What have done towards your prep?

[Straight Shooter]

I wish you all good health and a happy new year.

Set up the small solar panel and wired some 12 volt LED strip lights in the poly tunnel …..just to try out the system ,and all working fine …...testing the position of the panel ….the charge controller (came with the panel) has no digital display ….bar one green light showing its powered up and working …..I have bought a new all singing digital controller and a better inverter , delivery by 4th January …..I will order some 100 watt panels and deep cycle batteries within the coming weeks .


Set up the fan heater in the small poly tunnel this morning and setting the thermostat (as I type) getting everything set up for germinating seeds ,I will be ready to rock at the drop of a hat.

So I need to read up on solar to gain more knowledge on how much power I can get set against bare minimum needs and see how many batteries I need.

[LAC]

(2 January 2019, 13:56)Straight Shooter Wrote: I wish you all good health and a happy new year.

Set up the small solar panel and wired some 12 volt LED strip lights in the poly tunnel …..just to try out the system ,and all working fine …...testing the position of the panel ….the charge controller (came with the panel) has no digital display ….bar one green light showing its powered up and working …..I have bought a new all singing digital controller and a better inverter , delivery by 4th January …..I will order some 100 watt panels and deep cycle batteries within the coming weeks .


Set up the fan heater in the small poly tunnel this morning and setting the thermostat (as I type) getting everything set up for germinating seeds ,I will be ready to rock at the drop of a hat.

So I need to read up on solar to gain more knowledge on how much power I can get set against bare minimum needs and see how many batteries I need.

Happy new year to you and to all at SUK.

Not sure what you will running off the batteries but try and avoid using the inverter if you can help it. If possible use DC to DC converters to save power loss.

[Pete Grey]

Following an old thread from Mortblanc, an inverter connected to a vehicle battery, with the engine running would be a good mobile mains voltage source for power tools etc.

With this in mind i am looking to buy an second inverted, about 1500 or 2000 watts, my current one is only 300 watts.

[Straight Shooter]

Thanks LAC ….(this solar powered set up ) 50 watt panel was to power up a radio receiver and or CB rig the battery was off a golf trolley …..and to charge up mobile phone and stuff , I bought the inverter from Maplins .(car job ) this did power up a small 240 v drill (worked ok) …..I will continue to use this set up for the poly tunnel (lights) only .


I did have a quote for a home solar panel system about 18 months back ….3.8 kw tied into the grid …..but I really wanted a stand alone system ….plus the Tessler NEW Battery was due to hit the market …..also a German make was about lower prices …...then SHIF around the ground (and is yet to be concluded ) so that put pay to that system (along with a lot of other plans ) ….so as a tippy toe fix I am looking for a solar panel set up with more teeth …..to run a freezer , some led lights and comms with power to the lpg gas boiler …..may be not all at once but those options would be nice to have …..so a second system is where this is going for this purpose only ...plus something I can strip down quick to bug out with .

[Straight Shooter]

Forgot to mention I have a foldable solar panel case ….about 800mm x 600mm opened out , it was left under the seat of a caravan I once owned ….I was told to keep it , will dig it out ! as a backup .

[Pete Grey]

The new folding solar panel has arrived, look good, comes in a well padded storage bag, will stow in the camper.

If TSHTF we will be low voltage, 100w folder as main leasure battery (two off) charger, backed up by two 25w solar trickle chargers, batteries are normally kept at peak levels with mains charger/maintainers.

All lights in house are led, turn off mains, plug lead into power socket, connect to inverter and leasure battery, if we want to keep on a lower key we have three windup solar lanterns.

Now i need all i need is a heavier duty inverter (1500 or 2000 watts).

[Mortblanc]

1k watts is where the price goes out of sight in inverters over here!

A 1000w unit that has 1500w peak draw is usually affordable and over that is often way out of my price range.

Saying that I caught a 1200w unit with 1600w peak on sale a while back. It will power any of my power tools in an emergency but I have almost totally switched to cordless rechargeable due to them not requiring the heavy draw of current. You can very easily recharge your cordless on a 400w inverter that will not come anywhere near running a corded drill.

PG, are you running the house mains off the inverter or going to a separate 12v circuit?

The way my house is wired, since I wired it myself, I can disconnect the house from the grid completely by pulling the mains fuse, then plug the alternate power source, inverter or generator, through an outside 30amp waterproof RV plug.

If you are running the house mains you probably need to do a good power audit and find what circuits can be eliminated while on emergency power.

Generally the fridge and furnace blower consume more than any other items short of washing machines and dishwashers. The fridge compressor will probably go over the peak rating in most inverters. A small fridge might not be so bad.

If you have switched to LED house lights you are probably running your entire lighting system on the power one 75w bulb used to draw. I do not think there is a single bulb in my house that draws more then 5w at this point. I can turn on every light in the house and not use 70w.

I hate to admit it but I greatly opposed the forced change a couple of years ago, but now am glad of it due to the reduced current needs.

This time of year a fridge is not a concern since food will keep in a cooler on the doorstep or patio. Summer is different of course.

I am currently looking into a 12v fridge for my gear. I saw one at the "truck stop" on the motorway that was 12v and no larger than a common ice chest and designed to be used long term in an over the road truck sleeper.

You can also find 12v microwaves, ovens, slow cookers, fry pans and other 12v items that would be handy in a camper van.

I have been looking at the offerings lately due to anticipating the purchase of a pop-up camper that will need some work.

[Straight Shooter]

The Lpg boiler has a separate supply MB and the same for the freezer already wired up ….either the genny or inverter …..just a matter of plugging into the SA socket , and your points into 12v electrical goods ….I too have been checking out these on ebay and amazon …...a great prep to have bugging in or out ….Every light bulb inside and outside is Led ….even the torches …..we are switched on!!...…..oh sorry!

[LAC]

(3 January 2019, 17:09)Straight Shooter Wrote: Forgot to mention I have a foldable solar panel case ….about 800mm x 600mm opened out , it was left under the seat of a caravan I once owned ….I was told to keep it , will dig it out ! as a backup .

I have two of those SS very handy. I'm currently looking at creating an 18650 Li-Ion battery set up that can be charged with solar. There are now regulators that apparently work with them so I'm starting with a very small self contained set up initially. I hope to post the positive results here.

[Mortblanc]

Hey Pete Grey!!!

Why don't you cut and paste all these snippets of life with the camper van into one large "here's the progress" thread in the vehicles section.

I can not keep up with your step by step progress and it seems to be moving right along.

You are always doing something new and different to the rig and it might make a good thread when all combined even if it is only a one post process from day to day.

It has to be better than some of the "build a camper van" efforts on You-tube or other internet sources.

They either go overboard with unlimited budgets, try to do the impossible with nothing, or have at it like chimps with power tools.

I particularly enjoyed one a while back that was a "revenge video" posted by a jilted GF one year after the build of a small home built caravan.

The thing looked smashing when new, all bright and shiny. One year latter it was a water sodden mess due to improper sealing of joints and use of materials that would not stand up to either weather or use!