|
I have a 16' CCD and also wanted more battery capacity, but weight and space are limited, and sometimes I don't really need more, and would rather not take the extra weight. I have 3 scenarios I can deal with:
1) The standard single group 24 is enough for some trips, and it's lighter and doesn't take extra space like a second battery. This works great for trips where I stay at a camp with hook ups, or boon docking for a night or two in warm weather where I don't run the furnace blower.
2) For longer trips, where I need to use more battery (like a fall trip where I need the furnace, or if I can take a whole week or two someplace boondocking) I bought 2 6 volt golf cart batteries. I haul these in the pickup and set them on the ground (they are in a battery box) under the A frame. I wired up a switch and extension cables to the standard battery. A little extra work, but it works great, and its just a price I pay for having a smaller outfit.
3) I bought a Honda generator and a 3 stage charger that I can hook up to either of the set ups above, so I can direct recharge if needed. I only run this when I don't have enough battery left to get to the next day. The generator also travels in the pickup
The other thing is to control how much battery I use, so I swithced some of the interior lights to lower watts, and installed a battery monitor so I can tell how many amps I've used.
My time to use the trailer is limited until I retire, so I use the golf cart batteries hard - run em down and recharge them quickly. I know it shortens their life, but they still last a couple of years, and replacing them is not a cost driver when I look at the trailer, pickup, fuel costs, camp fees, etc.
Not elegant - but very versatile!
|