Is solar or juice even nessary to camp???..

[S. Heisley]

Solar/ac is not necessary but there are some things that are nice to have. I like having LED's in every part of the cabin and by the doors. I also like having one of those oscillating fans that plug into a DC outlet. (The dogs like that too!) But, it isn't necessary as I also have a perfectly good O2Kool fan that works either way and a headlamp that allows me to go without cabin lights plus I prefer to camp up in the mountains where it's cool at night. Like sleeping on a mattress, some things are simply nice to have. Having AC also helps with your resale value, should you decide to sell.

[bdosborn]

I need power and lots of it!



Love playing with electricity.

[booyah]

So for me, the TD was a solution to keep camping with the wife and kids when the wife wanted more comfort than a tent could provide.

I wasn't going to go through he trouble and cost of the build without providing power for basic "essentials" for her. "Essentials" are defined as phone charging, lights, 12v outlets, and fan.

Later I added some 110 for electric heat (400W handy heater), and for the margarita mixer, and I still want the solar panel for longer trips to prevent the "need" to plug in.

Currently getting a used engel cooler from a friend, and I will probably have to finally add another 12v/USB for the galley for that.

shucks

Could I do without all this? Absolutely. I often do for kayak and backpacking trips. Can I and get her to come along? Probably not these days.
Do I find it handy? He77 yes! I can have lights that don't depend on a flash light, I can cook without a headlamp, I can see whats outside when something "bumps" in the night, I can sleep in comfort on a cold or hot and sticky night, and I can keep my phone and camera charged.

[AllenS]

I was a boy scout, and a backpacker all through high school and college. After college I graduated to mostly car camping. Just pull up to a site, set up a tent, and you're camping. Even then, I've been a die-hard, tent-only, no frills camper. Propane lantern and stove, and maybe a small flashlight was about as modern as I got. Now that I'm in my forties, and the nights seem to be getting colder, the ground is getting harder, and the mountains are getting steeper, I've slowly been introducing more convenience into my outdoors excursions. Hence, building the teardrop, and likely culminating in the purchase of an Airstream in another fifteen or twenty years.

We've got lights, running water, a sound system, and a vent fan on battery power. I regret to report that there is a 12volt TV in there as well, which I was vehemently against but my wife was very insistent upon. When on shore power, we also have an air conditioner.

I've also started using a CPAP, which uses a lot of juice. So I've got two 100 aH batteries, and two 100w solar panels, one of which can be placed on the ground for better light exposure. I've also got some string lights on their own battery pack/solar panel power source. We ran all of this for eight days last summer without plugging into shore power, and never dropped below 13 volts.

This is all quite a change from even five years ago, when buying an air mattress felt like a hell of a compromise. Now I drag around a queen sized memory foam mattress with a trailer around it.

[loaderman]

Wife needs power for hairdryer and curling iron. Other then that we could use battery fan, lights, etc.