solar or generator

[Deleted member 3011]

Deep intake of breath in anticipation of the Wrath of........... Solar panels, I have a 43 watt and a 90a/h battery and have never wanted extra power, I can charge my laptop, camera, and phone with no need of any extra power. I run a 150 inverter too and even in winter I can use my laptop.

No wrath - more like incredulity perhaps - unless of course you move on every day in winter, or your winter is spent in Morocco or you don't actually do any significant time wildcamping, or your use of the inverter and laptop are kept to a minimum..

i intend to do europe for a year and want to be self reliant as much as possible i have two 110 amp lesiure batts is solar the way or generator
any advice most welcome

As other posters have pointed out, the answer depends entirely on your RVing lifestyle and includes not only the obvious factors such as what equipment is installed in your MH and how long each day do you intend using high consumption items such as computers, entertainment systems and fan-forced heating, but also things like how many days do you want to be able to wildcamp for and in what season in which area you wildcamp (assuming you want to do it at all), how far you drive each day and how often you are likely to be on electrical hookup. Another factor is whether your van is equipped with a proper charger that can take a battery to 100% charge, or whether it is just a so-called "float" charger.

With two reasonable size batteries, no excessive power consumption, a bit of driving every two or three days and an occasional EHU to get your batteries fully charged, you may be able to lead a very comfortable life without going to the expense of either a solar system or a generator.

 

[barnybg]

Well folks,To be honest if i were 'going away' for 6 months to a year WILDCAMPING then i would splash out and buy the two,a small gennie,big enough to charge vehicle battery etc AND a solar panel (by the way solar panels these days dont need sun!)
40 amp or 85 amp solar i'm not quite sure on,but if you can afford ,then the bigger the better,not forgetting the safety diode overcharcher thingy.
As for wind power,overpriced,underpowered,useless,noisy,clumbersome equipment.
Two batteries preferably,and even if enough room under bonnet a spare 'engine' starter battery,it's not funny finding the perfect spot,miles from anywhere,down a small winding track,next to the beach blah blah blah you overstay it and cant start your pride and joy.....What do you do !!!?You can get away with it in the UK but somewhere in Turkey,Bulgaria,Africa etc.......

 

[scatigaz]

Ok i can see there is much divided opinion about the use of gennies. I am currently wanting some advice on buying a genny. Which are the better ones and which should i avoid. Personally i would not use one within about 100 metres of another vehicle as i think this would be unfair. Any advice would be very welcome. btw i dont want to pay thro the nose for one lol.

 

[scatigaz]

Thanks ***** for that info. When you say it depends on how much use you give it......does that mean it performs less efficiently the more use you give it or is it because you have only used it for 15 hours and you question is it worth the price you paid and that is why you would buy a less expensive model such as the kippor.

 

[guerdeval]

I've got a 'gasparini' 12volt genny fitted as I'm pretty much all 12volt, if the batteries drop below 11.5 volt it automatically switches on and charges them back up to 13.5 volt, takes about half hour, it runs on gas and is very quiet , the thing is though as we drive every day or two it has only ever switched itself on twice in 2 years, I think if I look back I wouldn't have bothered as it cost £2000, I'd go for the cheapest portable and just use it for emergencies in a layby or somewhere it wouldn't disturb anyone.

 

[jogguk]

Why do people object so much to the perceived noise of genny's Things have moved on a bit from when it used to be caravanners who dragged out a frame mounted Machine Mart thing and had the ground vibrating.

Modern gennys are reasonably quiet, are less intrusive if run for short periods than 110db screaming kids or howling dogs I have been woken up numerous times at night by really noisy diesel powered Eberspacher heaters firing up, It appears these heaters are tolerated and no one complains

Also not all M/H's can accommodate solar panels (of a useful size)successfully, great if you have a flat roof c/built but a lot of van conversions have rounded rooves and vents in the way to boot

Honda really missed a big marketing opportunity by not introducing a "built-in" or underslung version of their 2Kw genny, possibly because they didn't do a diesel fuelled version to make it viable to the diesel M/H market

OK I have an Onan 2.3kw genny which is permanently mounted underneath the rear of my van. Fuel taken from the main vehicle tank and remote start are ovbious benefits, having it permanently installed means a decent silencer and exhaust can be fitted

john

 

[derekfaeberwick]

Honda have missed out on Diesel altogether.
Bet they are not long in making up lost ground though.