Community Forums

tomk52 · 10-19-2018, 05:50 PM

Does anyone use an Inverter attached to the tow vehicle to supply AC power while boondocking? I was thinking of using a 3K inverter running off the truck batteries in place of a generator. That would allow me to use the remote start on the TV when I need to make coffee in the morning.

twinboat · 10-19-2018, 06:01 PM

That could work.

Just be careful not to draw your truck battery down overnight, to where it won't start.

Truck start batteries are not deep cycle. Run them down to many times and they die.

They make a start battery protector that cuts the power to accessories at a set voltage, to save your battery for starting.

tomk52 · 10-19-2018, 06:06 PM

I was thinking I would only use it with the engine running to keep the batteries charged.

cfowler55 · 10-19-2018, 09:38 PM

in your profile you list a 40' fifth wheel, so what is your TV? Diesels with particulate filters are not recommended to have extended idle times, unlike the diesels of old.

twinboat · 10-20-2018, 04:24 AM

What's considered " Extended idle times ".

A pot of coffee only takes a few minutes.

gordofuchs · 10-20-2018, 04:59 AM

Actually, if you are just brewing some coffee, you probably wouldn't need to run the TV.

Sweetbriar · 10-20-2018, 05:34 AM

A little unconvention but no reason the setup wouldn't work. The one problem you have to consider is DC power losses due to supply wire size and length. Heating devices such as a coffee pot or a hair dryer can have some demanding wattage requirements. For the inverter to be effective and to support high power devices you might may need rather heavy and short length power cable bolted to the DC power source to be effective.

A small and quiet 2000 watt inverter type generator might cost more but would be a much simpler and a bit more flexible setup for other uses than an inverter tied into your TV 12VDC power.

tomk52 · 10-20-2018, 07:31 AM

How about connecting the inverter to the 5th wheel battery and running the TV to keep the charge up?

ScoobyDoo · 10-20-2018, 10:15 AM

I don't electricity to make coffee, but I have had another strange idea. When camping we often use the TV for sight seeing thru the day. While away from the camper, the power demanded by camper is low. Mount a smaller battery to camper, to supply what is needed when not home. Mount the main part of battery bank on TV, with long fat wires to hook to RV when on site. The batteries would re-charge while using the TV...