Full Renovation Electrical Setup Help

[ctaulborg]

Hello everyone. My wife and I are currently working on a full renovation of our 1984 31' Airstream Excella:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f179...ml#post1898083

I did purchase a Progressive Dynamics PD4655V converter/charger to replace the existing one, but after thinking on it I would rather do a complete overhaul of the electrical system. Mainly because right now there are two panels - one at the far back of the trailer for AC (Breaker Box) and one at the far front for DC (trailer lights, interior lights, etc). Below is a diagram that roughly represents my understanding of how our unit is currently wired:



And here is a (really) rough diagram of what I would like our new setup to be like:



We don't have any specific budget in mind, but obviously I would prefer to not to spend a fortune on this (I know some of the marine-style units get pretty spendy). Obviously I'm pretty clueless, and would love it if someone who has been in this situation before and had a good outcome would tell me "do exactly this" to make it easy on me . It would be great if solar was an option to integrate now, but if it makes things too complicated I'm fine with waiting on it.

[dznf0g]

The a/c isn't 220v. Need to study your diagrams further to comment on your question. Gotta run now though.

[ctaulborg]

Originally Posted by dznf0g

The a/c isn't 220v. Need to study your diagrams further to comment on your question. Gotta run now though.

Ah yes you are right. Rookie mistake.

[Minno]

If you're looking for an all-in-one 110 VAC breaker panel, 12 VDC fuse panel, and converter/charger, you should look at the Progressive Dynamics 4000 series. They are available from Best Converter here:

http://www.bestconverter.com/4000-Se...ter_c_138.html

We installed the 60 amp model (slightly an overkill for us) in Little Girl. If you need help, give them a call. They are very willing to help and answer any questions you have.

Chris

[ctaulborg]

Originally Posted by Minno

If you're looking for an all-in-one 110 VAC breaker panel, 12 VDC fuse panel, and converter/charger, you should look at the Progressive Dynamics 4000 series. They are available from Best Converter here:

http://www.bestconverter.com/4000-Se...ter_c_138.html

We installed the 60 amp model (slightly an overkill for us) in Little Girl. If you need help, give them a call. They are very willing to help and answer any questions you have.

Chris

Nice, thanks Chris, I will give them a call on Monday.

[NY24]

Give SERIOUS consideration to buying the book "No Shock Zone, RV Electrical Safety" by J. Michael Sokol. It's available as both an eBook and, now in print, at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/No~Shock~Zone...ctrical+Safety


The life you save may be your own.

[Tbeck11931]

If possible add feeder wiring for future solar and I would suggest a second AC unit (which is 110V not 220)
You will need to upgrade to 50amp service if you do that.
Thanks NY24 I'm buying the book this evening.
Thomas

[Wazbro]

Another important thing to consider is, it is better to keep the wires from converter to batteries as short as possible to prevent 12V DC voltage drop (helps with better charging).

[ctaulborg]

I've got two main options with regards to the electrical setup at this point - one is getting a single power center that has the AC/DC panel/converter all in one, placed up front behind the couch where the old fuse box used to be, between the batteries. The pro of this approach is everything is one spot; the con is that it's a bit inefficient with regards to the wiring of the AC components of the system.

Option two is keeping everything separate, placed how it original was (batteries/converter/charger/fuse panel up front behind the couch, AC Dist. Panel in the back in the wardrobe).

Which option would you take?

[tonydead]

I just got done doing my electrical overhaul. Emailed Randy at best converter and used what he suggested; worked like a charm, installed in just one day and he answered all my email questions along the way.

Ended up using a boondocker 60 amp converter and a FB9 fuse block.

[mikextr]

Originally Posted by NY24

Give SERIOUS consideration to buying the book "No Shock Zone, RV Electrical Safety" by J. Michael Sokol. It's available as both an eBook and, now in print, at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/No~Shock~Zone...ctrical+Safety


The life you save may be your own.

Thanks for the link, NY24. I'm completely overhauling the electrical system on my 67 Overlander and this looks like a good resource.