Electrickery for camping

[Craig Van der Poll]

Craig, has your wife also banned you from picking fishing destinations over holidays now??

Search for a thread called "Portable Solar Unit" I think it will have maybe the same setup you are trying to get going?

Wasn't even her idea....LOL!!!

Thanks Dean!

[Craig Van der Poll]

setup seems decent. The only thing to confirm, is your vehicle equipped with a smart/voltage variant alternator? NL system does have a 5min delay to charge main battery before switching on to secondary. Smart alternator these never kick in. What vehicle?

I will not be using any alternator charge just yet. I only plan on using the battery and Solar top up during the day. I will mount the panel between my roof bars for the drive up, hopefully that will be sufficient to keep the battery topped up till we setup camp. its only a 5 hour drive...

[Dwayne P]

I will not be using any alternator charge just yet. I only plan on using the battery and Solar top up during the day. I will mount the panel between my roof bars for the drive up, hopefully that will be sufficient to keep the battery topped up till we setup camp. its only a 5 hour drive...

I have just returned from a weekend @ trekoskraal. 85lt dual zone(-0.5&0 temp settings) running off 102 leisure battery & 100watt panel. shower pump used and some light and charge of phone. Never struggled. Use power sparingly during night and fridge settings are key to battery survival

[Craig Van der Poll]

I have just returned from a weekend @ trekoskraal. 85lt dual zone(-0.5&0 temp settings) running off 102 leisure battery & 100watt panel. shower pump used and some light and charge of phone. Never struggled. Use power sparingly during night and fridge settings are key to battery survival

Thanks, that's great news. We'll be there for 5 days, 4 nights so am hoping we'll be ok. I am going to set the freezer down to -5 to -8 and hope for the best!

[Plonker]

Hi All. WRT the length of the extension lead I should have what do you recommend as all campsites differ. I kinda felt at least 15 metres. Any advice would be appreciated. Sorry if not the correct thread to post in.

[Eggie]

Hi All. WRT the length of the extension lead I should have what do you recommend as all campsites differ. I kinda felt at least 15 metres. Any advice would be appreciated. Sorry if not the correct thread to post in.

I'd say at the evry least 15m of 1mm² cable.

Mine is on a biggish roll, probably 50m of 1,5mm² cable.
Nice to have as it can handle almost any situation, but it is a schlepp to pack such a bulky item.

[Plonker]

I'd say at the evry least 15m of 1mm² cable.

Mine is on a biggish roll, probably 50m of 1,5mm² cable.
Nice to have as it can handle almost any situation, but it is a schlepp to pack such a bulky item.

I also did a check and thought 15m was good. Don't want a huge one that is very big. Normal roll up should suffice.

[ekkekan]

I also did a check and thought 15m was good. Don't want a huge one that is very big. Normal roll up should suffice.

Some places 15m way too short. To save the bulky roll up be prepared with say 3 x 15m and use what is needed. In KNP at Satara you might need more than 3 if many campers. Also soil is very hard. One must have a drill.

[hunter26]

15m x 2.5mm is good for extra loads.

[Paul#25]

My primary cable is 15m 2.5mm and I then have 2 additional 10m 2.5mm cables. They all live in my electrical box that goes with to any campsite that has 220v available. In the same box I have a selection of different types of male and female plugs and 2 multi-plug adapters. I've made up some weird leads for odd situations like when 5 of us had to run off one outlet because the campsite personnel had stuffed their system up. It wasn't ideal but we all got through the weekend without too much hassle.

[LiamG]

Some places 15m way too short. To save the bulky roll up be prepared with say 3 x 15m and use what is needed. In KNP at Satara you might need more than 3 if many campers. Also soil is very hard. One must have a drill.

Soil? That stuff is hard like rock. Broke 5 pegs there a few weeks back

[Boslover]

Hdie gaan seker dom vraag wees maar ek vra maar ek het n 300 watt solar paneel ek wil n raam maak of stut waar ek raam kan maak staan as ek off grit gaan wat is die beste grade wat die solar moet staan vir maksimale benut van son is dit 20 , 30 ,40 grade dankie byvoorbaat Groete Shaun

[DC Polokwane]

Hdie gaan seker dom vraag wees maar ek vra maar ek het n 300 watt solar paneel ek wil n raam maak of stut waar ek raam kan maak staan as ek off grit gaan wat is die beste grade wat die solar moet staan vir maksimale benut van son is dit 20 , 30 ,40 grade dankie byvoorbaat Groete Shaun

http://www.solarelectricityhandbook....alculator.html

Just scroll down to the calculator, select country and then city.

[IcePick88]

Hdie gaan seker dom vraag wees maar ek vra maar ek het n 300 watt solar paneel ek wil n raam maak of stut waar ek raam kan maak staan as ek off grit gaan wat is die beste grade wat die solar moet staan vir maksimale benut van son is dit 20 , 30 ,40 grade dankie byvoorbaat Groete Shaun

Tussen 25 en 35 grade.

Of jy kan hierdeur lees.

https://www.ee.co.za/wp-content/uplo...03_Maximum.pdf

[Dungbeetle]

http://www.solarelectricityhandbook....alculator.html

Just scroll down to the calculator, select country and then city.

Those calculators are useful and intended for fixed installations and semi fixed (seasonal vertical angle adjustment only)

For camping we have the ability to track the direction of the sun, facing sort of east in the morning through north until west in the afternoon.

When making legs/supports for camping just make it so that you have an angle of about 40deg with the vertical. It works ok for all seasons while tracking sun direction during the day (when you can)

[IcePick88]

Soil? That stuff is hard like rock. Broke 5 pegs there a few weeks back

I severely bent 8mm stainless steel pegs at Satara before.

[Boslover]

Wow dankie julle waardeur baie sien hier leer ons vanmekaar

[IcePick88]

Hi All. WRT the length of the extension lead I should have what do you recommend as all campsites differ. I kinda felt at least 15 metres. Any advice would be appreciated. Sorry if not the correct thread to post in.

I have gone with 20m from the start and had to use an extension ONCE at Satara while standing quite far from the plug point.

Other camping sites along the coast normally have their plug points pretty close, but I have have come close to maxing out the 20m.

[Sneaky Pete]

With all the rain we are having keep at least one of those waterproof extension lead junction boxes. A lot better than a 2L Coke bottle or a plastic bag .

[Plonker]

Hi All
I would like to buy a new LED lantern for Eskom nights and camping. Does not need to be super compact as not for hiking etc. But not interested in the junk from Macro or Builders etc. Must be rechargeable.

Would like a quality product and what I have seen thus far appears to be in the R950.00 range.
Would prefer the type that runs on 18650 Lithium batteries.

Not sure how many lumens you need to give reasonable light around the camp site but don't need to light up for the campsite next door.

What do you folk have and how does it work for you. Obviously the higher the output you use the faster the batteries drain so must have a decent amount of light on the mid range output.