4X4Treker replied:

Jfish
Depends on many factors if you are going to charge the camper trailer battery from the tow vehicle and will be travelling every day or at least every second day you should have no problem if you use large capacity battery, on the other side of things I use a 30 watt solar panel to charge my off road caravan batteries for lights, TV, DVD, pumps etc and an 80 watt solar panel to charge my second battery in my 4X4 when stationary to keep the all important beer cold without any problems, I can easily stay put without starting the 4X4 for at least 2 weeks.

Member - Keith P (WA) replied:

Jfish - I have just purchased a 4WD camper trailer myself and went down this very path. The whole issue of 12v and or 240v supply is not my expertise, so like yourself I read a lot of chat from exploreOz, other Aus sites and many USA sites. In a nut shell I wanted a system that was easy to use, allowed me to stay in the bush for up to 14 days and kept the BEER COLD. We travel to the remote areas of Kulumburu (Kimberley) and the Gulf. Next year we are planning a trip from the Kimberleys to Cape York. Also, I was not keen on solar panels as I felt that their very construction would not necessarily arrive in one piece. I have a fully automatic switching 240v (1500w inverter) and 12v system (reicharges at 70amp from gene). Power is stored via 2 x 100amp AGM batteries. I run a variety of 240v and 12v appliances and consume about 120amps per day. I run a 2kVa inverter type gene for junder 2hrs per day. I plug into mains when I hit a caravan park. As you can imagine, when you want to achieve more then normal, it does not come cheap. Fully automatic system + batteries, switches and wiring set me back $2300. The gene was another $1700. I figured that after oulaying a tidy sum for a high quality camper, I was not going to cut corners on other items. Should you more info, please contact me via my member email address. Although i live in Perth, advice and eventual power system was obtained from Springers Low Voltage in Brisbane. (www.springers.com.au)

Member - DickyBeach replied:

Jfish,
Just seconding what the other two guys said - I have a KK CT and use my 80w solar panel to keep the CT's deep cycle battery topped up so it can run my 60L Engel, the KK's halogen lights and two fluoro walkabouts. Works fine.
DB

flappa replied:

You are going to need several large capacity batteries , to get 4 to 6 days running that stuff if you dont intend moving each day.

I can get 2 days out of a small 55amp/hour Deep cycle running 65l EvaKool , lights , and other sundry 12v stuff.

I'm about to change over to , 2 x 100 odd amp hours batteries , which "should" give me 5 days or so power without a recharge.

Longreach replied:

I have my extra battery and the fridge in the LC100 and run a line to the camper when we stop. If we go out for the day, we dont need a battery at the camper trailer, we have our fridge with us for lunch, and all batteries are being charged during the day trip. A solar panel either on the roof of the vehicle or loose (for best positioning) can be good for top ups on longer stays (3 days or more) when we dont do any day trips in the car.

B. Ryan replied:

jfish,
solar panels can be very expensive but a worthwhile investment if your new pride and joy will be used regularly for long trips where camping for more than a few days is likely. being in the solar biz I find many people buy under sized panels to save on the bucks and are not happy with the performance.
if you have the room spend the money on a large deep cycle battery and a good quality charger run from the car. At home keep the battery topped up regularly with a battery charger and it will last you years without hassles. make sure the battery is a sealed battery, vented wet cells can cause alot of damage when they spill on rough tracks ( acid eats paint and canvas etc.)
hopr this might help