Newbie to 400

jenper

Hi, We just purchased our T@B 400 2 weeks ago and will finally take it out this weekend.  We are going to a state park with electrical so we can check the system out.  We are long time campers (tent and basic pop up), but I have to admit making sure we don't do something stupid to the battery or electrical system is driving me nuts.  I would like to plug the camper in before we leave to get the refrigerator cold, but not sure if that is really wise? The battery is still fully charged according to our monitor.

atlasb

We turn our fridge on to # 3 position while loading ours for a trip.  We leave it there while on the trip and turn it off when it goes back into the shop.  Crack the door a little so the light goes off and some ventilation.  Wipe it out when the freezer defrost.  Sure like the fridge a lot compared to the 3 way we had in our 320.

skwhee

@jenper

Our usual practice is to keep our T@B-400 plugged in while it is stored in our driveway. This prevents battery drawdown due to phantom loads from TV, stereo system, etc.  And we do turn the fridge on a day or so prior to departure. 

What are you using for a battery monitor?  

Know that you have a robust battery, the Discover EV4DA-A.  It's a 235AH AGM battery (sealed lead-acid). The AGM batteries are designed for up to 80% drawdown meaning it's got about 180 usable amp hours. Your refrigerator is s Norcold NR751 with a very efficient Danfoss BD35 compressor that draws about 3.2 amps when running. 

Comfortable for when you do not have a an electrical (shore power) connection. But so long as you are plugged in, the battery should remain fully charged. 

Your battery should also charge/remain fully charged while you are towing assuming your tow vehicle came equipped with a seven pin connector and the 12V line has been hooked up. You can check that with a tester available from Amazon (link below) but a lower tech indicator is to test your battery level immediately before and immediately after towing. If your battery level is lower at the end of a trip, then your TV 12V line is not connected. 

https://www.amazon.com/58270-7-Way-Blade-Connector-Tester/dp/B001EOWQY4

Hope this helps. Enjoy your maiden voyage!

Steve & Karen 

Ratkity

That's an amazing battery! 20.6" long though. I couldn't find what "group" it is. It's 138# too.. wow! Be careful lifting. Cool about the amp hours !!

jkjenn

Ratkity said:

That's an amazing battery! 20.6" long though. I couldn't find what "group" it is. It's 138# too.. wow! Be careful lifting. Cool about the amp hours !!

Honestly, this would cause me to serious reconsider the dual.6v batteries.

jenper

Thanks for the replies. Now I have another question, were is the Alde expansion tank located?  We went through orientation with our dealer and have read through the various brochures.  Wish the TAB 400 came with an owners manual that showed you the location of everything!  

jenper

Never mind, we found it 

atlasb

• You should have gotten a welcome aboard kit with various product info, a neat flash light, a bar of soap and a bottle opener on a lanyard that is a usb connector that has the 400 manual loaded on it.  We downloaded ours to a computer and have it for the 400 info.  There is a bit of learning curve and plenty of great folks on here that can answer any questions. Steve and Karen are very experienced and really helpful.  Enjoy the 400!!
  

dragonsdofly

Welcome. Congrats on your new 400. Much to learn and enjoy. Happy t@bbing!

Roamey

Question on the durability of the battery - if I went camping for two weeks in a National Park, in the shade, without hook-ups, would the battery be sufficient?

skwhee

@Roamey

To camp for two weeks without recharging the battery would be a tall order for just about any refrigerator/battery combination. Just doing the math, the Discover battery in the T@B-400 provides 180 amps/hours. Using that over 336 hours means an average consumption of no more than about 0.5 amps/hour and the refrigerator draws 3.2 amps. 

According to the math, if your refrigerator is the only draw and it runs 50% of the time you could go about four days before you would reach the 80% drawdown mark.  That said, in practice we are comfortable going two nights without hooking up to solar, generator, tow vehicle, or shore power. We find solar easy, just plug and play. With the portable panels we can still camp in the shade.

BC2445

I wonder if nuCamp would consider the inside 4D AGM battery mount its doing for the 400s for the 320s as well. Maybe as an upgrade option. Seems like a perfect fit for us looking for a smaller trailer that can go off grid to be paired along with their solar options. 

jenper

We did get a welcome package, downloaded the manual and even printed it to keep in the camper.  I have been through it several times and finally my hubby had time to sit down and read it. Fortunately, he is a handy guy so what was confusing to me made sense to him.   Thanks for all the info and will be back to report on our trip.

ericnliz

@jenper, Reading all the information is helpful, and will give you a good "platform" to begin your adventures. That being said, you will find "hands-on" experiences will give you a much better understanding to the actual "workings" of your trailer, and it's various components. Have fun & if/when you hit a road block, and just can't figure things out, come here to get advise & guidance from the experienced, helpful folks here! I do!!!

jenper

We just got home from our first long weekend of camping in our TAB 400 and it was fantastic.  We did seem to have issues with hot water, it would feel hot for a few seconds and go to lukewarm.  We did turn the valve to make it hotter, but wasn't sure how much to turn the valve? Any thoughts? I am sure that is what we need to do, but wanted to get input from others.  Also, we noticed fairly loud noise almost like a vibration, thinking it was from the exhaust when we had the propane on? We had read in our manual that using the propane would help heat the water faster. When we switched the propane off on the Alde the sound went away.  Is this normal? 

Alan

I have read here that elevation makes a difference.

skwhee

@jenper

Regarding the hot water. The water in the tank is hot enough to scald. It’s up to you to adjust it to the temperature you are comfortable with. Check your owner’s manual for instructions on adjusting the water temperature at the mixing valve. The information on the Alde begins on page 19. One caution is to take it slowly. Increase the maximum temp by only a quarter turn at a time. Then run the hot water in the camper. It may take two or three adjustments before you are comfortable with it. Do not get impatient and increase it too much or you may end up with a big water mess to clean up.

Regarding the noise you heard while running the Alde on propane. An important question is at what altitude were you camping? There is a lengthy thread  going back many months regarding issues with the Alde on propane at high altitudes. Here is a link to the beginning of that thread:

http://tabforum.nucamprv.com/#/discussion/3030/alde-freight-train/p1 

jenper

Thanks.  That is what we will do.  We were camping at 3800ft, so will check out the thread.