12v or 24v
Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 12:39 am
I've mentioned in the bus barn category that I'm getting ready to build a new rolling home that my wife and I will live in full-time. The bus conversion we've used for the past ten years had no solar power. The coach system was 24v and I used a 12v house system.
The new house will be built in a semi trailer and will be mostly solar powered. We'll have a generator and shore power options, but only as backup. We want to be able to live off grid for extended periods. We cook with propane, and we don't use a microwave, hair dryer, or many of the other power hungry "necessities". We'll have central air but will never attempt to use it off grid.
Now that I have a clean sheet, I need to decide which voltage to use. The only appliance I'm keeping that needs 12v is a Dometic refrigerator. It does not run on DC and only needs 12v for the control circuit. I figure that should be no problem either way. I have a couple of 12v pumps, but those are easy to replace.
I'd like to charge the house batteries from the truck engine when we're traveling. Most of the tractors I've considered are 12v, but maybe adding a 24v belt drive alternator would not be a big deal.
I'm drawn to 24v, but I have no solar experience, and I'd like to hear from those of you who have done it for a while. Most of the discussion I've found on the web is more theoretical than practical. What would you consider the ideal batteries for this rig? I'll have plenty of space and weight capacity, but not unlimited funds.
Also, does anyone have experience with solar film? I've just heard about it, and I wonder if it might be a good way to go on a large trailer roof.
Jim Huskins
Marion, NC
The new house will be built in a semi trailer and will be mostly solar powered. We'll have a generator and shore power options, but only as backup. We want to be able to live off grid for extended periods. We cook with propane, and we don't use a microwave, hair dryer, or many of the other power hungry "necessities". We'll have central air but will never attempt to use it off grid.
Now that I have a clean sheet, I need to decide which voltage to use. The only appliance I'm keeping that needs 12v is a Dometic refrigerator. It does not run on DC and only needs 12v for the control circuit. I figure that should be no problem either way. I have a couple of 12v pumps, but those are easy to replace.
I'd like to charge the house batteries from the truck engine when we're traveling. Most of the tractors I've considered are 12v, but maybe adding a 24v belt drive alternator would not be a big deal.
I'm drawn to 24v, but I have no solar experience, and I'd like to hear from those of you who have done it for a while. Most of the discussion I've found on the web is more theoretical than practical. What would you consider the ideal batteries for this rig? I'll have plenty of space and weight capacity, but not unlimited funds.
Also, does anyone have experience with solar film? I've just heard about it, and I wonder if it might be a good way to go on a large trailer roof.
Jim Huskins
Marion, NC