2,400-watt solar generator -- running the AC?

[Kilometer 31]

Having a look at Anker's C2000 solar generator. On paper, specs indicate it can power a small RV or home refrigerator sufficiently. Thoughts on using it off grid to run the Camp-Inn air conditioner? Andy ifs, ands, or buts as far as the electrical system and how it would be hooked up? If a hard no -- nothing but shore power will do -- then I'd probably content myself with C1000.
(Disclaimer: Never owned a solar generator and I'm an idiot. )

 

[dustinp]

It would start and run it if you hooked it up to the TD's AC shore power connection. The problem is that the AC takes a lot more power than either a home or RV refrigerator, and so it wouldn't run it for very long.

If you have a small gas generator to recharge to the solar one, you may find that having the solar gen between the gas gen and the TD will allow the solar gen to take the start up power surges so that the gas gen can just idle along doing its recharging, and not bark whenever the AC starts up. Can't speak to that from experience, but it makes sense. If you have a smart gas gen it can sense when the solar gen is running down, and only start and run when the solar gen needs to be recharged. So there are a couple options.

 

[Cary Winch]

A 2000watt solar generator will be enough watts to run the camper's AC system. That part will work well. The question, is the one that Dustin is pointing out, is whether the battery is big enough to be useful. One thing I have noted with the 2000watt SoGens are they have bigger batteries and have the potential to be enough to be useful. This will greatly depend on your expectations. If planning on running the AC all night for a week no way would it work. But, if planning to run it sparingly for 2 or 3 nights it should work. You also have the ability with most of these 2000watt units to expand with a separate battery pack. That is an expensive but effective solution. Thankfully these SoGens have come down greatly in price the last two years.

To use a SoGen to run the AC system simply plug the camper's shore power into the SoGen.

Still, hard to beat a Honda 2200 gas generator like Dustin said.

Cary

 

[Kilometer 31]

Thank you, gents. This is reassuring info. Not looking for weeklong solution. But it's HOT down here in Texas more of the year than not and even a night or two with AC option opens up a whole lot more camping options on the calendar. Big Bend as I visited recently (reminds me I should post about that). And even some beach camping off Galveston Island or South Padre Island.

 

[Kilometer 31]

And perhaps I should be more open to the generator thing. My first-blush gut reaction is ooh, no, too noisy.

 

[JohnC]

And perhaps I should be more open to the generator thing. My first-blush gut reaction is ooh, no, too noisy.

Just remember almost all campgrounds have quiet hours relative to gas generators. You won’t be able to run that past certain hours.

 

[rmbrowder]

Having a look at Anker's C2000 solar generator. On paper, specs indicate it can power a small RV or home refrigerator sufficiently. Thoughts on using it off grid to run the Camp-Inn air conditioner? Andy ifs, ands, or buts as far as the electrical system and how it would be hooked up? If a hard no -- nothing but shore power will do -- then I'd probably content myself with C1000.
(Disclaimer: Never owned a solar generator and I'm an idiot. )

Post in thread 'What Is The One Thing From 2022...'

Oct 18, 2022

I only purchased one gadget this year: A Lion Energy ME solar generator. At 3000 watt hours and a 4000 watt surge it can run the AC overnight. The 24 volt system can recharge in about 4 hours with a 600 watt solar array or 2 hours plugin. The base unit (1000 watt hours) can run most everything except the AC for a typical 3 day weekend so that’s what I carry in cool weather with no 110 power. The converters are built in: two 110, Two USB, 12 volt anderson, 12 volt cigarette. I also use it as part of my safe room kit. With the CI I can feed the 12v directly in through a cigarette port...

• rmbrowder

• 

 

[TheSongDogHouse]

A 2000watt solar generator will be enough watts to run the camper's AC system. That part will work well. The question, is the one that Dustin is pointing out, is whether the battery is big enough to be useful. One thing I have noted with the 2000watt SoGens are they have bigger batteries and have the potential to be enough to be useful. This will greatly depend on your expectations. If planning on running the AC all night for a week no way would it work. But, if planning to run it sparingly for 2 or 3 nights it should work. You also have the ability with most of these 2000watt units to expand with a separate battery pack. That is an expensive but effective solution. Thankfully these SoGens have come down greatly in price the last two years.

To use a SoGen to run the AC system simply plug the camper's shore power into the SoGen.

Still, hard to beat a Honda 2200 gas generator like Dustin said.

Cary

Great summary. Ty.
These sogens have gotten so capable and prices come down its really amazing.

I use AC sparingly, but nice to be able to boondock and have it in a pinch with power to run it, separate from the CampInn house battery.

Carrying a little gas genny is a great backup for longer trips, where you run out of sun or the tow vehicle engine is not the best way to recharge a big sogen.
See one of Cosmo's old youtubes (god rest his soul what a nice man still miss him)
About trying to keep his bat-tree charged in a snowstorm in the Maine woods, by sweeping snow off scattered solar panels...
No disrespect but thats me, like Mickey in the Sorcerers Apprentice..,

One small thing to check on sogens, per @dustinp tip
"Can the sogen put out power at the same time as being charged?" Some can some cant, or you may have to go thru the dc side which may NOT be regulated in the sogens battery control charging software. So thats something to check on specs for flexibility, and on gas genny output options.
Its kinda inefficient to invert DC to AC and then convert it back to DC charge a bat-tree...

 

[TheSongDogHouse]

Thank you, gents. This is reassuring info. Not looking for weeklong solution. But it's HOT down here in Texas more of the year than not and even a night or two with AC option opens up a whole lot more camping options on the calendar. Big Bend as I visited recently (reminds me I should post about that). And even some beach camping off Galveston Island or South Padre Island.

Yes nothing beats a cool cave to sleep in after a sweaty humid or very hot high desert day of sweaty fun, hiking fishing hunting or hanging out.

AC Might be a life saver if you are ever caught in extreme heat wave in the sonoran desert at 115+ for a couple days waiting it out for Discount Tire in Tucson to open on a monday cuz you thought you could get by on a donut as a spare on tow vehicle just this once...Murphy is just waiting for ya...
Ask me how O know! (Insert clown emoji)

PS: whats that saying about the 5P's?

 

[dirty6]

I would just like to point out, for comedic effect, that ever since I came home from the CICO, where my pocket sized internet marketing machine (cell phone) was co-geo-located with so many CI owners’ pocket sized internet marketing machines, the algorithms have concluded that I am in the market for sogen and my advertising engagements have been saturated with Bluetti, Anker, etc.

Never mind we have given zero thought to a sogen so far because we don’t really have a need for it!