Recharging battery while dry camping?

[QB Sneak]

Planning to do dry camping this summer and would need to know if those portable power stations can recharge my trailer battery. i have a noco genius battery maintainer/trickle charger that i use for the winter. can i plug it to the portable power station so i can recharge the trailer battery while dry camping?

i have a Wolfpup 16BHS that also has a solar panel with it. was told that it can recharge the battery a little bit as well as starting my tow vehicle, once in awhile, while being connected to the trailer. without shore power, just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by QB Sneak

Planning to do dry camping this summer and would need to know if those portable power stations can recharge my trailer battery. i have a noco genius battery maintainer/trickle charger that i use for the winter. can i plug it to the portable power station so i can recharge the trailer battery while dry camping?

i have a Wolfpup 16BHS that also has a solar panel with it. was told that it can recharge the battery a little bit as well as starting my tow vehicle, once in awhile, while being connected to the trailer. without shore power, just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual.

You probably have a 12v only fridge right?

[W5CRE]

Originally Posted by bikendan

You probably have a 12v only fridge right?

Wow Dan, you really have an issue with 12v refridgerators. The man asked about charging his battery not about keeping his stuff cool.

In response to the OP. Yes you can do that but it's not very efficient.

[tomkatb]

Anytime you convert ac to dc or dc to ac there is some loss. So, you want to avoid that. In this example the conversion of dv to ac for the charger would be 20% or more. So, not a good plan.

In general these small self contained battery packs, or whatever they are called are to power minor devices. Like cell phones. Unless they are a big one.

You need a small generator or a big roof for solar.

Learn the math and figure how much your battery device could provide. Not a simple issue.

How many watts is your power device?

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by W5CRE

Wow Dan, you really have an issue with 12v refridgerators. The man asked about charging his battery not about keeping his stuff cool.



In response to the OP. Yes you can do that but it's not very efficient.

The OP was asking about recharging so it stands to reason, that a 12v only fridge will be a significant power drain, therefore more recharging needed. OP's last sentence: "just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual."
Do you not agree?

[Reverse_snowbird]

I think it's a fairly accurate statement that you're going to discharge that battery faster than you can recharge it. You're relying on solar to recharge it and that also depends on where you camp and if you have sun. Recharging from your tow vehicle is going to be a slow charge also.
I've looked at those portable power stations and my guess is that it wouldn't recharge the battery in the time or the level you need it to recharge.
You might want to get a battery monitor and try some 'driveway camping' before you take off. Or camp overnight in a campground without using the electric.

[MR.M]

Originally Posted by QB Sneak

Planning to do dry camping this summer and would need to know if those portable power stations can recharge my trailer battery. i have a noco genius battery maintainer/trickle charger that i use for the winter. can i plug it to the portable power station so i can recharge the trailer battery while dry camping?

i have a Wolfpup 16BHS that also has a solar panel with it. was told that it can recharge the battery a little bit as well as starting my tow vehicle, once in awhile, while being connected to the trailer. without shore power, just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual.

If you keep it simple which most people don't a small generator is in order . 1000 to 2500 watt unit will take care of battery and provide power for microwave under 900 watts . with generator you should get min 10 amp norco the maintainer will not help

[distracto]

Originally Posted by Reverse_snowbird

You might want to get a battery monitor and try some 'driveway camping' before you take off. Or camp overnight in a campground without using the electric.

These are both great ways to stress test your system safely.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by MR.M

If you keep it simple which most people don't a small generator is in order . 1000 to 2500 watt unit will take care of battery and provide power for microwave under 900 watts . with generator you should get min 10 amp norco the maintainer will not help

If using a generator why not just let the converter do the charging of the batteries. No need to purchase a separate charger.

A "solar suitcase" (recommend 200 watt) would be a great way to either charge or add charging capacity for off grid camping.

Even with solar charging capability for absolute power security a generator with minimum 1000 W capacity should be strongly considered. Sometimes there isn't enough sun,

[itat]

Originally Posted by W5CRE

Wow Dan, you really have an issue with 12v refridgerators. The man asked about charging his battery not about keeping his stuff cool.

In response to the OP. Yes you can do that but it's not very efficient.

Originally Posted by bikendan

The OP was asking about recharging so it stands to reason, that a 12v only fridge will be a significant power drain, therefore more recharging needed. OP's last sentence: "just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual."
Do you not agree?

The current specs for the OP's (QB Sneak's) Wolf Pup 16BHS camper says it has a "Cannon™ 12V, High Efficiency, 11 Cubic Foot Residential Refrigerator with Travel Lock". Not sure about an option for a propane/electric fridge which would be a much less power hungry option for dry camping.

[Kenludwig]

Originally Posted by QB Sneak

Planning to do dry camping this summer and would need to know if those portable power stations can recharge my trailer battery. i have a noco genius battery maintainer/trickle charger that i use for the winter. can i plug it to the portable power station so i can recharge the trailer battery while dry camping?

i have a Wolfpup 16BHS that also has a solar panel with it. was told that it can recharge the battery a little bit as well as starting my tow vehicle, once in awhile, while being connected to the trailer. without shore power, just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual.

I agree the refrigerator will be a MAJOR factor in figuring how much your battery will need to be recharged. Is the RV by your house? If so experiment for a few days now and see how long your battery last. If you decide to buy a generator I found the Westinghouse that Lowes sells is under $600. And it will also power your a/c and microwave ( not at the same time) it is about the size of the 2000w Honda but has the extra power to run the a/c then when you plug your camper into the generator that will charge your battery. Yes the portable 200w solar suitcase is well worth the investment and will HELP in charging battery.

[trees]

Agree with most. Titan Mike shares my thoughts.

It really depends on your amperage burn rate, max battery amperage storage, type of battery, and recharge capability. Solar is a good addition to a generator. I do use a battery to battery charge routine as part of my charging but have user history to know the best option. My typical routine is to keep the battery while boondocking. My specs: 100 amp marine battery with approx 40 amp hours usable storage. I have continuously monitored voltage and checked the amp draw of all 12v devices for max efficiency tradeoff.

1. Use Yamaha inverter 900-watt generator during peak evening or morning amperage draw times. This prevents max draw of battery and instead recharge.

2. During the generator plug-in of the travel trailer I plug in my 20 amp lithium stand-alone charger to recharge my stand-alone lithium.

3. After several hours my lithium is usually recharged enough. Shut down the generator.

4. Use a small DC to DC charger. Supply power = lithium. Recharge to the marine house battery. This will prevent the further discharge of marine battery during nighttime and instead slowly recharge the battery. Lead-acid battery loves this type of charging.

[stsimmer]

We have a wolf pup and dry camp occasionally. I have two options for recharging - a 100W solar panel and jumper cables. I don't have an auxiliary generator because they are noisy, dirty and I already have one in the Tacoma's alternator.
Some details follow. The electric feed through the hitch wire is too weak to effectively recharge your battery. The reason is "line loss". Jumper cables, with a direct battery to battery fat wire connection will enable you to run your engine at idle and charge the trailer battery. The solar panel works well when the sun shines. But on cloudy days and/or a well shaded campsite, it is not enough. If I bought panels today, I would get a 200W kit. If I can collect 15 - 20 amp hours a day, it is sustainable.
Power management tips:
Make sure all light fixtures have LED bulbs;
We ventilate using the "Fantastic Vent" in the bathroom ceiling, which was an upgrade. Very effective and efficient. At low speed, we can run it all.day;
The onboard stereo uses a lot of power;
I upgraded the battery to an AGM type. AGM's take a solar panel charge more efficiently than a lead-acid type.
Finally, we have a propane fridge. If yours is a 12V, electric power demand will be higher. If possible, try to find out what the maximum power draw is.
Good luck.

[Tundra 2014]

I am a fan of the Kill-A-Watt meter, about $25 on Amazon. You plug it into your 30 amp shore power cable w/ a 120 adaptor. Then you turn on what you plan to use. It will show you what amperage or watts you are using and will give you a sum over time. It is limited to 15 amps. For my TT I added 2-group 31 batteries to replace the single group 24. Then I added a 200 watt foldable solar panel and later a 2000 watt generator. This covered everything except AC and we use a small Mr. Heater at night along w/ furnace and blankets. We have spent 6 weeks bondocking for a week at a time, but we had propane frig.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Tundra 2014

I am a fan of the Kill-A-Watt meter, about $25 on Amazon. You plug it into your 30 amp shore power cable w/ a 120 adaptor. Then you turn on what you plan to use. It will show you what amperage or watts you are using and will give you a sum over time. It is limited to 15 amps. For my TT I added 2-group 31 batteries to replace the single group 24. Then I added a 200 watt foldable solar panel and later a 2000 watt generator. This covered everything except AC and we use a small Mr. Heater at night along w/ furnace and blankets. We have spent 6 weeks bondocking for a week at a time, but we had propane frig.

I installed one of these in my TT:



Not limited to 15 amps. Comes in handy when running generator with A/C and need to see if I have enough "room" to run the microwave too.

$19 on Amazon.

[MarsbarsCT]

I have a 2020 Wolf Pup 16 FQ, and I was livid after I realized that it was a 12-volt only fridge upon pickup (and yes--I did ask if it was propane when I purchased it). I dry camp almost all the time. I have the small solar juice pack on the roof only. I simply had to give up on the fridge. So, now I just bring ice blocks and use the fridge as a cooler. It stinks, but at least I have the camper--I got it right before covid, and it cost me about half of what they cost now. I'd say this was some kind of fate, so I'm just grateful!

[JoJackKerr]

I have a wolfpup 16bhs 2016 or 17, I can't remember which, and dry camp all the time. I use a small quiet Yamaha generator to charge it when needed. I have been thinking about adding solar but just haven't done it yet. We've figured out that we have about 3 to 4 days of power with the battery and then have to charge. However, we are frugal with our usage. We unplug the microwave, we try not to use the lights to much so we installed battery operated lights into the cabinets and near the bed, etc.. our fridge is propane. We're also depending on where we're going carry another small generator the same as the other one to use the power in parallel of needed. ie air-conditioning. We camp a lot in the desert southwest so there are times when we really want it.

[JoJackKerr]

By the way the little charging station won't recharge your trailer. We have one and use it for the laptop, phones, as a compressor for the tire full up and as jumper cables if ever needed.

[poihths]

TitanMike, would you mind identifying the device in the picture in your post?

[jlynn721]

Originally Posted by QB Sneak

Planning to do dry camping this summer and would need to know if those portable power stations can recharge my trailer battery. i have a noco genius battery maintainer/trickle charger that i use for the winter. can i plug it to the portable power station so i can recharge the trailer battery while dry camping?

i have a Wolfpup 16BHS that also has a solar panel with it. was told that it can recharge the battery a little bit as well as starting my tow vehicle, once in awhile, while being connected to the trailer. without shore power, just concerned that my battery will be discharged faster than usual.

Get a generator. That’s the simplest answer. That should recharge your trailer battery and your portable power station, as you are going to need to do that too if boon-docking for any period of time.