Cold Weather Camping

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Jeepster360

If your honda 2000 only runs for 4hrs a tank then, I would say, something is wrong. Are you using eco mode? I can run my 2000 honda to run the furnace on eco mode for a good 7/8 hours, maybe 9 until it's dry. I have a couple of them.



Having said that, I am looking to buy a new champion 4500 dual fuel so I an run the AC without paralleling the two Hondas. I plan to sell one to help buy the 4500.



John

9 hours on a tank of gas sounds like a sales pitch.

My eu2000 would only run for 4 hours, powering 2 battery chargers, charging a drawn down 800 AH battery bank.

Eco mode only kicks in when there is little load on them, like keeping a battery charged that's got a 7 amp draw on it, like a gas furnace.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Cumminsfan

I've ran my Honda 2000W for 8 hours on Eco many many times. It is amazing how long it runs on 1 gal of gas. Once it gets the batteries into float mode it just purrs for hours.

If its in float mode and purring for hours, shut it off.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by dlmorris

Any voltage below 12.2 on LA/AGM batteries is toasting them permanently.

Any discharge it toasting batteries. They are like tires, the more mileage, the more wear.

Battery life is depth of discharge dependent.
If you only discharge them to 50% they last twice as long as discharging them down to 10%.
Problem is you need double the batteries to do that, or you have to switch off your heat in the middle of the night.

50% discharge is a myth.

[Telephonebil]

Snowboarding in the Sierras we have spent many a night in freezing temps. We’ve endured 2 feet of snow on top of our RV. One suggestion would be to get your chains on before you need them. Bring extra blankets and the like just in case you loose batteries or power. I’ve never ran the gen all night but I have lost batteries due to their age. Make sure all detectors work properly. We were in 50 plus mph winds and the furnace exhaust was being pushed back in the RV. At 1am the detector went off. Point the rig head in to the wind not side to the wind. Levelers are a game changer when chaining up. One side at a time with copilot holding foot brake. Good luck. Stay warm.

[MechEngrSGH]

I just spent 17 days in WY where temps only got above freezing for a few hours on 4 days. Several days winds were 25MPH gusting to 45. I have a custom-built expedition rig on an F350 with both diesel air and coolant heaters (no propane or generator). The coolant heater is my go-to when below freezing but both still roast you out even below 20F. My biggest resource is I have 2-1/2" thick walls rated at R14 and insulated blackout blinds that keep my heat loss low. I have tested it and determined I can keep 50F temperature rise (20F outside and 70F inside) with ~800W/2.7kBTU. My 14-gallon auxiliary diesel tank is for heater fuel and back up to the vehicle's main tank. I can heat the cabin and water for 24 hours with somewhere between 1-2 gallons (diesel has ~130kBTU/gallon). The coolant heater can also preheat the engine and use engine heat to heat a tank of hot water when I move. I had not completely finished installing my planned insulation and heat taping of my exposed 'wet' items so had to get busy to get that done....A key part of my freeze protection system I think any RVer who camps in the cold is a water recirculation system, initially designed to purge cooled water out of hot water piping so I don't get a face of cold water in the shower or waste water running it to get heated water. It serves a dual purpose for freeze protection in that I can periodically open the shower circulator just to keep the water lines moving without losing any down the drain. I also will heat a full tank of hot water and then run the circulator which 'returns' the 5 gallons of 180F water into the (insulated) fresh tanks, keeping them warm for a day or more. I have planned to put a timer and motorized valve to do this automatically about every hour to ensure water in lines that is beginning to freeze gets moved back to the tank. I mention the water recirculation because I think it works really well and it is something I think a handy guy could do to any RV. I also monitor 14 different temp sensors to be aware of the temperature of everything.

[2Curtass]

Originally Posted by dkschieffler

Did you use about 4 to 5 so called 20 lb. Bottles? I’m going next week in Ark with nightly lows in mid 20s and wondering how much propane to take.

I have two 30lbs. tanks on mine and went through 2 and some of a third one. I drove to town and filled up with propane.

[2Curtass]

Originally Posted by tzensen

Was it windy at 20 below?

It was only windy before the cold front moved in. Once it moved in the wind stopped.

[Cumminsfan]

Originally Posted by twinboat

If its in float mode and purring for hours, shut it off.

Why? i have other things running usually like maybe the Tv and a Dish. Those do nothing to add rpms. I run a 2000W inverter as well and if I'm catching some TV then I need to leave the gen running regardless of battery charge.

[Marine359]

With night temps of 20F, a single 20# bottle of propane should heat a 25ft TT for three days at 65F thermostat. First person awake makes coffee using a kettle heats the trailer up to 70F. If we have FHU, we turn thermostat down to 60F and supplement with a small ceramic heater running 1000w. It will also run off the inverter if needed. Carrying three 20lb bottles means you will never run out, as you can swap out the bottles used for the coach and your propane generator, leaving you with one full bottle while you go for fill ups on the other two.

[Jeepster360]

Originally Posted by twinboat

9 hours on a tank of gas sounds like a sales pitch.

My eu2000 would only run for 4 hours, powering 2 battery chargers, charging a drawn down 800 AH battery bank.

Eco mode only kicks in when there is little load on them, like keeping a battery charged that's got a 7 amp draw on it, like a gas furnace.

My bad. I thought you were only trying to keep the batteries up while running the furnace at night. I did get close to 9hrs one night. It didn't get near as cold as was forecast. Heater only cycled a couple times. It was probably closer to 8.5hrs. I will say my honda has never run out a full tank in 4hrs. I have never needed to run the A/C with the generators yet either. Just lucky I guess.

John

[440scout]

Originally Posted by MechEngrSGH

I just spent 17 days in WY where temps only got above freezing for a few hours on 4 days. Several days winds were 25MPH gusting to 45. I have a custom-built expedition rig on an F350 with both diesel air and coolant heaters (no propane or generator). The coolant heater is my go-to when below freezing but both still roast you out even below 20F. My biggest resource is I have 2-1/2" thick walls rated at R14 and insulated blackout blinds that keep my heat loss low. I have tested it and determined I can keep 50F temperature rise (20F outside and 70F inside) with ~800W/2.7kBTU. My 14-gallon auxiliary diesel tank is for heater fuel and back up to the vehicle's main tank. I can heat the cabin and water for 24 hours with somewhere between 1-2 gallons (diesel has ~130kBTU/gallon). The coolant heater can also preheat the engine and use engine heat to heat a tank of hot water when I move. I had not completely finished installing my planned insulation and heat taping of my exposed 'wet' items so had to get busy to get that done....A key part of my freeze protection system I think any RVer who camps in the cold is a water recirculation system, initially designed to purge cooled water out of hot water piping so I don't get a face of cold water in the shower or waste water running it to get heated water. It serves a dual purpose for freeze protection in that I can periodically open the shower circulator just to keep the water lines moving without losing any down the drain. I also will heat a full tank of hot water and then run the circulator which 'returns' the 5 gallons of 180F water into the (insulated) fresh tanks, keeping them warm for a day or more. I have planned to put a timer and motorized valve to do this automatically about every hour to ensure water in lines that is beginning to freeze gets moved back to the tank. I mention the water recirculation because I think it works really well and it is something I think a handy guy could do to any RV. I also monitor 14 different temp sensors to be aware of the temperature of everything.

Wow! Thats a fantastic setup! You could probably do fine within the Artic circle!

[Species8472]

Most propane regulators are rated to -20C / -4 F (see the label on the regulator). Mine developed a small leak at -20C. So, unfortunately my learned rule now is not to camp under -20C.