erynjm Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Hey all, We're preparing for our first time out in our new-to-us 1986 Sunrader and I am a little overwhelmed by all the info on the internet with regard to our electrical capabilities. Here's what we're working with: -2 batteries under the hood - one each for the cab and the coach -30 Amp cord for plugging in at campsites -One 12V DC plug in the dash and one in the coach -One AC wall outlet in the coach I purchased a 30 Amp extension cord and a 30A-120V adapter, as well as a little 75W inverter for the dash, which has one AC and two USB outlets. We will be doing a combination of camping at campsites, boondocking in national parks and forests and on BLM land, and boondocking in urban areas, usually in a friend's driveway or the street in front of the house. The longest we plan to stay in one spot is two nights. I know that the lights, fridge (3-way) and furnace work while boondocked, but I'm wondering what our other capacities may be, while boondocked, rolling down the road, and plugged in. Here are my most pressing questions: 1) Will the wall outlet in the coach work while rolling down the road? (I traveled with my sister and brother in law in their 38-footer and she was able to run a crock pot while we drove - seems like a great idea, but not sure if our rig is capable). 2) Will the wall outlet in the coach work while boondocked? If so, well enough to power a toaster or toaster oven (for some reason, toast feels very important and our oven doesn't have a broiler)? What about a small fan? And if it will power a fan, will it power it overnight? Is it ok to run a short extension cord within the coach from the wall outlet? 3) From what I can gather, we should only run the air conditioner in the coach when plugged in via the 30A at a campground. I assume since they sell (and we bought) the 30A-120V adapter that it is ok to plug-in to house power, but is it ok to do it via a heavy duty 120V extension cord? Can I run the air conditioner off that? Any other dos and don'ts when doing this? 4) From the reviews, I can gather that charging iPhones and iPods with the 75W dash inverter is ok, but there's no definite answer about a laptop. Any ideas? It would be for charging the laptop only, not actively using it. I'm going to give her a dry run in the driveway this weekend, sanitizing the water tanks, checking the oven to see how much the temp is off, seeing how good of a shower we can take, etc. I would really appreciate any feedback y'all might have so I don't go plugging things in willy nilly, blowing fuses, and causing unnecessary damage. Thanks so much for your time and I'm really excited to have such an amazing resource at our disposal. Thanks moderators and everyone who participates in the group. Eryn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda s Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 No electric in the coach when not plugged in except for the 12 volt plugs in the dash and the back. No crockpots no hairdryers. Only 12 volt lights and anything that can be plugged into that kind of outlet. Small converter can only handle small things like a laptop. Look at your laptops converter box. It will tell you the watts. Mine is 65wt so 75wt converter is just enough. If you try to run the fridge on 12 volt your coach battery will die in less than a day. Run it on propane. A good coach battery should be fine for 2 days. if it runs low start the engine and let it idle for a while. Linda S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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