said simple and cheap.
My lights each run on AAA batteries. No a/c or t.v. hand crank/solar emergency weather am/f radio
This year I added solar mostly to run a fan, The fan was $59, $60 solar panel and $60 on the battery. Nothing mounted yet I just carry it I the car and set it up when I get there. Still trying to figure out how I might want to mount it.

[Socal Tom]

The phones and laptop have very !ow power requirements. 22 ah at 5v is 110 watts. The fans are also 5v so about 100 watts, so 200 watts at 12v is about 16 ah at 12v. Double that for 32 ( again ditch the 60w bulb for an led that will pull much less) . just to be safe let's make it 50aH. So something like the above, or a goal zero yeti power station could be an easy economical device for you.

Sent from my Lenovo A7600-F using Tapatalk

[Pixie Susan]

The phones and laptop have very !ow power requirements. 22 ah at 5v is 110 watts. The fans are also 5v so about 100 watts, so 200 watts at 12v is about 16 ah at 12v. Double that for 32 ( again ditch the 60w bulb for an led that will pull much less) . just to be safe let's make it 50aH. So something like the above, or a goal zero yeti power station could be an easy economical device for you.

Sent from my Lenovo A7600-F using Tapatalk

Thank you so much! This does give me some direction. I did look at the Goal Zero products (I'm a backpacker so never needed to know about this 12v battery stuff) through REI and the company website. Not sure that I want to put all my eggs in that basket.

Any thoughts on this? Came across it last night when pricing batteries.

http://bigtimebattery.com/cgi-bin/sc/ss ... AkS48P8HAQ




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Socal Tom]

Along with the battery, you would need an inverter ( to convert 12V to 120V) and a way to charge the battery. With that battery it would probably last 2 nights between charges, but a full recharge ( about 30aH) would take several hours depending on the charger you purchase. Then all of these things need to go together. For your situation, something like the power pack above, or the yeti which has everything built in would probably be a better option. I found this http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... oC_xfw_wcB

It looks like it has everything ( only 20aH on the battery), and might work for you but I'm concerned that it would take a long time to recharge.) I'd search a bit more and look for a complete package before you decide to piece something together). Unless you build something in, it will be kind of a pain to deal with in pieces)
According to the specs, this might work for you too if you replace that 60W bulb

https://www.amazon.com/Duracell-DR600PW ... er+pack+ac
but you would need to watch for what the recharge time is on AC, if you plan to recharge from your generator.
Tom

[Pixie Susan]

I'm researching and trying to decide and you've given me a lot to think about. I appreciate it!

This issue aside, I have another question. Let's say I buy a 12v vent fan, like a Fan-tastic fan, then what would be the easiest way to wire it since I don't have a 12v system? I know I could use a converter. I'm perusing using a computer power supply. But would it be possible to use a ac/dc wall adapter (with comparable specs) and just plug it into my ac system then?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Socal Tom]

I'm researching and trying to decide and you've given me a lot to think about. I appreciate it!

This issue aside, I have another question. Let's say I buy a 12v vent fan, like a Fan-tastic fan, then what would be the easiest way to wire it since I don't have a 12v system? I know I could use a converter. I'm perusing using a computer power supply. But would it be possible to use a ac/dc wall adapter (with comparable specs) and just plug it into my ac system then?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That could work, but you would need to make sure the power supply you use have adequate output. In generaly everytime you convert power it is less effient, so you would be taking 12 V>120>12, probably doubling the actualy power used. If you search you will see that some people installed PC case fans in place of a fantastic fan, there are 120V versions of that type of fan that might work for you.
Here are some examples
https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywo ... ghyve61s_b
Tom

[Pixie Susan]

[quote="PKCSPT"]You said simple and cheap.
My lights each run on AAA batteries. No a/c or t.v. hand crank/solar emergency weather am/f radio
This year I added solar mostly to run a fan, The fan was $59, $60 solar panel and $60 on the battery. Nothing mounted yet I just carry it I the car and set it up when I get there. Still trying to figure out how I might want to mount it.
[album]143719[/

How many hours are you getting before recharging?

Is that fan reversible?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk