NEWBIE here... Be gentle

[yngfireman]

I am currently building my first teardrop camper. Can someone give me a down and dirty class on what I need to buy and a basic wiring for what I am wanting to do....... I'm going to use a marine battery to power electric blanket and small lights, will a marine battery power this? What do I need to buy to have my vehicle charge it while traveling? Is a power inventer 20 amp what I need to install to power lights and blanket? What I am trying to ask...... I need _____ to charge my marine battery from my vehicle and then I need a ________ to convert the power from the marine battery to a outlet to power electric blanket. (fill in blanks) Thanks in advance for all the help. Sorry for all the dumb questions Thanks

[SmilinJack]

At the top of each page just below where it says "Teardrops & Tiny Travel Trailers" you'll find a link to "sdtripper2'sIndex". Click on that and it will take you to a wealth of information on anything you might want to know, electrical or otherwise...

[dreadcptflint]

Remember to keep it simple. Just stick with a 12 volt system, there are plenty of appliances out there for a 12 volt system. Focus on the connection between the trailer and the car to charge your battery.

[deceiver]

Remember to keep it simple. Just stick with a 12 volt system, there are plenty of appliances out there for a 12 volt system. Focus on the connection between the trailer and the car to charge your battery.

What dreadcptflint said plus:
If you need to charge an electric razor or your laptop charges off house current then you can install a little 200 watt inverter. It converts 12 volts to 110 so you can plug in things from home. A small one like this doesn't drain the batter too much and makes it convenient so you don't have to purchase a lot of 12 volt chargers. They sell inverters online, at automotive stores, even walmart.

Also, If you happen to park at a campsite that has a 110 volt connection a simple solution to not having a whole other set of wiring in your camper is to buy a small battery charger. Marine ones are nice. Plug the charger in to keep the battery charged and run everything off 12 volts.

[Miriam C.]

We seem to be stuttering here. If you look at the stickies you will see lots of ways to set this up. Charging from your tow will certainly be convenient if you are using battery power and moving on. I don't, of haven't yet....

Large inverters take up lots of power so keep it to only what you need. That means not using hair dryers, microwaves and electric hotplates. Or run a drop cord to the TD when you need to do these things.

Here is CD's post on an effective---minimalist 120vac.
http://tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?t=37732

[Arne]

I would add, my personal opinion, it is easier to run any wiring in the ceiling than in the walls.

[bobhenry]

I ran mine in the walls don't have a ceiling just a roof



O.K. ya caught me it's a cord for the fan you see in the pic.

[dh]

I would add, my personal opinion, it is easier to run any wiring in the ceiling than in the walls.

I had to build my wires into the walls when I glued up the laminations, there is no changing your mind about switch location etc once the wiring is built into the wall.

[Cliffmeister2000]

There are several good wiring schemes on this forum. The one i used as a good example is from Joanne's Desert Dawg.

http://www.asolidfoundation.com/dd_electrical_1.shtml

[del]

One thing on a electric blanket I might suggest. A 12volt blanket. I purchased mine from jcwhittney (truck stop should be another source). It comes with a timer, and plugs into a cig lighter.
To charge the bat a wire from the car bat to the td bat. A circuit breaker at both ends, and a relay so the bat is only charged when the car is running.

hope this helps del

[nevadatear]

we have the 12 v bunk warmer like here. http://www.roadtrucker.com/12-volt-heating/12-volt-bunk-warmer.htm love it. doesn't take that much energy and really can make a difference. We bought the full size and use it crosswise on the bed across the bottom for tootsie warmth. who needs 110? I also have a 12 v hairdryer. It is not super powerful, but does the job. I plug it into the car though, with the car running, so as to not drain the tear battery.

[Dant]

I've decided I want a 12 volt system only.

I'm used to this from boating where I rarely have shore power. I've used the system suggested here, where you carry a marine quality battery charger so when you DO have 110-120 AC available you can still hook up and recharge the cabin battery bank.

At the outset I have to declare I know very little about electricity. I have some hazy memory about Ben Franklin, a kite, a string and lightning, but . . .

I'm wondering about the best kind of 12 volt plugs. I like the Euro system, but have lots of small 12 volt appliances that take a cigarette lighter socket.

My main question has to do with avoiding using those small inverters as much as possible. I don't know how much energy is lost taking a small appliance like an electric toothbrush that has a charger designed for AC that converts to DC, but it seems very inefficient to go from DC to AC and back to DC.

For example, I have some cheap LED lights I like. By simply removing the charger, they are 12 volt DC ready. Simple, efficient, cheap. Right?

So how difficult is it to do this for other small appliances that have various amperage and voltage requirements?