Our Budget-Friendly RV Solar Setup for Boondocking!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 มิ.ย. 2024
- Compared to most RV solar installs, our setup is tiny! But this minimal approach has saved us thousands on the initial install AND in daily campground costs. This budget-friendly investment paid for itself within the first year! Here's all the details about our boondocking setup mixed with shenanigans at White Sands National Park and the best deli in New Mexico.
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00:00 What is Boondocking?
00:41 Minimal Off-Grid Solar Setup
05:07 Our Solar System Costs
05:57 Our Secret to Not Running Out of Water
08:59 Portable Waste Tank System
11:42 Best Deli in New Mexico
13:05 Dog DNA Test
16:49 You Need This for Boondocking
19:15 White Sands National Park
21:34 RV Projects
26:14 Change of Plans!
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Hey there! We're Joe + Kalyn!
As online entrepreneurs, we thought, "why not work from home... on the road"? So in 2019, we bought and renovated a 2005 Jayco Designer Fifth Wheel, which took us to every state in the lower 48. But the economy hit our business especially hard after the 'vid, spurring us to pivot in new directions and try different strategies, including various RV work camping jobs!
Follow our full-time RV Life journey as we build back our bank accounts in order to fund the biggest RV trip of our lifetime-Alaska.
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REAL-TIME UPDATES + STORIES FROM FULL-TIME TRAVEL ⤵️
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If you haven't heard of him, check out Truck House Life Alaska. He is a youtuber who lives in AK and does boondock. I'm sure he would be willing to suggest some areas to go.
When you see the dog on the sofa and the parents on the floor, … just saying. Love the videos!
I’m all signed up. Looking forward to hearing from you.
@@rmlrl1971 That guy is made of strong stuff! -J
@@rmlrl1971Timmy is fun to watch.
A window in the macerator.....
Gives new meaning to the term "sh__ show".
💩 👀 😂
I think Trinity should be allowed on the couch. 💛
Oh she is....fully so if you couldn't tell by this video. 😂 -J
I think Trinity is part Rottweiler and perhaps Labrador. I think she is a beautiful dog.
I think there's a good shot that both of those answers are correct. But I'm no expert by any means so I'm really looking forward to the results! -J
I truly believe she is a Catahoula-at least partially.
I was thinking rotty and shepherd, but I'm changing my answer to: half dog and half canine. 😅
I agree, part Rotty… I have a rotty mix, so sweet. I’m glad these people kept her.
I vote Black and Tan and mix
Trinity made a great pick adopting you two! She looks so much more comfortable, and is showing who is in charge.
Yep. Her. 100%. 😁 -J
@@OpenRoading Did I miss what happened to bunny?
@@mattcrain7057 Bunny is still here! Just introverted out this week and avoided the camera. -J
Yep. She's pretty awesome. I don't have any guesses about her genes, but it might be a mix of awesome and chill. Great video.
Treats. All unpleasantries should be followed with lots of treats.
I say Trinity is 50% sweetheart and 50% good girl.
50% good girl is accurate… 😂😂😂😂😂
lived in Alaska for 3 years…and I wholeheartedly agree with a previous post…the mosquito is the Alaska State Bird
The mosquitos sound….fun. 😂 -J
Great video. It’s all a compromise. There’s a dark side to solar that no one ever talks about. For roof mounted solar panels to do their thing one is going to have to park out in the sun. Here in the Midwest shady oak trees are my friends on a warm summer day. If the hardware is configured correctly one can charge up the batteries using a portable solar panel set, roof mounted solar panels and via a generator, all at the same time. Let the solar panels do their thing as the sun moves across the sky, then fire up the generator for an extra charging boost if needed.
For sure! We have to park in the sun to stay charged up. People who have their roof covered can get away with a little more shade. 😁 We only need our generator if we go more than a day or two without sun. (mostly because we don't use our AC unless we have hookups.) -J
You had the same problem I had with my two huskies trying to do their DNA tests, but totally worth it to find out what your dog is. I use wooden match sticks with a little glue to hold the stick in place for any wood screw that strips..
Yeah - she was not having the bristles in her gums. lol! -J
I think Trinity is part Catahoula or Cur. She such a beautiful girl and I’m so glad you both took her in!
Cur is super high on my guess list as well! I have a friend who has a Cur and they are super similar. -J
Hello from Turkey. I am one of your international viewers. Every other year when I visit the US I rent an RV and travel. Learning a lot from you guys. I signed up for Alaska Postcard. Looking forward to your Alaska adventure.
Hi there! I'm so looking forward to both sending you postcards and finding out just how long it takes for them to arrive there! 😁
We just met some wonderful people from Belgium a couple of days ago who were doing the same thing. They were on an 8 week vacation and traveling the country.
I almost spent some time in one of your airports on my way to Rwanda a few years ago but plans changed and we ended up with a layover in Germany instead. -J
After a strange day, including experiencing our first earthquake, it was such a joy to watch your video tonight! You guys packed so much into this one! It's nice to see Trinity settled in on the couch! I think she has a Bernese Mountain dog look, maybe mixed with lab. The White Sands visit was amazing, and it was so great that you got to bring Trinity along! It looked like the three of you had a great time! So glad the hand rail flip worked out! It was fun seeing our comment on that pop up on the screen! Have a great week! 🙂 🐕
So I'm guessing you're from the North East (no need to pin your actual location on here) with the earthquake info! Those are freaky! I've never experienced a big one, but when I lived in the Southern Tier of NY we felt one and then we felt a few in our RV while we were gate guarding. Soooo unsettling.
At first I was like "No way" to the bernese mountain dog...then I saw the tan points. Now I can't unsee it.
Hand rail flip worked sooo well! Thanks for the suggestion!! And thanks even more for the encouragement. -J
I was thinking Rotty/Lab, maybe trace Bernese?
@@SpiritBearDragon Rottie is high on my list of possibilities and Kalyn has Lab high on hers. 😁 -J
@SpiritBearDragon certainly could be. She is so unique. We have a Bernese mix in the family, and although he looks more like a German Shepard, he's got color markings on his face and legs similar to Trinity.
You pronounced Alamagordo perfectly. You are also right about White Sands. it is a cool place, but 2-3 hours is about all one can handle. Happy traveling.
YAY! 😁
I also got the impression that the "sliding" wasn't really all that effective in that sand. We've been at some other dunes and saw people having a blast going up and down the hills. Here it seemed like the dunes were too short and "sticky" to keep the sledding from being fun. -J
@@OpenRoading You are correct again. The sliding isn't that fun because you have a hard time actually going. I find myself looking forward to your videos. Keep up the great work.
I love the solar video! I went the Will Prowse direction with the 24 volt 200Amp hr. Lifepower 4 rack lithium battery ($1500)..a 3000 watt Growatt inverter (built in charge controller) for $750 and 4 used 305 panels from Santan Solar at $80 each. They produce 1200 watts at peak sunlight. I'll shut up now as I could easily text for an hour about this stuff..I love the off grid lifestyle. 😅
Sounds like an awesome system! -J
Thanks to you we’re going to get a blue boy and a macerator pump set up. We do a lot of Boondocking and that is just what we need. We also use the sanitize mode to fill water in into our tanks from containers.
That sanitize mode is awesome!
We've found the maserator solution to be so helpful simply because we hate having to tear everything down, go dump, then set back up in the same spot. -J
We were stationed at Holloman AFB a couple of times when my husband was in the Air Force. You pronounced Alamogordo perfectly.
Phew!!!! 😁 Loved seeing the F-16s.
So - maybe you can confirm something for me....The USAF unmanned aircraft would consistently fly a pattern over the camping area. In my head they were using the RV's as simulated target practice. Was my head correct?
After about the 4th pass one day I was like "Wait a second......" so after that I always gave a friendly wave to the drone so that hopefully some operator somewhere got a little smile. -J
Went sled riding at 115 degrees! A good time .
Oofta! That's hot! It seemed to me like the gypsum there wasn't great for sliding. Was it faster when it got hotter? -J
MOPEKA propane tank sensors. They are fantastic. Always know your tank levels. I’ve had them for 5 years now. Work great.
My friend Mike had these! I need to grab a pair. So many things on the "need to grab list!" 😂 -J
Great Video! I am going to guess that Trinity is…Lab, Hound, Rottweiler and maybe Husky mix. It will be very interesting to see the results. Trinity looks like she has been a “Couch Potato”all her life, so sweet. 😊
She sure is embracing her domain. 😂 I love the mix of dogs in your guess to her breed! -J
The trick to being able to run Air Conditioning is to use DC units off the 12V instead of the 110 volt units that are typical. Most of them were designed for big diesel rigs. Plus not cooling the whole trailer - for example not cooling the bedroom during the day or the lounge during the night. Seen a few setups that managed. They are not cheap though.
It probably would not hurt you to double your panels while keeping the same battery, from the looks of it your controllers and wiring would be sufficient to handle it. You would just have the cost of the panels themselves. Add them to the existing daisy-chain.
Oh for sure we could upgrade the system. We've got more roof space! It's just low down on the financial and time to install list at the moment. 😁 -J
As I have said before, I have a dog (Trixie) that could be her twin and she definitely has some hound in her as I imagine Trinity does as well. Also for great boondocking spot locations I would recommend Big Truck Big Travels, Traveling Robert and Nomadic Ramblers went to Alaska last summer and had a lot of great spots, I think the Nomadic Ramblers actually gave the coordinates.
Thanks for the tips and Kalyn agrees with you on the hound! -J
I think she is a Doberman/Staffie/Shepherd cross. Nice dog!!!!
She is a catch for sure! -J
Joe don't look now but I think it is safe to say that you are a dog person now. Adding Brown Bag to our location list when we head back to White Sands. Trinity owns the couch now, you will never get it back. Can't wait to see what the DNA results are. Loved the addition of peeping Craig 8)
- Kyle and Michelle
Hey fellow gate guarders! I have to catch up on your videos! We've been crazy busy over here my youtube watching schedule is falling behind. 🫣
If you like subs - Brown bag is a must! And if you stay at that boondocking spot...be aware of peeping Craig! 😂 -J
Trinity looks very similar to our dog that we got from a rescue shelter. Our boy is a terrier mix but there wasn't any specific info on what type of terrier.
One hint about the eye masks. Don't expect them to block out 100% of the light if your eyes are open. You'll probably see light around the nose area or the sides. However, with your eyes closed, they should block out the light so that you can sleep in darkness. They take a while to get used to practice taking a nap with them.
Terrier! I haven't seen that in the guesses yet. That's super interesting! Love it!
I'm intrigued by your suggestion with the eye mask. Do people complain about light coming in with their eyes open? I assumed you closed your eyes with them because I sleep with my eyes closed. I'd be worried that having my eyes open would scratch my eyeballs! 👀 -J
@@OpenRoading Amazon reviews often complain that the eye masks aren't 100% black out, but the directions should tell you that it blocks out the light where your eyes are which is what you want.
@@juliebaird4156 Exactly! -J
Soft start for your AC.... Saves juice
We've got one of those (not installed yet) - but the amount of battery it would consume is a no-go without extra battery storage or more panels. Our air fryer takes 1% a minute and the AC draws more than that! 😂 But! We are aware of some super efficient models coming out soon! -J
I disagree. It just spreads out the starting surge to be longer. Same total power.
@@luminousveiws Yeah, I don't know whether or not it uses less juice overall but it does prevent the surge off the top. We don't have enough batteries to use the standard rooftop AC for more than 20 minutes (not the exact figure) anyway so the soft start is currently sitting in a box. 😂 -J
@@josephcomings As an electrician I am telling you the total power load is so close to the same as to not matter. In fact if you look closely at your AC you might find it has a soft start built into it already. Most have something, but bigger is better!?
You're going to need a bug net! The state bird is the mosquito! Make sure your screens on your windows are good! Mosquitoes are worse than the light when you are trying to go to sleep!
Nets are on the list! And I don't know if you follow us on IG...but the door screen already needs to be repaired because our girl decided to run through it. 😂 -J
You folks are the regular folks dealing with camping life love you guys hey trinity that dog came to you guys for a reason lucky dog
That's what we are for sure. And yeah, we are lucky to have her for sure. -J
So great to see so much more from you more often. Pleased all your hard work on your Open Roading TH-cam channel is working!! Yay!! Roll on Alaska in June 🎉
Every week! We'll keep plugging away at this channel! -J
Accidentally came across one of your videos today. Been watching them all afternoon. Really enjoying them. Riding my mule on a night with a full moon is on my bucket list. There is a group of horse riding people that do it pretty regular. Wish i was closer, we are in east Texas, no a qucik trip, lol.
Thanks so much for taking the time to watch! Means so much.
We discovered pretty quickly that no place in Texas is close to another place in Texas. 😂 This state covers a lot of territory. -J
Love your videos and yes Trinity is now a diva. LOL. Just like our 2 dogs....they rule the house.
100% diva. -J
This is a handy cap to connect the macerator hose to the honey wagon, so you don't have to put the hose inside and hold your nose. Works as long as you have an air vent (just don't stand near it. That's a great price for the macerator - I may have to do that. Thanks!
Oh, and by "this", I mean: Valterra T1020-1VP Waste Valve Cap - 3" with Capped 3/4" GHT. $8.50 on Amazon
Nice! I've seen those but haven't wanted to try it on my tank because the air valve is super tiny. I may just have to give it a go sometime and see what happens. Worst thing that happens is me doing a remake of the famous dump station scene from the Robin Williams movie. 😂 -J
Trinity will have the mattress next, its only natural when a smart canine adopts their humans. Keep up the great content, you're becoming one of you tubes best channels. Safe travels you two!
LOL! I can't say that she hasn't tried! But the couch is basically entirely hers now. We have to ask permission to share it with her. I covered it in pillows yesterday to see what she'd do. She was a little confused at first and then just lay down across all 4 pillows like the diva that she is. 😂
Thanks so much for the encouragement. I so appreciate it. -J
Nice.
We have one that looks exactly like Trinity
She is a mixed breed that came out of my neighbors German Shepherd and our curr dog.
Super smart and super protective.
Awesome! We don’t know where she is on the “protective front” but we feel like she is super loyal…with a stubborn streak. 😂 -J
Get yourself a Mopeka Propane Tank Gas Level Indicator. You will never run out again
I really should. The thing is...I shouldn't have anyway since we have 2 tanks. When one is empty...you fill it. But aparently that is simply too much for me to keep track of. 🤦🏼♂️ -J
I think Trinity is shepherd/Rottweiler/Lab. You might think about trying a different diet if her gas is so bad. There may be some ingredients that she’s sensitive to. There are limited ingredient dog foods that tend to work well, at least they did for one of our pooches.
We've tried a couple of different foods but she's been farty since day 1. Thankfully the pro-biotics really do work super well! We've been getting a brand that is low on fillers. -J
I adopted my dog Boston from a reservation and used Wisdom Panel. You will be surprised at what they detect.
I see Lab, Shepherd, Pit bull and some Rottweiler in Ms Trinity.
Love the guesses! -J
I live in an RV parked in a metal building. I have 12 - 320watt solar panels and 800ah of lithium batteries. I can run the rooftop AC for about 7 hours or the House style window unit in the bedroom for about 15 hours. Solar is amazing, but it's still restrictive, even with as much power as I have.
You can also get all of this equipment for WAY less now. 200ah LiFePo4 battery is like $500, charge controllers are like $300, 2500watt AIMS Power LF(Low Frequency) series inverter(accept AC power to recharge batteries), if you can get them on sale, are like $500, ~300watt solar panels are $120 and the cabling you're looking at $150. A simple 500 amp shunt will measure battery capacity. You can get away with a High Frequency invert for half the cost if you don't need to run large inductive loads like air conditioning or air compressors; they can easily run a fridge and have lower overall power draw. My 2500watt AIMS power LF inverter draws 4 amps on it's own, but my 1200watt AIMS power high frequency inverter pulls like .5 amps. I run my fridge off the 1200watt, because I had a Renogy 3000 watt inverter and I went through 4 of them in 1 year, because they kept messing up. Lost two fridge loads of food. :(
Lots of awesome info here! Thanks.
Keep an eye out, there are some RV AC units coming down the pike that take like 9amps to run. I didn't believe it until I saw one working in someone elses' rig. -J
I think Trinity is part Rottweiler. I also wanted to offer a suggestion for your windows. We used black contractor bags to cover our windows so we could sleep in the summer months in Alaska.
I appreciate the tip! If we have trouble sleeping we will for sure either go that route or put reflectix in the windows to block everything out. -J
Great video. First, Trinity is a Best Dog Ever breed.
Second, get yourself a heating blanket, put it on your bed and lay on top of it. They only draw 100 watts and you will never be cold.
Third not bragging but 2 humans 2 dogs 16 gallons of water a week. Drinking, cooking, dishes, and washing.
Brag away! That's impressive. I honestly don't think we will ever get better than 80 gallons over 7 days. 😂 -J
Trinity looks a lot like my girl Rosie, German Shepard mix, maybe some Rotti….my girl has Pit, boxer ,Rotti and German Shepherd. Very smart and loving. 😀
Awesome mix. -J
Those cold mornings mean you can snuggle more. lol enjoy your journey!
There we go!! -J
I can totally relate with the Boondocking dilemmas. I have been Boondocking out here in Arizona on BLM land since November this year, I finally bought a macerator pump and a water bladder for the back of the truck to replenish my water in my travel trailer. All those things were a total game changer. I am not the best at water conservation although I am getting better lol. Always love and enjoy your videos. Y’all just make me laugh. Can’t wait to see what the results are for Trinity. I think she may have some sort of hound dog in her possibly some Shepherd! She is truly living her best life with you.🐾❤️
Love the guesses for Trinity. I think you're the first one to mention Hound! I think there is a good shot there is some of that in her because of all the animals that will get her interested in a walk it's birds. There is something about ducks and birds that gets her riled up.
We're right there with you on the water! There was some amazing person here in the comments that gets by on 16 gallons a week. That's called a day for us sometimes. 😂 -J
In joy your videos a lot but don’t comment often. Valterra makes a waste valve cap (T-1020-1) that I use to back fill my black tank to flush it you could use it to fill your portable and not have to hold it. Great videos keep up the great work. Thanks From Wisconsin 😊
Thanks for the tip! My only concern with that fitting is that my air vent is so tiny I'm afraid it won't be able to keep up with the macerator. But I should probably give it a try sometime because it would cut down on the gross factor! -J
She looks our dog Cash. I think she is part Rottweiler and German Shepherd.
She found her people. 😊
So many people with shepherd in the mix! I’m excited to find out! -J
I had a good laugh with “heb” vs HEB… so keep them coming!
My Trinity vote is Rottweiler and…. Shepard. Maybe a bit of lab too.
So happy I found you all and happy you found Trinity!
😂 That grocery store will forever be burned in my memory.
I agree on the Rotti and a lot of people are saying Shepard. I don't see that part so I'm really interested to see if so many are seeing something I'm completely missing. (Kinda like the handle on the RV I suppose. 😂) -J
@@OpenRoading how long will it take, do you know?
@@michelle_nolan 2-3 weeks (how's this for a delayed response) 😳 -J
I think with those beautiful eyes, Trinity must be part Husky!
Her eyes are one of her defining features for sure! -J
I think Trinity is a husky / malamute x Kelpie. Bless her. .
I love this guess. -J
She’s 100% love bug!
100% -J
Hello, I so enjoy your videos and adventures on the road. My husband and I became full time RVers last fall. Looking forward to your adventure in Alaska and so happy you rescued Trinity. Blessings ❤
Thank you so much for taking the time to let us know. 🤗
We're so happy to have Trinity as well! -J
What a gentle baby Trinity is! She definitely deserves couch privileges! And I know next to nothing about it but I’m going to guess she’s all rotti.
OO! A full on Rotti! We'll see soon I hope! -J
My guess on the breed would be Australian Shepherd, Rottweiler, & German Shepherd mix.
Love this. I would be happy with all those breeds wrapped up into one. -J
I do watch Wild RV Life! I know you guys are boondocking in the same location and both planning a Alaska trip will you guys be going together? I have enjoyed watching all of the adventures all of you guys have been doing and I am have been trying to get my husband interested. I don't know that I will convince him... city boy. We once rented a cabin at our nearby state park and I couldn't get most of them to leave the cabin. We had a storm come through and the electricity went out. Then they all came outside and we played games (Hillbilly golf was their favorite). Love that you guys adopted Trinity. I got my two a couple of years ago and they have changed my life, for the better of course. Always something going on with them, they keep me laughing and on alert - never know what they are going to get into next.
You caught us. 😂 Yes, a 2 RV caravan is the Alaska plan. I have to laugh because our RVs couldn't be more different. Super nice Brinkley and a nearly 20 year old Jayco that needs some love. But Craig and Victoria don't seem to be embarrassed to hang out with us so we're happy!
I wasn't on board with the idea of RV life for quite a while. It took a lot of patience on Kalyns part and a lot of entertaining youtube videos for me to start seeing the potential. So...there's a chance! -J
It may take what feels like forever, but if you guys keep this up, you oughta have a few hundred thousand subscribers in no time!
Excited to see your travels on the way to Alaska.
Thanks so much. We've been in a bit of a lull right now where each video does worse than the last but we're gonna keep learning and plugging away! Anytime we get a little discouraged we just remember where the channel was a few months ago. -J
@@OpenRoading Yeah, keep your spirits high. This video kept us interested all the way through, so huge kudos!
@@leroiandmarie Thanks so much! -J
Hi there! I love love your videos! They’re so real and down to earth and informative. I love Trinity adopted you! So cute. I love her eyebrows! I think she is Doberman and Labrador. And maybe Rottweiler. She IS beautiful!! My fur baby died two years ago. I’m on the lookout for another fur baby!! Thank you for your videos!
I'm so sorry for your loss 2 years ago. There's nothing that prepares you for it really. I hope the perfect animal finds you soon! -J
@@OpenRoading ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ thank you‼️
Trinity is 100% goodest girl. Such a sweet baby ♥
Nailed it! -J
Love seeing how Trinity has settled in and feels so at home with you. She seems like a perfect fit-whatever her DNA test says!
Perfect fit is 100% correct. -J
Wow, it sounds like our stories are very similar. We're retired FTers who started the same year you did. We discovered we love boondocking so designing and building our solar system ourselves, on a tight budget. It took us 5 years to gather the resources and finally complete the project. We're living this lifestyle off of a limited retirement income so had to take the low budget route, foregoing name brand components like Victron and Battleborn for more affordable options. We started by building a 620-watt liftable solar array on the side of our 1999 National Tropical MH. We sourced our two 310w Canadian Solar panels from North Arizona Wind and Solar too, driving to Flagstaff to pick them up. Our side array makes a nice bedroom window awning too, practically lifting itself with a couple gas struts, and it's easy to clean, standing safely on the ground.
Next, we built a 12v, 560ah LiFePo-4 battery using 8, 280ah prismatic cells and a Heltec 330amp (1,200a surge) BMS with a 5a active balancer. These cells fit perfectly under the steps of our MH where our old pair of golf cart batteries used to reside. This is roughly the equivalent of a pair of Battleborn Gamechangers. We insulated the battery compartment, cut a small hole in our step risers and installed a tiny computer CPU fan to keep this space at close to room temperature, so we don't have to worry about the BMS shutting down charging due to low temperature - or their life reduced from getting too hot. Our 12v system uses an 80A LFP converter/charger, a 1,000w Renogy inverter, a 50a Epever MPPT charge controller and a Lnex battery monitor. All this cost us under $3,500 and met all our off-grid electrical needs except for our air conditioning, heat and microwave.
By mounting the solar array on the side of our coach, we left the roof free to rack 8, 550w solar panels down the length of our 35ft Class A, 15" off the roof, above our AC, vents, etc. We built the rack out of 2" 6061-T6 structural aluminum angle. The front 2 panels slope down at a shallow 9.5-degrees to meet the roof, producing a smooth laminar airflow over the array, making the RV more stable with less wind drag while driving too. It shades our entire roof, allowing plenty of cooling air underneath, increasing solar output and reducing the heat load on the air conditioners, though our overall height is still just under 12 ft. After we attached the rack, we coated the entire roof, including the array mounting feet, with Henry's Tropicool silicone sealant to keep things watertight.
Our 4,400w fixed array can run both our A/Cs, household appliances and charge our batteries from solar at the same time, even in winter. We mounted a Sungold Power all-in-one 48V, 5,000W Inverter/100A charge controller/battery charger, breakers and another Lnex battery monitor on the wall in our bedroom, saving us space as well as money compared to a system built with individual components. This all-in-one unit has the same 99% charging and 95% inverter efficiency as the Victron unit, though it lacks some of the bells and whistles to come in at only $764 for a full 5,000 watts of PSW inverter power and 100 amps of 48v charging capacity.
Our 48v battery uses 16, 320ah prismatic cells and a 200amp Heltec BMS to keep it safe. Together with our 560ah 12v bank, we have a total of 23.5 kwh of batteries onboard - kept charged by 5,020 watts of solar. This is the equivalent storage capacity of over $16,500 worth of 100ah Battleborn batteries for under $3,400. We removed our old rooftop bedroom A/C and replaced it with an EG4 28.5 seer-2, 12k btu mini-split heat pump on the upper rear of our motorhome. It's super quiet and cools as well as our 14.5k btu soft start equipped Furrion we have up front, but only draws about 1/3rd the power. This second phase provides 24/7 off-grid air conditioning and heat from the heat pump. We have a total of 6,000 watts of 120v inverted ac power, giving us off-grid electrical self-sufficiency without the need to run our generator. Our total budget for both 12 and 48v systems was around $11,500, including the $1,500 high-efficiency heat pump.
Take care, hope to see you down the road one day.
That is an awesome build! Hats off as soon as you started talking about building your own batteries. 🫡 That's over my skis for sure! -J
@@OpenRoading It's not as difficult as one would imagine. I just watched a ton of Will Prowse's videos on the subject, bought a $50 adjustable voltage power supply (that I use for other things, like battery charging) to top balance them and I was all set. The money saved made it worth it, plus they take up less space than premade batteries do. The last cells I got from China were only $1,726 including shipping for 16, 320ah LiFePo-4 prismatic cells rated at 4,000 100% cycles or 6,000 80% cycles. That's 16 years if cycled 80% every single day, and I barely cycle them 30% a day. Their capacity is 16.38 kwh or 1,280ah at 12.8v. That's about 15% of what an equivalent amount of Battleborn batteries would cost, including the BMS. The only negative was that I was quoted a 6-week shipping time, however they arrived in only 5. They have a US office and warehouse to quickly resolve any warranty issues, though I had none. They even came with flexible bus bars as lagniappe.
@@SuperSushidog Very very cool!! -J
One of your best videos. Great job! Craig and Victoria are great.
I was super happy with this video too! 😁 TH-cam didn't think it was amazing apparently but oh well....I enjoyed it. LOL.
And yes, Craig and Victoria are awesome and I'm so glad to have them as friends. We're truly blessed. -J
Victron is an awesome choice.
TH-cam education for the win. 😂 I literally had no idea what I was doing when we got the system in 2019 but between youtube and a super helpful couple of employees from Arizona Wind and Sun - I think we really got a good setup.
I see a lot of setups where they have to manually hit switches when they plug in or if they want to use the 120v. etc. It's really nice that this system just works. There's no extra steps to remember to use it. That's what I love most. -J
“It got messy again!” LOL Mine does that, too! I leave it all neat and organized, and then as soon as I turn my back… ;)
300 Ah… is that AGM or lithium? Guessing AGM?
I would also delay expanding… the technology is improving so fast and becoming so reasonably priced… it really seems like the longer you can hold out the more you can buy and get for your money when you do update. (You were missing the inverter. :) )
Our dog is allowed on everything… and we wouldn’t have it any other way. I love love love my cuddlebug.
My guess for Trinity… Rottweiler coloring, but smaller frame, some sort of hound, maybe, and perhaps a hint of Shepard?
Rub some Vicks under your nose before hose duty.
I love that you take Trinity on adventures. We take Snoop Dogg anywhere he can go, too.
Do you have hot water bottles? So simple and easy and so wonderful when the temps are low.
Signed up for my postcards!
Our batteries are Lithium. That was actually literally half of our $6,000 solar install... 3 batteries. 😂 I went Lithium so that I didn't have to worry about only using half of their capacity.
Oh that's funny - she didn't say inverter and I missed it too! lol There's another $1K. lol. Yeah. We are expanding the battery bank but not much else. I don't see us expanding the solar array until we decide to either renovate this RV or try something new. And that's a ways down the road yet.
I've come to the conclusion that Trinity likes all things soft. So couches...sand....pillows...if it's soft...she's loves it.
Thanks so much for joining the post card club! 🤗 -J
Great video! Trinity is so lucky! Thinking Rott/Lab mix!
Thanks! Love the guess! -J
I am so glad Trinity has the couch now. I did a dna test in our furbaby when we got her. And I also got a gps device for her because she ran away two days after we adopted her. It will show us where she is at all times. Now she adores me so much that I know she would never run away again.
Eye masks are adjustable and are kind of a bummer to wear but it helps me be able to sleep during the day. I’ve become a night owl and stay up until maybe 5:00 or 6:00 in the morning. The eye mask makes it possible for me to sleep well even though my bedroom is bright. It took a couple of days to adjust to having it on.
Wow! White Sands looks great. Enjoy your travels. 🙏🧡
She's full on diva now. 😂 We've considered a GPS device - even tried to get one company to work with us on it. Thought it would be a match made in heaven. Didn't work out though.
Kalyn has already tried the mask and says she really likes it so hopefully it will work well for her in Alaska! -J
I think Trinity is a lab/german shepherd/pit mix. She’s such a sweet puppy. I love seeing her in your videos.❤
100% sweet that's for sure. -J
We're Canadian's 🇨🇦 and this is our first time RVing in Texas. If it's wasn't for your video about H.E.B I would have made the same mistake and called it Heb 😂 Thanks for the butt save 😅
LOL!!!!!! You're welcome! It's a service we provide called "learn from our mistakes!" -J
😂
What an amazingly informative video. I’m going to look into your macerator. It’s on my list of items to collect. My wife will have to guess on Trinity’s breed - I’m not so good at that. I just love Amazon shipments - even other peoples packages . 😂. Take care. Looking forward to Alaska. I’ll be taking notes as I’d like to do the same. One more thing, my heart was warmed when I saw Trinity on the couch - even before you said anything about it. You are a wonderfully warm hearted couple.
Hey Mike!
Yeah...Trinity won us over. Now the couch is hers and she's kind enough to let us use it occasionally. 😂 -J
One other note on the macerator - If you're in a spot where you can dump your grays on the ground, it's helpful in getting the gray water further away from the rig. I usually only have 1 or 2 3" hoses on me but I can use a 50' garden hose and really get the gray water far away. -J
You need a propane gauge system! they have Bluetooth systems.
I do. And I need to just go fill the first tank when it gets empty as opposed to waiting "just a day or two". 😂 -J
Funny. The wife and I am staying at Holloman AFB today in their FamCamp RV park in Alamogordo NM, stopped by for the misses to see White Sands National Park and to stop by Roswell UFO Museum at the end of our 18-day San Diego to Florida and back. We are primarily BoonDockers, I had to learn to use all the RV hookups like water and electric at all the base and public RV parks since we are not used to using electric for everything. Our rig (imperial outdoors X195) has 1080 Solar and 1280 batteries, 60 Gal Fresh and Grey tanks (No black - have a dry flush system). We actually thought of maybe going full time think to this trip, we have really enjoyed it. In the 4800miles we have travels so far, these last couple weeks, we have averaged 11.4mpg.
That's about where we are on MPG (10ish) and I love hookups....until it's time to leave. I get so used to just packing up like 2 things that when I have to add al the other fooferall we end up not leaving until lunch. 😂 -J
Hey all, found you guys when you started doing gate watching. so you showed some prebiotic you are giving Trinity.. what was that. our 10 year old dog has the same gassy issue. haha... I love that you rescued her from here... she is such a good girl.
Haha! It took a few days to take full effect but boy does it work! amzn.to/3U2W3wJ -J
looks like my Badger pup…mostly Rottweiler
You need to boondock on the property of Alaskan TH-camrs.
Alaska simple living is the best one.
Thanks for the tip. If you have a personal connection to them let me know! Otherwise I’m not big on inviting myself over to someone else’s property. -J
I love how you were just keeping it real and I enjoyed the box opening montage! Okay so we have a dog named Cookie and she looks a lot like Trinity and she is part Chocolate Lab and part German Pinscher. That is my guess! So are you planning on having a postcard rally after you get back from Alaska, that would be a blast! 😁💗
You can't come unless you have a postcard! 😁
Our club is going to be relatively small and quite spread out (as far away as TURKEY!!!) - so I don't think that will work - but we are wanting to do a few meetups. And, at the moment, if we're ever nearby someone we do make an effort to hang out if we can! We've met two fantastic couples that way already. So...if you don't already follow us on IG - Kalyn keeps things pretty current on there so you'll know the approximate area we're in. (as opposed to on here where we are usually gone by the time you see the video).
Also - if German Pinscher is in there I'm gonna try to remember give ya'll a shout out because you're the only comment I've seen with that guess. -J
Oh gosh! I totally didn't mean an exclusive rally! I was just thinking it might be nice to meet the people in person that help support your journey, and we could meet our favorite TH-camrs... Trinity and Cody.😂
@@DMRSIX We all know who the favorites are 😂 🐕🦺🐰
Some places allow grey water dumping on the ground. Or you could collect it in a bin like for dishes and dump it outside. When I open my camper, I collect the antifreeze and dump it outside. Of course you will need some for B tank dumping or pee out side and bag your number 2 and there's no need for a B tank. You know, what Trinity does.
Yes...and then I have to bag what trinity does....and send it to the landfill. 😂
I don't think I'm going to convince Kalyn to do anything outside unless it's a 15 mile hike.
We dump our grays on the ground occasionally and it's super helpful when we are in areas where that's OK! -J
So, has Trinity had a chance to play with Leland and Maverick? I’d love to see that on a video. As for her breed, I’m thinking Rottweiler, pit bull, lab. I can’t wait to see her mix. Either way, she’s a beautiful dog! She’s really become family with you two. ❤❤
They will get the chance eventually. At the moment Trinity is not spayed and Leland and Maverick are "in tact." Trinity is just wrapping up her "heat cycle" (this has been a fun comment to write) so in order to make sure 3 dogs don't become 10....we opted to hold off on the introductions. 😂 -J
@@OpenRoading haha. Good call. Although they would be adorable puppies!
@@lauradomenico3264 for sure for sure! -J
German Shepherd, Rottweiler and lab! 100% best girl ever…
No question on the last part. -J
Thanks for sharing your adventure! Ive been following you guys for about a month now. I am new to RV life. My family amd i are making a trip to see the western states. From New Mexico originally and lived in Texas for a bit. My wife still call H.E.B "heb" to get under the texans skin! Lol 😂
That last sentence tells me that you're my kind of people. 😂 Enjoy the west! -J
We boondock year round except for June, July, and August because of the heat in the Nevada desert. Until then we boondock in the desert in an area where there’s no limit. We love it. People ugh.
There’s an adapter cap for your portable tank where you can physically attach your hose to the tank and not have to hold the hose when you’re pumping poo.
I've seen those adapters and will have to give it a try. I've always been a bit nervous of trying it because the air vent on the other side is super tiny so I'm worried that the air escaping isn't going to be able to keep up with the amount of 💩 being pumped in...and I could end up with a poop explosion. 😂 But it's possible I'm just being over concerned. -J
great stuff!!
She is a Husky/American Rottweiler mix, but 100% Sweetiepie.
No doubt about that last part! -J
Trinity is probably a mix of Appenzeller Mountain Dog. She is so cute and It's just great that you took her in. you are just the best❣
I love guesses with breeds I know nothing about! Makes me do research to see if I need to change my guess. 😁 -J
Papertowel 100% helps capture the sun 🤣 Love it!
You know it! 😂 -J
Alamogordo is the pistachio capital of the world! There is a section of town that's charming and a shop that sells all kinds and flavors of pistachios! They were the best! Your videos are great! Even though we're off the road now, your videos help keep us connected to that lifestyle! We miss it! Safe travels! ❤😊
So glad you're able to enjoy traveling some more through the videos! We drove past the Pistachio place but did not have time to explore. You may want to check out WildRVLifes next video though on Sunday! -J
I see you were camping beside the Wild RV Life!
We were indeed! A little bit more with them in the video before this one. 😀 -J
Chena Lakes Recreation Area in North Pole. I’ll host you for a meal and show you around. River Park is prettier, but also buggier. Lake park is only slightly less pretty, but also slightly less buggy.
Less buggy is good! Keep track of us on IG! -J
Boom. Keep it up guys. Well done content.
Thanks so much! -J
Updates! I bought an Onnais lock for my RV. Stellar deal and install was a charm! Loving it so far. I picked up a powered front lift jack (something us non-5th wheel folks need). Can't wait to give that a shot.
Loving the homebrew battery setup. Now that systems like Jackery, Bluetti, Ecoflow, Anker, etc have solar+battery management systems, would you consider using one of those if you had to do it all over again?
Finally-- my gut is telling me Rottweiler + Bluetick. Then again, I'm very wrong on these things. I thought our mutt was a German Shepherd/Whippet mix and he turned out to be Pit/Staffordshire/Husky
Oooo I like the Bluetick guess. That's a new one here in the comments!
Glad you're loving the lock! We've continue to be super happy with ours. I thought i'd have to recharge the batteries by now but I haven't had to do that yet. I will probably do that within the next month or so just for kicks and giggles.
We actually got pitched by Jackery recently but so far all I'm seeing from them are more portable systems. So at the moment I would still go with a built in system. What I love most about our setup is that it simply works. I don't have to switch any switches or worry about whether I'm using something thats 120v or 12v. Everything just works all the time.
The one thing I WOULD do differently is I would have spent a lot more time figuring out a better installation system for the panels themselves. Ours our 100% fixed to the roof and tilt slightly to the rear. I would LOVE to have the ability to tilt them at minimum toward the front and also more toward the back So that i could get better efficiency in the winter....and in Alaska. I'm actually pretty sure my setup is going to struggle a LOT in Alaska simply due to the angle of the sun vs the angle of my panels.
I have considered getting another charge controller and some sort of foldable panels that i can use to help charge our batteries, but as you know...storage is a bit of an issue for us so i'm thinking that probably won't happen before Alaska which is when we'd need it most. lol. -J
@@OpenRoading Very cool. I definitely appreciate the tech/upgrades/DIY content!
@@acatzr800 Just as long as you aren't relying on us for "How-To" you'll be good! 😂 Jerry Rig is my friend more often than he should be. lol -J
Another fantastic video from you guys! Signed up for the Post Card Club and really excited to see your journey to Alaska! Keep up the great work and have fun! (Appears that you have the fun part under control! ;)
Thanks so much! And I actually appreciate the reminder to have fun. Sometimes it's really easy to lose that in the grind of creating content along with our other side hustles, RV repairs etc. I'll make sure to have some fun tomorrow. 😁 -J
We’re hitting the Canadian border about the 1st of June. We have part of Montana and eastern Washington we want to explore before heading into Canada.
Nice! We're hoping to hit up some of the Canadian National Parks in May....but finding places to stay that early is gonna be challenging. Weekends fill up fast once the parks open so getting a spot for a full week is tough! -J
@@OpenRoading We’re saving Jasper and Banff for on the way back. Then to Glacier and into to Idaho for awhile
@@brucefranklin6765 Idaho is underrated! -J
Ok I have a tip for you on how to increase your fresh water storage, that may make filling your fresh water tanks easier. They do sell metal transfer tanks for pickup’s that drop into the bed of a truck, and bolt to the bed of the truck. As long as it has not been used to store any kind of fuel, you can use them to store water as they are a liquid transfer tank. You can also buy 35 and 55 gallon water barrel, and tractor supply does sell large plastic water tanks. I know as a friend of mine kept a 350 or 500 gallon tank in the bed of his F-150, that he used to haul water for his house out in the country that had no water lines connected to a water main.
Good idea. I love it! I may consider that with the next rig/truck. It would be a process at the moment as I'd have to get that, and then some sort of a pump that could handle a long hose to the RV (Just in case I couldn't get the truck close to the side of the RV). Plus my "Upgrade list" is long and expensive and we'll need a few more youtube views before I can start making a dent in it. 😂 -J
Just remember, the further north (away from the equator) you get, the less solar charge you will get.
Also you need to periodically check your bolt to the battery and all your charging components.
Yep! And if the weather is anything like it was for Alaska last year...you can go days without even seeing the sun because of all the fog and mist. 🫣 But that's why we have our backup generator. Run it for a few hours to get up to 100% and we're good for a day or two! -J
We totally agree about the solar you really don't need a huge system to get out boondocking. We currently just have batteries and the stock inverter and no solar panels but we make it work for now!
Nice! It's all about finding the system that works for you! -J
A couple things you can do if you’re out of propane. One is have a hot water bottle that you can heat some hot water for and take that to bed with you. The English people do that quite a bit. The second thing I do of course if you’ve got enough electricity to run a hairdryer, being careful of the vents and warm up inside of your bed and you can be so warm and then shut it off and your beds warm.
Thankfully we were pretty cozy in bed...it was getting out of bed that was the problem. 😂 It seems I would have learned by now to always fill the one tank as soon as it's empty so that we never run out...but instead....I do this. LOL -J
Another great one
But....you haven't had time to watch it... 😂 -J
🏆
@@OpenRoadingthat’s because I know it’s gonna be great just like the other ones😀
@@anthonymartinez749 haha! I appreciate the confidence! 😁 -J
Truly appreciate this vid; I sent to my wife so that she can watch. We may work from the road a two days most. Gives us a head start on our trip.
Nice! Working from the road can be super challenging (especially if you are working for yourself) but if you can nail the balance of work and play - nothing beats it! -J
Those were some beautiful pictures of the white sand and of course Trinity made it even more beautiful ❤️ and one for Cody too ❣️
Kalyn is rocking the photos lately! Passing on the ❤️ and ❣️ -J
I'd suggest getting a sewer cap with hose fitting to attach to the "sled" side - saw several on Amazon under $10... then you're ready to use the hose for fresh water!! too funny 😆
🐶 I'm thinking Trinity is Rotty, Lab, and *maybe* Greater Swiss Mountain Dog (sometimes called a "short haired" Bernese)??? 🐕
Craig & Victoria seem like they would be great people to know - no wonder you guys are friends! Are you all caravaning to Alaska together?
Thanks for bringing us along, see you next week!
I've seen those cap fittings...they always make me nervous with this tank because the air valve on the other end is quite small (as in the tank will shrink in on itself when I dump because air can't get in fast enough) so I'm worried that sealing it off may cause a poop explosion if the air can't escape fast enough. That said...It is probably worth a try! I've ended up with the end of the hose getting dipped into the tank before and that's never fun and this would solve that problem.
I don't think anyone has said anything "official" yet but yes, we're doing a 2 RV caravan up and back with Craig and Victoria. 😁 We did some travel together back in 2022 through California and we all were a really good fit for each others travel styles.
I love your guess on Trinity. Kalyn thinks there's a lot of Lab and I think there's a lot of Rottie so you're thinking along the same lines. I'm going to look up the swiss mountain dog! -J
Trinity @ the White Sands❤. Great stuff.
She had an absolute blast!! -J
I laughed out loud at Trinity on the couch. So relateable. Those probiotics are great. We use them for our dogs too.
Those probiotics saved her from living outside. (I kid...but it was BAAAAD). -J
Just an FYI on charging your battery when it's low there's a third option:
If you plug your power cord (trailer hitch cord) in to your truck that you use when you're moving the RV... And leave your truck idle; it will charge your battery also... You could test it to see if it uses less gas than your generator... But it will definitely make less noise than a generator!
God bless you and yours and all my brothers and sisters! 😇
Thanks so much. Unfortunately on our trailer the truck connection is completely separate from the power supply to the RV. It only runs the running lights and brakes. I do know that for other trailers this is a viable option though! -J
Trinity looks like a Rottweiler/Shepherd cross. She also likely has some Pit Bull in the mix because just about every stray has some Pit in them these days. She could also be a Boxer/Lab mix. That's technically two guesses but maybe you'll let it slide.
Haha! Perfect! With the guesses coming in I really am getting more and more curious because when I look at each breed I can usually see where the guess is coming from! I'm also curious if she'll be a high percentage of anything in particular or just a crazy mishmash. -J
I noticed that it really depends on the region for solar setups. My RV was being built to boondock in the south east, where an HVAC really needs to run hours into the night to at least dehumidify and cool when its still 80F at 9pm. Recently took a trip to the lower Utah/Arizona area and between the 1200W of panels and the 800Ah lithium we had plenty of power. using about 20% of the battery after sunset and easily fully recharging in the first 3 hours of sunlight/clouds. Even parked under trees we had enough to fill the batteries. The lower humidity of out west is way easier to deal with. Our new solar install is going to use a hybrid inverter so I can connect into my house when not traveling. Since my house has grid tie already its no additional permits to add another hybrid inverter! In regards to your current trip, many people did mention that their solar was almost useless in Alaska due to angles of sunlight.
Haha - yeah, we sweat if we're in the Boondocking in Florida beyond February! I agree but I also think it's just a comfort level thing. Many people won't consider boondocking if it means no access to AC (which is how we live). So if you want that.. you need probably at least double the system we have with the current AC technology (although like I said...that's about to change).
I am very curious about the sun in Alaska - I know the angle is going to be super low AND if the weather is like it was last year...the sun is hardly ever seen because of the weather.
We are in the process of adding to our battery bank or plug in at an RV Park and charge up so that we can run our generator for a bit and then just run off batteries for a couple of days at a time if we need to. -J
@@OpenRoading one idea maybe to add is a DC:DC charger from the truck. I have that but then changed out the power hungry dual fuel fridge for a residential compressor fridge. the renogy DC:DC charger gives me 50A charging from the truck so on low light days it tops off the batteries easily.
If we had the option to run no AC we would but letting the RV sit with the vent fans on and windows open in the shade here in TN it easily climbs over 80f with 60% humidity even in late spring. I have triple MaxxAir fans also!
@@stinson87 I hear you with that humidity! When we were boondocking in the everglades we actually had to take the rabbits and go to a local library that let us hang out in a study room because the humidity was so awful. In the west 80 degrees is no sweat...not so out east. 😂 -J