recharging computer and camera batteries

[DonC]

A few questions as I prepare to order

I know nothing about electrical systems. I would like to carry my regular camera battery chargers and recharge those batteries. I'd also like to plug in my computer and keep it charged or charge it went low. How do I do this in the FWC camper? Do I need to get an inverter?

I plan to order the aux batteries with solar for the frig/furnace, lights, etc.

 

[Barko1]

A few questions as I prepare to order

I know nothing about electrical systems. I would like to carry my regular camera battery chargers and recharge those batteries. I'd also like to plug in my computer and keep it charged or charge it went low. How do I do this in the FWC camper? Do I need to get an inverter?

I plan to order the aux batteries with solar for the frig/furnace, lights, etc.


I try to charge mine when on the move, I have an inverter in the camper running off the house batteries and can charge the cell and Ipad off the truck cigarette lighter. I even have an additional inverter I installed under the hood connected to the truck batteries and run a line from it to my front rack where I at times carry a Segway and charge it while running down the road.

 

[orion]

I bring my laptop with me and tether my Droid for Internet access. I use a small inverter that I plug into one of the front facing 12v plugs on the galley. Works well, you need to just size your inverter wattage to be at least the amount of watts that whatever you connect will draw. The drawback of using an inverter is that a 110v appliance will draw quite a bit of amps once it hits the 12v side of things, depending on its wattage. Check out Part II of "The 12 volt Side of Life" -> http://www.marxrv.com/12volt/12volta.htm I only plan on keeping a small plugin inverter with me on trips. A more elegant solution would be to replace the converter/charger with an inverter/charger with a much higher ah battery bank and run a dedicated 110v branch circuit, but I just don't see that in the scope of my FWC.

 

[Gormley Green]

I use the small inverter in the camper as well, it has only one outlet and is good enough for camera batteries, iPad, or laptop. If I'm using the laptop the inverter gets really hot and struggles to keep up. I can't remember it's rating, but is only adequate for one device charging and unused. Works for me.

I have an inverter I can plug in to the cig outlet in the cab and I like to charge things while on the road and then I'm happy knowing I'm not draining my truck or camper battery. It's like free electricity! Of course it takes more planning to charge things in the truck while driving, and a bit of organization in the cab. Hence the small backup in the camper. Not ideal, but the system works OK.

I'd like to have solar, bigger battery bank, and large permanent inverter in the camper. But there's a lot of things I'd like.

 

[Barko1]

Be sure to see how much the laptop will draw. They can smoke a cigarette lighter outlet.

 

[leadsled9]

When laptops are concerned....it wastes a lot of energy (that's where the heat comes from) to use an inverter with the 110 v laptop charger.

You are far better off to purchase the OEM 12 volt charger (not generic) for your computer and just plug that into a 12v socket in your camper. The OEM chargers aren't cheap, mine (HP) was around $90....but it's money well spent.

 

[K6ON]

Well, since I have a built in 1500 watt inverter in my Grandby to run the microwave, charging batteries in the cameras and laptop is no problem.
If you're only going to charge batteries, then a small inverter will work just fine.

 

[Lighthawk]

We're charging a Macbook with a little B&D inverter I bought for $20.
I usually carry enough hot batteries from home for my Canon DSLR (3 batts) and Droid (2 batts). I just found a Canon charger that will plug 12v on Amazon and am getting that to take the inverter out of the loop.

 

[DonC]

ledsled9 - that sounds like what I need for my computer. I'll need one for my windows box (work) and Mac (play). Thanks.

So, it sounds like everyone is using an inverter plugged into the 12v. What is the 110v outlet used for?

Re camera batteries - I take lots of night time lapse series, often 1000 images or more a night, so I easily go through batteries regardless of how many I bring.

 

[pods8]

Thanks.

So, it sounds like everyone is using an inverter plugged into the 12v. What is the 110v outlet used for?



For when you are plugged into shore power.

 

[DonC]

For when you are plugged into shore power.


I thought there was a plug on the outside of the camper for that?

 

[Lighthawk]

I easily go through batteries regardless of how many I bring.


I ordered this 12v charger for camera batteries today. It's only $4.30+ship link.

 

[Overland Hadley]

I use a simple inverter plugged into the 12 v outlet in the cab of the truck, and charge while on the move.

 

[Barko1]

I thought there was a plug on the outside of the camper for that?


That's power in, the inside plugs are AC for whatever. If at home I run the fridge on the AC before I leave. You could do air conditioning, coffee maker, whatever.

 

[pods8]

I thought there was a plug on the outside of the camper for that?


You plug your shore power into that and from there it powers up the converter to charge your 12V batteries and provides power to the AC outlets inside the camper.

If you wanted those AC outlets to work all the time you'd have to wire an inverter into them from your batteries.

 

[MarkBC]

Not adding much new here and not exactly what you're asking in your original post, but what I do:

Like Lighthawk, I carry an extra, pre-charged-at-home, battery for my DSLR....but I also found a cheap third-party DC-12v-plug charger for my camera battery. The few/rare times when I use it I usually plug it into the 12-v outlet ("power port") in my truck cab.

I bought a third-party 12-v charger for my laptop and plug that into the 12-v outlet in my camper when I'm using the laptop in the camper. No, it's not cheap, but really, it costs no more than one tank of gas for my truck. How long does a tank of gas last compared to how long the charger will last?

("How-much-I-spent-on-truck-fuel" is my new favorite metric for "is it expensive?" As in, "I spent $1000 on gas for my Utah trip, and all I have to show for that is memories, photographs, and global warming"..."So, compared to that, the $1000+ I spent on my new DC-compressor fridge, which should last for years, is totally reasonable!".)

 

[Lighthawk]

("How-much-I-spent-on-truck-fuel" is my new favorite metric for "is it expensive?" [/i]".)


I'm liking the direction of your thinking here, Mark. As in, my new-to-me Canon 5D (yes! arrived yesterday, just in time for DV landscapes ) should last years vs. my on going fuel costs. Anything to rationalize a toy, uh I mean tool.

I want to get us one of those 12v laptop chargers too. It's such a kluge to hook the inverter into the 12v then plug the laptop transformer into that. While I'm on the subject, it's too bad the 12v outlet is right below the stove and above a drawer. I know others have added 12v and USB outlets near the front of the cabinet run. I would like to wire an extra 12v outlet on the couch side, out of the fray of cooking or water (I almost lost a phone from the sink spillage already!).

 

[MarkBC]

I'm liking the direction of your thinking here, Mark. As in, my new-to-me Canon 5D (yes! arrived yesterday, just in time for DV landscapes ) should last years vs. my on going fuel costs. Anything to rationalize a toy, uh I mean tool.

Warning: To use my rationalization properly, you have to base it on an optional-expense comparator like "truck-fuel-for-camping-trip", not a necessity like, "electricity/gas-to-heat-home" or "food-to-feed-body".
e.g., you can't count fuel-cost for work-driving.

(sorry DonC for the off-topic hijack

)

 

[DonC]

this is all good and helpful. So it sounds like the 110v plug in the camper is used only if you have shore power (or whatever its called). Is that the case?

I currently charge my camera batteries using an inverter plugged into the truck cab 12v. With all my night time lapse series, I usually have to re charge my batteries everyday. Sounds like it will work exactly the same, just that I'll have a few 12v plugs in the camper.

For my computers it sounds like I should get an OEM 12v converter.

Am I getting this right?

 

[pods8]

this is all good and helpful. So it sounds like the 110v plug in the camper is used only if you have shore power (or whatever its called). Is that the case?


Yes, as I said above:
You plug your shore power [110V, AC, whatever you want to call it] into that and from there it powers up the converter to charge your 12V batteries and provides power to the AC outlets inside the camper. [If you don't have the camper plugged in then nothing is going to provide 110V/AC power in it's stock configuration]

If you wanted those AC outlets to work all the time you'd have to wire an inverter into them from your batteries.