Change the TV to a 12V DC model
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Category: R-pod Discussion Forums
Forum Name: Wish List
Forum Discription: Tell Forest River what you would like to see in the r-pod
URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=879
Printed Date: 02 May 2024 at 8:45pm
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Topic: Change the TV to a 12V DC model
Posted By: techntrek
Subject: Change the TV to a 12V DC model
Date Posted: 19 Nov 2009 at 12:26pm
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I'd like to see Forest River change the TV to a model that runs from 12 volts DC. Its the only thing on the 'pod that currently can't run on DC or propane when there's no technical reason why (unlike the A/C and microwave which could never run on DC). The fridge and furnace fan both require much more amperage when they are running in DC mode so the load isn't an issue, not to mention the current TV is just converting the AC to low-voltage DC already. We could just use a small inverter to run the existing model, but every amp counts when boondocking so a 12 V model would be better.
Note to new RV owners: only run your fridge in the 12 V mode while you are moving down the road; never use 12 V in camp, either use 120 V AC if it is available or propane. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual 
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Replies:
Posted By: PA Retiree
Date Posted: 30 Nov 2009 at 10:39pm
| This sounds intuitive, but is there a reason for not using 12 volt in camp besides battery drain? |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 01 Dec 2009 at 7:38am
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Battery drain is the reason. The fridge uses about 10 amps per hour. A typical deep cycle battery is rated to have about 100 amps, but should rarely be discharged below 50% (an occasional discharge to 75% is OK, but be sure to get it charged ASAP), so theoretically you have about 50 amps available. But, there is something called the Peukert effect, which says that the faster you discharge a lead acid battery the less total capacity the battery will have. A 10 amp load is fairly large, so while you might think you have about 5 hours of run-time you'll probably only get 3-4. On the flip side, a 1 amp light bulb will have more than 50 hours of run-time, probably closer to 70. Mostly this effect is due to the mixing of the electrolyte close to the battery's lead plates, plus changes to the chemical makeup of the surface of the plates.
Another part of the "black magic" surrounding lead acid batteries is the temperature of the battery. You might get a theoretical 50 amps from a battery sitting at room temperature. Raise that to 100 F when the battery is sitting in the sun in the summer in a black battery box and you might have 75 amps available. Drop that to 25 F in the middle of winter and you might only get 25 amps out of the battery.
Back to running a fridge: with only a few hours available from a lead acid battery (that is in good shape and fully charged and isn't cold), you will do better running from propane if you don't have AC hookups available. You can run a small RV fridge for weeks from one tank of propane - if you aren't also running the furnace and cooking.
I'm going to copy this to a new post in the Tips section. ------------- 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: Runebane
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 8:46am
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I really wish they would have as well. The dealer tried to tell me it was because of the dvd player. I mentioned truckers use dvd players that run off DC all the time and he quickly backed off saying he didn't know why they didn't either. Oh well, I plan on mostly overnight/weekend trips. If the TV becomes an issue it won't be difficult to add a larger TV running off DC fairly inexpensively. I found a DVD player that runs off DC at a truck stop for $50.00. I don't remember the brand, sorry. -Eric
RP-177 ------------- RP-177 |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 10:18am
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Welcome Runebane!
Your best option might be a small inverter to run the existing player. You can buy a modified sine wave 100 watt inverter for less than $50. As I mentioned in my posts above, its not the most energy efficient option but still not horrible either. If you want the best efficieny find the efficiency chart for the specific inverter you are looking at, on the manufacturer's website. Match the peak efficiency to your usual load, but don't go so small that you can't run other stuff.
Example: If inverter X is most efficient at 30% load, and let's say the TV uses 15 amps (it doesn't, you should check the nameplate on the TV to find out the real number). Inverter X is a 50 watt inverter, so its most efficient running a 15 amp load. Sounds perfect. But if you also occasionally charge your laptop and also your phone (you don't have the car adapter for either), maybe a 100 watt inverter is better. Also they get cheaper per watt the more watts you buy... ------------- 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: rpodcamper.com
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2010 at 3:14pm
| Hmm need to make a trip up to the Truck Stop this weekend. did some searching online and found all kinds of 12 Volt TV/DVD for Trucks. Maybe get one to install on the front wall over the table in our 171? |
Posted By: rpodcamper.com
Date Posted: 02 May 2010 at 12:17pm
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Opened the Sunday Newspaper this morning and spotted a special at Office Depot. 7" Portable HD TV for 39.99. Works on Battery, 12 Volt or 120 Volt with all the cables provided. Picked it up to try it out. It is a Digital Prism Model ATSC-710 http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/244342/Digital-Prism-ATSC-710-7-Portable/ - http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/244342/Digital-Prism-ATSC-710-7-Portable/ |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 06 May 2010 at 7:56am
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So how did this work out? ------------- 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: rpodcamper.com
Date Posted: 09 May 2010 at 11:00pm
| Over the weekend had a chance to test the TV. The TV that came with the R-pod only gets 3 stations where we live. Hooked the TV up the antenna on the r-pod and did a search and 3 stations came up so it seems to work. I did have it on my desk at home hooked up to the cable and had over 200 channels available. I'm thinking that maybe I will grab another one to keep in the r-pod. Now I need to run some 12 volt circuits in the camper. |
Posted By: TIDALWAVE
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2011 at 8:24am
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I also bought a Prism TV that regularly runs on 12VDC (comes with a 110VAC adapter). I bought it at Office Depot for $40, but the bad news is that Office Depot will no longer carry it. The screen has a much higher resolution than the flat screen installed in my Pod. It has a cable connection in the back which also acts as a small antenna connection. It has a NiCad battery built in. It's power consumption is 18Watts. As I understand it...the RPod's TV/DVD player cannot be used to feed video to the Prism. If I can find a 12VDC DVD player (see threads above) I will probably remove the factory unit and replace it with the DVD player. The Prism is small and lightweight enough that I will probably put some industrial strength Velcro straps on the back of the Prism and at several locations on the wall. With an audio/video cable, I can then position the screen where it could best be seen, when seated or lying in bed. ------------- TIDALWAVE |
Posted By: this_is_nascar
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2011 at 4:38pm
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I wasn't so much dissappointed that the TV/DVD would not work on 12-volt, but I was very discouraged to find out even the radio won't work without shore power. That kinda sucks.
------------- "Ray & Connie" - 2017 R-Pod RP-180 - 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD-Off Road |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 09 Jan 2011 at 6:16pm
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Fairly easy to fix, just get a 50 watt inverter and mount it in the cabinet where the 'pod's TV plugs in.
------------- 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: this_is_nascar
Date Posted: 10 Jan 2011 at 6:46am
Can you suggest one online?
------------- "Ray & Connie" - 2017 R-Pod RP-180 - 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD-Off Road |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 10 Jan 2011 at 2:38pm
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Just one example: http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-50-Watt-DC-Inverter/dp/B00008XYHY - http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-50-Watt-DC-Inverter/dp/B00008XYHY
For that price it is most likely a modified sine wave inverter (not true sine wave like your utility delivers to your home). For just a few bucks more you can get a 150 watt or even a 400 watt modified sine wave inverter - but in general you want an inverter loaded at about 75% of its rated wattage to get the most efficiency from it. So if you will usually be using just the TV the 50 watt model may be best.
Personally, I would spend the extra bucks to get a low-end pure sine wave inverter. There are some 125 watt pure sine inverters available at the link below (look under Exeltech and Samlex). Some things will not run from a modified sine wave, plus most things run more efficiently on pure sine. Jumping up to 125 watts give you the ability to run other things for a few minutes, like a few 14 watt CFLs outside during setup when you arrive in the dark (I do this myself).
http://www.solar-electric.com/inverters.html - http://www.solar-electric.com/inverters.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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Posted By: Outbound
Date Posted: 10 Jan 2011 at 4:57pm
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I dunno... a TV/DVD player is starting to be oldschool now. We barely use ours at all. In fact, I think it was turned on twice all of last year. Of course, live TV is fairly useless to us as very few of the areas we camp have any TV signals at all. Our movie watching is done off of my netbook using hi-def video I've recorded at home off of The Movie Network (its a Canadian version of Cinemax) and copied to a portable hard drive. When we have guests, I'll bring along a projector and sheet/screen so we can have movie night outside. Also, and I'll admit that there is a high geek factor here, I've setup a web service where we can connect to our PVR and stream any TV shows that have been recorded since we left the house. Of course, we have to be in an area where we get a 3G/4G signal on our cell phones. My netbook, of course, has a 12v adapter and can be charged from one of the 12v accessory outlets I've installed in our r-pod. ------------- Craig :: 2009 RP171 towed by a 2017 F150 |
Posted By: FISHTAIL
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 12:45pm
| I guess this might be a new thing, but the HDTV that came with the 176 I bought on friday runs on DC. It came with a standard 110 plug and a converter, as well as a cigarette lighter plug. |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 9:50pm
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Nice to hear they are HD now, and DC!
------------- 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: Hodge-PODge
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 10:36pm
Do you have a cigarette lighter plug in your camper? (I don't have one in mine.) Or is that a mod you would have to make? ------------- 2011 RP 177, the Hodge-PODge 2011 Mercedes ML350 "A man travels the world over in search of what he needs, and returns home to find it." |
Posted By: tpierce220
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 10:50pm
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Diane, there is a cigarette lighter plug in my 182G. In fact there are two--one is right by the door where the entertainment center is along with the one in the garage. I love the television that is in the trailer--it's much nicer than the one that we have in the house. ------------- Adventures with ¡Podtástic!--Life in a Forest River RPod 182G with Tim and Louis and our two cats, Desi and Lucy. Check our website at http://podtastic.info for information on our journeys. |
Posted By: Hodge-PODge
Date Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 11:07pm
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Hmmm TP, I wonder if that is a new thing Forest River is adding because it's on you 182G and I'm assumming it's also on Fishtail's 176. Mine is a 2011 RP177 - I wonder why I don't have a cigarette lighter plug. Maybe I need to take another look in my tv cabinet and check it out. ------------- 2011 RP 177, the Hodge-PODge 2011 Mercedes ML350 "A man travels the world over in search of what he needs, and returns home to find it." |
Posted By: FISHTAIL
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 9:13am
| Hmmm..you know I didn't look for a cigarette lighter plug in the camper, but I will now. I don't recall seeing one, but I may have overlooked it. |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 4:40pm
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There is one 12V outlet in mine, and mine is older. Where the antenna amplifier switch is. ------------- 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: FISHTAIL
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 4:54pm
| Cool, I'll look tonight when I get home and report back. |
Posted By: Podsible Dream
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 5:09pm
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My '10 171 has a standard duplex outlet marked "TV ONLY" in the cabinet under the antenna connector. Seems to me the book on it said it was 12V.... And the lower receptacle of the duplex is taped over. My previous owner did put a auto style 12v outlet in the corner by the door under the bed and had a cable connection installed. The pod came with a 15" HD TV/DVD and mount on the back of the shower wall. We're not bedtime TV folks, nor have we ever had one while camping over the last 35 years, so it won 't get much use unless we are stuck in a real gullywasher for a couple of nights! ------------- Chris and Walt '10 RP-171 'Free Spirit' '13 Dodge Durango Crew 5.7 L Hemi V8 |
Posted By: FISHTAIL
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 8:35pm
| So I checked...no 12v outlet near the TV. It's right on top of the radio though, so I know 12v is around there somewhere close.... |
Posted By: travellite
Date Posted: 18 Jan 2012 at 8:42pm
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Try this: A pico projector (google it,) and a white bed sheet for a screen.
------------- Nature heals. Nature redeems, |
Posted By: profmagickb
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2012 at 5:03am
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My 2011 176T came with a 19" HDTV that is 12vdc native. The radio/DVD player is also 12vdc and accepts a 2GB flash drive which will play *.avi, *.mp3 and such. We watch TV all the time without hookups and I have never had a battery issue (single stock battery). I did have to splice into the antanae amp to hookup the 12vdc plug in though. Yep everything but the micro and AC can be run anytime. ------------- I can't even begin to describe it.... you would just have to see for yourself.... |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 19 Jan 2012 at 1:25pm
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Good to hear they made the change. ------------- 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: profmagickb
Date Posted: 20 Jan 2012 at 3:50am
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As far as I know the 176's have always been this way. It was one of my deciding factors. I got it in 2010. ------------- I can't even begin to describe it.... you would just have to see for yourself.... |
Posted By: this_is_nascar
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 2:53pm
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Can you guys provide brand names and model numbers of the 12-volt native HDTV's that came with your R-Pod? I'm looking to swap-out this AC-only one that I have with something that will run on DC or AC of my choosing.
------------- "Ray & Connie" - 2017 R-Pod RP-180 - 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD-Off Road |
Posted By: tpierce220
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 10:24am
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Ray, here you go: http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/product/jensen-lcd-hdtv/9528 Tim ------------- Adventures with ¡Podtástic!--Life in a Forest River RPod 182G with Tim and Louis and our two cats, Desi and Lucy. Check our website at http://podtastic.info for information on our journeys. |
Posted By: TIDALWAVE
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 11:01am
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I would recommend a pure-sine wave inverter if you need to convert from 12VDC to 110VAC. I use one in my Pod for the TV and especially for my laptop. Another camper stopped to talk to me when he saw I was using my laptop. He complained that his laptop would not work with his new inverter. There was power coming from it. He brought his laptop over to my Pod and it worked with my inverter. I then realized that my inverter was pure-sine but his was a half-sine inverter.
So a cheaper half-sine inverter may not work with some of your electronics. ------------- TIDALWAVE |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 12:05pm
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And with some electronics - not many - a modified sine wave inverter will burn them up. This is true for some electric shavers, and I almost burned up a X-10 controller during a test. Unplugged it in time.
For lighter-duty stuff like laptops, cell phones, etc. I recommend the Morningstar 300 watt pure-sine inverter. It is the most efficient small inverter on the market. So efficient it doesn't even have a cooling fan. http://www.solar-electric.com/mosu300wasiw.html - http://www.solar-electric.com/mosu300wasiw.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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Posted By: dsmiths
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 9:29pm
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Thats a good tip techntrek, thats why I love this forum ------------- Dane and Donna Smith 2011 RP-172 2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer 4X4 lift kit prodigy wireless brake controller |
Posted By: this_is_nascar
Date Posted: 14 Mar 2012 at 10:07am
Thanks Tim.
------------- "Ray & Connie" - 2017 R-Pod RP-180 - 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD-Off Road |
Posted By: this_is_nascar
Date Posted: 14 Mar 2012 at 10:10am
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I just looked. Those TV's are larger that what I was looking for. I thought someone had mentioned the new R-Pods coming with the small flip down TV that we're DC/AC. That's what I was looking for.
------------- "Ray & Connie" - 2017 R-Pod RP-180 - 2007 Toyota Tacoma TRD-Off Road |
Posted By: dressscoome
Date Posted: 12 Jul 2012 at 11:04pm
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Hooked the TV up the antenna on the r-pod and did a search and 3 stations came up so it seems to work --Got it. Appreciate your information! I will conside about that.  ----------------------------------------- http://www.miniprojectoronline.com/%20 - mini projector ------------- Nancy Nancy |