Ultimate Overlanding and Camping Power Source

[TennesseePA]

I am working with a manufacturer to create what I think is the ultimate power system for overloading, camping and encompassing the entire outdoor lifestyle.

What I have envisioned is a 12V power supply similar to the ArkPak with a few major upgrades to the system. My system will come with LiFePO4 batteries preinstalled rather than bring your own. They system will have a pure sine wave inverter built in and at least two 110V outlets. Although I do not necessarily feel they are that important I know a lot of people do there will be a couple USB ports as well. There will also be 2 or 3 12V cigarette lighter plugs as well. Now to the unique stuff that I haven't been able to find anywhere else. I have found a source that can provide a 30 amp DC-DC charger, solar MPPT charge controller and battery isolator. There will be two 50AMP Anderson Plugs for charging and supplying power to accessories.

The system would be a true plug and play dual battery system able to charge from 12V plug in, AC wall charger, DC-DC charger from your alternator and solar. The unit will be fully self contained and neatly packaged so the only thing needed to install would be attaching the wires to the truck battery and plug in the Anderson plug and fasten it down. I plan to even provide the wiring for the installation.

As of right now I am planning on two sizes 100AH and 200AH units. Tentative measurements will be about 17x10x13 and 55 pounds for the 100AH and 17x10x17 and 88 pounds for the 200AH unit.

My question for you guys is what am I missing? What other features would y'all like to see and what would y'all throw out? And what kind of value does a system like this have for you?

Although this is very fluid right now the preliminary costs for the units would be approximately $1500 for the 100AH unit and $1900 for the 200AH unit. Although that seems like a lot of money on the surface When you total up what all of the separate parts would cost with quality equipment it is much less. Using one of the most popular battery options, BattleBorn, the two batteries alone would cost as much as the entire 200Ah system. Then when you throw in the chargers and everything else we will include you get a much better value than building your own system would provide.

Please provide any feedback, interest and suggestions you guys may have for me.

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[d k]

How would that be different from the Jackery or Goal Zero that comes as a pre packaged unit and has a warranty?

 

[TennesseePA]

How would that be different from the Jackery or Goal Zero that comes as a pre packaged unit and has a warranty?

The main difference that comes to mind right off the bat is the DC-DC 30 amp charger. It takes a Goal Zero forever to charge via AC and the maximum amperage you can put into the system through the 12V plug is 10 amps. Also my system will be designed and engineered to work in the bed of your truck. Leave a Goal Zero or a Jackery out in the rain a few nights and see if they enjoy the experience. I will do a little more research on those units and update my answer if I find any other glaring or differences.

 

[TennesseePA]

And the largest Jackary is less than half the capacity of my smallest unit. Also I forgot to mention in my previous response was that mine is a true two battery system for your truck. I could also add a 175 amp Jumper cable system so you could use the second battery to jump start the truck if the main battery should die.

 

[d k]

They have to have some form of dc input...
They can be charged by solar, so I'm wondering what the specs are.

 

[TennesseePA]

The charger that I am talking about is not just a DC input. it is a DC-DC charger that allows the smart alternators on modern vehicles to charge at the proper voltage regardless of the input voltage.

I just checked on both the Goal Zero and the Jackery websites and leaned that both of those batteries are Li NMH and my batteries are LiFePO4. The difference in the two battery chemistries is the number of discharge cycles. Goal Zero website states that their batteries are rated for 500 cycles whereas mine are rated for 2000-3000 cycles.

I will add this edit to discuss the price of Goal Zero. On their website the 1400 is $1900 and it is rated at 132 Ah at only 10.8V. That won't do for us my biggest system is tentatively the same price with a minimum of 200Ah at 12.8V.

And finally I am working with a company to manufacture these units and they will have a 12 month factory warranty.

 

[BajaDrifter]

Will the voltage be regulated? Some of the solar generators on the market can't be used for 12v DC camper fridges as the voltage drops below the minimum voltage for the fridges as the battery drains down. Also, what is 100ah in watt hours? The largest Jackery is 1000 wh I believe.

 

[TennesseePA]

Yes it is voltage regulated through the BMS to provide a very stable power supply the nominal voltage is 12.8V. The main reason for me going on this quest was to power my Dometic CFX95DZW.

amps x volts = watts so these systems will be rated for a minimum of 1200 watt hours.

I will also add that the theoretical capacity could be as much as 120ah for the small one and 240ah for the big one. I am having one assembled as we speak to see exactly how many cells I can fit in the box. I will be able to update that information by the end of next week. But to be safe I introduced them as 100 and 200 ah.

 

[BajaDrifter]

Yes it is voltage regulated through the BMS to provide a very stable power supply the nominal voltage is 12.8V. The main reason for me going on this quest was to power my Dometic CFX95DZW.

amps x volts = watts so these systems will be rated for a minimum of 1200 watt hours.

I will also add that the theoretical capacity could be as much as 120ah for the small one and 240ah for the big one. I am having one assembled as we speak to see exactly how many cells I can fit in the box. I will be able to update that information by the end of next week. But to be safe I introduced them as 100 and 200 ah.

Thanks for the reply. I will be following this thread as I am about to bite the bullet for fridge and battery. On a side note, I wish Jeep had built in a solar generators battery battery instead of that blue tooth speaker behind the rear seat.

 

[TennesseePA]

What type of fridge are you looking for? I am also working on that front too. I love my Dometic but it was just too darn expensive so I am working with a supplier to build them at a reasonable cost with LG compressors.

I will not know the cost on them until next week either. One of the models I am working on will have a built in removable battery. I just don't want to take up too much cooler space with a battery so it may not work out.

 

[d k]

This is why I'm thinking about running 24v..

starting amperage at 12V is 7.5amps!
at 24, it would only be 3.5.

Yes it is voltage regulated through the BMS to provide a very stable power supply the nominal voltage is 12.8V. The main reason for me going on this quest was to power my Dometic CFX95DZW.

amps x volts = watts so these systems will be rated for a minimum of 1200 watt hours.

I will also add that the theoretical capacity could be as much as 120ah for the small one and 240ah for the big one. I am having one assembled as we speak to see exactly how many cells I can fit in the box. I will be able to update that information by the end of next week. But to be safe I introduced them as 100 and 200 ah.

 

[BajaDrifter]

What type of fridge are you looking for? I am also working on that front too. I love my Dometic but it was just too darn expensive so I am working with a supplier to build them at a reasonable cost with LG compressors.

I will not know the cost on them until next week either. One of the models I am working on will have a built in removable battery. I just don't want to take up too much cooler space with a battery so it may not work out.

I have been eyeing the IceCo 45 or 50 liter as I read they use the Secop compressor. They are in the 500 to 550 range.

 

[TennesseePA]

They are very similar to the ones that I am looking at as well. They are manufactured by AlpiCool in China. And before we bash Chinese stuff we have to remember that the Chinese companies just build what the buyer wants. You can find AlpiCool with a no-name Chinese compressor or an AlpiCool with LG or Danfoss compressors. Big difference in quality there. I have an AlpiCool 15L cooler and it is so noisy that I can hear it in the back seat over the road noise and the radio in my Gladiator. But my Coke Zero is cold when I get to where I am going. My biggest complaint about the AlpiCool cooler I have is the lid is not insulated so the compressor has to run much more than it would need to if the lid was insulated.

 

[BajaDrifter]

The Api's had my attention as well, just haven't looked into them as much as I have the Iceco's. I'll have to look up some write ups on them. Their prices are very competitive. Looks like I have to do a little more homework, also interested to see what you develop.

My ice chest is filling my needs in the meantime, but can't wait to end the ice thing.

 

[CCCVagabond]

This sounds great... I am looking for a removable 2 battery system in the bed. Been brainstorming with my dad this weekend as he is a boat guy and has wired up multiple battery systems... we were trying to dream up this! A removable battery, charged by vehicle, solar chargeable, can run a fridge and some accessories, but not permanent. And not so crazy expensive!
Excited to see what comes out of this.

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