[mass-hole]

Hit it with some rustoleum truck bed liner and then ill mount it:

 

[Blown F-150]

Have you seen this? I was thinking it may be a great option for my trailer. I am seriously considering adding a couple panels to the roof, so the battery can always be charged if if the trailer isn't plugged in to shore power. This would just add the ability to charge from the truck while connected (albeit at a pretty low amperage rate).
DC-DC MPPT

 

[mass-hole]

Have you seen this? I was thinking it may be a great option for my trailer. I am seriously considering adding a couple panels to the roof, so the battery can always be charged if if the trailer isn't plugged in to shore power. This would just add the ability to charge from the truck while connected (albeit at a pretty low amperage rate).
DC-DC MPPT

I dont know if Renogy had a multi-input charger like that when I was looking, but RedArc(the same people that made the brake controlled I put in my Lexus) did. The issue with RedArc's, and the issue it looks like with this one, is that they can only accept 25 or 32V from solar.

This is redarcs. It also can charge from 120V shore power.

The Manager30

REDARC's Manager30 is a 30A state-of-the-art battery management system designed to charge and maintain auxiliary batteries for recreational vehicles and suits all battery types. Discover more here.

redarcelectronics.com

When I was asking about charging for the LiFePO4 on the Jayco forum, one of the guys said that his 2x100 Watt 12V Renogy panels will routinely put out 40V in series. The reason you want to run the panels in series is because you want the panel voltage to be higher than the battery voltage, and if its cloudy or if its morning/evening when the sun is lower in the sky, the panels output voltage will crap out and you may fall below 14.4V that the Li batteries peak at with the panels in parallel.

That Renogy Rover 30 Amp MPPT solar charge I bought can handle 100 VDC input from the panels.

So one of those multicharges would probably work fine if you were just using it as a float charger from the panels and are fine with it only charging on sunny days in the middle of the day. But if you want to get all day power to your batteries and are using it as a primary charging source, I think you need a standalone MPPT charger.

 

[Blown F-150]

Well, that is that I guess, lol. I’ll just go with a MPPT if I get some panels. I would rather have better solar performance, than vehicle charging.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mass-hole]

Magnetic bumper caps complete the bumper

They even attach to your sewer hose so it comes out with it.

 

[Arkansas Eco]

Link please !

 

[mass-hole]

Link please !

Camco Magnetic Bumper Cap with Lug Fitting End | Fits Standard RV 4" Square Bumpers | Features Small Holes to Increase Airflow and Block Insects (40311) , Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071L8YSM5/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_W8PB6GWCE2M1X5YFCEF2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Arkansas Eco]

Thanks ! Ordered

 

[mass-hole]

I put the breakaway battery under the trailer in the box. As I was doing the wiring I realized that the breakaway switch was wired wrong. I don’t know if that was something I screwed up at some point in the past or if it has been wrong forever.

Anyways, i wired the battery in so that it powers the breakaway, gets charged by the 7 pin plug, and also feeds the tongue jack(along with the 7 pin when hooked to the car).

So now the LiFePO4 is totally independent and only hooked to the distribution box in the trailer.

 

[kicker338]

My lifepos are wired the same way, totally independent of truck power.

 

[Arkansas Eco]

Heck ya

 

[MAXXPAY]

A lot of progress bud! Looks great and coming along super nice!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mass-hole]

I just snagged this inverter:

Amazon.com: 3000 Watts Power Inverter, Pure Sine Wave 12V to 120V Car Inverter with Remote Control, DC to AC Power Converter with 3 120V AC Outlets/1 USB Port/LCD Display, Car/Truck/RV/Solar Inverter 3000W/6000W : Automotive

Amazon.com: 3000 Watts Power Inverter, Pure Sine Wave 12V to 120V Car Inverter with Remote Control, DC to AC Power Converter with 3 120V AC Outlets/1 USB Port/LCD Display, Car/Truck/RV/Solar Inverter 3000W/6000W : Automotive

www.amazon.com

The price is really good with the $50 coupon so I decided to just pull the trigger. Honestly, this is more than my single battery is supposed to power but i doubt I will actually ever use all 3000 Watts.

My trailer only has a 30 amp plug and this can supply 25 amps of 120V power so I believe I could run the whole trailer if I really wanted.

 

[mass-hole]

I was gone all week but got home to the inverter. It looks great but unfortunately the control LCD was cracked:

The box itself was perfect and the lcd was bubblewrapped and tucked in snuggly so not sure what happened. They are sending a replacement.

Also got a 120 amp resettable breaker. This will go first in line off the battery and then will feed both the inverter as well as my existing 50 amp breaker for my 12 V power panel. I went with a 120A because my single battery is only supposed to run at 125A continuous, which I could easily exceed with a 3000 watt inverter. I figure, at 90% efficiency, the inverter could theoretically draw 250-280 amps. Basically, until i can get another battery, I have to be easy with the converter and make sure my 12V circuits are not pulling too much power. The 120A breaker is there to make sure the battery doesn’t discharge too fast.

 

[mass-hole]

Now that i have had some time to think about the Inverter, I am now wondering how I install it such that the power converter(the one built into the trailers distribution panel) doesn’t try to charge the battery while the battery is powering the inverter.

I need to somehow put a relay on the 12V feed from the battery that only triggers when the inverter is off.

 

[mass-hole]

Its about 14’ up. The trim around the slide out is aluminum and pretty stout so i just clamped it on there and then can just stuff the cable through the slide gasket. The battery is right there next to the slide.

 

[mass-hole]

I didn't get to play with the antenna camping last weekend, mostly because we already had decent service at the site and the wind was gusting pretty good, and I am lazy. But the wife and I are supposed to go out camping next week mid-week and work from the camper. The booster could be the difference between me being fired and staying employed.

The new inverter did come in, this time without a cracked screen. I gotta wire it up and still have not wrapped my head around preventing the power converter from charging the battery while using the inverter.

 

[mass-hole]

Alright, so I have to put a relay on the power converter 120V hot wire. The problem is all my non-GFCI outlets are tied into the same breaker as the converter and so I can't just cut power to the breaker, I have to catch the connection on the power converter feed after the breaker. I will just trigger the relay off the shore 120V hot wire so that its only on when the shore power is plugged in.

The only other option was to disconnect the battery from the distribution panel, but this seems highly inefficient as I would be converting 12V DC from the battery to 120V AC with the inverter, which would then feed that 120V to the power converter which would turn it back to 12V DC to continue to power the lights and refrigerator and stuff. That seems silly.

 

[mass-hole]

Just snagged these:

Tnisesm 2PCS Power Relay SPST(1 NO) AC120V Coil, 30A SPST 120 VAC with Flange Mounting and 8 Quick Connect Terminals Wires Mini Relay HF105F-4-AC120V-8X: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Tnisesm 2PCS Power Relay SPST(1 NO) AC120V Coil, 30A SPST 120 VAC with Flange Mounting and 8 Quick Connect Terminals Wires Mini Relay HF105F-4-AC120V-8X: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

So I'll have a spare for when the chinesium inside melts.

 

[Arkansas Eco]

All I know is I have full 5G signal sitting by the lakeshore and can stream anything I want. Don't wanna stream anything. Breeze in my face, sunset, this forum. Then beer.