Is it possible to use a Prius to power or charge RV electrical systems?
- Thread starter bullfrog
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It seems that up to a 2000 watt inverter can be used and the 12 volt is charged by tapping the transit battery pack. I would suggest leaving the car in the run position as it would insure the transit battery pack stays up and carry an extra 100 amp fuse!
Sorry for the confussion. What I meant was the transit battery (big 200 volts +) is the source of the power that charges the small 12 volt battery through a 100 amp fuse. The transit battery is charged by running the internal combustion engine. If you just use an inverter (2000 watts or less) or draw a continous current you must leave the car in the run position so when it senses a voltage drop in the transit battery it will start itself to recharge the transit battery which will in turn keep the 12 volt battery charged. A spare 100 amp seems like a good idea because in a normal Prius a weak or bad 12 volt battery sets multiple trouble codes and may not start or run. If I were using an inverter and experience problems that fuse would be one of the things I would want to check and have a spare available.
The more precise and commonly understood term to use is "propulsion bank".bullfrog said:
Power being continuously drawn from the 12V circuit while the gennie - the actual power source - is running will simply flow from the gennie "around" the propulsion bank, not changing its (kept full) SoC.bullfrog said:
There may of course be a bit of buffering to prevent the gennie from stop-starting frequently, but I reckon an 80A continuous draw would in effect keep the genny running continuously.
Note that none of this has anything to do with inverters, that is just an intermediate gadget for those using mains-powered load appliances. Any high-current load can be serviced this way, in my case a DCDC charger, someone else may use a winch or water pump or a huge stereo, whatever, at 12V.
Yes the Run position and carrying spare fuses is understood.
Just as a clarification, the 12v battery is simply a passthrough to the 220v DC battery, when the 220v battery gets low then the gas engine starts to charge it back up. The 12v battery does not go up and down in charge, only the big battery. (when the car is in the "ready" mode)bullfrog said:
Interesting threads here https://priuschat.com/threads/12v-source-only-in-ready-mode.86881/
https://priuschat.com/threads/in-re...o-charge-the-12v-battery.187663/#post-2743103
Just for learning purposes, I'm sure there are significant implementation details between the various models and year changes.
https://priuschat.com/threads/in-re...o-charge-the-12v-battery.187663/#post-2743103
Just for learning purposes, I'm sure there are significant implementation details between the various models and year changes.
Another thought experiment, for when your living pod is separate from your plug-in hybrid EV.
Configure your LFP House bank in 4S "packs" so each is nominal 12V.
As high-AH cells as possible, paralleling too many packs can lead to cell balancing issues.
For example CALB 180AH x4 is under 50lb so pretty portable, but only 3 packs would give you the equivalent of a total 800+AH bank in lead.
Keep one or two packs in the Prius, let your driving charge them up or plug in to charge to supplement
(yes HDR ack'ing this could be a grey ethical area if free / subsidized stations)
Leave one or two for those back at camp, when you get "home", plug in the rolling genset and swap the packs out for the next drive into town.
Note of course Safety First, would need very robust wiring / CP / switches infrastructure, maybe need to use current limiting when connecting a lower-SoC pack to a Full one.
The Sterling DCDC charger could be used for that, take it out once the two sides are at similar voltage.
Configure your LFP House bank in 4S "packs" so each is nominal 12V.
As high-AH cells as possible, paralleling too many packs can lead to cell balancing issues.
For example CALB 180AH x4 is under 50lb so pretty portable, but only 3 packs would give you the equivalent of a total 800+AH bank in lead.
Keep one or two packs in the Prius, let your driving charge them up or plug in to charge to supplement
(yes HDR ack'ing this could be a grey ethical area if free / subsidized stations)
Leave one or two for those back at camp, when you get "home", plug in the rolling genset and swap the packs out for the next drive into town.
Note of course Safety First, would need very robust wiring / CP / switches infrastructure, maybe need to use current limiting when connecting a lower-SoC pack to a Full one.
The Sterling DCDC charger could be used for that, take it out once the two sides are at similar voltage.
And no one should think any of this is cheap.
But all the functionality you get from the EV would cost close to its purchase price, so can look at it like you're getting the high-mpg transportation part for free!
Not to mention, such a beautifully **quiet** genset, and emergency heating & aircon as icing on the cake
But all the functionality you get from the EV would cost close to its purchase price, so can look at it like you're getting the high-mpg transportation part for free!
Not to mention, such a beautifully **quiet** genset, and emergency heating & aircon as icing on the cake
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