Deciding on which class B to buy.

[booster]

Originally Posted by casd

You wouldn't be running the engine stopped because possible damage as posted earlier by Marco, charge while driving

I have a xantax freedom 3000 hooked up for 3 years with 2 batteries, If you watch the way this unit carefully charges the batteries its amazing, One thing I want to avoid over ETREK is fast charging of batteries plus not running them below 50 % , Even with 8 batteries with ETREK its like having 4, I assume they have the engine start-up regularly to avoid running the batteries low, I guess ?? Lithium is different but too much $$$$, I hope the Roadtrek charger\inverter is as good as the Xantrex I have for house backup of certain items

I have a Sony tablet PC, I was wondering why the battery was always only 75 % charged, finally looked into it and Sony has 3 settings in the BIOS , battery life is better at first setting 50 % second 75 % factory default and 3rd 100 %, after finding this out I set on 50 % then switch to 100 % when I want 7 hours of battery use

I sell Lithium batteries for recreational use, All the brands have lots of problems and you don't want to have lights or any kind of draining load hooked to them, otherwise they will hold a charge for a long time, There are many kinds of lithium batteries but I think for RV's its the wrong type of battery, electronics, model airplanes, A offroad motorcycle with lights, A road race motorcycle is the best application from what I have seen, We will know in a few years

Casd, I wasn't referring to your system, sorry if that wasn't clear. You stated you would have a stationary generator, which is certainly what I would do, also. My reference was to the e-trek type setup, where they do expect you to run the van all night/day, for long periods when stopped, because they don't provide a separate generator. At that point, why use the generator and roof air when the van air is bigger and probably way more efficient? Without the air conditioner needing to run off the engine generator, it is overkill to have generator that does 3500 watts at ilde (300 amps approx) and 5500 watts going down the road (450 amps approx).

[casd]

Originally Posted by booster

Good Point, I didn't realize the Van air put out that much, If your running lots of electrical do you think standard charging from engine going down the road would charge 8 batteries or would the generator be an advantage in that situation , lets say you dry camp in Phoenix (cooler weather not 117 ) for the weekend, drive 7 hours home after 2 days, the propane generator will start as we know to charge the batteries as you were dry camping but if you planned it so they charged while you were doing the driving you would save propane, I know cost wise if you figured it out probably couldn't justify the engine generator then if you really got down to it forget the engine generator and propane and find a 110 outlet ha ha but what fun is that

[booster]

Originally Posted by casd

Good Point, I didn't realize the Van air put out that much, If your running lots of electrical do you think standard charging from engine going down the road would charge 8 batteries or would the generator be an advantage in that situation , lets say you dry camp in Phoenix (cooler weather not 117 ) for the weekend, drive 7 hours home after 2 days, the propane generator will start as we know to charge the batteries as you were dry camping but if you planned it so they charged while you were doing the driving you would save propane, I know cost wise if you figured it out probably couldn't justify the engine generator then if you really got down to it forget the engine generator and propane and find a 110 outlet ha ha but what fun is that

I think Marko knows more about the charging rates that batteries can take, but what I have heard is about 30% of the 20 hour capacity for AGM and 15-20% for wet cells. The 800AH of an e-trek setup would max out at 240 amps, and I think they would have to be really down to pull that much. If you had an alternator that put out 200 usable amps to the batteries, and the batteries took the full 200 amps the whole time, you could fill them from empty in 4 hours. I think if you only take them to 50% 4 hours of driving would probably get you almost full, as the charge rate will drop at higher % full. It takes time at finish voltage to top them off the last 5-10%. Charging off the propane generator is going to be limited by the shore power charger that is used, and I don't know how big a one they use in the e-trek setup. The other Roadtreks use a 45 amp charger, so it would take many hours to fill the batteries with the propane generator. If they have a big (100-200 amp) charger in the van, it would go much quicker, and could be as fast as an engine generator, or big alternator.

The Roadtrek site isn't clear on it, but can you get all 8 batteries and the propane generator and tank at the same time? From the pix I have seen, it looks like the batteries and the genny go in the same place. You may be limited to 4 batteries if you have the genny, unless you carry a portable.

[casd]

Thanks for info Booster, I think your correct on the 45 amp charger and would take a long time to charge the batteries, I think my Xantrex freedom SW3000 would do a much better job. Solar could become an important factor with enough panels, these would have to be mounted on the ground. I will ask about the charger when talking to the RV outlet that has the SS Agile with the engine mounted 3500 W with 2500 W 12/110V power inverter factory installed , I think the Propane generator charging portion is totally separate from the engine generator inverter, I would think it would be easy to upgrade or use my Xantrex Freedom SW3000 I have already.

Anybody know where the 2 optional batteries are installed on the SS Agile, I realize the 2 standard are in the engine compartment, I thought I read somewhere the additional 2 to equal 4 are mounted under the passenger side of the SS Agile. This would mean I only have to have 4 in the rear. This unit per salesman has : Chassis Upgrade if he means Chassis package has nothing to do with suspension The battery weight has to be deducted from the 1500 lbs carrying capacity , (does the carrying capacity take in consideration tanks full ? ) I will be removing the sofa and replace with simple fold-able bed and carry a couple bicycles, then my long range plan is having a 3000 lb toy hauler or light trailer to allow 2000 lbs to carry, Found a Jayco at 3500 lbs, There is room for more solar panels for sure!

Attached is where my original idea came from while in Monterrey Ca for work ha ha, That's probably what I should do!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/wxb2dusbgv5j4 ... .44.01.jpg

[casd]

I picked up my 2014 Roadtrek SS Agile Friday 2/14 (1200 miles on it now) , been on the road 5 days driving home, you can see the battery setup for the refridge is limited, I have had the inverter on 100 % but doing some driving, brings the 2 batteries back to 100 % in short distance then the 240w solar panels do some good, I am in phoenix , high 80's, I accidentally turned off the battery disconnect this moning and the solar alone brought the batteries up one light to 3 lights from 2, I have turned it back on and turned the proper switch off for the inverter, it was Tuesday about 4 PM AZ time, won't be driving it to Wednesday morning, if the lights go to one green I will start the generator, need to run it otherwise I would drive it. I will report back

I am still set on having the Mercedes alternator installed with high idle option and setting up my inverter, this will be for extra batteries I add in a complete different system from what is installed not to mess anything up, first I will test by plugging the xantrex freedom sw3000 in the generator 110 vole socket to charge the batteries before making final decisions on engine generator, plus will charge by shore power, truthfully least expensive way when you think about it. as I am typing this, solar - propane generator shore power