So here is the plan/progress to date:
I am still at my cousin’s home in Georgia and will likely stay here through the Thanksgiving holidays before heading out west. This week, I finished the Reflectix window cover project for the door and the cab over windows. The purpose of the window covers is to increase privacy and “stealth,” and even though I am not planning to go urban “stealth” in a truck camper, the window covers make it much less obvious that I am inside since you can’t easily see my lights from outside, and curious eyes can no longer simply peer through my windshield into the camper. As you can see in the below pic, I had to redo the camper door window cover to cover the frame, as light was bleeding through the hollow window frame around the actual window. The covers also add insulation, as the door and cab over windows are single pane. For now, I have decided not to install a peep hole on the camper door, as that is a somewhat involving project that requires drilling.
I recently tested the camper’s AC while on shore power here in Georgia. It works. I haven’t actually used it yet, as I had good weather in New England during the summer, and I arrived in Georgia after the summer heat had subsided. In fact, I guess since I am mobile, and I will be following the weather, I might not ever need the AC. I know that some people spec their new truck campers with no AC, as AC units take up valuable roof real estate, add weight, and consume a lot of power. I should be able to run my AC off of my Honda generator if I ever need to, and I believe this particular generator model can run for 8 or 9 hours on one gallon of gasoline. I will have a 3-gallon can, so that’s quite a bit of AC and/or battery charging. However, the principal purpose of the generator will be to top off the batteries. I just don’t see myself running it to use the microwave (which I almost never use) or AC. I don’t have any other power hog appliances like a toaster, coffee maker, hair dryer, etc. The only inverter I have is the 150 watt cigarette-lighter type, which I only use to charge my vape batteries. My laptop and other devices have 12v cords.
I use the propane range daily for heating cleaning/washing water, making tea and coffee, toasting bread, cooking meals, etc., but I have never used – or even tested -- the oven in the two months I’ve been living in the camper… not before last night, that is. Last night, I decided to fire up the oven and make some bacon for dinner, which turned out great. I’m very glad I had bought an oven thermometer when I first started getting my gear together for the camper because it turns out that my Suburban propane RV oven’s temperature dial is off by 50 degrees (the thermometer reads 400 degrees when the oven’s dial reads 450 degrees). I’ve never been a big baker (or cook in general), but now that I’ve got a working oven, I might try my hand at making something like sourdough bread.
My next -- and probably my final -- project for the rig before I start heading west will be to setup my generator and gas can and use them to keep my batteries charged during days with no sun. Over the past two months, I have only run my batteries down to near 50% a few times. Each time, I was able to plug into shore power at a relative or friend’s house, but now I want to unplug and start relying on the generator, as I will eventually be boondocking in areas with no hookups. I need to familiarize myself with the setup and work the kinks out now while I’m safe at a relative’s place with shore power readily available. I’ll probably start later this week.
