Check out my new future home.

[fredcdobbs]

<p>When I first took it to Camping World they told me that the converter was defective and that was the reason I was having electrical problems ( at the time), so I took it to my auto mechanic and he had his electrician check and he fixed all the problems, everything works off the house battery in back and or when shore connected, but he told me the converter does not act as a charger. He said there was nothing wrong with it, it just doesn't act as a charger. So I went online to confirm what he said and I found this short manual on it. Mine is exactly like this (mine is model&nbsp;6883qj05fpb**)&nbsp;<a href="http://www.progressivedyn.com/service_discontinued/688 owners manual.pdf" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.progressivedyn.com/service_discontinued/688 owners manual.pdf</a>&nbsp;and it says at the end of the text portion "Note: The economical 688 series in not suitable for battery charging". So should&nbsp;I assume this means it does not have a battery charger and I can go ahead and put the Iota or any other charger in it?<br>Btw, I have no idea what you meant by "a killawatt device is a no brainer $20 expense to test AC loads. as well as a circuit tester and multimeter."</p>

 

[cygvan]

ok ill take a look at the manual. it sounds like i was correct and it privides 12v from either an AC source when plugged in or a DC source when not.<br><br>that makes things a little easier.<br><br>lol sorry about the confusion. im recommending that you buy a killawatt. you plug it into any AC outlet and then plug in your AC device (or strip) to see what watts/amps/volts are being used. it also acta as a meter (kwh) so you can determine cumulative consumption.<br><br>the other two things a circuit tester (to see if an AC wire is hot) and a multimeter ( to test volts and amps and resistance and all that on wires and circuits).&nbsp; you may not be doing all the work yourself but these things are handy for troubleshooting and learning and cost little.<br><br>ill get back to you later once i check out the manual.

 

[Simran]

I like your van there Fred. <br>It is much like mine only a tad newer. Good on ya' for getting the 2000 Honda <br>genset right off the bat. You'll love it. I started out with a Yamaha 1000 and it <br>wasn't big enough to make coffee and run&nbsp; the charger both; it would kill it. <br>That said, one seems to adapt to your surroundings readily it seems. I still have <br>the coffee maker but never use it anymore; is simply use a one cup drip maker. <br>Boil water and poor it through a widget with a filter in it and a few grounds and&nbsp; <br>. . . walla . . . .coffee. I also have an air conditioner and the 1000W genset won't<br> run it but I think the 2000W would. Luckily I've gotten by the summer without it.<br>I've got a question about your van? It looks like it has a hell of a load on it. Mine <br>is packed to the hilt and doesn't sag like that in the back. I'm wondering if you <br>might consider looking into the rear suspension. It looks like it is a 3/4 ton van. <br>It should pack a heck of a load.

 

[Cubey]

Nice one! Looks a bit cramped by the cabinets though? But so is mine in the little hallway between the galley and the bed. Hopefully you'll get double digit mpg though with a roof that tall.<br /><br />I'm actually considering eventually pulling out the generator from mine (it has it's own compartment with remote start inside) and replacing it with more batteries since there is a large (4 gauge?) hot cable in there already, leading from from the main battery bank. I have 200W of solar on my roof and room for expansion for recharging. The compartment is vented for the generator so I don't see why I can't put batteries in there and have it safely vented as well.<br /><br />The generator works but it's in horrible shape and I think has to run at higher RPM than normal to get proper voltage output. For the cost of buying another used one like it in better condition, I can just about buy a pair of Trojan T-105s and put them in there.

 

[Ballenxj]

@ simran, I looked at his vans attitude that it sits, and it looks like to me that it's only the angle of the photos he took that gives the perspective of sagging in the rear. Look at his running board compared to the asphalt. It seems pretty even to me. <img alt="[wink]" src="/images/boards/smilies/wink.gif" class="emoticon bbc_img" title="Wink - " /> <br />@ cubey, That's a pretty good idea of using the generator stall for more batteries. I have read that a few people have done that with great success. I, on the other hand would want a small generator for back up. <br />My research has lead me to believe that 200 watts of solar panels would be minimum for me.<br />BTW, which generator do you have? Reason I ask is that some generators are meant to run at a higher RPM to carry the load. Others like Onan run at a lower RPM. <br />-Bruce