Gas 'less' Route

[T6ChrisO]

Hi all,

Reaching out to the guys in the know regarding inverters and elec installations etc.

I want to go ELEC only route on my current camper which means I want to run an induction hob. Just on the Renogy site with @Deaky discount code in hand and trying to figure out what I need. Im thinking of not bothering with an EHU......

So is all I need:

170Ah Lithum battery - 12V 170Ah Lithium-Iron Phosphate Battery

2kW inverter - 2000W 12V Pure Sine Wave Inverter With English Standard Socket (with UPS Function)

Monitor - Monitoring Screen for Smart Lithium Battery Series

Is that all I need to power anything less than 2000W? (which covers most things to be honest)

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[Dellmassive]

You need 100ah per 1000w worth of inverter according to Renogy.

So 200Ah worth of battery.

Ie 2x100ah lifepo4.

 

[Dellmassive]

Probably a 50A DC-DC charger. Renogy one is good.

And some massive beefy cable.

 

[Dellmassive]

I would recommend 200-400w solar as well.

 

[Dellmassive]

Using induction hobs, kettles, toasters, microwaves etc

Will take a large chunk out your battery pack,

So you need a good fast way to recharge every day.

 

[Dellmassive]

Id add a decent EHU mains charger too. (To charge at home or remote from EHU)

 

[T6ChrisO]

Cheers Dell. I did wonder about how I would recharge after a good chunk had been used. Gas-less looks quite an expensive route to go down.......
Unless I do just go inverter, lifePO4 but add EHU. It will be mostly booked onto sites rather than off grid

 

[DXX]

Wallas XC Duo is by far the best piece of kit in my van.

 

[Dellmassive]

Cheers Dell. I did wonder about how I would recharge after a good chunk had been used. Gas-less looks quite an expensive route to go down.......
Unless I do just go inverter, lifePO4 but add EHU. It will be mostly booked onto sites rather than off grid

If you wanted basic.

Id say the min you would need.....


DC-DC - lifepo4 - inverter - EHU charger.

 

[T6ChrisO]

Wallas XC Duo is by far the best piece of kit in my van.

Just had to Google this but that does look very interesting! So its a heater and a hob, very interesting..........

 

[DXX]

Just had to Google this but that does look very interesting! So its a heater and a hob, very interesting..........

If you search the forum you’ll find some feedback from myself and others.
As an engineer I struggle with the term ‘maintenance free’, however I’m now 5 years in and no issues or maintenance requirements.
I use it a bare minimum of twice a week and up to three times a day for 2 months at a time when travelling plus day and night heating in winter.

 

[DaveCrampton]

I'm wondering why you are wanting to go Gasless? You can make do for boiling water etc with a simple gas canister and an MSR Pocket Rocket or one of the popular (and simple) flat square Portable Gas Stove.

 

[T6ChrisO]

I'm wondering why you are wanting to go Gasless? You can make do for boiling water etc with a simple gas canister and an MSR Pocket Rocket or one of the popular (and simple) flat square Portable Gas Stove.

Purely down to less hassle for me as the camper will be rented out so I dont need a Landlord Gas Safety cert or to keep stock of the gas bottles etc. I currently have to swap bottles out depending on how long its hired out for once it gets low

 

[DaveCrampton]

Great! But I'd consider the renter expects everything and to pay nothing, so they will not be bothered about running the battery completely flat and then leaving you the hassle of charging before the next hire. have the battery setup to charge automatically as the renter will expect that. It may be (expensive but) prudent to have two batteries, so you can swap the flat battery for the fully charged battery and then charge the flat battery over the week before the next hire.

 

[T6ChrisO]

Yeah that is my biggest worry so I definitely need to go EHU really. I've rented my current camper for 12 months and i've been lucky that the battery has never come back flat but thats because that has a full EHU set up including gas hob. Im starting to think I might just go gas again.........

 

[Bigsidavies]

I would think for a hire van it would be troublesome. You’ll get people who think they can boil the kettle 10 times a day, and cook an evening meal on the induction hob and ring you when they’ve got no power after day 1.
I’d say you’ll deffo need EHU and a mains charger.

 

[paddy26]

I'm not sure it's suitable for a rental.
A battery protect cannot be connected in series with an inverter. There may be an option to get a battery protect to trigger the inverter to turn off but I haven't looked into that enough to confirm.
It's a huge cost compared to the conventional gas and ehu setup.

I would suggest fitting a battery protect to your current rental as it will protect the battery from permanent damage.

 

[DaveCrampton]

I'm sure you are aware of the setup of some of the forum members, but some have a battery charger connected straight off the EHU to charge the vehicle battery. This then via a DC to DC charger tops up the leisure battery. If you add in a solar panel, there are three ways of charging up the leisure battery, driving to and from the campsite, from the Solar panel during the day, and additionally if the van is connected to the SHU.

 

[DXX]

Gas in a confined space to the uninitiated, possibly disinterested / inebriated is possibly not a low risk venture. Thinking about the van not their eyebrows.

 

[paddy26]

I'm sure you are aware of the setup of some of the forum members, but some have a battery charger connected straight off the EHU to charge the vehicle battery. This then via a DC to DC charger tops up the leisure battery. If you add in a solar panel, there are three ways of charging up the leisure battery, driving to and from the campsite, from the Solar panel during the day, and additionally if the van is connected to the SHU.

The renogy inverter also has the option for passthrough EHU/SHU. So standard operating is it pulls from the batteries and when plugged into EHU/SHU it pulls from EHU/SHU.

It's still reliant on an educated end user. For breakfast they will try run the induction hob on max setting for fry/porridge. At the same time the toaster is on or kettle is filled with 1.7l of water for 2 cups of coffee. And then get frustrated when things stop working.
The gas route is tried and tested and is currently more suitable for the average rental user.