Search results

Well, I started with the P rated, got a nice side puncture just after the scary shelf road out of Cerro Gordo. Finally convinced myself to upgrade to E rated tires. I think the P's would be ok on pavement, but we've done quite a bit on crummy dirt/rock roads. I did most of my hiking and...

Yes

I think so, they are softer. But they are much taller than the bump stops, so will pick up load sooner. We have Sumosprings with stock leaf springs.

We replaced the factory thermostat with a garage style one. It goes down to 35 deg. That's where we set ours at night. Leaving the heat on for 14 hours while you are out could use a lot of fuel... maybe as others said, don't use the built-in water system, but separate water jugs. By the way...

This site says no venting: https://www.campervan-hq.com/pages/deep-cycle-rv-battery-buying-guide#:~:text=Q%3A%20Where%20should%20the%20RV,a%20sealed%20or%20vented%20box). says But this site https://www.ultraheat.com/post/why-battery-ventilation-is-important-for-your-rv says the opposite: This...

We just used our newly built dolly for the first time last week. Our asphalt alley has a slight grade, but the real problem is a lip and a dip just before going into the garage. My wife and I could barely get it in there (we are both pretty small though). 6" solid wheels. The swivel wheels kept...

Jiggers. Our battery compartment is vented too, and the area sealed as described by others above. Never noticed that before. But the vents don't look sufficient to cool very much in hot weather, it seem more for venting gas. On the other hand, in very cold weather it may be enough to cool a...

Thanks. I assume you mean ventilated outside, like propane. I don't think our camper battery compartment is ventilated outside. Will check that tomorrow.

I still may make a ventilated compartment door, but primarily to keep the compartment warmer in winter camping. I wonder why the battery compartment is closed up. Maybe it's for safety from AGM battery in case it leaks. Our camper has a plastic container, with no top, that the battery goes in...

This wobble thing sound scary. I've had it happen on a loaded bicycle, and barely got it to stop resonating in a natural frequency of the system.

I kinda like the idea of putting a flex panel on the windshield, except you have to park the truck pointing south. For non-windy camping you can put it on top of the camper, and hope it doesn't slide off while raising the top. Maybe a little bit of velcro glued to the roof would work in a...

Here's something interesting, this guy tweaked his DLS-30 voltage: https://diysolarforum.com/threads/iota-dls-30-sale.18200/#post-210914

Our house solar gets a lot of pollen and other junque in the spring. It's impossible to get them completely clean, but I think most of the rays are turning into amps. Meanwhile, last month we left our portable panel on top of our camper, and drove off. Bang! It hit the pavement glass side down...

Sorry, I didn't explain properly. I was thinking of using my old Iota DLS-30/IQ4, which is designed for AGM batteries. I have seen conflicting information on whether it's ok to use that to charge a lithium battery. I just contacted Renogy, for instance, and they said don't do it. But with the...

The thermodynamicist in me thinks this isn't a great idea. The blue foam is a really good thermal insulator. So you'd have hot spots where there's foam, and cool spots elsewhere. If the panels have good thermal conductivity (I have no idea), it might be ok though. The aerodynamicist in me says...

I've been thinking about flex vs rigid panels too. Our needs are 100-200W (we "currently" do ok with 90W, and I hope that comment isn't too "revolting"), so I was considering two 100W flexible panels at about $150 each. Two so that we have some redundancy in case of panel failure. This reduces...

Ah, that would double it to TacomaAustin's 0.9V.

Would it be possible to wire the Iota DLS-30/IQ4 into a DC-DC charger, using the alternator inputs? Or would it get confused while it's trying to measure the battery voltage/current? I suppose there might be a problem you plug into shore power, and turn on the engine at the same time. Then the...

Thanks for the reply, TacomaAustin. I just found out that the one I'm looking at also cuts off at 12.7V -- which answered my question. https://www.renogy.com/content/RBC3050D1S-G1/RBC3050D1S-Manual.pdf Also that manual says 8-10 gauge is ok for the 30A version, but you need 6 gauge for the 50A...

Our truck was probably wired with 10 gauge. If I got a 30A sized DC-DC charger, then the voltage drop for 15' of truck wiring would be about 0.45V. I could improve that to 0.18V if I rewired the truck to 6 gauge. That's about a 0.3V difference. But there's still a voltage drop at 30 amps. I'm...

Have you tried this? It works on my iPad but haven’t tried on a phone. “Hamburger” icon Your Places Maps Select your map — just worked for me. But I’ve switched to CalTopo for this sort of thing. I export from Google maps and import to CalTopo.

I believe your phone works because it can use more satellites than the inReach. It only uses the US satellites. I’ve noticed how poor it is in trees too.

It depends on how heavy the wench and bumper are. On our truck, all the camper weight is on the rear axle, and the front axle has the same load with or without the camper.

We've seen it happen in popular backpacking areas in the Sierra and Cascades. It seems necessary and it seems to work. Now some of those remote areas are uber popular with the trail running crowd, who "hike" 30-50 miles with nothing but a water bag on their backs and a few gels, which gets them...

I think I'm one of the few here who enjoy the black Sumosprings. Very simple, inexpensive, no fuss. I think it only took me 20 minutes to install, and most of that was borrowing the right tools.