Battery and Solar
- Thread starter Hilldweller
- Start date
teotwaki
Excelsior!
thanks!
It was interesting to see such low amperage hits in the data. Maybe at the cooler temp there was enough stuff (thermal mass) inside that it didn't need to do much to stay cool.
Engineer Guy
New member
Paradigm Shift
A 'Solar 101' Rule I incorporated into our new House is 'energy you store and never lose, you never have to replace'. Our 6" Slab Floor and super-Insulation minimizes Space Heating energy input needs forever.
Applied to Electricity, the RV Big Rig Owners create some Systems from which things can be learned, even though that Lifestyle is not the ideal here. >1,000 AH Battery Banks for Boondocking are not unheard of.
Series/parallel Golf Cart Batteries would allow TV Charging en route with long Boondocking times between charging from any source. For example, only 2 of 4 Batteries can be used if recharging will occur more often. I was all ready to go Solar PV with my next install, but will TV/Genny charge instead. I loves my Gauges, so Meters and a Battery State-of-Charge chart are necessities. 'Knowledge is power', no pun intended.
PV breakage; shading; theft; sunny parking location, etc., all disappear as issues. Driving around to recharge, as mentioned above, applies only to non-flywheel-sized Battery Banks and/or higher-than-req'd energy consumption rates. A 'Sine Wave' plot of energy use/replacement time has greater excursions. The Boondocking time available is greater; the recharge time and amperage rate is as well. Wire sizes are rethought, and very large.
Rigid PolyIso Insulation, at > R-7/inch - with Vents cut as req'd - can enclose any technology Fridge or Cooler to lower replacement energy needs. Freezing Ice Blocks is another thermal flywheel.
'Astrofoil' under the bottom Bedding, and in key 'warm zone' areas, minimizes Electric Blanket usage or Space Heating requirements by utilizing Body Heat Infrared 'Space Blanket' style.
Astrofoil
There's a type that is flat and has no 'Bubblepack' construction. I used it above our Attic to reflect Summer heat out of the Attic, allowing Ceiling super-Insulation to work 'against' ~30 F degree cooler Summer Attic temps. Indestructible material.
Zero Energy Use Houses first appeared >3 decades ago in Mags like 'Practical Homeowner' and 'Mother Earth News'. I modeled my hybrid Solar design after a >20 year old article in 'Home Power Magazine'. These Houses are now built for turnkey occupancy nearby in Boulder CO, as well as in Germany [to name 2 places]. The concepts apply to portable domiciles on wheels herein, but it takes some discipline to fundamentally rethink old assumptions and accept new ones. Energy doesn't become 'free'. You simply time-shift the input, and source, of it.
The cheapest Watt available is the Watt never needed, thanks to Conservation; Insulation; and storage after initial charging.
A 'Solar 101' Rule I incorporated into our new House is 'energy you store and never lose, you never have to replace'. Our 6" Slab Floor and super-Insulation minimizes Space Heating energy input needs forever.
Applied to Electricity, the RV Big Rig Owners create some Systems from which things can be learned, even though that Lifestyle is not the ideal here. >1,000 AH Battery Banks for Boondocking are not unheard of.
Series/parallel Golf Cart Batteries would allow TV Charging en route with long Boondocking times between charging from any source. For example, only 2 of 4 Batteries can be used if recharging will occur more often. I was all ready to go Solar PV with my next install, but will TV/Genny charge instead. I loves my Gauges, so Meters and a Battery State-of-Charge chart are necessities. 'Knowledge is power', no pun intended.
PV breakage; shading; theft; sunny parking location, etc., all disappear as issues. Driving around to recharge, as mentioned above, applies only to non-flywheel-sized Battery Banks and/or higher-than-req'd energy consumption rates. A 'Sine Wave' plot of energy use/replacement time has greater excursions. The Boondocking time available is greater; the recharge time and amperage rate is as well. Wire sizes are rethought, and very large.
Rigid PolyIso Insulation, at > R-7/inch - with Vents cut as req'd - can enclose any technology Fridge or Cooler to lower replacement energy needs. Freezing Ice Blocks is another thermal flywheel.
'Astrofoil' under the bottom Bedding, and in key 'warm zone' areas, minimizes Electric Blanket usage or Space Heating requirements by utilizing Body Heat Infrared 'Space Blanket' style.
Astrofoil
There's a type that is flat and has no 'Bubblepack' construction. I used it above our Attic to reflect Summer heat out of the Attic, allowing Ceiling super-Insulation to work 'against' ~30 F degree cooler Summer Attic temps. Indestructible material.
Zero Energy Use Houses first appeared >3 decades ago in Mags like 'Practical Homeowner' and 'Mother Earth News'. I modeled my hybrid Solar design after a >20 year old article in 'Home Power Magazine'. These Houses are now built for turnkey occupancy nearby in Boulder CO, as well as in Germany [to name 2 places]. The concepts apply to portable domiciles on wheels herein, but it takes some discipline to fundamentally rethink old assumptions and accept new ones. Energy doesn't become 'free'. You simply time-shift the input, and source, of it.
The cheapest Watt available is the Watt never needed, thanks to Conservation; Insulation; and storage after initial charging.
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Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
I'm having the trailer wired for a solar input but not ordering anything yet. I'll use it with the two M31F Optimas first and see how it goes.
The flexible tarp panel seems to be the one that will work for us since it's the lightest and easiest to move/pack. But with the Jeep doing charge duty en-route, maybe we won't need anything else. We never stay in one place all that long...
The flexible tarp panel seems to be the one that will work for us since it's the lightest and easiest to move/pack. But with the Jeep doing charge duty en-route, maybe we won't need anything else. We never stay in one place all that long...
MuleShoer
Adventurer
teotwaki
Excelsior!
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
Plus, Optimas are awesome batteries.
I spoke to the manager of a 4WheelParts yesterday and he says that once he started teaching customers how to properly charge an Optima, he's had zero returns.
Many people don't care for their batteries correctly.
I spoke to the manager of a 4WheelParts yesterday and he says that once he started teaching customers how to properly charge an Optima, he's had zero returns.
Many people don't care for their batteries correctly.
RubiconGeoff
Adventurer
Optima's batteries are either much more sensitive than other battery brands regarding "properly charging" or "caring for their batteries correctly", or else they're just piles of crud nowadays. I don't know anyone who hasn't had problems with Optimas in the last several years. Most of us have switched to Deka Intimidators or Odyssey (Die Hard Platinums) and the chronic problems have completely ended.
Buy a good battery, and you don't have to baby it. My uses don't exactly coddle my batteries, so Optima's aren't for me.
NuggetHoarder
Adventurer
Compared to Optima's, the Diehard Platinum's work out to be less money for more amps and they have a better warranty. There are about 900 Sears stores in the US and about 200 in Canada so replacement of a Diehard while traveling should not be too problematic.
HenryJ
Expedition Leader
Amen!
I gave them the benefit of doubt and lost a fourth time. They just won't fully charge in a vehicle after a while. I forgot and left the inverter on powering the laptop over the weekend. One day and my old Yellowtop would require help to start the truck. The Diehard Platinum fired up like nothing had happened after nearly three days abuse.
Diehard torture lab - I love this one ...vs the bullet
I was an Optima believer and still have three over a decade old. Sumth'n happened with the new owners. They went wrong. I should not have to worry about how I charge my battery. Install it. Feed it what I have and I want it to flourish. That is why I had to find a new animal.
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RubiconGeoff, our batteries aren't any more sensitive to charging and care than any other AGM battery. They do have very low internal resistance, which allows them to provide power well beyond their specified ratings, but also allows them to discharge more deeply than batteries with higher internal resistance. As a result, many of the “bad” batteries returned to us now are just deeply-discharged and work fine, when properly recharged. My wife's truck is driving around with a “dead” YellowTop battery that was discharged to 7 volts when it was returned to us.
Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries
Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
How'd you resurrect it? Parallel charge with a good battery?
teotwaki
Excelsior!
How about a longer warranty if they are that good? I've been through 2 or 3 yellow tops and am on a blue top now. My mounting tray is Optima specific so I'm kind of stuck. My Starting battery was replaced with a Sears because the warranty is very good.
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Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
Yellowtops have a 3 year replacement warranty; that's pretty good for a battery that welcomes abuse.
Maximus Ram
Expedition Leader
The DH Plat i just put in my Dodge has a 4 year free replacement.
I just wish I could get my old Yellow top fixed.....It still holds a charge , bu thte neg post developed a verticle split and is corroding the post...I loved my old yellow top...still have one in the Jeep
I just wish I could get my old Yellow top fixed.....It still holds a charge , bu thte neg post developed a verticle split and is corroding the post...I loved my old yellow top...still have one in the Jeep