Castanet

So I bit the bullet yesterday and picked up two 12v Costco batteries and the 90w Colman solar panel kit, also Costco. I also have a third 12v nautulaus agm for the boat motor for back up and I think I'll throw the 1000w generator to run a battery charger, just in case. Should be good to go for the walmart parking lot.

My next question is about trailer slides. I have two slide outs and in the book it says a fully charged 12v battery is required to power them in and out. In the event I do run out of juice would plugging the trailer into a running truck work? I did read there is a manual crank if it doesn't work.

Fixer 166 wrote:My next question is about trailer slides. I have two slide outs and in the book it says a fully charged 12v battery is required to power them in and out. In the event I do run out of juice would plugging the trailer into a running truck work? I did read there is a manual crank if it doesn't work.

In my experience yes but it helps to let the truck run a bit to charge your house batteries.
My slides are hydraulic and don't know if that makes a difference.
I also brought them in once with jumper cables from a good battery directly to the pump motor.

Sudsy, there was a Good Sam group from K-town in Hedley last week,

Bubalouie wrote:Sudsy, there was a Good Sam group from K-town in Hedley last week,

There are several groups in the Okanagan. Ours is in Enderby this week.
Coming up soon a few of us are heading to Alberta for a couple of weeks. Going to visit our relatives in Drumheller. (Dinosaurs)

Anyone here uses their RV to tow their trailers? What towing kit are you using? I current installed a Blue Ox Towing kit from 4WheelOnline will post some pics asap.

fixer; if you say you have a 1000 w get set with you, just fire it up and plug trailer into it and push slides in or out. works even if batteries are almost dead.

Here's a question for you guys:

12V deep cycle or "golf cart" battery for an RV?

Golf cart battery is 30% more expensive. Worth it?

TylerM4 wrote:Here's a question for you guys:

12V deep cycle or "golf cart" battery for an RV?

Golf cart battery is 30% more expensive. Worth it?

The real answer is what ever combination provides the best balance of amp-hour capacity and your needs. The simple facts are that 12v batteries are NOT true deep cycle batteries and are not made to take the deep discharge and re-charge cycles that RVs put on them. 6V batteries such as Trojan T-105, T-125 or T145 are and offer better amp hours output than a set of 12V batteries with a way longer life span. 1 12V will only have around 80-100 AH while 2 6V will typically have 200-230 AH. Rule of thumb is you are never supposed to discharge below 50% so two 6v will definitely give you more Amp hours.

I always recommend a solar system for RV's, but that is obviously a big expense. I'd suggest to start by changing out your most used lights to LED. It will be a minor expense and save you a tonne of power. Depending on which bulbs you get, you can run 10 to the same power usage as one incandescent.

I just went on a six night camping trip and i have two trojan T-105's with a 200 watt solar system and i had full power everyday by 9 am........And that is with running the tv, lights, water pump, and all the parasitic draws like fridge and propane sniffer.

My travel trailer is a 2018 and has power everything and I honestly worry about running out of gas before running out of power these days, its to the point where i don't even try to conserve anymore.

On the other hand if you don't boondock 2 12's or even just 1 will do just fine.
Our 5th wheel is a 2011 and still has the original 2-12v deep cycles in it.
We have never been without power.

Well we finally got out the weekend before last for the big shakedown and what a test it was. We drove west on the Friday the fires started and I've never seen winds and lightning like that. We watched lightning hitting all around us with trees exploding into sparks and smoke. The crosswinds were so strong that there was a time I was ready for the trailer to blow over. This was about the time I realized the need for anti sway bars. We ended up skirting he storm, kind of driving around the front, and by the time we got to Beaumont Provincial Park the sun was coming out and we were in for a nice weekend. From the kayak on the Friday I watched the Fraser lk fire grow each day. Anyway back to the rv. Things went great, no problem with the two 12v batteries paired with the 90watt solar panel, batteries were charged the whole time. A couple issues, other than the fun of a 36' bumper pull with no anti sway bars lol. I should have flushed the water system a bit more, there was a bit of an antifreeze smell and a pink tint. The other issue was the stench of mildew from the awning. Wow. I rolled it out and it was dripping with grossness. I tried to convince wifey to leave it out to dry but after a walk and smelling it from across camp I rolled it up. A good scrub when I got home and viola, good to go. All in all it was a great trip, looking forward to the next one.

Fixer 166 wrote:Well we finally got out the weekend before last for the big shakedown and what a test it was. We drove west on the Friday the fires started and I've never seen winds and lightning like that. We watched lightning hitting all around us with trees exploding into sparks and smoke. The crosswinds were so strong that there was a time I was ready for the trailer to blow over. This was about the time I realized the need for anti sway bars. We ended up skirting he storm, kind of driving around the front, and by the time we got to Beaumont Provincial Park the sun was coming out and we were in for a nice weekend. From the kayak on the Friday I watched the Fraser lk fire grow each day. Anyway back to the rv. Things went great, no problem with the two 12v batteries paired with the 90watt solar panel, batteries were charged the whole time. A couple issues, other than the fun of a 36' bumper pull with no anti sway bars lol. I should have flushed the water system a bit more, there was a bit of an antifreeze smell and a pink tint. The other issue was the stench of mildew from the awning. Wow. I rolled it out and it was dripping with grossness. I tried to convince wifey to leave it out to dry but after a walk and smelling it from across camp I rolled it up. A good scrub when I got home and viola, good to go. All in all it was a great trip, looking forward to the next one.

For the awning mix a 20% bleach and water with a bit of Dawn dish soap. Spray both sides of the awning and roll it up for 15-20 min. Soft brush and rinse off and you are good to go with the cruddy black marks all gone.

Thanks. I used oxy clean mixed with vim w/bleach. Slobbed it on with a car wash brush, let it soak and it scrubbed off nice. It seems like this is going to be a spring chore.

Be careful with what type of chemicals you put on your awning. Depending on what the material is, harsh chemicals like bleach and dish soaps can cause deterioration especially once exposed to UV.