Off Grid Truck Camper

[SunEagle]

To do what he want's do do he needs 700 watts of panles and 2 T125 and a Mptt CC. and a 1000 watt inverter

That system size looks reasonable but still pretty big for someone wanting to go camping with it.

The OP would still have to drop the frig from his electrical load to get his system down in size to what he may be looking for.

[Sunking]

To do what he want's do do he needs 700 watts of panles and 2 T125 and a Mptt CC. and a 1000 watt inverter

Not in the northern country in winter. LPG fridge is his answer.

Take it one step further no fridge needed in northern country in winter. Just sit an ice chest outside and snow pack it to keep from freezing.

[Mikerodrig27]

Hey guys, still looking into this. The idea is not to just go camping but to travel across the Canadian border and around the United states. My wife and I are going to be doing the trip and we will be house sitting along the way.

I don't know if some of you are still referring to the original fridge or the Edge Star 63qt unit that I had mentioned. Either way, a refrigerator seems to be a power hog. I think we will have to really limit ourselves to either an even smaller fridge or a cooler with ice.

We are literally going to be living in the back of our truck with a camper shell. Crazy I know, but the reason that solar panels are so attractive over a generator is it doesn't take up any living space. Also, they are more self sufficient for every day use than a generator.

Couple of questions that I have. It looks like I can get a 200w-250w solar panel for around $250-$350. I don't know what brands I should be looking into but I was thinking,.
-Can you guys suggest some good panels in this wattage range?
-Can you suggest a good battery?
-Also looking for a good charge controller.

Also, I have a cheap inverter that is not a sine wave. I will only be using it every once in a while to charge my electric drill and cell phone batteries.

Thanks for your thoughts and helping stick to reality.

https://www.TreePotTravels.com

https://www.facebook.com/TreepotTravels

[SunEagle]

Hey guys, still looking into this. The idea is not to just go camping but to travel across the Canadian border and around the United states. My wife and I are going to be doing the trip and we will be house sitting along the way.

I don't know if some of you are still referring to the original fridge or the Edge Star 63qt unit that I had mentioned. Either way, a refrigerator seems to be a power hog. I think we will have to really limit ourselves to either an even smaller fridge or a cooler with ice.

We are literally going to be living in the back of our truck with a camper shell. Crazy I know, but the reason that solar panels are so attractive over a generator is it doesn't take up any living space. Also, they are more self sufficient for every day use than a generator.

Couple of questions that I have. It looks like I can get a 200w-250w solar panel for around $250-$350. I don't know what brands I should be looking into but I was thinking,.
-Can you guys suggest some good panels in this wattage range?
-Can you suggest a good battery?
-Also looking for a good charge controller.

Also, I have a cheap inverter that is not a sine wave. I will only be using it every once in a while to charge my electric drill and cell phone batteries.

Thanks for your thoughts and helping stick to reality.

https://www.TreePotTravels.com

https://www.facebook.com/TreepotTravels

Well first off, 250 watts may not be enough for your needs. Using a cheaper PWM type chargers will steal about 30% of you panel wattage and only yield about 170 watts of charging power. To get the full 250 watts requires a MPPT type charger which is a lot more money. Also while the pv panel may seem to be the best way to charge your batteries my fear is that you will run into weather that will not give you what you need to keep them charged properly.

The money you will be putting into the panels and battery charger would pay for a small maybe even quiet generator that would quickly recharge your batteries regardless of the weather.

I'm just trying to give you some options to reduce risk and costs during your trip.

[Mikerodrig27]

well, I'm throwing in the towel on the solar idea. I'm going to go with a small generator and a battery isolator

Suking, you mentioned a battery isolator. Do you have any suggestions or a thread where someone did a writeup on that? I'm going to look around to see if I can find some info.

Thanks!

[Sunking]

well, I'm throwing in the towel on the solar idea. I'm going to go with a small generator and a battery isolator

Suking, you mentioned a battery isolator. Do you have any suggestions or a thread where someone did a writeup on that? I'm going to look around to see if I can find some info.

Thanks!

There are a lot of them to be found. Avoid mechanical relay type, use electronic that integrate with the vehicle alternator. Here is a link to some of the better units

[Mikerodrig27]

Looks like I'm going to need this one:

https://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power_1202_Battery_Isolator_p/sp-1202.htm

Does this look like how I need to wire it up?

battery isolator.jpgbattery isolator.jpg

[Sunking]

If you are going to use two in parallel, get a 3-port isolator.

[Mikerodrig27]

So one port for each of the batteries that are in parallel and one port for both of the batteries that are ran in series? If so, why would I need to separate my starting batteries?

My alternator is rated at 136 (good thing I double checked)

so this is the one that I need?

http://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power_1603_Battery_Isolator_p/sp-1603.htm

[Sunking]

Let's make sure I understand what you are going to do.

How many batteries total including starting battery?

The starting battery has its own dedicated port. On the starting battery post will be two wires. 1 smaller wire from Isolator, and 1 larger cable going to the starter solenoid.

The Aux battery is connected to a dedicated port. It can be a single 12 volt battery, or a pair of 6 volt batteries wired in series. If you need a lot of capacity the most effective and cost effective is to use a pair 6 volts batteries wired in series to make 12 volts.

So you have a high output alternator which is a good thing of 136 amps right? I would suggest a 2-port isolator, one for the starting battery, and 1 for the Aux Battery. In that case you want the 1602 unit with 1 input port from alternator, and two battery outputs rather than the 1603 you have pointed to. The 1603 has one input port and three output ports.

[Mikerodrig27]

I am going to have two 6v golf cart batteries for the camper, and two starting batteries for the truck. I have a diesel (1998 Dodge Ram 2500 with a 24v Cummins Diesel) so there are two batteries ran in parallel to start the truck. I assume the two starting batteries would take one port on the isolator.

From what I can find on the internet about my truck, I have a 136 amp alternator.

I ordered two Deka 230 ah golf cart batteries that I will be able to pick up Wednesday.

I should go ahead and order the 1602 battery isolator?

http://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power_1602_Battery_Isolator_p/sp-1602.htm

[Sunking]

I am going to have two 6v golf cart batteries for the camper, and two starting batteries for the truck. I have a diesel (1998 Dodge Ram 2500 with a 24v Cummins Diesel) so there are two batteries ran in parallel to start the truck.

I hope not because 24 volt is a SHOW STOPPER. I have a 2012 Dodge Ram 2500 with Cummins Diesel with 2 batteries and it is 12 volts. The batteries are in parallel, not series.

[Sunking]

I assume the two starting batteries would take one port on the isolator.

I ordered two Deka 230 ah golf cart batteries that I will be able to pick up Wednesday.

I should go ahead and order the 1602 battery isolator?

http://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power..._p/sp-1602.htm

Should work. However before ordering call and make sure it is compatible with your vehicle alternator. It says all Chrysler products but double check by calling.

[Mikerodrig27]

I'm going to give them a call like you said. The starting batteries are parallel 12v. The alternators are a little tricky on these engines. The voltage is regulated by the PCM.

Question, with an isolator, is the regulator only going to see the voltage of the starting batteries and charge based on that? Once the start batteries are charged, the alternator will cut back on amps?

[OregonSolar]

So one port for each of the batteries that are in parallel and one port for both of the batteries that are ran in series? If so, why would I need to separate my starting batteries?

My alternator is rated at 136 (good thing I double checked)

Sorry, not 136 amps.

More likley it's 136 amps at some ridiculous RPM (4000 and up ). At idle (assuming an average of about 1000RPM) you're mor likley to be producing about 30-40 amps at the alternator. Do you really want to run that engine at 4000RPM for an hour to charge a couple puny batteries and run a fridge?

Didn't think so.

P.S Double check your system. I have a hard time believing it's 24V. See if the batteries are connected in PARALLEL or SERIES.