Newbie (1 Viewer)

[autoswan]

Hi all just got my first MH an autotrail a week ago, been local in it for a spin before heading away to west wales on sunday.
Still working out how everything works and how laptop & tv etc works off the leisure battery - inverters ? is there a thread that helps with the basics,startup for novices ?

 

[Carol]

Hi and welcome to Fun, not very good at explaining about electric bits but if you click on the search at the top of the page and type in inverter, quite a few threads came up about them technical things :Blush: but I am sure someone more knowledgeable than me will be along to give you more help soon :welcomefunster:

 

[Phill D]

:thumb:hi welcome:thumb: enjoy the new toy.... we are off down West tomorrow for a longgggg weekend.

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[Reallyretired]

Do check out the threads, these topics come up frequently.
With TV PC etc, though they can be used from an inverter it is much more efficient to use them directly from 12v if you can.

 

[autoswan]

Thanks for the welcomes
Do you mean there is a lead that plugs into the cig lighter socket to run pc etc strait from the 12v engine battery- really retired ? and if so can it be switched to leisure battery to stop risk of engine not starting if run down main one ?

 

[Phill D]

your Autotrail will have 12v sockets in the habitation area these will be connected too the leisure battery not the vehicle.

Just a minor watch out! be slightly carefull with sensitive 12v kit i.e pc's as they may have a max voltage and often your leisure battery may be more than this if charging while on hook up or engine running..

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[autoswan]

Ah ! thanks Phil that makes sense my laptop cable black box says it is 19v 65w when i plug in to 12v cab sockets will the black box on my laptop power/charger cable alter the power to suit the laptop and protect it or do i need another cable ?
Also whats the same info to run a 19 inch screen tv, toaster, iron etc...not all at the same time though

And on my sargent control panel what exactly does the aux button do ?

Sorry if im asking a lot but there looks like there are a lot of experienced MH owners on here who i hope can remember what its like starting out im sure the answers out there somewhere !

 

[Jim]

You can buy small inverters from Halfords. I have a 150watt one that I use in the motorhome and the car this will charge laptops and similar. Plenty of people have dedicated 12v charger for their particular laptop, you can pick them up cheap enough.

What you will probably end up with though is a 600w or larger inverter fitted into the motorhome so you can use lots of regular mains stuff like telly's and hair dryers, but you'll probably need an additional battery before you get that far:thumb:

Why not come along with us to the Peterborough Show, you'll learn lots there and every thing you could dream of adding to your motorhome will be there on show.

Meanwhile, its freezing in West Wales at the moment, I'd leave it a while before coming

 

[Gran & Rog]

Hello welcome to Fun hope you enjoy

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[autoswan]

Thanks G&r and Phil i think another battery will prob be needed iff room by existing one with a big inverter as i plan to do quite a bit of wild camping and wandering .sorry cant make it to Peterborough this time but thanks for the invite much appreciated.

Once i get my head around the power up side of things next will be which satnav to get & how they work ?? so many to choose !

And im still wondering what the Aux- Auxillary button does on the sargent control panel in the cab ?

New hobbys need new braincells

 

[stcyr]

We have a 12v 'brick' for charging our laptops bought off ebay for about £13. Specific to our make of l/top. (Looks same as mains power=pack but with cig.lighter type plug). Some laptops don't like invertors - our HPs for example go haywire, so be circumspect! If when you try an inverter your laptop behaves differently to normal, unplug quick and go down the 12v route: we have a spare Samsung l/top which is quite happy charging through an inverter when necessary, unlike the HPs. The tv works off 12v or mains - same type of transformer for mains, simple lead for 12v... We use both laptops intensively every day while watching tv, at the moment with just one 110a battery charged by 130w solar-panel.

:thumb: