Electrical Upgrade Options after Lithium Battery Upgrade. Opinions, please!

[deleted79651]

We have oodles of spare capacity after the Lithium Battery Upgrade, and have rigged up a 12v pump to make the Water refill easier. That's the limit of my technical understanding (and that is after Funster explanations!).

We are short of charging points for phones, toothbrushes, etc, but we would also like to be able to use a Remoska (410w) + a low wattage Coffee machine (870w), one at a time, when we are off grid.

Do we get a couple of extra USB sockets installed? Or do we get a 1000w pure sine wave inverter fitted to take advantage of the solar surplus? Or do we do both? Or is there a much better solution that my very limited technical knowledge hasn't even thought about?

We don't want to spend silly money, or turn Brunhilde into a wee gin palace; we just want to make the daily routine a wee bit more convenient and use energy that is currently going to waste.

And if anyone going to Polly and Dave's post Lincoln Rally is up for an onsite installation, we'll bring the beer tokens

Steve

TIA

 

[Raul]

Both, the USB’s will take care of your phones tablets etc. And the inverter for the low wattage appliances. A 1kw inverter is not that expensive, you could even go for a second hand used quality one, and save some dosh. If you don’t like it, re sell it.

 

[Bessy765]

Fit the extra USB sockets. To run in inverter just to charge usb devices is inefficient as you are turning 12 volts d.c. into 240 volts A.C. Then back down to 5 volts.

if fitting an inverter it should be as close to the batteries as possible to avoid voltage drop. You will use app 26 amps @ 12 volt D.C. To produce 1 amp @ 240 volts A.C. With respect I would have the inverter fitted professionally as you may be dealing with high current etc.

 

[Richard n Ann]

I've just ordered one of these for the habitation side of the van, it's aluminium and got an off switch so you're not causing a slight drain on the batteries when not in use.

So it looks factory fitted, I've also ordered an identical C-line socket to the ones in the van and blanking plate which I'll drill a hole in for the socket.

It's also QC3 fast charging unlike the C-line version.

 

[Richard n Ann]

12V Car Cigarette Lighter Socket Dual QC3.0 USB Ports Fast Charger Power Adapter | eBay

USB Output: DC 5V/3A;9V/2A;12V/1.5A. Fits for DC 12V-24V car, boat, marine, motorcycle etc. Due to the difference between the light and the screen, the chromatic aberration should be acceptable.

www.ebay.co.uk

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[Landy Andy]

Why fit lithium if you didn’t need the power it provides?

 

[Swifter]

marchie . I’ve struggled to find a low watt coffee machine . Where did you get yours please ?

 

[deleted79651]

marchie . I’ve struggled to find a low watt coffee machine . Where did you get yours please ?

Hi Swifter,
Just checked, it's a 650w machine which we bought from Leclerc Hypermarket at Montmorillon (about €22 IIRC). Think bellabee is heading to Montmorillon now'ish so maybe worth a shout!

Steve

 

[deleted79651]

Why fit lithium if you didn’t need the power it provides?

Future proofing and an ability to fit more charging points to cope with what we need as we grow into the Van.

Steve

 

[bellabee]

Hi Swifter,
Just checked, it's a 650w machine which we bought from Leclerc Hypermarket at Montmorillon (about €22 IIRC). Think bellabee is heading to Montmorillon now'ish so maybe worth a shout!

Steve

Sorry I'm not . We're at Portiragnes, and heading south. Haven't yet decided upon our homeward route.

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[deleted79651]

Hi Swifter,
We HOPE to travel to Spain via France for Winter sun, returning in mid February. We could try to buy one, leaving you to chop the continental plug (we have a European 4 socket extension lead with a British plug because we have British, French and Spanish kit that we use in all 3 countries ...). We return via M5/M6 loop around Birmingham, so could meet at a motorway service area, say the secret code, and pass over the goodies ...
The jug ain't the biggest in the world, but it does produce 2 mugfuls at a time.
Attaching a picture of the jug (still warm!) and mug for comparison. Can't promise that the machine will still be on sale (4 years since purchase!), but happy to try to locate one.

Steve and Elaine

 

[Swifter]

Cheers Steve . Will discuss nearer the time if we still need one . Thank you for the kind offer.

 

[RogerIvy]

I’d go for a 2kw inverter to future proof yourself
Several family members use Giandel - super bit of kit

https://geni.us/Giandel2kw

 

[RogerIvy]

These are the USB sockets we installed. Much easier to mount and are 3.1

Amazon product ASIN B07TVNDY3P