Monty... Thanks for the info. That "Power Room" must look like the bilge of an old WW2 submarine what with the batteries, inverter, generator and all the necessary wires. If I can find the room in our rig, I think I will try a similar arrangement. My wife insists on including her Espresso machine as part of her "absolutely essential tack" in our rig so battery and inverter city--here I come. John Hawes
----- Original Message ----- From: "Nancy Mitts" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, April 30, 2002 7:44 AM Subject: Re: [RC] [RC] Inverters: > John, > We isolate by unplugging the truck while parked. When hooking to leave, the > batteries will only accept about 10 amps. (We run an 8 guage wire back to > the batteries. The regulator on the truck takes care of it. We never see a > surge on our ammeter. > As far as an overload on the alternator, our Dodge has a 175 amp. > alternator. > The golf car batteries are about 50 lb each. We mount them in the rear > compartment, we use it as a "Power room" for the inverter, batteries & > generator. Also room for water tubs, rake, shovel, etc. Have a mid-tack for > the horse things. > We do keep a close watch on the electrolyte level on any battery that is > charged & discharged frequently. > If anyone is going to try this, remember the golf car batteries are 6 volt, > so you need them in pairs hooked in series to get 12 volt. > The 2 - 6 volts in series will have twice the power storage capacity as 1 > 12v deep cycle marine battery. The battery manufacturer recommended the golf > car batteries for our type of use, and we've been very pleased with it. > > Monte Mitts > > >From: "Patty Hawes" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >To: "Nancy Mitts" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, > ><[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Subject: Re: [RC] [RC] Inverters: > >Date: Mon, 29 Apr 2002 16:09:37 -0700 > > > >Hi Monty > >How do you manage isolation of the golf cart batteries from the auto > >batteries, i.e. isolation diodes or "1 both 2 OFF" type switch? Do you > >find > >the golf cart batteries need attention to electrolyte level often? If you > >rely on the automobile alternator to charge the batteries, what do you > >think > >the initial surge of charging current will be if the batteries are well > >discharged? Where do you mount them? Four golf cart batteries gotta weigh > >a ton. Sounds like a set-up as you have described is going to be an > >electrical "challenge" for the alternator. All-in-all, sounds like a heck > >of a good idea. John Hawes > > > _________________________________________________________________ > MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: > http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx > =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
