Electrical

by John
(Vancouver Canada)

Question: We are converting a bus into a motorhome and are wondering the best way to power some things when we are parked. We are looking to be as thrifty as possible! We have a small flat screen (200w) mini fridge (220w) laptop (75w) and an xbox (25w). I was hoping to use a powersource that will charge while the vehicle is running then be used for power when parked without draining our engine battery. Would deep cycle battery and an eliminator inverter be our best bet?

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Robbie: Wow, like buying a car there are a lot of options out there for you to consider. I suggest you actually contact the manufacturer of whatever inverter you're considering and ask what they recommend. You can come up with a consensus after talking with two or three, then research the best price.

One thing I strongly suggest regardless is you never want to hook a inverter to a engine starting battery. You should have a separate group of batteries to run the lights and anything for the RV and they will charge when your engine is running using an isolator. You also want to be sure to use deep cycle batteries to carry the load.

Read my section on batteries and understand requirements for charging (How long it takes to charge them) and keeping the batteries clean and serviced.

Last you can get a inverter that has Battery charging capability when you can plug into 110V. I suggest you consider this option as a second way to charge the batteries.

Good luck,
Robbie

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