Off Grid Trailers

Jseda3g

Jseda3g

New member
4000lbsOfGoat said:
Here is the truck by itself with Icon RXT springs, set up in the heaviest configuration:
View attachment 823942

And here is the truck and trailer, with those springs, after a couple thousand miles pulling the trailer. You can see that it doesn't sit quite so proud anymore...The trailer is clearly a bit low on the tongue end. It started out level...
View attachment 823943


And here is the truck and trailer after a couple thousand miles with Deaver Expedition Stage III springs. Possibly not the best angle, but the rear of the truck clearly sits higher, and the trailer is now a bit high on the tongue end. Truck and trailer are loaded up the same amount in both picks.
View attachment 823944
Click to expand...
Thanks for the photos, looks good!! I have Dobinson MRA coils with Deaver stage 3 leafs and Archive Garage u-bolts. Truck and trailer should be fine
 
4000lbsOfGoat

4000lbsOfGoat

Well-known member
Jseda3g said:
Thanks for the photos, looks good!! I have Dobinson MRA coils with Deaver stage 3 leafs and Archive Garage u-bolts. Truck and trailer should be fine
Click to expand...
Hopefully it holds up well for you! I would also highly recommend hydraulic bump stops if you're planning to pull the trailer over rough terrain. All that weight bottoming-out on the stock bumps is no bueno. Icon and King both make them, I'm sure others do as well. It's well worth the investment.

Safe travels!
 
Jseda3g

Jseda3g

New member
4000lbsOfGoat said:
Hopefully it holds up well for you! I would also highly recommend hydraulic bump stops if you're planning to pull the trailer over rough terrain. All that weight bottoming-out on the stock bumps is no bueno. Icon and King both make them, I'm sure others do as well. It's well worth the investment.

Safe travels!
Click to expand...
I meant I have aftermarket extended bumpstops, I don't know why I put u-bolts in my previous post. Long day.....
 
4000lbsOfGoat

4000lbsOfGoat

Well-known member
OlderGuy said:
Newbie Here.....Gettin' ready to pull the trigger on a Expedition 3.0......or even a well-maintained Used Expedition 2.0 (if I can find one)
However....Two questions for the general group (in no particular order):


And....I realize that the Expedition 3.0 is a new product, so if your answers apply to a Expedition 2.0 that's okay.
I can infer.

1. Have you ever considered (or had the need for) some form of a water filtration system?
1a. Does OGT even offer something like that as either "Stock" or an Add-on?
I've pored all over their website & if water filtration is mentioned, I can't find it.

.....All it takes is ONE bout of Montezuma's revenge to start thinking about filtration.....don't ask me how I know



2. How many days have you been able to run completely "Off Grid" - using only the "stock" Electrical System ?
2a. Did you feel the need to upgrade from the "stock" ?

Guesstimated/Projected MAXIMUM "load" would be:
* The fridge - 24hrs/day
* Two Laptops - 2-6 hrs per day each - Max
* Two Phones - 2-6 hrs per day each - Max
* Two Tablets - 2-6 hrs per day each - Max
* One string of LED lights - 2-6 hrs per day - Max
* One hour (or so) of interior lights (reading,etc.) per day
Click to expand...
This is a bit of an older post, but it looks like no one gave you any answers...

Water filtration -
I just use a regular inline filter that attaches directly to the hose. You can pick them up at any camper shop, and many regular hardware stores.

That being said, we don't actually drink the water from the tank. All of our drinking water gets run through a Lifesaver jerrycan. One of the best investments I've ever made!

Power -
The most I was really able to manage fully "off grid" from the stock electrical system was about 2 days. That is if there is no charging available at all.
The stock system leaves a lot be to desired so yes, I did feel the need to upgrade to:
  • (2) 100Ah BattleBorn LiFePO4 batteries - these have more than double the usable capacity of the stock batteries.
  • Redarc BCDC1212 charger - this runs directly off of the 7-pin connector (no additional wiring necessary) and keeps the batteries charged up during long driving days. If you will be driving multiple days in a row, especially in hot weather, it's vital to be able to charge while driving.
  • Victron 100/30 solar controller fed by 280 watts of panels - in full sun this will top up the previous nights usage before noon.
Laptops are your big battery killers. We would generally wait to charge those until the batteries were full and the charge controller was "floating", i.e. all the power from the panels just goes straight to the laptop, with no draw from your batteries.

Bear in mind that your fridge doesn't actually run 24\7. Temp is going to have a pretty major effect on power usage, but it is never running all the time (and they are shockingly efficient).

With this setup, charging at least one laptop every day, and sometimes 2, and being somewhat diligent about usage otherwise, we can pull 4 days without any inputs - probably 5 if I knew for sure I could get a full charge at the end of that day.

If the sun is shining, the only limit is water.
 
Jseda3g

Jseda3g

New member
4000lbsOfGoat said:
Here is the truck by itself with Icon RXT springs, set up in the heaviest configuration:
View attachment 823942

And here is the truck and trailer, with those springs, after a couple thousand miles pulling the trailer. You can see that it doesn't sit quite so proud anymore...The trailer is clearly a bit low on the tongue end. It started out level...
View attachment 823943


And here is the truck and trailer after a couple thousand miles with Deaver Expedition Stage III springs. Possibly not the best angle, but the rear of the truck clearly sits higher, and the trailer is now a bit high on the tongue end. Truck and trailer are loaded up the same amount in both picks.
View attachment 823944
Click to expand...
Do you have the Fabtech suspension or the Timbren?
 
4000lbsOfGoat

4000lbsOfGoat

Well-known member
Jseda3g said:
Do you have the Fabtech suspension or the Timbren?
Click to expand...
Timbren. The Fabtech wasn't available when I got mine, but I don't think I'd have wanted it anyway - it's a lot of added expense for, in my opinion, no real added benefit.

The Timbren setup has worked superbly in all manner of conditions.

Jseda3g said:
Just ordered an Expedition 3.0 today
Click to expand...
Congratulations! I hope it arrives in a timely manner and gives you many years of happy camping!
Are they still delivering directly from Canada or are they running through the new dealership in Colorado now?
 
Jseda3g

Jseda3g

New member
4000lbsOfGoat said:
Timbren. The Fabtech wasn't available when I got mine, but I don't think I'd have wanted it anyway - it's a lot of added expense for, in my opinion, no real added benefit.

The Timbren setup has worked superbly in all manner of conditions.


Congratulations! I hope it arrives in a timely manner and gives you many years of happy camping!
Are they still delivering directly from Canada or are they running through the new dealership in Colorado now?
Click to expand...
I ordered through Canada so it'll be shipping from there. I got the fabtech suspension so the tongue is raised a few inches. I don't want to run too big of a drop hitch, my taco hitch is at 28" due to the lift/tires and high-clearance rear bumper so I'll need around a 3" drop.
 
4000lbsOfGoat

4000lbsOfGoat

Well-known member
Jseda3g said:
I ordered through Canada so it'll be shipping from there. I got the fabtech suspension so the tongue is raised a few inches. I don't want to run too big of a drop hitch, my taco hitch is at 28" due to the lift/tires and high-clearance rear bumper so I'll need around a 3" drop.
Click to expand...
You may want to think about one of these couplers for the trailer: Ark Off-Road Coupler

1710453162469.png

It can be installed in either direction so it could reduce the amount of drop you need on the hitch - bring the coupler up, instead of bringing the ball down.
This coupler has worked really well for me, with the added benefit that it can be removed completely when I leave the trailer parked and unattended.

It's easier to hook up than a Lock-N-Roll or a Max Coupler - and a fair bit stronger than either.
 
O

Obsessed2findARuggedHybid

Well-known member
This is the hitch I run as well. Ironically the only way my trailer fits in my garage length wise is if I pull it off. Also it is convenient if you need another vehicle to recover trailer do to stadard ball mount. I believe it is rated to 5,000 pounds so not for heavier trailers.
 
Jseda3g

Jseda3g

New member
4000lbsOfGoat said:
You may want to think about one of these couplers for the trailer: Ark Off-Road Coupler

View attachment 824353

It can be installed in either direction so it could reduce the amount of drop you need on the hitch - bring the coupler up, instead of bringing the ball down.
This coupler has worked really well for me, with the added benefit that it can be removed completely when I leave the trailer parked and unattended.

It's easier to hook up than a Lock-N-Roll or a Max Coupler - and a fair bit stronger than either.
Click to expand...
Thanks I’ll check it out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
187,907
Messages
2,899,805
Members
229,071
Latest member
fireofficer001

Members online

Total: 545 (members: 30, guests: 515)
Top