Ditching gas and going all electric

An alchemy of sparks, copper wire and earth

Moderators: User administrators, Moderators

Post Reply
GreenBlood
Registered user
Posts: 17
Joined: 10 May 2019, 08:21
80-90 Mem No: 0

Ditching gas and going all electric

Post by GreenBlood »

Hi peeps,
I had a large motorhome which I fitted 3x120w solar panels and 3 110ah leisure batteries. It was very good and I’m wondering about taking my new(to me) t25 1985 hightop camper à step further and ditching gas altogether.
One of the motivations of doing this is having to register the van here in france(hoops to jump through) and the other, just the fun of it!
Anyway, where couldli best store the batteries? Could they be hung under the van somewhere? And has anyone fitted panels to their high top roof before? What was your experience?
Also, looking to ditch the gas hobs and fit a low power induction hob instead.
Any advice or suggestions/comments welcomed.
Steve
1985 T25 High Top ‘Lavender Lil’

User avatar
LeeME3
Registered user
Posts: 712
Joined: 31 May 2012, 22:50
80-90 Mem No: 11225
Location: LE17

Re: Ditching gas and going all electric

Post by LeeME3 »

I run 200w of solar (rigid panels not semi-flex...personal choice but I found semi-flex put out less power and failed quickly) on a Westy pop top roof. With 2 x 110Ah batteries that is more than enough for my needs, my electrical consumption is:
- Waceo CR50 compressor fridge (brilliant bit of kit, expensive but compressor fridge / cool box the only realistic way to go non-gas non-mains cooling)
- Numerous internal LED lights (very little power draw for a lot of light!)
- Stereo
- Charging for phones / tablets

I find I have plenty of power except under extreme scenarios like parked under a tree on overcast days for several days AND running the fridge colder than usual. In practice my leisure batteries very rarely drop below 12.4v and if they do I either reduce demand, park somewhere sunnier or run the engine for a few minutes (or combination thereof!)

However, what I don't have is any electric cooking...ANY electrical device that is designed to generate heat as its main purpose will consume far more than all of that I've listed above several times over with the commensurate effect on battery life. Options are LOTS more batteries (and a means of charging them - more solar, Sterling Battery to Battery chargers etc) or stick with gas cooking but not built in. I do still have a gas hob on board (and indeed a propex heater hence retaining the gas system) but since I got a cadac I do all my cooking on that. A £30 2 ring stove with the small gas cartridges is also an option (well, one ring if you prefer).

Just my 2p worth!

Edited to add: for battery storage I just built a buddy box behind the passenger seat and 2 x 110Ah fit in there quite happily
1986 1.9DG WBX LPG, 4 spd manual. Westy poptop. Renogy lithium leisure. 175W solar. CR50 fridge. Propex. RX8 seats.

User avatar
937carrera
Registered user
Posts: 3599
Joined: 05 Apr 2015, 19:29
80-90 Mem No: 16333
Location: N Yorks.

Re: Ditching gas and going all electric

Post by 937carrera »

I think you should do some simple energy calculations to see how much power you will use for cooking and compare to what your batteries can deliver.

Despite the admin, I much prefer having the redundancy of dual fuel - something for heating the van and food, something for lighting and entertainment. I would hate to be not only bored and miserable, but bored, cold, hungry and miserable, or indeed having to make the choice.
1981 RHD 2.0 Aircooled Leisuredrive project, CU engine
1990 RHD 1.9 Auto Sleeper with DF/DG engine

GreenBlood
Registered user
Posts: 17
Joined: 10 May 2019, 08:21
80-90 Mem No: 0

Re: Ditching gas and going all electric

Post by GreenBlood »

LeeME3 wrote:I run 200w of solar (rigid panels not semi-flex...personal choice but I found semi-flex put out less power and failed quickly) on a Westy pop top roof. With 2 x 110Ah batteries that is more than enough for my needs, my electrical consumption is:
- Waceo CR50 compressor fridge (brilliant bit of kit, expensive but compressor fridge / cool box the only realistic way to go non-gas non-mains cooling)
- Numerous internal LED lights (very little power draw for a lot of light!)
- Stereo
- Charging for phones / tablets

I find I have plenty of power except under extreme scenarios like parked under a tree on overcast days for several days AND running the fridge colder than usual. In practice my leisure batteries very rarely drop below 12.4v and if they do I either reduce demand, park somewhere sunnier or run the engine for a few minutes (or combination thereof!)

However, what I don't have is any electric cooking...ANY electrical device that is designed to generate heat as its main purpose will consume far more than all of that I've listed above several times over with the commensurate effect on battery life. Options are LOTS more batteries (and a means of charging them - more solar, Sterling Battery to Battery chargers etc) or stick with gas cooking but not built in. I do still have a gas hob on board (and indeed a propex heater hence retaining the gas system) but since I got a cadac I do all my cooking on that. A £30 2 ring stove with the small gas cartridges is also an option (well, one ring if you prefer).

Just my 2p worth!

Edited to add: for battery storage I just built a buddy box behind the passenger seat and 2 x 110Ah fit in there quite happily

Thanks mate, very interesting. I can fit 400w of solar if I did go that way. What’s a cadac by the way?
Interesting about the compressor fridge, tech and economy has come on somewhat! I always thought fridges in vans were gas/230/12.
Steve
1985 T25 High Top ‘Lavender Lil’

User avatar
LeeME3
Registered user
Posts: 712
Joined: 31 May 2012, 22:50
80-90 Mem No: 11225
Location: LE17

Re: Ditching gas and going all electric

Post by LeeME3 »

Sorry only just seen your question. This is a cadac (obviously gas powered but used outside the van so no need to have a gas bottle in your cupboard or wherever):

https://www.justkampers.com/6540l110-ca ... grill.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

400W of solar will (of course) produce twice the output as 200W of solar (assuming identical panels, wiring etc - close enough). However, storage quickly becomes your issue. If your leisure batteries are full (which they will be pretty much all day long with 400w of solar) that is fine during the day. But as soon as the solar stops outputting your limit is the battery capacity not the solar panels. There is potentially a marginal benefit in that 400w of solar will likely generate an output in lower light levels than 200w (assuming a decent quality solar controller that is) but frankly I'd guess we're talking about them kicking in a few minutes earlier in the morning and keeping going a few minutes extra in the evening.

As said above, do your power calculations, work out what amount of battery power you need to be able to store then work back from that to work out what size solar you need to keep them topped up.


Remember you can only use half the capacity of your leisure batteries before you pretty much toast them for good. i.e. I have 220Ah (ampere hours) of leisure batteries (2 x 110 but that doesn't matter especially). Therefore I have 110 Ah that are usable - albeit I try and keep to 60% power in the cells so even less is usable. Apologies if teaching you to such eggs but your Ah is what it is all about...if you have say 80Ah of USABLE stored power then you can run a device that draws 1 Amp per hour for 80 hours, or 2 Amps per hour for 40 hours and so on. The compressor fridges draw approx 48W (I'm cheating and making the maths easy here...). On a 12 volt system you are therefore pulling 48/12=4 amps per hour. In reality less as they are thermostatic so don't run at 48W continuously. So, add up all your watts, divide by your voltage and you know how many of those magic Ah's you need! Remember...you need enough Ah's stored in your batteries to last you until either the sun shines again or you run your engine and recharge off the alternator. Generally that means overnight but on really overcast days might mean 2 nights worth. Hope that all makes sense - all the numbers are examples, your actual figures will vary!
1986 1.9DG WBX LPG, 4 spd manual. Westy poptop. Renogy lithium leisure. 175W solar. CR50 fridge. Propex. RX8 seats.

Post Reply