2014 T@B S S Rental, AC Power Source

heather

I am renting a 2014 T@B S S to go camping in the desert for a week and am very excited to use the AC (we currently have a VW van and cook in hot climates). I know the power source for the camper is a 12v battery, but does the AC unit need a generator? I asked the place we are renting from and they said it just uses the battery - but that can't be right?! I think the AC unit take 110v to work?

Thanks so much!!

Ratkity

....

FunDirector

Hi Heather, probably a little late, but... the T@B does need an AC connection (like a 30Amp hookup at an RV site or at least 110VAC from a generator) to provide power to the AC outlets.  You can buy the smaller inverters that plug into a cigarette lighter and provide a couple 110VAC outlets (plus USB slots), usually on the order of 300 watts for around $30.  How quickly that drains your battery depends on the load of course...

Mitch
www.sierra-teardrops.com

Nomad

The term AC gets confusing when mentioning both AC current and Air Conditioning.
Yes, you need AC current to run the Air Conditioner and to have AC current at the outlets. The AC current can come from a campground hookup or a generator. If a generator, it has to be a 2000 watt to start up the Air Conditioner.
If you need AC current to say charge a laptop or phone, you could use an inverter but it wouldn't put out enough current to run anything requiring a heavy load like the Air Conditioner or most appliances. How long you could use the inverter would depend on what's plugged into it.

A week in the desert without a hookup on a standard T@B battery may be a stretch - actually it would be unless you have everything turned off. If you ran the fridge on propane and used the lights sparingly you may make it but I would think it'd be a stretch.

Most of us that go out without hookups have solar panels and or generators to recharge the battery.