Measured FWC power use

This morning turned off refer went to my Doc/Chirop appointments. Returned 3hours later.
12noon. Temp 86 degrees. eagle in shade in carport.

Deployed 60 watt portable panel. Charging amps 3.7.
Turned on refer to start cool down cycle. Unit temp 86*. Charging amps dropped to + 1.4
Engle took 30 minutes to lower temp to 39*-drawing 2.6 amps on Trimetric ( divided by 2= 1.6 amps net/hour)
Turned on fan on medium speed setting - Charging amps dropped to. - minus ( point) 6 amps.
Conclusion : 60 watt too small
 
Wow-what a great thread! I was into it when i had to leave my camping/solar panel' CR110 frig/freezer/cmproller experiment up at Eagle Lake because of that unplanned for run up north to see my Dad (things are okay-i guess) over Labor Day---and it is still going strong when i got back----so much to learn-or try to learn and read here and in my two new books, so i can ask some more "uninformed " questions :D . I made the run w/o the tv/sat dish and no problems. Got to take my truck to the shop now, but will relate Eagle Lake experiment later today and ask more questions.

Smoke
 
I wonder about my fridge. I was camped at Teds spot (about 9000') and the dang thing was still running when the outside temps were near freezing. I'm thinking about cutting a hole in the counter directly above the compressor to let the heat out. Have a couple ideas, not something I want to do without it giving it some serious thought.
 
Regarding refrigerator fans, we installed an additional fan and wired it into the stock Dometic fan. The 2 fans run when the fridge is cooling, the draw is so small there is no worry with over amping.
 
Sure power separator

Drove truck yesterday battery shows full.
Drove it this morning- battery still full - Shut off truck for about 5 minutes.

Re-started it - Checked the Trimetric. - Charging amps 2.5...slowly going down to point 8 amps.
That tells me Sure-power has increased the resistance to reduce the volts into the battery. Confirming "Sure Power " is working.
 
I remember a few people put larger wiring from their truck battery to their camper.
Does anyone have any follow up to that?
I believe the stock wiring is 10 gauge and some guys were using 6 gauge to replace it with.

I've looked into putting in dual alternators but it's fairly expensive. I wanted to see if there was a more efficient way to charge when solar isn't available.

I'm assuming this would help but wondered if anyone has had any real world experience with it.
 
I had 4 gauge run from the truck battery to the camper batteries. I have a Tundra with the heavy duty alternator. This was in addition to the 10 gauge connection from the factory. Adventure Trailers put a switch in the cab and camper in case we forget to turn it on when we leave. The switch activates a relay, there is an Anderson connector at the camper. Works great, get over 300 watts to the battery at idle with the battery at 12.4 volts. Fully charged within an hour or so.
 
Marco,

That sounds like a nice setup. I am assuming the Anderson plug is wired directly to the camper batteries?

Is the 300 watts of charging the two set ups together?

I'd love to see pictures of that set up.

300 watts/12.4 volts = 24.2 amps

That would be almost equivalent to shore power charger.
 
DrJ said:
Marco,
That sounds like a nice setup. I am assuming the Anderson plug is wired directly to the camper batteries?
Is the 300 watts of charging the two set ups together?
I'd love to see pictures of that set up.
300 watts/12.4 volts = 24.2 amps
That would be almost equivalent to shore power charger.
Click to expand...
We really like it. I will be back in town Friday. I'll take pictures and post them, Adventure trailers did an awesome job.

The Anderson plug is mounted to the camper so it's accessible through the rear turnbuckle access. When the solenoid is activated, the truck and camper batteries are tied together.
 
Thanks in advance for the pictures.

Which Adventure trailers did the work for you?
Any idea in the cost to have that done?
 
photohc said:
I appears that a 100 watt panel should do it for you. My biggest draw is the Dometic at 4.5 amps. With a 100 watt panel, it just barely kept up with the Dometic, particularly in the hot desert sun. Now with 250 watts, I get both batteries charged up by the end of day. Here is my Trimetric installed next to the FWC battery indicator and the shunt installed next to the MPPT controller and batteries.
Click to expand...
Where did you get the brackets to mount the panels to the roof? Also, did you get the 100 or 500 amp shunt? I have 2 100 watt renogy panels to install on my 2014 Hawk. I also got the trimetric meter.
 
Hobart78 said:
Where did you get the brackets to mount the panels to the roof? Also, did you get the 100 or 500 amp shunt? I have 2 100 watt renogy panels to install on my 2014 Hawk. I also got the trimetric meter.
Click to expand...
I have the 500 amp shunt. The brackets came from AM Solar. They come in two sizes, 40mm and 35mm. I think the 100w panels from Renogy is 35mm (I'm assuming your referring to the standard rigid panels). These brackets are made very well and fit the panels like a glove. My roof is smooth and it is not necessary to screw into the roof. The brackets come with 3M adhesive tape. This tape is very strong and they told me that they have not had any report of the brackets coming loose on smooth surfaces. I originally had a 100w panel installed with these brackets but later changed to a 150w panel. I successfully removed the 100w panel brackets using isopropyl alcohol with no marks on my roof. Upon installation, you need to waterproof the bracket/tape area with the suggested Dicor sealant. This stays flexible and can be scraped off with an old plastic credit card. Hope this helps.
 
DrJ said:
I remember a few people put larger wiring from their truck battery to their camper.
Does anyone have any follow up to that?
I believe the stock wiring is 10 gauge and some guys were using 6 gauge to replace it with.
I've looked into putting in dual alternators but it's fairly expensive. I wanted to see if there was a more efficient way to charge when solar isn't available.
I'm assuming this would help but wondered if anyone has had any real world experience with it.
Click to expand...
Great thread.
While I'm waiting to purchase my FWC I am in the process of getting my pick up expedition ready.
In my case I have a '06 F-350 cc SRW diesel. One of the weak links in this truck is the alternator. It is only 110 amps, the same one on the Ford Fusion!! In looking into it further a lot of guys are upgrading their alternator and associated wiring which is also undersized.
This is where I got the 190 amp alternator (they also offer much larger ones as well)
http://www.ficmrepair.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=results/category_id=81/mode=cat/cat81.htm

I also got the upgraded braided wire set for the truck

http://www.ficmrepair.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=results/category_id=23/mode=cat/cat23.htm
The truck starts much better now and the output of the alternator has kept the trucks batteries fully charged.

Hopefully this will help some of you who are looking into better charging of your house batteries.

Btw, many places like Advanced Auto have upgraded alternators for a variety of different trucks so that may be an option for those of you with tacos etc.
 
I use a POWERSTREAM DC to DC 4 stage charger in my Tacoma.I have 2 house batteries and when on the road I charge one battery with it and the other with my 100 watt roof mounted solar panel.When in camp I use my 100 watt portable solar panel and hook it up to my truck battery and run the DC-DC charger.I use 10g wire to power the charger from the truck battery.I have used the charger for 4+ years with no problems.
 
LAWNMOWERMAN said:
I use a POWERSTREAM DC to DC 4 stage charger in my Tacoma.I have 2 house batteries and when on the road I charge one battery with it and the other with my 100 watt roof mounted solar panel.When in camp I use my 100 watt portable solar panel and hook it up to my truck battery and run the DC-DC charger.I use 10g wire to power the charger from the truck battery.I have used the charger for 4+ years with no problems.
Click to expand...
I'd love to see some pictures of this setup if you have them.

Is there a reason you charge the two batteries differently? Maybe there is some benefit to doing it this way vs charging both of them together with both methods?
Thanks
 
Based on Zamp Solar portable solar recommendations. Probably BEST to charge only one battery at a time if using one 100W panel.

Zamp-Portable-Solar-Selector-Chart.jpg


While charging battery banks with a 100W panel is certainly "do-able", simply not optimum.

Yet, LawnMowerMan is in AZ where long periods of sunlight with minimal cloud cover should not be too much of a factor for a single 100W panel charging 2x Group 24 batteries.
 
My batteries came from a scrapyard that a friend of mine deals with.They were replaced by service contractor after one year.I got them about 8 months apart so I decided not to wire them parallel so as not to weaken one to the other ones charge level.Not to mention I got them gratis ,but that party is over!They are 75ah's each.That said I would not hesitate to charge both of my 100 watt panel.I use the "KISS" system and change charging modes manually using spring loaded battery clamps.This may not work for you if hands on monitoring is not you thing.I do have a TRIMETRIC meter and a seperate voltmeter to monitor both batteries.I don't mind having to mess with this system because being retired," I have nothing to do and all day to do it"! I am just waiting for Geezer Card elegability.
 
Can't complain about the price and battery performance!

I'd take 12 month hand me downs and use 'em up as well for Ø coin!

I'm retired as well. But, not old enough for my $10 life time Senior - National Park and Federal Recreational Land Pass.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads - WTW

Z
2006 FWC Electrical Issue
Wandering Sagebrush
Wandering Sagebrush
B
FWC running lights issue
Vic Harder
Vic Harder
J
2021 Total Composites camper and 1999 Ford F-250 Super Duty, $40,000, Fraser, CO
jklabak
J
leadsled9
2008 FWC Hawk Fully Loaded $16,000 REDUCED to $13,000
Vic Harder
Vic Harder
S
**SOLD** 2017 Ford F350 with "Four Wheel Drive" pop-top Grandby camper, both $ 55,000
slomo
S

New posts - WTW

Back
Top Bottom