Generators

cotracye

I have been wanting to get a solar generator. Can you use this to plug in the trailer for electrical power? Without a plug in option none of my outlets work.

Sharon_is_SAM

@cotracye, the TaB 110 outlets are not functional unless you are plugged in to shore power.  Solar generators use an inverter to deliver ac power.  Not sure how it ties in to the TaB electrical system.  There may be an adapter like other generators use.

N7SHG_Ham

Solar is going to produce 12VDC, a generator is going to produce 110vac. You can "invert" the solar output with the addition of a 12vdc to 120vac inverter either to a dedicated outlet or in more sophisticated setups with a transfer switch that puts the inverter output to all of your 110vac outlets in the absence of shore or generator power.

The battery/solar/inverter 110vac is typically limited due to amount of solar and battery you have and of course size of inverter. You won't run air conditioning for instance for more than short durations without a big system and probably $10000 in upgrades.

A combination of a smaller solar system and a smaller generator is probably going to be needed with a Tab, simply too small to install enough batteries and solar to depend on that exclusively off grid.

cotracye

I would like the solar generator for outlets, lights and maybe the fridge. can't i use the plug I have to plug it into the house?

Sharon_is_SAM

Yes, use the Tab cord to plug it into the shorepower 110 ac outlet using a surge protector and a 30 amp to 15 amp adapter.

Marceline

cotracye said:

I would like the solar generator for outlets, lights and maybe the fridge. can't i use the plug I have to plug it into the house?

I think that it might be helpful if you could post a link to the “solar generator” that you’re considering. 

N7SHG_Ham

@cotracye I am confused by your terms and what your goal is. If it is solar, then you also need an inverter to power any common household items in the trailer when you are NOT plugged into shore power, none of the regular outlets will work from solar alone.

Cbusguy

Solar generators are a marketing gimmic started by goal zero.   In a nutshell they are simply  a very expensive battery pack and a small inverter.    They generate nothing
 
Here is the link.     You are spending $1000 for a 100 amp hour 12 agm battery an 800 watt inverter in a fancy case

Will prowess a you tube solar guy did a comparison and showed that the solar generators are most expensive power option out there.

So don't fall for the marketing hype.   Spend the money on a bigger inverter and a few more batterys

ScottG

@cotracye, is your fridge 2-way or 3-way? What are you wanting/needing to plug into the T@B's outlets?

TomB

I'm not sure if this is the type of power supply OP is asking about, but it's certainly not $1,000. And yes, it is just a battery and an inverter. The price is reasonable enough. 

https://www.ebay.com/i/123714780063?chn=ps

I too am wondering if it would be able to help the T@B battery keep a 2-way Norcold fridge (we have a CSS) cold for a few 80 degree F days (keeping the fridge end in the shade) if the power pack is attached to a 60-watt solar panel that's in full sun, assuming no other power consumption? 

BTW, I'm not referring to just this power supply product, let alone this vendor, but there's a whole class of these things today using Lithium Ion that store up to 400 amp/hours for well under $500 that I'm curious whether any T@B'ers have tried out. I couldn't find much except this thread when I searched. 

Cbusguy

no possible way for a device priced at $500 can store 400 amp/hours.     The cost for that battery capacity even in the lead acid world is over $600 just for the battery storage.  not to mention the device would weigh roughly 200 pounds.    In lithium Ion such a device would be in the $4-5k range and weigh 120 pounds, roughly.     Storage cost is the limiting factor for many of us.

Zero Goals monster $1800 lithium 1400 model only has 132 Amp hours of 10.8 volt batterys.   realistically you could probably run your trailer for a couple of days with it,  no microwave or Air Con.   but it is doable.

The device in tom's post is 165Wh in the device description with is about about 14 amp hours at 12 volts. 

  So before you purchase one of these devices,  check the weight,  the battery capacity,  

pthomas745

For 120 bucks I assembled a 35AH battery, a battery box, a 900 watt inverter that attaches via alligator clips. I can charge it with my solar panel with no proprietary cables needed, and the inverter can be used on any other battery I want to use it on.  I use it to charge various items and run my laptop.   When the battery eventually needs replacing, I'll simply drop in a new one. 

TomB

When I made the comment about "400 watt / hours at < $500", I was looking at this info:

https://www.jackery.com/products/explorer-440-portable-power-station

I see that I mistakenly said "amp / hours" in my earlier comment, so thanks for that correction. 

So my question, which is related to OP's: Is this a useful device, or are you better off with a small generator? 

Cbusguy

@TomB I figured as much.    The language of how these devices are marketed is deceitful to say the least.    Many on the forum don't understand watts, amps, volts or have any idea how to make it all work.  at times it feels like an arms race of camper gadgets.   So how much does one need to be comfortable in the camper?   Only you can answer that.

To directly answer your question,   IMO the most affordable good neighbor solution is the Harbor Freight 2k generator,   you can get it using the 25% off coupon for right at $400.   Harbor freight does offer a 900 watt generator for about $100,  down side is 2 cycle so mixed gas.  probably not as quiet as the inverter type.   of course you could plunk down a grand on Honda gen.  but it's not needed.

TomB

Thank you @Cbusguy!

pthomas745

@TomB , there isn't anything "wrong" with these "portable power stations".  But, essentially, they are just batteries in a box with a built in inverter.  I'm sure that many people like the ease and convenience of having everything in a pretty container, and that's fine.  Several owners here have adapted their Goal Zero packs to work with their solar panels and have nice things to say about them.  I do agree with Cbusguy's take that the marketing can be misleading, making comparisons difficult. 

The Jackery ebay item you linked to seems to have about 23 "usable" amp hours, which would run my laptop for 5 or 6 hours ( the laptop uses about 4 amps per hour.)

kybob

The Goal Zero 1000 says it will run a fridge for 17 hours. 1045 Wh and 96.8 Ah. At about 40 lbs. Costco sells them for $1000. You might consider contacting Goal Zero and ask them about plugging the tab into the Goal Zero battery. Personally, I don't see why not. You can plug your tab into a regular generator. Why not a lithium battery like this. I have two goal zero 400 Solar Generators and love them. We use one to power our CPAP machines at night and one to run our Dometic 12 V fridge.  Worth the money in my opinion.

klenger

kybob said:

The Goal Zero 1000 says it will run a fridge for 17 hours. 1045 Wh and 96.8 Ah. At about 40 lbs. Costco sells them for $1000. You might consider contacting Goal Zero and ask them about plugging the tab into the Goal Zero battery. Personally, I don't see why not. You can plug your tab into a regular generator. Why not a lithium battery like this. I have two goal zero 400 Solar Generators and love them. We use one to power our CPAP machines at night and one to run our Dometic 12 V fridge.  Worth the money in my opinion.

Keep in mind that the fridge prediction is for a residential compressor fridge, not an RV absorption fridge, which can draw considerably more power.  Running an RV refrigerator from solar power is pretty much a loosing proposition.  That's why there is a trend in newer RVs to install smaller compressor (residential) refrigerators with solar and a somewhat bigger battery bank.  Winnegago is doing this a lot in the motor home line from entry level to top of the line.

Cbusguy

@klenger good to know.   I was looking/pondering/toying with  upgrading my fridge to something with a Dan Foss compressor.   

But I have got to ask, how much do I intend to be off grid?   no idea at this point. 

Marceline

Cbusguy said:

@klenger good to know.   I was looking/pondering/toying with  upgrading my fridge to something with a Dan Foss compressor.   

But I have got to ask, how much do I intend to be off grid?   no idea at this point. 

The clamshell T@B has a 2-way fridge with a compressor and I successfully run it off a 100 solar panel and a 55ah AGM battery as long as I have a full day of sunshine.