Basic Electric Setup for around £500?

[Phil1]

Hi all, apologies as it’s probably been asked many times however there are so many posts to read and it’s frazzled my brain.

Can I get a leisure battery system for around £500 to do the below or is a Bluetti AC180 more suitable (if suitable!)?

- Mainly just long weekends.
- I have a Halfords Advanced 40l Compressor coolbox for food
- would like some power for phones and ceiling light
- maybe use a small electric grill for cooking
- Mainly summer months but it would be good to have some form of heating like a blanket or very small heater (I might go diesel heater at some point).

Thanks

 

[Salty Spuds]

Hi all, apologies as it’s probably been asked many times however there are so many posts to read and it’s frazzled my brain.

Can I get a leisure battery system for around £500 to do the below or is a Bluetti AC180 more suitable (if suitable!)?

- Mainly just long weekends.
- I have a Halfords Advanced 40l Compressor coolbox for food
- would like some power for phones and ceiling light
- maybe use a small electric grill for cooking
- Mainly summer months but it would be good to have some form of heating like a blanket or very small heater (I might go diesel heater at some point).

Thanks

If you’re prepared to DIY, then:-

Yes- Mainly just long weekends.
Yes- I have a Halfords Advanced 40l Compressor coolbox for food
Yes- would like some power for phones and ceiling light
No- maybe use a small electric grill for cooking
No- Mainly summer months but it would be good to have some form of heating like a blanket or very small heater
Yes-(I might go diesel heater at some point).

 

[Phil1]

Thanks, yes happy to DIY! Is the yes/no for the Bluetti or getting a leisure system?

Also I’ve just seen another interesting post on someone else’s query which could overlap from @T6VanLife …would something similar work? Thanks!

I use an AC70 with a 200w panel on the roof to power my entire van (fridge, heater, lights) I then use it to power one of these: Amazon.co.uk

I have it running in Power Supply Mode (switched via the app) then run it to a 6 way 12v fuse box and then to your appliance's, job done ! see below for rough layout.

200w Panel ---- AC70 PowerStation ----240v---- Victron Bluesmart 12v 30amp converter ----12v---- 6 way fuse box ---- Appliance's.

 

[T6VanLife]

@Phil1 Well as far as Powerstations go it totally depends on your personal power requirements and how long your going to be off grid, but in my experience they work brilliant as an easy Plug & Play solution. if you have the space & budget you can go for a huge capacity PowerStation and be off grid for days & days ! but bear in mind the bigger the PowerStation the longer it takes to charge, bigger solar panels, ect..

I find with my setup I get about 8-9 hours of battery backup then once the sun comes up the panel takes over, I used to use a portable 120W panel but it was a pain in the ass and I was always fearful some scrote would nick it while we were away hiking/kayaking !

At the moment its currently powering:
Fridge 35-60w (intermittent depending on ambient temperature)
20w Led lights
Diesel heater (160w for about 5 mins on startup then ramps down to about 20w)
Tap & water pump (about 30w for a minute while you fill the sink or kettle)

If your running all of the above flat out at night and only relying on its internal 768wh battery it will only last about 6-7 hours, but as of yet we haven't been in that situation and are sensible/mindful about the systems limitations off grid, and I still have the EB55 I can daisy chain or swap out if the AC70 runs out which will give us another 5 hours. But if you are on sites and using EHU plugged into the PowerStation the none of that matters.

I am seriously considering installing the Bluetti Charger 1 as emergency backup when fully off grid, with that installed you will never run out of power as it will charge the AC70 in an hour just by turning on the engine.