What a wonderfully refreshing channel! I've been going through your videos and enjoying them thoroughly. I've just watched this one, about your inverter hookup and, if I may, I would like to offer some important advice. You mentioned that you were careful, when running that positive wire, to keep it away from moving parts and, I presume, hot parts like the exhaust. That's good. The wire should, however be inside a plastic protective sheath to protect it from the elements and from road debris that gets kicked up under your van. Also, where the wire goes up through a hole in the bodywork and into the area where your inverter is located there needs to be some proper protection around the edges of the hole and around the wire to prevent the insulation of the wire wearing through and the inner copper wire coming into contact with the van's bodywork as this absolutely will cause a spectacular short circuit with a very real risk of fire. The entire length of that red wire will become red hot and the insulation on it will almost certainly catch alight. Then, finally, although this should really have been my first point, I didn't see any kind of fuse in that red wire close to the main battery. It's vitally important that you install a fuse of suitable rating in the red wire within a few inches of the battery in the engine compartment as this will be your only protection against the effects of a short circuit, should one occur. Having said all of that, I salute you for being so enterprising and doing all that you've done, it's brilliant and I hope you have many years of travelling joy! Tim Johannesburg, South Africa
My cousin could have definitely found this video useful when she and her fiance built theirs. Their battery was like their #1 issue. Also you can really see how pretty your countertops are in this video!
It's a good idea to have a fuse near the starter battery with a run through all the chassis. Fuse matched to the cable used (about 40 amp @ 12v). You can also use pre-insulated crimps to save on using heat-shrink on the terminals. Love the videos.Cheers!
Do you have a van build video that i missed? Also, can you do a video on how you acquired the van and the cost? Cost of rebuild too? Did you do the build alone? Tools, were they your own or borrowed? Etc... I'm super fascinated!
Thanks for sharing this to help others setup their van. You may have taken care of this at a later point, but I didn't see a fuse for the link between the batteries. I'd highly recommend that as it can rub and fray with miles on the road. You can get simple fuse blocks at any auto parts store that will add safety to this setup. Good luck!
I’m glad to see you know everything about your system inside to outside of your home. Glad you help teaching all of us about batteries that’s the most asked question I see. Keep inspiring, stay true to who you are, chin up , keep moving forward
Hi Hannah I'm new to your channel, this is the second video of yours I'm watching (start at the beginning right?) And 3 min in where you are showing where you ran the power cable, I was thinking that you might have issues with the power cord being under the van and exposed. (Salted roads in winter and general debris) This video was made 2 years ago so not sure if you ran into any issues. But for future referance the place where most of the wires on your van go through the firewall to the inside is a great spot to run wiring. Just make a hole in the membrane around the wires, take a wire coat hanger and make a hook at the end to pull the wire through the hole you made. Hope if you read this that your days are full of adventure and happiness! Safe travels!
I would, power for the second battery, made through a fuse, suddenly there will be a short circuit. And I would additionally let it into the corrugation, to protect the insulation. But maybe for so long you have already done it a long time ago. I just started watching your videos, and I started with the oldest ones.
OooooOOhhh I’ll think about it- I learned all of it from the lady at the tile store, so I’m still not really an expert 🙈 if you’re going to be tiling you’d probably get the best advice from a tile store employee and TH-cam videos!
The red wire needs a DC fuse/breaker at the battery like maybe a 100A. The wire really should be like 4ga. They can be found near car stereo sections auto parts stores marine stores or on Amazon. Type in 100a bussman or bluesea breaker for example. Avoid the cheap no names from China, they have a high failure rate. So it goes battery terminal to short wire to breaker then other side of breaker to wire leading to back of van where a battery isolator or continuous duty solenoid is then that to an agm battery.
Thank you for the information. I wanted this but was skipping it because I thought it might be complicated. You made it look easy. I'l check your website and add the comments from the other gentleman. In the past I was a minivan dweller then returned to s&b. Just bought my 2012 econoline to soon return fulltime. Unfortunately, it was a passenger style with windows, but luckily has the partial high top. Makes it harder to build out. I wish it was extended. What year is your van? Do you have a water system? After reading your website I'll return if I have more questions.
made sure you check the water in the deep cycle battery keep it above the plates to keep the battery good How do you fill a deep cycle battery with water? 3. Fill the cells Use ONLY distilled water. ... Additionally, only use a clean funnel. ... Fill the cells until each plate is evenly covered (typically 1/4" below vent tube) - do not overfill. Make sure not to let any cleaning agents or dirt enter the cells. Using anything other than distilled water were glasses or something covering your eyes when opening the battery so you don't get battery Acid in your eyes checkin it like each 4 to 6 weeks should be fine
I wonder if you ever came across a fellow Van Lifer, 18 years old, from Western Wisconsin (not too far from the Cities), who is traveling in the West right now? The two of you should do a joint vlog if you ever end up in the same location. Both of you inspire all my employees here in the salon--every one of them wants to do this now.
Great video! I must admit, I'm quite curious if you did 'all' of your van build yourself? Had help (other than the nice gentleman you mentioned here) ? Hired help? You are very knowledgeable! Gives me hope that I can conquer this myself!
I had some help from my dad (he had a lot of the tools I needed to cut the wood etc!) but I did everything! You can totally do it! I think you’ll need an extra pair of hands at some point, maybe a friend or something for a few parts, but I didn’t know what I was doing, and just learned along the way!
@@hannahleedugganAs an electrical engineer, I have to give you a hand for your explanation of how to wire this up and how it works. You are so creative and courageous to tackle this project. A couple of points: the rubber ring that goes on the wire to protect it from being sliced as it goes to the floor of your van is called a grommet. It is very important to use this for a couple of reasons: 1) as you say, the metal of the van itself is grounded and the wire is "hot" so if the sharp edges of the hole were to cut through the insulation of the wire, it would cause a really bad short since the battery has a lot of current it can supply (major fire hazard); and 2) toxic exhaust gases (like carbon monoxide) from the engine could make their way into your cab and cause you to pass out. Your viewers should make sure they use a grommet which snugly fits the wire and is rated for outdoor use and high temperature. Also, they should make sure as they thread the wire that they avoid any high temperature parts, like the engine or exhaust manifold that could melt the insulation on the wire. Regarding terminology, the electronic box is called an isolator/switch, not a solenoid. It probably has a relay in it. A solenoid is an electromagnetically controlled plunger. It's what engages the starter motor gear to crank the engine. Anyway, your videos are so interesting. I admire how intrepid you are and how you can make any space look so inviting and beautiful.
thank you. i am very gratful. thank you for sharing. thank you. much love. i know thank you is such a cliche thing to say but thank you- Love Nighthawk
Hey! Building a van too! Super helpful video! Just one question, what brand inverted did you use? I see so many different kinds and I know I want a pure sine but idk which one.
Through a lot of googling, YouTubing, and from some experience I had soldering, and cable wiring from a summer job a had a long time ago. That's why I made the video, I'm hoping it helps someone to have it all in one place instead of having to patch together a bunch of information from different places.
I've had a few jobs that dealt with wiring and electric, so I had a bit of knowledge, and the rest I googled, youtubed and asked store employees/friends!
Friends with tools, guys with big boy toys, friends with dads who know about this sort of stuff, all come in very very handy when doing something like this, there again growing up farming in Southern Illinois I learned a whole lot about everything in life, because that's what you must do on the farm. You explain these things really really well. And just for the work record you do this looking so very very nice and all of your videos, not hitting on you, just being honest! :-)
Again Miss Hannah, what an extraordinary young lady you are! :-) I'm curious if you don't mind me asking what is your degree in you mention College in one of your videos. I would guess that your major was life skills, haha as you have so many skills and talents, very very obvious!
No matter whether you did all the work yourself or not....kudos if you did but kudos to you just for talking about it....in a mostly correct way. Maybe a career in engineering? Wow, young lady.....so awesome to see a younger person take such initiative and passion about such a small part of the build. Badass... :D You are going to make a fantastic partner for someone one day...if not already.
It is never a good idea to not run your high current wiring back to the correct post. Your wire gauge chould be a minimum of 2AWG because if your cuurent draw. You will eventually burn out he windings in your alternator. OEM alternators have hall effect positioning sensors, they regulate and limit current once your main battery is full, it doesnt want to continue running. Your best way to do the job is to buy a high output alternator, the windings are thicker, it eliminates you power cut off and allows for a better charging for your 2nd battery. run your negative from the 2nd battery to the negative post of main battery. It will also reduce the chance of getting power surges and cut off noise.
Hannah marathon during this Michigan snow storm🫶
What a wonderfully refreshing channel!
I've been going through your videos and enjoying them thoroughly.
I've just watched this one, about your inverter hookup and, if I may, I would like to offer some important advice.
You mentioned that you were careful, when running that positive wire, to keep it away from moving parts and, I presume, hot parts like the exhaust. That's good.
The wire should, however be inside a plastic protective sheath to protect it from the elements and from road debris that gets kicked up under your van.
Also, where the wire goes up through a hole in the bodywork and into the area where your inverter is located there needs to be some proper protection around the edges of the hole and around the wire to prevent the insulation of the wire wearing through and the inner copper wire coming into contact with the van's bodywork as this absolutely will cause a spectacular short circuit with a very real risk of fire. The entire length of that red wire will become red hot and the insulation on it will almost certainly catch alight.
Then, finally, although this should really have been my first point, I didn't see any kind of fuse in that red wire close to the main battery. It's vitally important that you install a fuse of suitable rating in the red wire within a few inches of the battery in the engine compartment as this will be your only protection against the effects of a short circuit, should one occur.
Having said all of that, I salute you for being so enterprising and doing all that you've done, it's brilliant and I hope you have many years of travelling joy!
Tim
Johannesburg, South Africa
Thanks for this input, as I will soon be ready to do this same thing.
Who else is watching all Hannah’s videos?
My cousin could have definitely found this video useful when she and her fiance built theirs. Their battery was like their #1 issue. Also you can really see how pretty your countertops are in this video!
It's a good idea to have a fuse near the starter battery with a run through all the chassis. Fuse matched to the cable used (about 40 amp @ 12v). You can also use pre-insulated crimps to save on using heat-shrink on the terminals. Love the videos.Cheers!
Do you have a van build video that i missed? Also, can you do a video on how you acquired the van and the cost? Cost of rebuild too? Did you do the build alone? Tools, were they your own or borrowed? Etc... I'm super fascinated!
Thanks for sharing this to help others setup their van. You may have taken care of this at a later point, but I didn't see a fuse for the link between the batteries. I'd highly recommend that as it can rub and fray with miles on the road. You can get simple fuse blocks at any auto parts store that will add safety to this setup. Good luck!
I’m glad to see you know everything about your system inside to outside of your home. Glad you help teaching all of us about batteries that’s the most asked question I see. Keep inspiring, stay true to who you are, chin up , keep moving forward
Hi Hannah I'm new to your channel, this is the second video of yours I'm watching (start at the beginning right?) And 3 min in where you are showing where you ran the power cable, I was thinking that you might have issues with the power cord being under the van and exposed. (Salted roads in winter and general debris) This video was made 2 years ago so not sure if you ran into any issues. But for future referance the place where most of the wires on your van go through the firewall to the inside is a great spot to run wiring. Just make a hole in the membrane around the wires, take a wire coat hanger and make a hook at the end to pull the wire through the hole you made. Hope if you read this that your days are full of adventure and happiness! Safe travels!
The rain on the roof of your van told me to start selling my belongings work over time and buy a van
that part made me say no way. i couldn't sleep through that!
I love the rain
I am literally looking into car camping now. I'm thinking more along the lines of an SUV, but these videos are awesome!
I would, power for the second battery, made through a fuse, suddenly there will be a short circuit. And I would additionally let it into the corrugation, to protect the insulation. But maybe for so long you have already done it a long time ago. I just started watching your videos, and I started with the oldest ones.
Good work on the battery/solenoid/inverter install, and also the video explaining it all.
You made it look easy.
Happy Camping
Your videos are so great and such an inspiration!
Your van is goals can you up load how you did the tialing 🤩❤️
OooooOOhhh I’ll think about it- I learned all of it from the lady at the tile store, so I’m still not really an expert 🙈 if you’re going to be tiling you’d probably get the best advice from a tile store employee and TH-cam videos!
It's raining here, too! Gotta love me some synchronicities
The red wire needs a DC fuse/breaker at the battery like maybe a 100A. The wire really should be like 4ga. They can be found near car stereo sections auto parts stores marine stores or on Amazon. Type in 100a bussman or bluesea breaker for example. Avoid the cheap no names from China, they have a high failure rate. So it goes battery terminal to short wire to breaker then other side of breaker to wire leading to back of van where a battery isolator or continuous duty solenoid is then that to an agm battery.
Thank you for the information. I wanted this but was skipping it because I thought it might be complicated. You made it look easy. I'l check your website and add the comments from the other gentleman.
In the past I was a minivan dweller then returned to s&b. Just bought my 2012 econoline to soon return fulltime. Unfortunately, it was a passenger style with windows, but luckily has the partial high top. Makes it harder to build out. I wish it was extended.
What year is your van? Do you have a water system?
After reading your website I'll return if I have more questions.
made sure you check the water in the deep cycle battery keep it above the plates to keep the battery good How do you fill a deep cycle battery with water?
3. Fill the cells
Use ONLY distilled water. ...
Additionally, only use a clean funnel. ...
Fill the cells until each plate is evenly covered (typically 1/4" below vent tube) - do not overfill.
Make sure not to let any cleaning agents or dirt enter the cells.
Using anything other than distilled water were glasses or something covering your eyes when opening the battery so you don't get battery Acid in your eyes checkin it like each 4 to 6 weeks should be fine
I wonder if you ever came across a fellow Van Lifer, 18 years old, from Western Wisconsin (not too far from the Cities), who is traveling in the West right now? The two of you should do a joint vlog if you ever end up in the same location. Both of you inspire all my employees here in the salon--every one of them wants to do this now.
Thank you. People say we ran the wire- what! Now I know what to do.
Trying to make paper. Lol. Just love the show. Lovin the great tips
Living the dream girl
Great video! I must admit, I'm quite curious if you did 'all' of your van build yourself? Had help (other than the nice gentleman you mentioned here)
? Hired help? You are very knowledgeable! Gives me hope that I can conquer this myself!
I had some help from my dad (he had a lot of the tools I needed to cut the wood etc!) but I did everything! You can totally do it! I think you’ll need an extra pair of hands at some point, maybe a friend or something for a few parts, but I didn’t know what I was doing, and just learned along the way!
@@hannahleedugganAs an electrical engineer, I have to give you a hand for your explanation of how to wire this up and how it works. You are so creative and courageous to tackle this project. A couple of points: the rubber ring that goes on the wire to protect it from being sliced as it goes to the floor of your van is called a grommet. It is very important to use this for a couple of reasons: 1) as you say, the metal of the van itself is grounded and the wire is "hot" so if the sharp edges of the hole were to cut through the insulation of the wire, it would cause a really bad short since the battery has a lot of current it can supply (major fire hazard); and 2) toxic exhaust gases (like carbon monoxide) from the engine could make their way into your cab and cause you to pass out. Your viewers should make sure they use a grommet which snugly fits the wire and is rated for outdoor use and high temperature. Also, they should make sure as they thread the wire that they avoid any high temperature parts, like the engine or exhaust manifold that could melt the insulation on the wire. Regarding terminology, the electronic box is called an isolator/switch, not a solenoid. It probably has a relay in it. A solenoid is an electromagnetically controlled plunger. It's what engages the starter motor gear to crank the engine.
Anyway, your videos are so interesting. I admire how intrepid you are and how you can make any space look so inviting and beautiful.
Wow you're so clever!
Very informative ❤️
Hi Hannah do uou hapen to know what is the name of the tile and the name for the color of the nice tiles you use on your countertop
thank you. i am very gratful. thank you for sharing. thank you. much love. i know thank you is such a cliche thing to say but thank you- Love Nighthawk
Good job!
Hey! Building a van too! Super helpful video! Just one question, what brand inverted did you use? I see so many different kinds and I know I want a pure sine but idk which one.
I’m not sure- I ordered it from Eastwood.com I believe
Very impressive how did you learn about all this
Through a lot of googling, YouTubing, and from some experience I had soldering, and cable wiring from a summer job a had a long time ago. That's why I made the video, I'm hoping it helps someone to have it all in one place instead of having to patch together a bunch of information from different places.
I've had a few jobs that dealt with wiring and electric, so I had a bit of knowledge, and the rest I googled, youtubed and asked store employees/friends!
What’s your story? why did you decided to convert your van to live in and travel?
Is this still a system you are using in your van build?
Thanks!
Can you do a build video?
Friends with tools, guys with big boy toys, friends with dads who know about this sort of stuff, all come in very very handy when doing something like this, there again growing up farming in Southern Illinois I learned a whole lot about everything in life, because that's what you must do on the farm. You explain these things really really well. And just for the work record you do this looking so very very nice and all of your videos, not hitting on you, just being honest! :-)
👍
Hola me agradan tus videos, pero más si pusieran subtítulos en español Abrazos
💜💜
What’s your battery capacity?
I'm, speechless, it's not often I come across a cool lass who is technically competent.✅🌹❤.
oh wow...you sweet beautiful girl! Love ya! 💗 *
I guess you have thought about solar ! :)
Again Miss Hannah, what an extraordinary young lady you are! :-) I'm curious if you don't mind me asking what is your degree in you mention College in one of your videos. I would guess that your major was life skills, haha as you have so many skills and talents, very very obvious!
No matter whether you did all the work yourself or not....kudos if you did but kudos to you just for talking about it....in a mostly correct way. Maybe a career in engineering? Wow, young lady.....so awesome to see a younger person take such initiative and passion about such a small part of the build. Badass... :D You are going to make a fantastic partner for someone one day...if not already.
It is never a good idea to not run your high current wiring back to the correct post. Your wire gauge chould be a minimum of 2AWG because if your cuurent draw. You will eventually burn out he windings in your alternator. OEM alternators have hall effect positioning sensors, they regulate and limit current once your main battery is full, it doesnt want to continue running. Your best way to do the job is to buy a high output alternator, the windings are thicker, it eliminates you power cut off and allows for a better charging for your 2nd battery. run your negative from the 2nd battery to the negative post of main battery. It will also reduce the chance of getting power surges and cut off noise.
you are so bad ass
Wow, are you an electrician? 🤔
you've probably heard this before but you have a cute little chin
2:40 that's not a truck Blondie it's called cargo van
its not that serious charlie
Charlie ********** you’re a douche