12V A/C anyone?

I have a Dometic truck AC wich is 110 volt and powered trough 1800 Watt inverter/ 100 Amps charger. I have extra 4 AGM batteries and my 7000 BTU AC can run about 5 hours on it. In hot summer I take my champion 2500 Wats generator and when I turn it to my inverter system switch to external power source an start charging the batteries.
If I need it to run all night I start the generator in the evening and it stops after 5-7 hours because the 1 gallon of gas is off. AC continues working from batteries.
That's the perfect setup in my opinion because it runs silent most of the time, can run endless from gas generator and I can charge my batteries if needed.

 

Merlin Solar has a great setup for Solar and that is the route I would go. Will stop you from starting a lot when parked and not working. Also the 4 new AGM's will work just fine with your set up if you added the Solar. If it was me with your set up that would be my goal add solar and new AGM;s. If you need more then that later you can add the extra Lifepo batteries.

 

Are the lithium batteries safe to have installed under the bunk? I know truck vibrations can be hard on a lot of stuff.

Those that are looking for a charger for lithium batteries might find something here. These guys have good tech service/info as well.. might be worth a call. I bought a 36v for my pontoon trolling motor last year and love it: PowerHouse Lithium LiFePO4 Chargers

 

As long as they are secured and not at risk of short circuiting, they are safe, the worry with batteries in the living compartment is from offgassing, not an issue with the lithium stuff

 

Thanks, I know that they are the answer to storage capacity. I was originally thinking frame rail box but that would be an issue charging in winter time. Under the bunk would be perfect. No charging issues in warm weather and plenty of power for a/c. More than enough power in winter time to keep a bunk heater powered up while on home time or layovers. If I end up with an EPU, pretty sure I'll upgrade the batteries to LifeP04

 

said every tesla owner..!!
But wait some ev makers tell you not the charge them INSIDE you garage for risk if FIRE
Some commercial parking buildings won't let ev in because of the risk of fire.
Remember all the house fires because hoverboards would burst into flames when
charging...?

When Lithium batteries catch on fire there is nothing anyone can do to put it out

 

You're concentrating on the tiny, tiny exceptions to the rule rather than the rule itself. The technology is here to stay. It's not just Tesla. Ford, Chevy, Chrysler and everyone else is going electric and it's all lithium. Your phone is lithium. Your laptop, if that's what you're on, is lithium. Your vape pen is lithium, your hearing aid is lithium, your headset is lithium.

Tesla alone has sold almost 2 million vehicles. Don't trust me, look it up! If you're concerned about statistics you wouldn't be driving a truck for a living because it's most certainly more likely you'll be mamed or killed doing this job than you ever will have a lithium battery fire in an electric vehicle of any make.

@Arky, I have 560 ah of lithium sitting under my bunk to power a mini split I haven't finished installing. This is my 3rd or 4th lithium battery build, the others in campers, and I have no worries at all. It's been humming along for months running all of my house needs, just haven't mounted the outdoor AC unit since it's the dead of winter. Under the bunk is the only place you would want lithium in a truck. They are temperature sensitive. Too hot, too cold, no bueno. The BMS will simply shut them down if they are out of range.

 

You sound like edison trying to make the world fear alternating current.

If the manufacturer is worried about charging resulting in fire, then they are not confident in their charge controllers working correctly.

Not a concern when looking at reality. Risk exists, peoples mistaken perception of its actual chance of happening given appropriate precautions is why we dont have more nuclear power plants

The hoverboards had cheap charge controllers that overcharged the batteries, or their power controller let the hoverboards overdraw power resulting in the fires. Dont mess with cheap electrical systems, dont get burned.

Yes, IF they catch fire, theyre a big problem, so make sure that doesnt happen by not cheaping out

 

My only experience with LifeP04 is I paid nearly a grand for a 36v, 40ah last year for the 110lb thrust trolling motor on my pontoon. The boat is in the marina so when the weather is warm, I typically run over there 2 or 3 times a week and fish for a couple hours. I can charge that battery here at the house (it weighs less than a lot of tackle boxes), it will power that trolling motor for a couple months before I need to recharge it just trolling around fishing. I had intended to set up solar charging on the boat but as light as that battery is and as long as it holds charge.. I'll just bring it home couple times a year. I love it! But.. I want sure if they were safe in the bunk or under the cab even. I can see that where under the bunk would be a pretty safe spot for then though.

One note to those that are worried about fires. I asked the tech guy where I bought mine about keeping it in the house in winter time (I've heard all the same horror stories everyone else has). He told me that even it does have a problem.. that they tend smoke and smolder for several days before they actually catch fire. And.. that was with the older batteries when they actually had some problems. All of my research tells me that today's LifeP04 batteries are pretty safe.

 

I have not finished my Lifepo4 installation yet, but I have wired my truck for it when I do get started on the project again. My mini split is wired directly into my truck batteries and the batteries are monitored by IdleSmart which will also monitor the Lifepo4 battery when I install it. RV’s have Lifepo4’s right under the floor and it is a rare occurrence that one burns down due to fire caused by their Lifepo4 batteries.

The issue is that most commercial drivers don’t live in their trucks. There simply isn’t a need to customize their trucks to be off grid vehicles. Most will just idle their trucks when the need arises. Since I live in my truck and I don’t want to idle for hours on end to accommodate me, I have research how to live in small places and still have what most have in their homes, such as having running water, a bathroom, a sink, cable TV, and electricity without causing significant wear on the engine and DPF system in my truck.

Once I have my Lifepo4’s installed, I will next install solar panels. This will increase efficiency and provide needed power to limit my idle time down to 3 or 4 hours in a 24 hour period. Each idle time, I have IdleSmart programmed to idle the truck for 1 hour. That’s 3 to 4 gallons in a 24 hour period. Currently without Lifepo4’s I have cut my idle time down to as little as 3 to 4 hours on days that I’m running and 7 to 12 hours on days I’m sitting for 24 hours. That’s 7 to 12 gallons of fuel in a 24 hour period. Again, that’s just with bad batteries that need replacing, no solar panels, and no Lifepo4 batteries. I have the data to prove this through my IdleSmart software.


Finally before anyone says that it’s better to get a generator, that’s not for me. I tried the APU route and spent more money than what my current setup costs. I have very minimal maintenance costs, most that I can do myself and no further that going to HomeDepot for parts. Should my condenser fail, which it did, I simply buy a new unit for far less than what a generator costs. And, so far, during my testing in Texas when it was 110 degrees outside, I was able to keep my truck 75 degrees inside with bad batteries at an idle time of 12 starts per 24 hour period. The idle time will decrease once I have the full setup and still be able to have my cable TV, induction cooktop, 2 inverters (3000 watts total), convection oven, a dometic freezer and a factory installed refrigerator, mini split AC/bunk heater with minimal idle time. All this for under $3,000 build.