Furrion 12V Fridge on Battery Power

[Mikec557]

Originally Posted by KnP

On this game, you spend some good coin and in few months some better shows up at a better price.

Gotta luv tech

I admit, I am a tech junkie... who can't afford his habit! LOL!
We were full-timing when I justified the two BattleBorn batteries (and I do love them). But now we're just summer birds looking to flee the Arizona heat in summertime. If I were buying now, I'd buy two of the above $500 batteries.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by KnP

... The reason that I am asking is because I want to replace the 12V and add another or swap the 12V for two 6Vs depending on power demand and output. Or... leave it as is. ...

I suggest dual 6V GC2s.

Considering your plan to be camping off-grid for not more than about 12 hours, you also have to consider the time you're driving on the days before and after the overnight stop. The refrigerator is dependent on the battery the whole time, not just when you're camping. The door being closed while driving will help but Ah consumption is not zero.

Since your stops without power will be short and infrequent, LFP batteries are expensive overkill. (I have 200Ah of LFP batteries and understand the benefits.)

[KnP]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

I suggest dual 6V GC2s.

Considering your plan to be camping off-grid for not more than about 12 hours, you also have to consider the time you're driving on the days before and after the overnight stop. The refrigerator is dependent on the battery the whole time, not just when you're camping. The door being closed while driving will help but Ah consumption is not zero.

Since your stops without power will be short and infrequent, LFP batteries are expensive overkill. (I have 200Ah of LFP batteries and understand the benefits.)

Thanks for the input.

[KnP]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

I suggest dual 6V GC2s.

Considering your plan to be camping off-grid for not more than about 12 hours, you also have to consider the time you're driving on the days before and after the overnight stop. The refrigerator is dependent on the battery the whole time, not just when you're camping. The door being closed while driving will help but Ah consumption is not zero.

Since your stops without power will be short and infrequent, LFP batteries are expensive overkill. (I have 200Ah of LFP batteries and understand the benefits.)

Forgot to say... The Truck charge the battery and power the camper while driving. When I stop, depending the lenght of time, I disconnect the camper from the truck as a precaution. I rather have a dead camper battery than a dead truck battery.

[GravelRider]

Originally Posted by Mikec557

I have two 100 Ah Battleborn batteries. Cost was about $1700. When I bought there were not many alternatives, and they all seem to cost about the same. Now there are cheaper alternatives such as these. 400 amps would be "only" $2000...

https://www.amazon.com/LiFePO4-Batte...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

EDIT : If you do want the Battleborn, and if you're going to buy more than 1, join Escapees RV. BB gives members $100 off the going price for each battery and 15% off accessories. Meaning everything else you buy in the order. That's worth the $45 join fee.

Holy crap, $800 for a 200 Ah LiFePo battery?! It has me pondering now...

[Mikec557]

Originally Posted by GravelRider

Holy crap, $800 for a 200 Ah LiFePo battery?! It has me pondering now...

Speaking as a tech junkie, be careful. The addiction will come on fast...

That said, we found having 200 usable amps of lithium and two 160watt solar panels on the roof has eliminated any concern.

[GravelRider]

Originally Posted by Mikec557

Speaking as a tech junkie, be careful. The addiction will come on fast...

That said, we found having 200 usable amps of lithium and two 160watt solar panels on the roof has eliminated any concern.

I'm already a bit addicted. I've got 4x 6 V GC2 batteries (so 215 usable) with 800 W solar, which does the trick... But on days-on-end rainy or cloudy days, sometimes the solar has trouble keeping up. Being able to charge at twice the speed sounds nice...

[llr]

The manual says it has an off-grid setting that doesn't sound to bad. I assume this disables the defrost heaters.

Typical Runtime (Off Grid Usage, powered by
100amp/hr battery)
49 hours @ 77°F (25°C)
31 hours @ 90°F (32.2°C)

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by KnP

Forgot to say... The Truck charge the battery and power the camper while driving. …

If you put a battery monitor on your battery I think you'd find it doesn't do that as well as you think. The 12V wire leading from the truck to the trailer isn't large enough to carry much current.

Speaking of a battery monitor, since you've expressed concern about the state of charge of your batteries, it might be worth considering. I'm not sure if your use case justifies it, though. If you upgrade to around 200Ah of lead-acid and are usually plugged in, I think it would be safe to assume you'd be good for two travel days with one overnight stop. But, if you'll ever be camping somewhere without power for a few days, you're blind without one.

There's lots of information elsewhere about battery monitors. These links represent the range of options. There may be other choices. I used to recommend the QWork (which I have) as being adequate for most occasional users but, if it doesn't break the bank, the Victron SmartShunt is easier to install and use, and has additional features that may add value.

QWork wired battery monitor, $60

Victron SmartShunt bluetooth (wireless) monitor, $130

Victron BMV-712 battery monitor, $206

[rsdata]

If you put a battery monitor on your battery I think you'd find it doesn't do that as well as you think. The 12V wire leading from the truck to the trailer isn't large enough to carry much current.

YES this ^^^

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by GravelRider

Holy crap, $800 for a 200 Ah LiFePo battery?! It has me pondering now...

Depending on the BMS it uses, it may be better to have 2 x 100Ah vs 1 x 200Ah. SOK batteries*, for example, are well-made and well-reviewed, though they cost more than $4/Ah. Their 100Ah and 200Ah batteries cost about the same per Ah ($5) and use the same BMS with a discharge limit of 100A. That means you can power a 2KW inverter at full power (~170A?) with 2 100Ah batteries in parallel but a single 200Ah battery can't do that.

Also, if a 200Ah battery fails for some reason, you have nothing until it's fixed. If one of a pair of 100Ah batteries fails, you still have 12V.

*I have and like SOK batteries but have no association with and do not benefit from their sale.

[GravelRider]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

Depending on the BMS it uses, it may be better to have 2 x 100Ah vs 1 x 200Ah. SOK batteries*, for example, are well-made and well-reviewed, though they cost more than $4/Ah. Their 100Ah and 200Ah batteries cost about the same per Ah ($5) and use the same BMS with a discharge limit of 100A. That means you can power a 2KW inverter at full power (~170A?) with 2 100Ah batteries in parallel but a single 200Ah battery can't do that.

Also, if a 200Ah battery fails for some reason, you have nothing until it's fixed. If one of a pair of 100Ah batteries fails, you still have 12V.

*I have and like SOK batteries but have no association with and do not benefit from their sale.

Thanks for the info. To be honest, I keep thinking about going lithium, but my current setup works well enough that I'm realistically not going to upgrade on this trailer. We're planning to sell this one in the next year or two and get something else. On that one, I'll definitely go lithium when I get the solar set up. I say this now, and in two months the wife will be yelling at me for buying more stupid batteries. lol

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by GravelRider

… We're planning to sell this one in the next year or two and get something else. …

Not to encourage you to spend money you shouldn't, but batteries are portable. Consider, though, that lithium batteries need a different charge voltage. If you don't have a solar charge system (it's not a requirement to benefit from LFP) you'll need a different converter/charger. That's more money.

[GravelRider]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

Not to encourage you to spend money you shouldn't, but batteries are portable. Consider, though, that lithium batteries need a different charge voltage. If you don't have a solar charge system (it's not a requirement to benefit from LFP) you'll need a different converter/charger. That's more money.

I've got an 800 watt/60 amp MPPT setup that would work with lithium or LA... But that's going to be sold with the camper. I'm not taking it all apart and filling in holes in the roof. I could always transfer the batteries, but realistically, I'm planning on doing another build from the ground up once I get the new camper. I'm hoping the prices will come down further once I'm ready to do this.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by GravelRider

... I'm hoping the prices will come down further once I'm ready to do this.

Unless something weird happens with metal prices, they will.

[Bhrava]

Originally Posted by llr

The manual says it has an off-grid setting that doesn't sound to bad. I assume this disables the defrost heaters.

Typical Runtime (Off Grid Usage, powered by
100amp/hr battery)
49 hours @ 77°F (25°C)
31 hours @ 90°F (32.2°C)

It doesn't work very well though. I would also suggest you keep it running while parked at home on shore power. If it lasts more than 2 months, you may be OK, but ours failed within 2 months of getting the trailer. It would also drain the 105AH battery in 6 hours with no sun for the 50 Watt solar, or go all day with full sun, but not make it through the night. We have an Everchill now, though haven't done a full battery test with it, but it is noticeably much quieter and stable.

[21wolfpupfq]

My experience - OEM battery/50W Solar & Furrion 12v fridge. Stayed one night last weekend at Harvest Host Vineyard MD - mostly cloudy/misty day but sun came out late in the afternoon - cool and breezy -day temps in mid to low 60's while night time dipped into 40's. Ref was on 'off-grid' setting about 1 hour prior to the 3 hr drive and stayed on until we returned home. Besides the Ref, power consumption came from several minutes(off/on) of furnace use, water pump and interior lights. Wall volt meter stayed 12.x but I did reconnect to a running TV in the morning while getting ready to head out to another non-hookup site about an hour away and since we we're staying longer, the propane generator was used there sparingly in the afternoon & evening. Overall, no issues with battery/ref since we got the TT and started camping Jun-Sep last year.

I've been debating in my head to replace the battery with the Sam's club 6v Duracells or equivalent but can't really justify the cost replacing a good functioning battery since I have a generator anyway and most of my 'boondock' location allows its use or just reconnect/run the TV for extra juice.

[doanshop]

Do your self a favor go to lithium 100 amp lithium is equal to 2 100 amp lead batteries https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...PFWRERMB&psc=1 I like that the heater is built in solves cold charging issue .

[KnP]

Those things are pricey !!

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by KnP

Those things are pricey !!

Yes but, if you're going to use them a lot, they're more economical. If only occasionally, not so much.

They last for many more cycles, you can get more of the charge out of them and they recharge much faster.