Man boondocking with a generator

[tuffr2]

My question, I plan to use the generator to charge my one group 27 battery. While the generator is running I will use the micro wave to cook, and heat water for a shower. I do not need A/C and hopefully not heat. I want to run the generator as little as possible.

How many hours a day will I need to run the generator?

[gbstewart]

That's hard to say. It all depends what you are doing how long your doing it for
We start our generator in the morning make coffee , toast etc we run about an hour, then supper time , give or take run about hour or so. The battery we have is the same as yours, and we can run the lights and radio for the rest of the night . Seems to work ok but your not watching tv or drawing extra power

[vsheetz]

One group 27 battery is not much to charge so will charge quickly. But on the other hand won't last long either if much usage and then requiring more frequent charging. So hard to estimate...

[tuffr2]

I will only use the radio and a few lights at night. I will be boondocking in June and July when daylight hours are the longest. So some nights I might go right to sleep.

I plan to shower every other day and sponge bath the other days.

Keeping my phone charged will be a concern but my truck has a live outlet that will help.

The more I think about it, this will be easier than initially thought. I have access to water and currently have containers to carry water.

[dix39]

That is all we had in our second TC and we boondocked just fine with it for 23 years. We ran nearly everything on propane. We too ran the gen for a short time in the morning as my wife heated her tea/coffee water in the micro and we let it run a short time to warm up charge the batt.

After a few years of trying to keep a charge in the battery with significant furnace use I added a catalytic heater which took care of that problem.

There were a few times that the camper bat ran down too much to start the gen and we had to start the truck engine to get it going. I don't think that happened after adding the catalytic heater.

If you're really in the boonies, be careful not to run the truck battery down.

Our gen was built in and ran off propane. We, I should say my wife, ran it for the AC whenever she was too warm and it always worked out all right.

After a trip or two you'll have it figured out. Enjoy!!

Steve

[Unicorn Driver]

For phones you should purchase some 10000mah Usb charging battery packs. They will also run USB fans I have.

[tuffr2]

1stMH - yea, that is right. I forgot all about those. Thanks. It can charge the phone battery a few times!!!

[Old-Biscuit]

One Group 27 Battery ......try to stay above 60% SOC

Might take gen 2-3 hours of run time to fully charge

[Unicorn Driver]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

1stMH - yea, that is right. I forgot all about those. Thanks. It can charge the phone battery a few times!!!

That's just reminded me order more for the home and one for the coach. Got two 20,00mah ones for 36$ for the pair.

We also use them to charge LED spot lights.

[Soppy]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

My question, I plan to use the generator to charge my one group 27 battery. While the generator is running I will use the micro wave to cook, and heat water for a shower. I do not need A/C and hopefully not heat. I want to run the generator as little as possible.

How many hours a day will I need to run the generator?

Need to know a couple of things . What type of charger do you have and what is its charging current. Also have to know how much power is being taken out of the battery.
If your battery is 100 amp hrs , and you run it down to 12 volts (50% discharged) and you have a 25 amp charger , your generator would have to run at least 2.5 hrs to fully recharge the battery. Most times a 1.5 hr run in the morning and another at night will do.

[MisterT]

no one, no really, NO ONE, is going to be able to 'tell you' how long your generator will run each day - we are all different and your usage and needs are different than everyone elses, your systems have different demands and wattage needs depending on age, type, and how you 'use' them, your batteries age and condition as well as your number of amp hours they support, and your generator type, size, and power output, as well as your charger, will all 'contribute' to the time. And, did I mention weather, as in temperature?

Without you giving it a try for a while, and starting to understand your 'real world' usage of your electrical needs, which even change every day, there's really no way anyone of us can tell you anything.

Not to be a wet towel on your original question, but electrical usage and generator run times are too broad to approach even a guess.
Two homes, side by side, the same size, layout, and with the same number of folks, and saying that they use electricity the 'same' everyday, will have different electricity bills, sometimes VERY different. People 'say' they do things one way, but how they actually do them can be very different when it's all said and done. You may find the same. : )


enjoy!

[dexters]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

My question, I plan to use the generator to charge my one group 27 battery. While the generator is running I will use the micro wave to cook, and heat water for a shower. I do not need A/C and hopefully not heat. I want to run the generator as little as possible.

How many hours a day will I need to run the generator?

At least get another battery.

Also, look into solar. It gives you more flexibility.

I have the below to run my DISH TV box.

I have 260 watts of panels and 2 12 volt batteries.

https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-Power-.../dp/B01DP9JE18

[winniman]

I agree on getting more than one battery if you want to boondock. Get a few 6 volt deep cycle, and use a volt meter to keep an eye on the voltages. Go by the chart that someone put in this thread earlier. Try to keep your batteries in the top 50 percent for longer battery life. We boondocked a lot this winter, but we were in a 40 ft rv with four six volt house batteries and an on board inverter. We ran the furnace at night and watched tv. We would run the generator for a couple hours in the morning, then a couple more in the evening. This worked for us. Your needs will differ, so get a volt meter so you can keep an eye on your battery levels. I would say generally, plan on running it for at least a few hours a day.

[aether_one]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

My question, I plan to use the generator to charge my one group 27 battery. While the generator is running I will use the micro wave to cook, and heat water for a shower. I do not need A/C and hopefully not heat. I want to run the generator as little as possible.

How many hours a day will I need to run the generator?

As long as it takes to replace the amp-hours depleted from the battery since your last full charge.

Is the only correct answer.