Dog Gone Cool Discovery

[JHGIII]

We purchased the Thor Outlaw class C specifically for the garage feature. Unlike most, our toys are not motorcycles or four wheelers. I haul big telescopes and my wife hauls dogs. Both of these prefer climate controlled conditions. In this warm Alabama weather, we have been driving with the generator on so that we can run the garage AC This has worked well but does have downsides.

Yesterday as we were driving, I speculated about adding an inverter to power this small AC unit, then it suddenly dawned on me .... the TV oulet in the garage runs off the inverter we already have. Could this be a simple extension cord solution???

We tested it and yes!!! The garage AC WILL run on the inverter powered by the house batteries and charged while driving. No need to run the generator and the pup stays cool in her garage kennel, safely lashed to the tie diwns.

[Bob Denman]

Congratulations on your find, and welcome to our Merry Band of Outlaws!

[dogshowrv]

Originally Posted by JHGIII

We purchased the Thor Outlaw class C specifically for the garage feature. Unlike most, our toys are not motorcycles or four wheelers. I haul big telescopes and my wife hauls dogs. Both of these prefer climate controlled conditions. In this warm Alabama weather, we have been driving with the generator on so that we can run the garage AC This has worked well but does have downsides.



Yesterday as we were driving, I speculated about adding an inverter to power this small AC unit, then it suddenly dawned on me .... the TV oulet in the garage runs off the inverter we already have. Could this be a simple extension cord solution???



We tested it and yes!!! The garage AC WILL run on the inverter powered by the house batteries and charged while driving. No need to run the generator and the pup stays cool in her garage kennel, safely lashed to the tie diwns.

This is fantastic! I own the same RV model & travel with 3 big dogs. I try to keep them cool with generator running too. But this is a much better solution!

[dogshowrv]

Originally Posted by dogshowrv

This is fantastic! I own the same RV model & travel with 3 big dogs. I try to keep them cool with generator running too. But this is a much better solution!

A big THANK YOU for posting this

[TurnerFam]

yes, the inverter is capable of powering anything plugged into it, or any of it's inverted circuits, at least for a period of time that the batteries have enough capacity - while driving, your Alternator should be helping to add Charge back into the battery bank, and any Solar would as well. Of course, you can continue to run the generator while traveling, if needed for the extra boost of charging.
When you are stopped and running the generator or are plugged into shore Power, it should work it as well, as the Inverter simply then 'passes thru' the 120v power to the inverted outlets within the coach.

If you have the Magnum ME-RC remote readout panel for the Inverter, you can set the LBCO setting to 11.5 so that the batteries are not drawn down too much, then the inverter automatically shuts itself off.
You can also set your AGS(auto gen starter) setting to 11.9 or 12.0 to automatically power up the generator to RECHARGE the battery bank when they get too low, when you are not on Shore power.

Enjoy! Travel. Have Fun.. : )

[JHGIII]

Originally Posted by dogshowrv

A big THANK YOU for posting thisAttachment 10825

Good looking crew. My wife took our Terv on a 10 hour trek to go herding in NC. Ran the garage AC all the way there. No issues with battery drain. Of course after arrival she switched to generator power.

[SuperD]

Depending on the size of your converter and battery bank you can run just about anything, but should you? You should check to see how many watts your inverter can put out then see how many watts your AC draws, if it’s close to the same I would exercise caution. If you have the manual for your inverter check on what it is capable of and for how long on the size of your battery bank and output of your alternator.

Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. My point is be cautious, don’t want to take a chance with those beautiful babies on board!!!

[JHGIII]

This is a very good point. Safety is always first. My wife is a vet, so wuite OCD regarding our dogs.
The garage AC is a small 5000 BTU window unit that draws about 480 watts. The inverter is twice that at 1000 watts, so there is a pretty good reserve. For safety we have a remote thermometer in the garage that we monitor while driving. Temp holds in the 72-74 range with outside temp 90+.

Of course we would only do this when we are driving and would NEVER leave a dog in the vehicle with AC on battery power.

[Bob Denman]

It's a 1000 watt "Entertainment" inverter.

[JHGIII]

She finds AC “entertaining”.
Best to keep her happy.

[Bob Denman]

Does her Orthodontist get Combat Pay??

[lmichel]

And I thought I was the only person to buy an Outlaw 37RB for my RC16 and Paramount.
Go figure!

FWIW, It's a pretty simple matter to purchase a second inverter and take the "General Outlet" feeds running from your AC Breaker box and relocate them to the new inverter. Now ALL the outlets will work whenever the 2nd inverter is on - which for me, is all the time.
Honestly, it was about a 1-hour job. Not sure about the Outlaw class C, but my class A breaker box was under the bed and not even 12 inches from the converter/charger. The battery lines running into the charger were already 1/0 gauge. So it was easy to use more 1/0 to jump over to the 2nd inverter. Get an inverter with onboard breakers and you won't even have to mess with a second AC box either ;-)