The power puzzle

tonyd · Guru

The power puzzle

Basil Faulty · Guru

yep, an interesting opinion....
Would it have been better to post this inthe Techies area as it is very technical.

The Baby Boomers can't live with only two lights and they don't go to bed at 8pm.
I have noticed that I'm always last man up at night but thats to allow me to Call Lights Out @ 22:00

-- Edited by Basil Faulty on Monday 29th of June 2009 05:54:45 PM

dave06 · Guru

I agree with a lot of what he says regarding the battery type and charging rates, I do not agree with the stated run time and current draw of various apliances, for instance I know for a fact that none of my fridges ever run for 20 hours in 24 if it did that then I would update for a better one

I agree that most travellers underestimate the ammount of power that they will use but I disagree with the amount of power that he says we need

I too have in excess of 30 years travelling with "off the grid" power usage and I put my common sense knowledge base to use everytime I go out, failures at first but now with great success

there are a lot of experts with conflicting views on this subject and I could point the forum to a dozen of them, spattered all over the net, not all of them correct, but they all sound like they know what they are talking about,

I skew my thoughts towards colin rivers, he knows what he is talking about simply because I have tested a lot of his theorys and proven all, that I tested, to be correct, if I have a problem that I cant figure out then it is his theorys that I turn to

what works for you is the right one for you

Rolly · Guru

I do hope that the technical errors in that article, and the limited viewpoints of some of opinions, are not those of the repairer but simple misunderstandings by the journalist.

The repairer/ex-builder quoted has a good reputation in that field but is certainly no rocket scientist.
He comments frequently on the Caravaners Forum and a lot of what he says is quite valuable.
Unfortunately he is also inclined to be rather dogmatic.
His knowledge of the GreyNomad ethos seems to be largely confined to the "white shoe" brigade; particularly those who are 'well heeled', if you'll excuse the pun.
Encountering, as he does, mainly those with 'high end' outfits who have got themselves into some kind of bother in one way or another, he seems to have little concept of the other end of the scale where the majority manage to keep themselves well and happy with a minimum of professional assistance.

If you are really after more definitive information, a read of Collyn Rivers' books will see you rather better informed.

tonyd · Guru

Yes, I too was fascinated by the references to baby boomers and their indulgent lifestyles on the road.
I was planning more on powering the fridge, of course, and a few lights. That's it. No TV. I have a perfectly good AA-battery powered radio, ditto CD player (with headphones).
He says: "Most caravaners will play CDs all day when they are camped up ...". Not camped next to me they won't! At least not at more than minimum volume.
I was in Geraldton recently, at the magnificent and very moving memorial to the men lost on HMAS Sydney. Spent a good half an hour there just soaking up the atmosphere, scanning the seemingly endless lists of names. Pondering their sacrifice.
As I was leaving, a baby boomer type drove into the carpark, poked his camera out of the window, took one photo, and accelerated away. Why do they bother? And if they can't live without all their electronic clutter, aircons etc., why go bush in the first place? Why not just stay home?
Cheers, Tony

Wombat 280 · Guru

Basil Faulty wrote:

yep, an interesting opinion....
Would it have been better to post this inthe Techies area as it is very technical.

The Baby Boomers can't live with only two lights and they don't go to bed at 8pm.
I have noticed that I'm always last man up at night but thats to allow me to Call Lights Out @ 22:00

-- Edited by Basil Faulty on Monday 29th of June 2009 05:54:45 PM

What happened to the old porta-gas lamp and before that the kero unit.

Some nights I'd rather sit in the dark under the awning than be inside with a light on, not much for indoors . We seem to have lost the urge to break away from all of the mod cons and want to take them with us , so why go on the pretense of going native. Anyone know how to use an axe, No not a chain saw, an axe one of those thingy's that require some physical exertion on the part of the owner .

If you can, then why take a packaged light, nothing like a campfire for providing the true atmosphere of getting out there

Cruising Granny · Guru

tonyd wrote:

I was in Geraldton recently, at the magnificent and very moving memorial to the men lost on HMAS Sydney. Spent a good half an hour there just soaking up the atmosphere, scanning the seemingly endless lists of names. Pondering their sacrifice.
As I was leaving, a baby boomer type drove into the carpark, poked his camera out of the window, took one photo, and accelerated away. Why do they bother?

I agree, he missed the point entirely. It's an amazing memorial, and especially much more signigicant now they've found the hulk on the bottom.

I spent about an hour up there just absorbing the significance, the names, the woman monument, the sculpture of the seagull canopy, and if it wasn't blowing like it blows in Geraldton, and started to rain as it does, I would have spent much longer there.
There's just no accounting for the actions of some. That's life. Cheers Chris

tonyd · Guru

Chris, you are so right. The sculpture of the woman looking out to sea moved me to tears. There's just something about it that tells you she is looking, but knows in her heart that they will not return.
The seagull canopy is also perfect.
The whole thing is an absolute credit to the people who put it together. And the views are magnificent.
I urge any GNs who go to Geraldton not to miss it.
Cheers, Tony

mike and Judy · Guru

Back to the beginning of the thread, I also read it,but I guess I lost interest when he started making what I called Disparaging remarks about how the BB cannot live with less than two lights, and a CD player all the time
Ah well we are all entitled to an opinion
Tonyd , take everything you read with a grain of Cynism, and add a bucket of commonsence

dave06 · Guru

you got it Mike, my thoughts edzacary!!!

tonyd · Guru

You're right, of course.
I'm learning that some people who seem to know what they are talking about may in fact be pushing a barrow full of their own narrow opinions for their own reasons.
I must learn to leave my BS detector on at all times.
I've now done a lot more research on this whole topic and come up with a solution that will probably suit me. Fairly simple, not too expensive and multi-purpose. And to hell with the experts!
Cheers, Tony

mike and Judy · Guru

Good on ya mate
After all what is an expert,

X an unknown factor, and spert is a drip under pressure

dave06 · Guru

keep it simple and understandable by YOU tony, when it breaks YOU will be the one to repair it

simple is always best, any questions ask the forum, someone here will know

with all experts the rule is "he who talks loudest and longest knows the least"

anyone can write a paper on anything, the trick is to have knowledge of the subject to which is written

I take a "suck it and see approach" a trial and many errors has left me with an extremely robust and reliable system that has continued working without fault all over the joint for in excess of twenty years, a lot of blues up till then though

-- Edited by dave06 on Wednesday 1st of July 2009 10:24:33 AM

tonyd · Guru

Thanks for the support guys. I'm NOT a handy chappie at all, so I'm looking at a commercial plug-and-play set-up. It will include provision to jump start the tow vehicle engine if everything goes pear shaped.
And yes, Dave, simple as possible!
Cheers, Tony

Wombat 280 · Guru

Tonyd. Don't put yourself down, everyone is handy at something, it's getting up the nerve to try you can only break it once then you'll know how not to do it next time , life is a continual learning curve some live long enough to go almost full circle but not many

It's better to have tried and failed than not to have tried at all

dave06 · Guru

dont worry about it Tony, sum up your rough power requirements x hours of usage = size of battery required

then it's a simple matter of using the same figures gained from the above calculations to work out how to "repower" your system

take your time and ENJOY it, dont make it complex, make it so

(1) you understand it

(2) enjoyable and increases your knowledge base

(3) doesnt cost a fortune

in most cases a waeco (or similar) thumper or urban powerpack will supply most power needs and then to repower it a "briefcase" type solar panel setup running at 80 watts will be more than sufficient, both of these can be bought either from a camping outlet or off the internet

probably cost roughly about $1500, but it will last forever, I use a very similar setup and have been for a very long time now, all over the joint, except my power source is a pair of vehicle based 100 amp isolated marine batterys, little more complex but basically the same

KEEP IT SIMPLE, dont listen to the complication Kings, some of us have a life outside of electronics and other complications, we travel

and Wombat is 100% correct, we dont allow people to run themselves down in here, we dont like it, we all have something to offer each other, dont belittle yourself, you're amongst freinds

tonyd · Guru

Hey Dave, you're a mind reader! That exactly the sort of setup I have in mind. Avoids any need for me to fiddle about wiring things up (and possibly stuffing them up).
There seems to be a range of flash battery boxes on the market, and with retirement three weeks away, I'll enjoy checking them out. And deciding on a CT to put it into, of course.
Cheers, Tony

dave06 · Guru

the best times are ahead mate, have fun with it, thats the secret to life