Turfphin D Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 HI!! I'm new to this world of RV's & to this forum. 1st of all I wanna say thanks to you all for making & and being a part of this site! So, I just got a little Toyota Dolphin, 1986. It has a tiny little solar panel on it. I tried to to hook up my computer with an inverter and there was not enough juice to run it, the inverter started beeping loudly to let me know. I plan on changing out the battery and hope that helps though I am expecting I might need more batteries and panels. I would love to here any opinions on how to get enough power to run a computer (laptop) or other devices that need some ummph...and where I might find these items. Thank you Bunches!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRG567 Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 HI!! I'm new to this world of RV's & to this forum. 1st of all I wanna say thanks to you all for making & and being a part of this site! So, I just got a little Toyota Dolphin, 1986. It has a tiny little solar panel on it. I tried to to hook up my computer with an inverter and there was not enough juice to run it, the inverter started beeping loudly to let me know. I plan on changing out the battery and hope that helps though I am expecting I might need more batteries and panels. I would love to here any opinions on how to get enough power to run a computer (laptop) or other devices that need some ummph...and where I might find these items. Thank you Bunches!! theres a link on here for solar panels,type your search in ,will bring up lots of useful info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turfphin D Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 Thanks for getting back to me! I did the search and only got "solar panels" in other people conversations... no links. Maybe I'm not doing something right. Also, do you know or think am on the right track.?.?.. I mainly wanna be able to run my PC & maybe a DVD Player. Thankx Again!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bear Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 HI!! I'm new to this world of RV's & to this forum. 1st of all I wanna say thanks to you all for making & and being a part of this site! So, I just got a little Toyota Dolphin, 1986. It has a tiny little solar panel on it. I tried to to hook up my computer with an inverter and there was not enough juice to run it, the inverter started beeping loudly to let me know. I plan on changing out the battery and hope that helps though I am expecting I might need more batteries and panels. I would love to here any opinions on how to get enough power to run a computer (laptop) or other devices that need some ummph...and where I might find these items. Thank you Bunches!! I would think the panel is for charging the coach battery. You probably have an inverter already built in, so you would not need a second inverter. Did you try just plugging in to an outlet. The more amp hours the better for a new battery. I plan on adding a second 115 amp to my rig wired in parallel for 230 amp hours which should give me plenty for no more than I will be using battery power for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WME Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Remember the inverter runs from the house battery. The solar panel just recharges the battery during the daylight hours. To run your computer, tv, heater and lights. You will need a solar panel of 75watts or so to be self contained. A 75w panel is like 4' x 2' WME Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted January 27, 2009 Share Posted January 27, 2009 Your laptop should run fine from the battery even with a small inverter 90 to 150 watts (assuming of course the battery is charged) laptops take very little power only about 45 watts a hot battery should run a laptop for several days. Seems like some thing is wrong, your inverter should run it just fine if that is the only thing running. I have a little plug in inverter that I use for my laptop and I have found that they some times do not make very good contact with the lighter socket and it drives the inverter nuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
futar Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 You may not be doing this the most efficient way. A larger Laptop like my 17 inch screen requires about 65 watts. Running through a dc/ac inverter, there is an efficiency loss. Lap tops use from 15 to 20 volts. You can get a direct DC adapter for autos that can also be used on airplanes like this https://www.evertek.com/viewpart.asp?auto=4...8&cpc=RECOM You now don't have to bother with a clumsy inverter. Which by the way if you don't have a decent one can produce an ac sine wave that is not the best for electronic devices. The solar panel should always go to the battery not directly to an electronic device. A voltage drop can cause an increase in current draw which can burn out sensitive electronics. That's why it's always good practice to never put larger fuses on the cords of electronic devices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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