TV Replacement

[Fawudd]

I am replacing the TV in my 2007 Safari 19. I am going to get a 32" 12V DC model so that it can be used Boondocking as well. I am curious as to what brand people have gone to if they went to 12vdc, and what kind of real world draw they experience from the newer LED units....

[aftermath]

Years ago I was faced with the same dilemma. We don't watch a lot of tv when camping. When we are on an extended trip we do. Here is the issue I focused on. If you use a 12V tv then it is going to draw down your batteries. When that happens, what do you do? You will have to crank up a generator to recharge your batteries. If you are in a full hook up site a 12v tv is a waste of money. When we want to watch tv we crank up the generator. Like I said, we don't watch much tv so it is no issue having to run our generator.


I suppose it will depend on how dependent you are on your tv. If you don't want to bother you neighbors when you watch late ino the night, then get a 12 v . You will have to charge up the house batteries in the morning though. This is an electricity thing. You will either have to pay now or pay later. It is up to you.

[pteck]

I don't have a 12V TV so I can't answer your question directly.

Perhaps related to @aftermaths point on having sufficient power reserve to meaningfully run a TV for extended boondocking.

I have a 120V TV. It's dependent on an auxiliary lithium battery that I've installed on my trailer. Gives great reserve and runtime such that I don't compromise my house batteries to say, run the furnace on winter nights. The same days I want to snuggle in and watch TV.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f37/...um-196422.html

[glcmranger]

I installed a Jensen 12v TV in the bedroom -- LOVE IT while dry camping. I just wired up a 12v plug and installed a cigarette lighter plug on the wall. Good Luck.

[Al and Missy]

Originally Posted by glcmranger

I installed a Jensen 12v TV in the bedroom -- LOVE IT while dry camping. I just wired up a 12v plug and installed a cigarette lighter plug on the wall. Good Luck.

I did the same thing. The small TV draws only about 2 amps. If I watch it for two hours that is only about 4 amp hours or less than 10% of the usable capacity of a single group 24 battery and is easily replaced by charging while driving.

Also I bought, but have not installed yet, a 150 watt pure sine wave inverter to run the larger TV in the living area. The smaller inverter should be more efficient for the small load than a large general purpose inverter (which I don't have). A newer 32" Samsung is rated at about 29 watts. If my inverter is only 70% efficient (it should be way better) that would result in less than a 4 amp drain, again easily replaced while driving.

Al

[Wabbiteer]

Look for televisions that have a power-brick on the plug versus having the 120VAC direct input - they are out there and often accept 12V yet are not 'advertised' as DC power friendly...

A ways back I nabbed a teeny 12" screen 12V power one to keep on hand for emergencies and such, so naturally once we really got out camping with it the compromises made on that urge purchase was, umnn, embarrassing.

Take your time selecting it, painless returns is a good idea and test it well.. another 10-12 years from now it might look like a 1965 black & white unit compared to the home theater units folks will be used too then

[JayTheCPA]

There are good comments here.

At the same time, might want to troll some sailboat forums as those folks squeeze 12v power down to the milliamp.

[Fawudd]

Thanks All for the responses.

We do not watch much TV, but we do use streaming services for news and the occasional Netflix. We want the option to watch on the "big" screen while boondocking, but have been looking at options with the "brick" so that we have the best of both worlds.

I appreciate the info on the draw, as that was mainly what we were after. Sounds like a modest impact if used judiciously.

[rowiebowie]

Our 19" dc tv draws 11 watts (a little less than an amp) on 12 volts. Don't know if that scales up directly to a 32" tv, but likely still under 2 amps. That is still way less than just the draw of running the inverter.