Suggest a battery charger to permanently install in camper?

S

steve whiteside

Senior Member
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May 27, 2020
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San Diego CA
Hey everyone,

Ive got 400w of solar on the roof which generates about 250w max on a sunny day when the sun is overhead. Im finding it is not enough and Im constantly sweating the battery levels. I own a small quiet 1800w generator. Im thinking of bringing it with me and a few hours a day trying to jam extra juice into my batteries as needed. I see a Victron 30amp charger that looks just what I want other than it is too small.

https://www.amazon.com/Victron-Energy-12-Volt-Battery-Bluetooth/dp/B08NY23BKF/ref=sr_1_3?crid=P0B6MM2GTYLU&keywords=victron+battery+charger+12v&qid=1664199896&sprefix=victron+battery+charger+12v%2Caps%2C190&sr=8-3&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.08f69ac3-fd3d-4b88-bca2-8997e41410bb

then I see a larger one but the price jump is too much.

https://www.amazon.com/Victron-Energy-MultiPlus-II-120-50-2x120V/dp/B0945M9NG4/ref=sr_1_7_sspa?crid=P0B6MM2GTYLU&keywords=victron%2Bbattery%2Bcharger%2B12v&qid=1664199896&sprefix=victron%2Bbattery%2Bcharger%2B12v%2Caps%2C190&sr=8-7-spons&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.17f26c18-b61b-4ce9-8a28-de351f41cffb&smid=ACEM1DTDODKXX&th=1

Does anyone have charger to mount that is like thee first charger but at 50 amps? If not I was thinking that conceivably I could buy two of the first chargers and use them in parallel.

Thoughts?

steve
 
 
I take it you don't have the IOTA charger in your camper. With 400 watts of solar you should not be having an issue unless you have an unusual load (induction cooktop?). I'd suspect your charge controller or batteries. How many amp hours of battery do you have? What kind of controller?
 
craig333 said:
I take it you don't have the IOTA charger in your camper. With 400 watts of solar you should not be having an issue unless you have an unusual load (induction cooktop?). I'd suspect your charge controller or batteries. How many amp hours of battery do you have? What kind of controller?
Click to expand...
Not sure exactly what you mean by IOTA charger. I have the standard charger that was built into my FWC when I bought it new 2 years ago. If I plug it into shore power it will gradually charge my batteries but not that quick. Im looking to boost my level of charge within an hour or three, not all day of generator. WRT my 2020 Grandby. What I have added is one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073ZJ43L1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075RTSTKS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

also 2 Lion energy ~1.1 KWhr batteries for about 2KWhr capacity.

I actually think my system is working as it should, although I am no expert at these things. I noticed I generate about 1.5kwhr per day from my 400watts of panels.

My 3 way domestic fridge, set on propane, pulls about 30-35 watts and never shuts off. Ive got a separate "fridge freeze" that pulls about 40watts 8 hours a day as it cycles on and off. Ive got a starlink system that pulls about 50watts for 2 hours per day- i keep it mostly off. Misc charging of computers and USB fans at about 200watts for 2 hours. I have a coffee maker that pulls 1.3KW for 10 minutes when it is on. The overhead fantastic fan at about 20watts when used in low. The math seems to make sense WRT electrical in and out, yes?. The big pig is the 3 way fridge since it never gets cold enough to shut off and 30w x 24 hours a day is about 800whr which is about 1/2 my total capacity for the day.

Stan, thanks for the suggestions above. I was thinking to hardwire in a charger but maybe that NOCO is a better solution. I dont need a charger at every season but when it is hot - I need fans + extra 12 v fridge etc...

steve
 
I'm not sure what a 3way pulls on propane but its a tiny amount. Either its really on 12v or something is wired wrong.
 
If your Iota is the standard 30 Amp with IQ4 for lead acid, it should charge in bulk phase up to what would be the 80% charge mark for lead acid before dropping to the absorb phase at reduced current. It would remain there for several hours to finish off the lead acid battery and drop into the float phase. These are not ideal for LiFePO4 batteries.

Instead of adding a NOCO external charger, consider replacing the existing Iota with a IOTA having a LiFePo4 IQ4 smart controller or one of the other RV battery chargers that supports LiFePO4.

This is nothing against the NOCO. I have their 16, 7.2, 3.5, and 1.1 chargers for different applications. I like them, but recommend simplifying your charging system rather than making it more complicated.

With 400 watts of solar, you should have no problem keeping your batteries charged.

Paul
 
craig333 said:
I'm not sure what a 3way pulls on propane but its a tiny amount. Either its really on 12v or something is wired wrong.
Click to expand...
Well 2 things. 1) the 3 way fridge when running off of propane still has some sort of noise that sounds like a fan running. This is not the FWC reefer fan that is on top of that if used. 2) I turn everything thing else off in the camper and I get 30w-35w consumed going somewhere - it seems like to me the domestic 3 way. Maybe there is some house loads on top of that but all I can figure is most of that 30-35watts is for the dometic.

Has anyone got data on how much a dometic 3 ways consumes of 12v when running on propane?

steve
 
Vic Harder said:
If you want to make sure the fridge is what’s drawing power on propane, why not just pull the fridge fuse?
Click to expand...
Now that is a good idea! Let me wait till later in the day when things are really cooking and I will turn everything off but the fridge. Then pull the fuse. I agree with others and Craig that 30w continuous seems like 3x too much for the fridge on propane.

steve
 
Kind of an aside but if I were building this camper from scratch I would delete the 3 way and put in a compressor run "Fridge freeze". Mine pulls 40watts when the compressor is running , is a top loader but puts out a huge amount of cold and can freeze the whole compartment in a handful of hours. My 3 way running on propane here in the desert will freeze in the freezer section but struggles to make the main compartment 30-40degrees lower than ambient. It takes forever to get cold in the main compartment. Like 2 days sitting in my garage prior to a trip to get the main compartment cold. The ambient for me is often in the mid nineties.

The front loader is much more convenient that the top loader but that takes a back seat (for me) WRT making things cold or really cold.

Just my opinion. Also thanks for all of the replies to this thread, it is helpful.


steve
 
So I waited for the heat of the day and pulled th fridge fuse. 10watts. Craig was right and Vic was too. :)

When I turn everything off (that I can) but the fridge I pulling 30watts. So, Ive got 20watts going somewhere. Maybe the solar controller or other electronics buried in the system.

Regardless, Im still not happy with the amount of electrical power I have in a 24 hours period and I want to add to that with a generator. You guys gave me some good choices, thanks.

steve
 
PaulT said:
If your Iota is the standard 30 Amp with IQ4 for lead acid, it should charge in bulk phase up to what would be the 80% charge mark for lead acid before dropping to the absorb phase at reduced current. It would remain there for several hours to finish off the lead acid battery and drop into the float phase. These are not ideal for LiFePO4 batteries.

Instead of adding a NOCO external charger, consider replacing the existing Iota with a IOTA having a LiFePo4 IQ4 smart controller or one of the other RV battery chargers that supports LiFePO4.

This is nothing against the NOCO. I have their 16, 7.2, 3.5, and 1.1 chargers for different applications. I like them, but recommend simplifying your charging system rather than making it more complicated.

With 400 watts of solar, you should have no problem keeping your batteries charged.

Paul
Click to expand...
So I wold install one of these?

https://www.amazon.com/IQ-LIFEPO-Lithium-Iron-Batteries-Automatic-Controller/dp/B07FK4HFZN


and one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/IOTA-Engineering-Converter-and-Charger/dp/B0030G7YXC/ref=pd_day0fbt_sccl_1/137-4813444-7755261?pd_rd_w=nxoDm&content-id=amzn1.sym.9b14949a-3979-4b7d-b182-b07adcc4c0e7&pf_rd_p=9b14949a-3979-4b7d-b182-b07adcc4c0e7&pf_rd_r=9M3GXGACBFFSGKAC8T1C&pd_rd_wg=QsukM&pd_rd_r=d622b8bb-a69c-4621-aac0-df7495a9875b&pd_rd_i=B0030G7YXC&th=1


steve
 
That should work fine. I have the DLS-30 with the IQ4-LIFEPO with two Battleborn GC2 100 aH batteries. The 30, 45, and 55 amp units all have a 30 amp maximum single cycle inrush current so you should be good.

Paul
 
Thanks for the reply. Not sure what is meant by inrush current but if I got the 45a or the 55a will I be getting more power pushed to my 2 ea 100ahr batteries? Mostly I want to run off of the solar but everyone in a while I want to rapidly jam more power into the batteries via a generator. If it would work I think i would rather go for the 55amp.

steve
 
Steve,
My power system is essentially what you're planning except that I have the factory 30 amp unit. If it ain't broke...
I no longer draw power from the truck electrical system. If I need to do so, I have a small DC-DC charger in my ham radio gear that I can use.

I would probably choose either the 45 or 55 amp unit if I were starting from scratch.

Inrush current is the current initially consumed by the charging unit when power is first applied. It is required to fill capacitors, inductors, etc. when starting up. The 30, 45, & 50 pull the same current on first power.

Paul
 
PaulT said:
Steve,
My power system is essentially what you're planning except that I have the factory 30 amp unit. If it ain't broke...
I no longer draw power from the truck electrical system. If I need to do so, I have a small DC-DC charger in my ham radio gear that I can use.

I would probably choose either the 45 or 55 amp unit if I were starting from scratch.

Inrush current is the current initially consumed by the charging unit when power is first applied. It is required to fill capacitors, inductors, etc. when starting up. The 30, 45, & 50 pull the same current on first power.

Paul
Click to expand...
Got it! thanks for your help on this. I reached out to Stan at FWC to see if he can tell me where my OEM IOTA is installed.
 
If you've still got a power draw I would one by one continue to pull fuses until you can ID what circuit is consuming the power.
 
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