boondocking for the first time? - Page 2

Mashmaster · 09-30-2021, 02:20 PM

OK, looking here https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/ul...e-systems.html , it looks like the best option would be to return the 60W panel and buy the 100 Watt panel from Renogy and connect it to the correct connector. $100 for 100W vs. $300 from Jackery for 100W

BobC · 09-30-2021, 03:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mashmaster

OK, looking here https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/ul...e-systems.html , it looks like the best option would be to return the 60W panel and buy the 100 Watt panel from Renogy and connect it to the correct connector. $100 for 100W vs. $300 from Jackery for 100W

The downside is the Renogy panel isn't "portable" so it's bulkier to store and handle. I ended up with an extra Renogy 100W panel from my van project and that's exactly what I'm going to do. I'm not concerned with storage.

That being said, there are a lot of 100W portable panels available for under $200, including one that looks a lot like the Jackery and has very similar specs for $180. It could even be made by the same company Jackery buys from:

https://www.amazon.com/Portable-Comp...038547&sr=8-14

Marine359 · 09-30-2021, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobC

The downside is the Renogy panel isn't "portable" so it's bulkier to store and handle.

Plus the OP wanted to avoid warranty issues by sticking with a Jackery product.

That being said, there are a lot of 100W portable panels available for under $200, including one that looks a lot like the Jackery and has very similar specs:

https://www.amazon.com/Portable-Comp...038547&sr=8-14

I’m very happy with this bi-fold 120w panel. Only weighs 7lbs, and stows easily in a closet. Standard mc4 output, and it comes with virtually every adapter for any kind of power station. I bought direct from their website. Works very well with my portable power station and with my pass-thru mounted mppt controller for house batt charging. Pouch on outside of panel big enough to store 30ft of 10awg cable and various connectors.

https://www.lensunsolar.com/Products...product_id=479

Mashmaster · 09-30-2021, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobC

The downside is the Renogy panel isn't "portable" so it's bulkier to store and handle. I ended up with an extra Renogy 100W panel from my van project and that's exactly what I'm going to do. I'm not concerned with storage.

That being said, there are a lot of 100W portable panels available for under $200, including one that looks a lot like the Jackery and has very similar specs for $180. It could even be made by the same company Jackery buys from:

https://www.amazon.com/Portable-Comp...038547&sr=8-14

That looks exactly the same....

BobC · 09-30-2021, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mashmaster

That looks exactly the same....

The handle is slightly different.

**creativepart** · 10-01-2021, 08:29 AM

Where are you Boondocking? That’s some important information.

Mashmaster · 10-01-2021, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by creativepart

Where are you Boondocking? That’s some important information.

Well, my son races sail boats. So most of the time will be is a yacht club parking lot. I am hoping to actually boondock at BLM areas in the future.

**creativepart** · 10-01-2021, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mashmaster

Well, my son races sail boats. So most of the time will be is a yacht club parking lot. I am hoping to actually boondock at BLM areas in the future.

In Texas? Or where, what states? This makes a huge difference.

As was said previously, your Class C probably has 2-Group 27 batteries, hopefully the typical Winnebago NAPA batteries, as they are fairly good.

However, there is a better than 50% chance they are FLA (Flooded Lead Acid) batteries and not AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat). FLA batteries require you to add distilled water and to keep track of the water level in each cell of each battery. Also, FLA batteries are more prone to exhibiting corrosion on the connections and the battery tie down metal. So, if you are not familiar with your batteries there is a good chance you haven't checked the water level in the cells or the corrosion on the battery connections.

You should certainly take care of this BEFORE you attempt any dry camping. (Camping in a Yacht Club parking lot is more "dry camping" than boondocking. But the terms are pretty much interchangeable in the way both terms are used these days.)

We all "think" you'll do fine for the long weekend dry camping you plan but no one knows. No one can be sure. But with an on-board generator you're totally covered. Don't be afraid to use it. Running your batteries down to very low levels will injure the batteries and way too low can actually kill them. So, when you run low of battery power turn on that generator. And be aware, unlike a car battery that recharges in one 30-min drive your house batteries may take 1 1/2 to 2 hours to gain a meaningful amount of charge from your generator.

BobC · 10-01-2021, 10:15 AM

There are two common terms that I've seen used to describe camping without shore power, water, sewer, etc.

1. Boondocking - Generally refers to camping in the "boonies", such as BLM, etc.

2. Dry Camping - Camping without hookups in a campground (state park and the like) or as you will be doing in the yacht club parking lot. In this situation you may have access to water at a shared spigot, possibly restroom facilities, etc.

And then there are partial hookups, which generally have water and possibly sewer but no shore power.

Mashmaster · 10-01-2021, 10:19 AM

I am getting my RV later today from storage and will check out my battery situation.

Thanks for the terminology.

Marine359 · 10-01-2021, 11:09 AM

I think everyone would agree that you should install a neg shunt monitor, so with respect to your batteries, you won’t be left in the dark, so to speak. (My best joke of the day). It’s cheap, and it only takes a few minutes to install.

Mashmaster · 10-01-2021, 06:48 PM

OK, the house batteries are Interstate SRM-27 (600CCA 750MCA 160RC) batteries. Sold June of 2020.

**creativepart** · 10-02-2021, 07:28 AM

Those are FLA Marine (boat) / deep cycle batteries. They are 88 aH each. So if you have two and you keep them in good shape, check the water every month, don’t over deplete them nor over charge them, etc you’ve got 176 amp hours of battery storage, of which you can use approx 90 amp hours between recharges.

The key for you is to regularly maintain these batteries. Neglect them and they will fail on you.

DavidM · 10-02-2021, 01:25 PM

All of Creativeparts warnings about FLA battery use and maintenance brings up another solution: AGM batteries which require no maintenance.

When I bought my 2021 Axis 24.1 early this year I immediately took out the two G27 flooded cell lead acid batteries and replaced them with two G31 100 amp hour AGM batteries. AGMs are absorbed glass mat batteries and don't have any liquid electrolyte. That also means you can mount them upside down if necessary and are sealed.

I did this for several reasons:

1. More capacity- 2x100 Ahs vs 2x70 Ahs for the G27s.

2. I was confident that AGMs would stand up to deep cycle use as long as I didn't let them discharge below 50% more than once or twice a year. This year I let them go down to about 45% once.

3. They were maintenance free- no water checking or adding.

4. They just fit into the under step space. I had to tilt the second battery down quite a bit. FLA batteries would have leaked electrolyte when I did this.

They have worked well for me since. I paid about $385 for the pair from Amazon for Windynation AGMs.

David

**macnut** · 10-02-2021, 04:45 PM

Agree! We love our Lifeline Group 31 AGM’s. No maintenance and more power. They cost a little more but worth it IMHO.

Mashmaster · 10-02-2021, 04:47 PM

My battery monitor showed up today. How do I hook it up to my two batteries?

BobC · 10-02-2021, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mashmaster

My battery monitor showed up today. How do I hook it up to my two batteries?

Your two batteries are connected together in parallel (+ to +, - to -) so they act as one big battery. Aside from the two interconnecting cables, you'll see a load cable (+, red in the diagrams) and a ground cable (-, black in the diagrams). Note that it's possible that your cables are all black, so be careful. If they are, you might want to code your + cables by wrapping a piece of red electrical tape around them.

Your batteries can be hooked up in two different ways:

Once you've identified your ground terminal (-) and your load terminal (+), just follow your battery monitor's instructions as if your two batteries were one big battery.

BobC · 10-21-2021, 09:49 PM

Did you go on your trip? We'd like a trip report.

Mashmaster · 10-21-2021, 09:57 PM

Sorry, yes, I did. But I ended up having 15amp power so I was able to use everything other than AC. when it got just too hot, I did power up the generator to run that for a little bit.

Halloween weekend, I will be doing it again and won't have external power. So, that will be the test. I will post a report after that.

Mashmaster · 11-01-2021, 09:07 AM

OK, this weekend I boondocked or whatever specific term people will want to use(there seems to be rules about the names). I was parked in a field at a yacht club with no power or water. I was able to fill up my water tank at the site so I didn't need to drive water for 200 miles.

I was pleasantly surprised as to how well the RV worked off the 12v system and propane. The fridge worked great, although before I left I needed to run the stove a little bit to get propane flowing through the system. After that the fridge pilot worked great. I was also surprised the slide motors work on 12v. I am not sure why I was surprised, but I was.

Temps were mild so there was no need to run the generator to get the AC running. I have converted all my lights to LED bulbs, they worked great. Water pump is noisy, I understand that is mostly vibration of the water hoses, I need to investigate where they are vibrating and wrap them with insulation.

It did get cold at night and my dog was shivering so I did turn on the heater and was pleasantly surprised that it worked on 12v. I didn't run it all night because I was worried it would run down the batteries too much.

I used my jackery 500 to power my tv so I could watch the baseball game and that worked out very nicely. My TV uses 33Watts according to the display on the battery box. Only used about 10% of the battery. The next day, I setup the 100W solar panel to charge up the battery pack and it charged it pretty quickly. The battery pack said it was getting 83 Watts of input when charging. I used the 100 Watt knock off solar panel vs. the Jackery one.

I haven't had a chance to hook up my battery minder yet, so the only gauge I had was the built in one which showed 3 out of 4 lights for battery charge when I left. So I don't know how how long I could run the system like this but it worked well for the weekend. I guess to go for a week, I would need to use a solar panel to add charge to the house batteries?