14' Series Newbie intro

[sjmorris1966]

Hi all,

a quick intro just bought my first Expanda, a 12ft er . My previous rig was a Kamparoo .. so a big step up in luxury fro me and the family. all good so far but the battery is shot so shopping for a new one.. thinking of a 8- to 100Ah. all I run is LED lights *3 and need power for 3-5 days max. May also augment the battery with a solar charger, thinking of a 20 to 50w unit. thoughts and comments welcomed.

 

[Moto Moto]

Welcome to the forum.

I purchased a reasonalbly cheap 80W folding solar panel at a camping show and it tops my batteries up to full in half a day of sun. Not sure on the longevity of the cheapo i purchased, but so far i am very happy with it. We will run out of water before we ever run out of battery i think.

 

[Coastrunner]

Hi SJM.
Congrats on the Expanda. I love all Expandas big and small.

I`m sure you `ll love the comforts that come with your new toy.

If your only running LED lights and need a battery to last two or three nights then a 100AH battery is more than enough.

If I have all my LEDs on in the van, they use around 2.5 amps per hour, so a 100AH battery would probably last all weekend without even needing a solar panel.

I had a 40Watt solar on my last van that I used for lights only. It seemed to put 2 to 3 amps per hour back into the battery.

So I think that would do the job.

In saying that, I think it`s always best to go slightly bigger than you think you`ll need.

You may find that down the track you want to plug in other 12 volt devices. Eg Charge Laptops, phones, ipods, maybe run a 12 volt fan or tv too?

If you got a 100AH with a 50 to 100 Watt solar you`ll be laughing I reckon. That`ll more than cover your present needs.

 

[chartrock]

Welcome Sj. Lots of useful info on the forum. There is currently a discussion of batteries and solar at http://www.expandasdownunder.com/showthread.php/1077-Solar-v-aux-battery-v-generator