Best Of
Re: Anyone choose no propane stove and use induction plate?
My portable induction plate I use at home uses 1800 watts to cook (maximum). If you are always plugged in, or running a generator, it would work. From your batteries (I guess two of them for about 100 amp hours total) the induction would draw 150 amps, (1800 watts divided by 12v) so you would be limited to at most about 45 minutes of use before having to recharge your battery bank.
I'm assuming the 1800 watts on the induction.....you may be discussing one that uses much less power, so you need to put the wattage number of any induction into your plan.
Someone else will have to discuss whether a generator would let you run any other appliances while using the 1800 watt induction plate.
And, welcome to the Forums!
Re: Anyone choose no propane stove and use induction plate?
Omitting the gas stove would most likely affect the resale price. Most owners do not keep their campers forever . The national average a few years ago was 3 years before getting the urge to buy the next one.
So, when trying to sell a 400 in a few years, the absence of the propane stove would definitely limit your buying audience.
The propane stove does have a sturdy glass top so you could just place your induction top on the glass for cooking, and just leave the propane stove where it is.
So, when trying to sell a 400 in a few years, the absence of the propane stove would definitely limit your buying audience.
The propane stove does have a sturdy glass top so you could just place your induction top on the glass for cooking, and just leave the propane stove where it is.
Re: Battery balancing with 2 x 6V AGM batteries - your next failure mode waiting to happen?
Wow, I just learned that I wired my two 12v AGMs in parallel incorrectly. Guess I have a new busbar installation project for my battery bank this winter!
Re: What size Generator to Power a T@B 400 AC Plus Lights, Refrigerator and TV
Another option may be go with smaller generator like the Honda 2200 and upgrade the off grid battery/inverter systems. The hybrid inverter systems are able to pull power from the battery bank to assist the generator momentarily with loads that exceed the generator output such as Cool Cat starting. That type of system is NOT inexpensive but may be better than lugging a huge generator that is only needed for the air conditioning. Victron has offerings starting at $1100 plus installation that would fall into this category of inverter. Bottom line is there is not going to be an inexpensive solution to running air conditioning while off grid.
Re: Post up some shots of your T@B set-up at the camp site! #3
My season campsite in Tiverton, Ontario. It's a brand new park so we are starting with grass and dirt, but I am a gardener so I see it as a blank canvas!
Here is the view from my T@B door. I was the first in line when the park opened and I got a great site in the corner of the property. 
TAB400 Bathroom door hinge source
The top hinge on the bathroom door broke and I am trying to find a replacement. It looks like a kitchen cabinet hinge but Lowes didn’t have a match. Has anybody needed to replace one? We are on a three month trip.
Re: Where are the Barefoot owners?
I think I was that member that was waiting for a Barefoot and then disappeared. I didn't buy a Barefoot and bought a T@B 400 Solo instead. Honestly, now that I have a 400, I am so glad I didn't go for the Barefoot. It's so nice to not have to fold up the bed during the day. I love my 400 and am so glad I got the solo floor plan and also the curved front dinette (don't like the new dinette design at all).
The only downside for me is that because I don't have a permanent tow vehicle, I can't be as spontaneous as I was with my 320. If I want to go on the road now I rent a pick-up truck so more planning is involved. That said, in 2022 I took a seasonal campsite in a brand new park about 2 hours from my house and I got the best spot. It's in the corner with a marsh on one side (the side my door faces) and a farmers field in the back. The site is 50' by 90' so I have lots of room to do my gardening!
When I had my 320 (no bathroom, no A/C, no Alde - basic), I was hardcore solar and off-grid, but now I am enjoying my all mod cons. I never thought I would enjoy having sewer hook-up, geez.
We still go out on the road for about 2 or 3 weeks a season and renting the truck still works out way cheaper than owning a truck. Things have changed so much, but I love the new set-up and the consistency of having a permanent site to go to whenever I want!
Re: Upgrade to Lithium
I used this surface mount circuit breaker between the battery and a Victron solar controller wired to a port for a portable panel. This gives me the option of easily cutting the power to the controller so that the controller isn’t drawing power when the panel isn’t plugged in.Yoshi_TAB said:cook32937 said:So I see you don't have a fuse on the solar charger. My 2022 320 came with a 30 A fuse on the positive line between the solar panel and the solar charger. What do I know, I'm a Mechanical Engineer. Electrons scare me.
oops..there is a fuse between the battery and solar controller that I forget to include. The write up in the post where I posted this diagram noted that.
Re: Electrons...Ha..me too. But not enough not to play with them
Re: Upgrade to Lithium
cook32937 said:
So I see you don't have a fuse on the solar charger. My 2022 320 came with a 30 A fuse on the positive line between the solar panel and the solar charger. What do I know, I'm a Mechanical Engineer. Electrons scare me.
oops..there is a fuse between the battery and solar controller that I forget to include. The write up in the post where I posted this diagram noted that.
Re: Electrons...Ha..me too. But not enough not to play with them
Musings of a tire blowout.
So, we were happily driving from Chandler, AZ down to Tucson to do some camping with our daughter in her 400 (her Youtube channel is Amelia Away if any of you want to follow her travels). We were in the right lane and a semi was passing us and something got louder. We thought "that semi has a weird noise". A second later, our low tire sensor started beeping rapidly. Uh oh. Pulled off to the side of the road and found the left side (facing the travel lanes - why is it always that way) was blown out and water was pouring out of the Alde cold water drain. Uh oh again. Managed to get the tire changed with the spare after fooling around with a couple jacks. Pulled off at the next exit which would have been too far to nurse the camper to on the flat and assessed the underside. No obvious damage to the wheel well or surrounding structure. Phew. Went inside the camper (Max S - What is called a 320 now) and looked in the Alde compartment. No damage. Phew again. The vibration from the tire going flat must have vibrated the release valve up. Push it down and now that we are at the campsite, all is good. No leaks. Called a Discount Tire near the campground and they worked us in. We were in and out in a little over an hour. Great service. We replaced all three tires to make sure all was good. We camp a lot so this was good for peace of mind.
Some thoughts.
Bottle jack. A while ago, I bought a small bottle jack so it would fit under the frame with the tire flat. Guess what? For a 320 (not sure on the 400), If your bottle jack is small enough to fit under the frame when the tire is flat, it is nowhere near big enough to lift your trailer high enough to get the tire off. If you are relying on a bottle jack, test it by letting the air out of a tire and see if it fits and lifts high enough.
Don't just assume the jack in your tow vehicle will work. The scissor jack in our jeep was too tall to get under the frame with the flat.
Buy a scissor jack. One that collapses down very low but still has enough up travel. These typically have more "throw" than a bottle jack.
Hindsight, I thought about but didn't use the method of unhooking the camper, lowering the nose all the way, dropping the rear corner legs down then raising the nose. Figured it would have been a huge pain to do that but, in reality, would have been much easier and much more stable. As it was, I used our bottle jack to get it high enough to get the Jeep's scissor jack under the frame. Then I jacked it up the rest of the way.
Test your jack. The release valve on my bottle jack needed persuasion to release when it was no longer needed. A jack will do you no good if it does not work.
Weirdest part was that the inner inch of the tire tread had come off and wrapped itself around the axle. Had to do some yanking and threading to get it out. Safety first of course so I put the spare tire on the ground under the frame.
And the biggest thought. ALWAYS USE TIRE PRESSURE SENSORS. Had that not gone off, it would have probably taken us longer to recognize the issue. We were being passed by a semi so we though that was what was happening. Had we continued on for even another minute, the tire could have come apart more and done serious damage to the camper. I've seen horror stories of this. Get one that shows pressure and temperature and alarms with variances. If a tire is getting too hot, it is probably failing and it can blow. If you lose pressure slowly and don't know it, it can blow. I think ours was a rapid blowout since it was just a couple seconds between the odd sound and the sensor going off. The tires had lots of tread and no odd wear. Some sort of rapid failure or we ran over something.
Be prepared. I know some just use AAA and other services, but for those that don't, make sure you tire changing solution will work. Don't just assume. Like I said above, let the air out of one of your tires and make sure you can change that tire with what you have.
Some thoughts.
Bottle jack. A while ago, I bought a small bottle jack so it would fit under the frame with the tire flat. Guess what? For a 320 (not sure on the 400), If your bottle jack is small enough to fit under the frame when the tire is flat, it is nowhere near big enough to lift your trailer high enough to get the tire off. If you are relying on a bottle jack, test it by letting the air out of a tire and see if it fits and lifts high enough.
Don't just assume the jack in your tow vehicle will work. The scissor jack in our jeep was too tall to get under the frame with the flat.
Buy a scissor jack. One that collapses down very low but still has enough up travel. These typically have more "throw" than a bottle jack.
Hindsight, I thought about but didn't use the method of unhooking the camper, lowering the nose all the way, dropping the rear corner legs down then raising the nose. Figured it would have been a huge pain to do that but, in reality, would have been much easier and much more stable. As it was, I used our bottle jack to get it high enough to get the Jeep's scissor jack under the frame. Then I jacked it up the rest of the way.
Test your jack. The release valve on my bottle jack needed persuasion to release when it was no longer needed. A jack will do you no good if it does not work.
Weirdest part was that the inner inch of the tire tread had come off and wrapped itself around the axle. Had to do some yanking and threading to get it out. Safety first of course so I put the spare tire on the ground under the frame.
And the biggest thought. ALWAYS USE TIRE PRESSURE SENSORS. Had that not gone off, it would have probably taken us longer to recognize the issue. We were being passed by a semi so we though that was what was happening. Had we continued on for even another minute, the tire could have come apart more and done serious damage to the camper. I've seen horror stories of this. Get one that shows pressure and temperature and alarms with variances. If a tire is getting too hot, it is probably failing and it can blow. If you lose pressure slowly and don't know it, it can blow. I think ours was a rapid blowout since it was just a couple seconds between the odd sound and the sensor going off. The tires had lots of tread and no odd wear. Some sort of rapid failure or we ran over something.
Be prepared. I know some just use AAA and other services, but for those that don't, make sure you tire changing solution will work. Don't just assume. Like I said above, let the air out of one of your tires and make sure you can change that tire with what you have.