Batteries now so cheap - you don't need a system?

[Mad Manny]

All campers & overlanders, whether Vehicle-Based or pulling an Off-Road trailer, have a power system to run the fridge & maybe other stuff like lights etc.
Some guys, like me, have a simple cable to the rear to run a fridge - no 2nd battery, no solenoid, no DC-DC charger, nothing.
Others have a 2nd battery running off the alternator, either direct or through a solenoid or DC to DC.
Some have Off Road Trailer/Caravan with a battery, that can be charged via the vehicle (while towing) the sun via Solar through an MPPT or, if the campsite allows, via 220v supply.

The other night I found a 300Ah 12v LiFePo4 battery for under R10k,
So, for a 3 or 3 day camping outing, you could arrive at the venue & plug the fridge into the battery & have cold beers for a few days, no need for a DC to Dc, or an MPPT or even an AC to DC charger.
Obviously you run the fridge off the vehicle while en route to the venue & obviously you leave home with the battery fully charged.
Just recharge when you get back home.

It's almost the cheapest back up system for a trip of 2 or 3 days.
Cheaper than an Ecoflow Delta (or similar) all-in-one power box & it has far greater output.

Or what say you?

[Samaya]

That could be a good deal and a cheapish solution but I'm a firm believer "Goedkoop koop, is duur koop". Do you have a link to the battery?

[Asjas]

Sounds pretty fair for a weekend warrior, simple amd definitely effective.
Just before my namib trip found a 100aH LI-PO around R3k. Slaped it in the bos trailertjie with 2x100A solar pannels and didnt give us any issues for 27days. Running lights ,chargers and a 65l NL fridge/freezer.

So yeah 300ah fully charge would probably pull you through any long weekend for a few lights and a 12v fridge/freezer.

[LX]

Sounds about right, Li Battery prices have gone down, even more for Residential Solar Installations, a 48V-100Ah is now around R16k. A 12V-300Ah LiFePO4 Battery for that price is definitely not bad at all, I'd recommend it.

[Mad Manny]

That could be a good deal and a cheapish solution but I'm a firm believer "Goedkoop koop, is duur koop". Do you have a link to the battery?

https://www.geewiz.co.za/lithium-ion-ba ... ycles.html

[Mad Manny]

GeeWiz have a Revov 200Ah, 2nd life for R7500. 00

[NicoPotgieter95]

I'm still busy building out my bakkie and the budget isn't big so at the moment I only have the power cable coming from the main battery to the back. I bought my Snowmaster 66l a few months back when Checkers Outdoor had their special, it runs directly from the main battery and when the bakkie isn't idling the fridge screen flashes the battery icon and shows half charge so maybe my battery is on it's way out. I did plan ahead though and put proper cable and fuse so I can eventually fit a lithium battery box in the rear to keep the fridge running for longer and possibly add some camp lights to the roof rack. The box I'm considering comes equipped with the battery, charger and inverter and it's solar ready as well. Maybe it's overkill but I'd rather pay once and have something that won't let me down in the long run.

[Mad Manny]

Nico, I have had my Snonaster running off the Cranking battery for over 24 hours without issue...

[Bugger]

Nico, I have had my Snonaster running off the Cranking battery for over 24 hours without issue...

Nico
Manny does not drink his beers cold so fridge never reaches temp

[NicoPotgieter95]

Haha funny, ja I like my beers ice cold so I'll continue saving for that battery box.

[PsyPhin]

My CF50 pulls around 45w when the compressor is running.
A 300AH x 12V is 3600w. Since we dont want to use 100%, maybe work on 90% of that @ 3240w in a lossless system.
So if my compressor was running 100% of the time, I can get 72 hours of runtime worst case.

I would guess my compressor runs 1/3 of the time at night, half the time during the day if it isnt sitting in a hot car and set to -5C.
So maybe 10 hours runtime in a day?
That gives me a full week on 1 charge with a few assumptions but typical conditions.

[Mad Manny]

Thanks Kevin, that's my point, you'll easily get 3 or 4 days run-time.
So, unless you are going for 5+ days your really only need the battery...

[Redman]

Definitely getting easier and more affordably. Especially for newbies who don't necessarily want a complicated system.

Add to this the price of solar panels coming down as well as some relatively cheap basic controllers it will be quite a nice way of building up your system little by little.

[Bugjuic]

I hear you Manny

For all that money, only wanting to spend 3-4 days on a "charge". Batteries take up a lot of space, fridges with compressors are large and bulky. Thus two years ago I did a test and did Rivertrip only with a coolerbox and dry ice. 6kg of dry ice, covered it inregular ice blocks, then stacking from colder items(like frozen meat) and all the way on top my Dairy products and beer. The total of my trip was 5 days. Day 1-3 my dry ice worked like bomb, did not see any change in my regular ice. Days 4-5 my ice started working(melting), but by that time, all I needed was too keep drinks cold so having the items wet was not a bother.

Point being if you are talking about a 3 day trip, space and money wise I prefer My Romer coolerbox wit dry Ice. I can purchase a lot of dry ice with R3000-R7000

Anything longer than that, I would definitely put in a DC-DC system of solar or both...

Sometimes we forget the simple things like a regular coolerbox because we believe we need all the gadgets. 20 years ago it was a backpack and one coolerbox between 5 people sharing and also worked...

[PsyPhin]

Get 3x of these, will last you a weekend for under R4k
2x will prob even be fine if its just a fridge and a few LEDs
https://www.builders.co.za/Load-Sheddin ... 0850012182