New Owner - 12 Volt System Priorities

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by PKI

CL - suggest a Champion or similar dual fuel inverter genset. The propane capability removes the issue of gasoline. You can carry it in the trailer with no odor. The cost of the Honda or Yamaha is not justified. Pat

The Honda might be if what I hear from guys in the oilfield is correct. The metric is engine life in hours. That, AND reliable quiet operation can tip the decision. (Not the Yamaha).

[Gearheart]

Although the suitcase panels make a lot of sense their drawback is finding storage space a fiddling with them. I reconfigured my 80 watt suitcase( twin 40's) into rooftop and added another 80 for a total of 160. It must be understood that the wattage is just a number. Your only chance of getting all of that is if you're parked with the sun directly overhead. Interestingly enough, the day I first completed the hookup it was threatening rain with full overcast and heavy cloud. In spite of that it was showing 0.3 amps of charge going in at 13 volts.

[KMH25TWIN]

I've only had my 25'FB a couple of seasons; purchased it with solar-in-a-suitcase. The couple of times I used it I found myself babysitting the unit and constantly 'following the sun'. Though there are certainly some advantages to a portable unit (easy to clean, wear and tear), I bit the bullet and forked over the $1K to have the dealership mount my units on top. No more babysitting and it's working whenever the sun is in the sky. Couldn't be happier for the cost of $1K. My lesson learned.

[Pete B55]

Originally Posted by rhpeahl

Congratulations on the new AS! I suggest you use the trailer for a while to determine your camping style.



We made a similar transition from boating to to trailer, in our case, moving from a 40 sailboat with tons of 12V AMPs to a 27ft FCFBTwin (2017). The minimal 12V capacity of the trailer was an initial worry, but after a trip across the nation, I'm not in a hurry to change anything.



We had no issues being off the cord for upto nights. The LCD lighting uses minimal amounts of juice and other than not using the microwave or TVs, we found no need for additional power.



I've considered solar, but frankly, we prefer camping in the woods, in the shade, so solar has little value to us.



I am contemplating a small generator, just to top off batteries for longer off plug stays.

I’ve covered my roof with solar panels, added a large bank of LI batteries, have a Champion generator and still find the zamp 200w suitcase to be indispensable . Lots of boondocking in the shade often minimizes the roof solar capability. I added a second connector at the rear of my trailer permitting me to move it throughout the day to follow the sun. The generator is only a last resort using it once in the past year.

[billrector]

Originally Posted by Pete B55

I’ve covered my roof with solar panels, added a large bank of LI batteries, have a Champion generator and still find the zamp 200w suitcase to be indispensable . Lots of boondocking in the shade often minimizes the roof solar capability. I added a second connector at the rear of my trailer permitting me to move it throughout the day to follow the sun. The generator is only a last resort using it once in the past year.

Would love to hear more about your connection for the solar panel in the back of the trailer. Does that have the Zamp connector? Did you just connect it directly to the battery? How did you find a wire that long? Details!!!

[crunch27]

Congratulations on your new Airstream and many years of RVing. I have no comments to your questions as we have only used Provincial Parks with electrical sites. Glad to see another Airstream in St. T.

[Pete B55]

Originally Posted by billrector

Would love to hear more about your connection for the solar panel in the back of the trailer. Does that have the Zamp connector? Did you just connect it directly to the battery? How did you find a wire that long? Details!!!

I ordered a Zamp connector off the Zamp website. When I put the LI batteries in I added a heavy gauge bus that spans the length of the trailer and connects the batteries which were located under the rear bed. It was easy to to tie a short AWG 10 cable off the bus to the ZAmp connect which is mount in the frame support adjacent to the rear bumper.