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02-01-2012, 09:02 PM
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#1
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1 Rivet Member
2004 16' International CCD
Salt Lake City
, Utah
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 14
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Basic Question
This may be a dumb question but I am new to owning an AS, and I am illiterate when it comes to electrical stuff.
I want to use some of my regular appliances in my AS, a toaster oven, rice cooker, blender...
How can I operate these appliances in my AS?
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02-01-2012, 09:04 PM
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#2
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Rivet Master
1964 17' Bambi II
Vintage Kin Owner
Schererville
, Indiana
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,637
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You plug in your AS to the campground power & then you plug in your appliances & they'll work! If you don't have power, sadly, they won't work unless you have a generator.
__________________
Becky
1964 Bambi II
1988 Avion 32S
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02-01-2012, 09:07 PM
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#3
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New Member
1990 25' Excella
oak harbor
, Washington
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 3
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A decent $50 power inverter from autozone will do fine for the low AMP stuff "tv, dvd player, coffee maker, toaster." And it plugs right into the 12v plugs. I use one alot and really can't see ever not having one.
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02-01-2012, 09:11 PM
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#4
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Rivet Master
1964 17' Bambi II
Vintage Kin Owner
Schererville
, Indiana
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,637
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Diablito1179
A decent $50 power inverter from autozone will do fine for the low AMP stuff "tv, dvd player, coffee maker, toaster." And it plugs right into the 12v plugs. I use one alot and really can't see ever not having one.
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You are right, there! I'm never without power when I camp, so I completely forgot about an inverter.
__________________
Becky
1964 Bambi II
1988 Avion 32S
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02-01-2012, 09:21 PM
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#5
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Rivet Master
2005 22' Safari
Gresham
, Oregon
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 621
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Unless you have electric hookups you will need a generator to run anything you plug in. But those things may work off an invertor also, but since we don't have a onboard invertor I may be wrong.
Congrats on being a new AS owner.
And welcome to the forum.
PS did you get any info on the AS? We got a all the manuels for the trailer and all the appliances. That really helped us with many of our questions. Good luck.
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02-01-2012, 09:28 PM
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#6
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2 Rivet Member
1992 21' Sovereign
Albuquerque
, New Mexico
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 98
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Campground power makes life easy.
Dry camping--solar panels keep the batteries charged, as long it is sunny, and your batteries are in good shape. The panels give you all the juice you need for fans, battery charging, etc. The inverter can then give you alot of things, as mentioned. Honda generator gives you more juice for higher AMP stuff except running your roof AC. As I understand it, this requires two generators. (Others can speak directly to this????) We're are in the middle of changing all lightbulbs out for LEDs to save power too.
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02-01-2012, 09:37 PM
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#7
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Rivet Master
2005 22' Safari
Gresham
, Oregon
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 621
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We have 2 Honda 2000 generators and we can run the AC with those. If we just need to run a coffee pot. toaster or recharge something one will work. We have changed over half of our lights to LEDs and plan on replacing the remaining this next year. They are a little spendy, but from all we have heard they last a long time and use less power.
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02-01-2012, 09:54 PM
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#8
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Rivet Master
2012 25' Flying Cloud
Battle Lake
, Minnesota
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 7,714
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An inverter is powered by the trailer batteries. There is not enough battery capacity to run your regular household appliances, and also provide the trailer with its normal dc power needs, such as lights, heater, radio/tv.
You will need a source of external ac power, either from a campground hookup or a portable generator. You will have to size the portable generator according to your needs, which sounds like quite a bit. If you want to run the Airstream air conditioner, plus your appliances, you will need a big generator.
I would leave such things as the rice cooker and toaster oven at home and use the propane range. In other words, learn to adapt your cooking methods to the Airstream equipment, rather than the other way around. That's the easy way.
doug k
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02-01-2012, 09:56 PM
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#9
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Rivet Master
1974 Argosy 20
2014 20' Flying Cloud
Kooskia
, Idaho
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 4,591
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Diablito1179
A decent $50 power inverter from autozone will do fine for the low AMP stuff "tv, dvd player, coffee maker, toaster." And it plugs right into the 12v plugs. I use one alot and really can't see ever not having one.
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No, sorry to say, a small $50 inverter will NOT run a coffee maker or toaster. It will run the TV, DVD player and other low wattage stuff. Coffee makers and toasters take from 700 to 1200 watts each, way beyond the capacity of a small inverter that plugs into the 12 volt outlets in your trailer.
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02-01-2012, 10:08 PM
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#10
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1 Rivet Member
2004 16' International CCD
Salt Lake City
, Utah
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 14
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Thanks for the replies everyone! Very helpful!
If I understood correctly...
using appliances only poses a problem when you are not connected to an external power source. So unless I am dry camping I shouldn't have any problems, right?
And it seems there is some debate over using appliances with an inverter...
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02-01-2012, 10:22 PM
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#11
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Rivet Master
2012 25' Flying Cloud
Battle Lake
, Minnesota
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 7,714
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No debate about it . . . an inverter will not cut the mustard with kitchen appliances you mentioned, unless its really, really big. Then the batteries won't make it.
doug k
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02-01-2012, 10:36 PM
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#12
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Rivet Master
2012 25' Flying Cloud
Battle Lake
, Minnesota
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 7,714
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You could still run into overloads with the circuits provided in your Airstream, with external power. If you need all that stuff, you will need to run a big, high wattage rated extension cord in from the campground power box directly to your appliances.
Think propane for cooking, that's how your trailer is designed. Some have a convection microwave option, which also works well with external power.
doug k
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02-02-2012, 05:49 AM
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#13
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Rivet Master
1995 30' Excella
Bowie
, Maryland
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,345
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dkottum
Think propane for cooking, that's how your trailer is designed. Some have a convection microwave option, which also works well with external power.
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To be fair, they don't always come with ovens - our trailer doesn't have one, for example. We bought a toaster oven for ours. We haven't tried boondocking with it, though. I suspect we wouldn't be making anything that needed to be toasted or baked on that trip.
__________________
1995 Airstream Classic 30' Excella 1000
2014 Ram 2500 Crew Cab with Cummins 6.7L Diesel
Sold but not forgotten: 1991 Airstream B190
Sold: 2006 F-250 6.0L Powerstroke Supercab
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02-02-2012, 08:24 AM
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#14
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1 Rivet Member
2004 16' International CCD
Salt Lake City
, Utah
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 14
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Thanks again for the advice.
I only plan on having extra appliances on longer road trips so I can eat healthier. I checked and my rice cooker only uses 350 watts. It's tiny and I can steam veggies and not worry about my brown rice burning on the stove. I tried it for the first time last night and the rice was perfect. It keeps the rice warm too so I don't have to coordinate cooking the rice around the rest of the meal.
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02-02-2012, 08:41 AM
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#15
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"Cloudsplitter"
2003 25' Classic
Houstatlantavegas
, Malebolgia
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 20,000
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Welcome Aboard....
Quote:
Originally Posted by UtahChic
Thanks again for the advice.
I only plan on having extra appliances on longer road trips so I can eat healthier. I checked and my rice cooker only uses 350 watts. It's tiny and I can steam veggies and not worry about my brown rice burning on the stove. I tried it for the first time last night and the rice was perfect. It keeps the rice warm too so I don't have to coordinate cooking the rice around the rest of the meal.
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Excellent...14 posts and your well on your way.
There are no inappropriate questions...keep up the good work.
Bob
__________________
I’m done with ‘adulting’…Let’s go find Bigfoot.
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02-07-2012, 07:34 PM
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#16
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Rivet Master
2018 33' Classic
2015 30' FB FC Bunk
2012 30' Flying Cloud
Grand Rabbits
, Michigan
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 612
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I would highly recommend looking at a Honda 2000 or similar generator. It is a light and relatively quiet power source, and although it won't run the AC, you can certainly fire it up briefly to run higher wattage countertop appliances like toasters and coffee makers. It will also power the convection microwave oven! It is also helpful for a quick recharge on the batteries when needed, and allows you to go from "hookups required" to "off the grid". Cost is about $1000, and can be had for less if you look for it.
My wife and I have also found it very useful for our home in the event of power outages, which we have occasionally. It's a nice backup to keep the refrigerator and stand-alone deep freeze running so all of our food is not lost!
I have also used it to run the block heater on my diesel engine when we are in sub-zero temps, when no electricity is available...
__________________
Hibby
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02-09-2012, 12:45 PM
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#17
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Rivet Master
2015 25' FB Eddie Bauer
2013 25' FB Eddie Bauer
2012 20' Flying Cloud
Small Town
, *** Big Sky Country ***Western Montana
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,860
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Quote:
Originally Posted by UtahChic
Thanks again for the advice.
I only plan on having extra appliances on longer road trips so I can eat healthier. I checked and my rice cooker only uses 350 watts. It's tiny and I can steam veggies and not worry about my brown rice burning on the stove. I tried it for the first time last night and the rice was perfect. It keeps the rice warm too so I don't have to coordinate cooking the rice around the rest of the meal.
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Sounds delicious! We find that one of the major benefits of having a TT is that we don't (necessarily) have to eat junk or fast-food ... and, we eat when we want to.
The Eu2000 generator provides plenty of power for our smallish microwave ... many foods that we take are "pre-cooked" by my wife (b4 departure from home) and only need quick microwave warming. As well, she has adjusted to very quick coffee via micro-hot water for her early morning lift. The only down side is having to get up in the cold mornings, unlock the gen, and get it started so the micro can do its job. Campgrounds with facilities / power are another story- fantastic! Welcome to the AS world.
__________________
2015 25' Eddie Bauer Int'l FBQ / 2023 Ford Lightning ER
2022 Ford F350 6.2 V-8; equalizer hitch + Shocker air hitch
Honda Eu3200; AIR# 44105; formerly WBCCI 2015.1
Terminal Aluminitis; 2-people w/ 3+ dogs
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02-09-2012, 01:14 PM
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#18
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Rivet Master
2008 19' Safari SE
Denver
, Colorado
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 950
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One of the things I need to do soon is try a few more meals in my thermal cooker - I have an inner pot that's supposed to cook rice while the rest of the meal is cooking. I need to try it before counting on it! I'll use the thermal cooker most when I haven't electricity for the convection/microwave that the PO installed, taking out the propane oven...
__________________
"If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning." - Catherine Aird
Blog: 300 Miles or 3:00
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02-09-2012, 07:12 PM
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#19
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Rivet Master
2018 33' Classic
2015 30' FB FC Bunk
2012 30' Flying Cloud
Grand Rabbits
, Michigan
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 612
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Mefly2,
I have found a great solution to morning coffee that you can have without having to fire up the generator! My wife bought me a small tea kettle to make hot water and I use an Aerobie AeroPress. It's one cup at a time and it makes the BEST coffee I have ever had... Requires virtually no clean up and it's only about $25-$30.
Amazon.com: Aerobie AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker: Kitchen & Dining
__________________
Hibby
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02-11-2012, 12:35 PM
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#20
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4 Rivet Member
2012 28' International
Antioch
, SF Bay Area
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 330
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Yep.. we have that Honda 2000 generator and it really comes in handy when dry camping which we do a lot of...our favorite Lake nearby doesn't have power yet to the campground! I must say in the beginning I called it my husband's "$1000 cup of coffee maker" but have to admit it does come in handy
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