New owner with several questions
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Forum Name: Podmods, Maintenance, Tips and Tricks
Forum Discription: Ask maintenance questions, share your podmods (modifications) and helpful tips
URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=5764
Printed Date: 21 Jun 2025 at 5:30am
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Topic: New owner with several questions
Posted By: srpntmage
Subject: New owner with several questions
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 1:12pm
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We just picked up out 2015 179 rpod the other day and I am confused about a few things. 1. We will be off the grid much of the time and we haven't yet purchased a generator. I know using the TV and convection oven is out. Can we use the interior and exterior electric plugs or do those need AC power to run too? We would be mostly using them to charge our phones, maybe use an electric kettle etc... 2. What is the most efficient way to use the heater, propane or electric? How long would a standard gas tank last if we used the heat only at night time? 3. What is the best way to heat water? Propane or electric? We plan on buying an additional battery and usually will have two propane tanks with us on trips. Our trips will usually be 2 days and two nights. |
Replies:
Posted By: HuronSailor
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 1:54pm
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1. The interior plugs don't work on 12V. However, there may be a cigarette lighter style outlet in there somewhere which you can use to charge your phone. Location varies with camper model. 2. Your furnace runs on gas only, but it needs 12V to run the fan and the gas valve and ignitor. Most folks use a small 110V heater when power is available. They're much quieter, don't use your propane, and are more than big enough to heat the pod. 3. Propane is faster they say but truthfully the difference between gas and electric is minimal as the tank is very small and recovers fast. Some folks use gas and electric at once for super speedy recovery time. The heater itself works on 110V, not 12V, but you need 12V to ignite the burner and operate the gas valve. I've never used my furnace so not sure how fast the fan will drain the batteries. With no furnace use, running the fridge on gas, your batteries will easily last two days and two propane tanks just might last you an entire camping season. The fridge is very skimpy with gas usage, but will kill the batteries in a day if you run it on 12V.
------------- .: Mark & Beth :: Silverado 5.3L :: 2018 rPod 180 :. |
Posted By: kymooses
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 4:02pm
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Congratulations on your new Pod. ------------- https://calendar.google.com/calendar?cid=cnBvZC5zcG90dGVyQGdtYWlsLmNvbQ - RPod Rallies https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1W1foQXGtrjf8aYly1uh0b-bHPfI&hl=en_US - RPod Owner Map |
Posted By: Outbound
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 5:10pm
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Welcome aboard! If you plan on boondocking, its (pretty much) time to leave the 120v appliances behind. Instead of an electric kettle, use a stovetop kettle on your propane stove. Instead of an electric coffee maker, use a manual one - I own and highly recommend a http://gsioutdoors.com/products/pdp/50_oz_java_drip/coffee - GSI Java Drip ; its so easy and convenient to use that I don't have an electric coffee maker in my r-pod. For the electronics (and I have more than my share), I've installed a couple of spare 12v outlets. I'll charge my phone, I'll charge my Chromebook, I'll plug in my portable wifi harddrive (filled with movies), and I'll power my bluetooth speakers all off the r-pod's batteries. As far as propane use for the furnace, it depends on how cold it is outside and how long you consider "at night". In the late fall as overnight temperatures touch (or slightly drop below) freezing, and I'm in the r-pod from 7:00pm to 8:00am, I can go through 20lbs of propane in 3 days; admittedly, that's set to 20C overnight and 17C during the day. In more comfortable temperatures in September, propane will last about 5 days. Battery is more of an issue while boondocking in cool weather and the furnace is running. In November, I find it necessary to charge a single group 24 battery every day (for 60-90 minutes on the generator); actually, I've got a pair of group 24 batteries on my r-pod and can stretch it to 3 days, although I prefer to keep it to two. I have never found the amount of propane consumed by the water heater (I always have it on propane and I don't switch it off during the day) or by the fridge to be a significant concern. In the summer, I'll get about 10-12 days use from a tank of propane using the stove, fridge and water heater; admittedly, most of the dinner cooking is done on the BBQ with a separate propane tank.
------------- Craig :: 2009 RP171 towed by a 2017 F150 |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 6:24pm
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Welcome. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual 
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Posted By: srpntmage
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 6:40pm
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How much batter power does a cell phone or tablet eat up? That is the main reason I am considering installing a couple 12v outlets. How low is it safe to run your batteries? I have heard 50%. Doesn't that seriously limit the amount of electricity available? Our rpod has 4 indicator lights at 0, 1/3,2/3 and full. Should I never go down past the second light then? I have never had a trailer before, or used deep cycle batteries, so a lot of this is new to me. Thasnk for all your help. |
Posted By: HuronSailor
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 8:10pm
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A cell phone charger won't even make a blip in your battery usage over the course of a two day trip. I don't think any smartphone charger draws much more than an amp. If your tablet has a USB charge port it probably doesn't use much more than a couple of amps. My wife's ipad can be recharged from a 12V outlet. You will probably still be OK for your short trips. Kindles are no problem either, very low current draw. On the other hand, my tablet has a larger battery and can't be recharged via the USB port; you have to plug the 110V charger into it's own dedicated port, so I have to have shore power to recharge it. The 50% rule is a good solid guideline if you want maximum battery life. So once that 2/3 light goes out you should be thinking about recharging soon. If you hit the 1/3 mark once in a while I wouldn't panic too much, because as a battery monitor those panels are pretty crude. Since you're only taking short trips, you won't have to worry an awful lot about hurting your batteries. You'll get about 4-5 years out of them with only minimal care. Keep the water levels up and take care of them in the off season. If you start boondocking a lot for extended periods, batteries and their care are a lot more critical. ------------- .: Mark & Beth :: Silverado 5.3L :: 2018 rPod 180 :. |
Posted By: CharlieM
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 8:21pm
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Most of your questions have been addressed but I'll add a few points. If you're going off grid the two most important things to do are:
The built in battery display panel is essentially useless. Buy an inexpensive digital voltmeter to monitor battery charge level. Discharging the batteries below 50% will impact battery life. Plan to recharge the batteries when they measure 11.9-12.0 volts under minimal load. Cell phones and tablets use very little energy and will hardly show up even when compared to the LED lighting. When out in the field consider recharging the camper batteries using heavy duty (#2AWG) jumper cables from the TV battery with the engine running. Lots easier than a generator. ------------- Charlie Northern Colorado OLD: 2013 RP-172, 2010 Honda Pilot 3.5L 4WD PRESENT: 2014 Camplite 21RBS, 2013 Supercharged Tacoma 4L V6 4WD |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 02 Feb 2015 at 8:23pm
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I wouldn't rely on the indicator lights, you need to take a voltage measurement after the battery has "rested" (no charging or discharging) for 3 hours. 50% is the usual SOD (state of discharge) but you can occasionally go down to 70% w/o worry. Read more here: http://www.solar-electric.com/deep-cycle-battery-faq.html - www.solar-electric.com/deep-cycle-battery-faq.html ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual
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