Setting up my 4 TelCom 101 amp/hr batteries with 250w Solar Panel, 2000w inverter, and wiring it right thanks to Solar Billy.
Video Rating: 4 / 5
Started with inverter/charger and battery bank first.
Video Rating: 4 / 5
Mar
20
Installing Epic Battery Bank in Van
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Dave Displaced says:
March 20, 2015 at 12:33 am (UTC 0)
Hi Eric, Im glad everything worked out for ya the rig looks awesome, Just a
question your buddy Wayne (RVPREPPERWAYNE) seems to be in great need at the
moment and my heart goes out to him and his family, he has an idegogo as
well with all this paying it forward stuff going on it would be great to
see a video of you paying it backward to help Wayne out just a thought he
really is a great guy as you know.
scruffjones15 says:
March 20, 2015 at 12:39 am (UTC 0)
Eric amazon sell a camping pop up tent for showering or toilet outside..
take a look .. :)
JoeCubicle says:
March 20, 2015 at 12:46 am (UTC 0)
I just watched this video 3 times front to back. I want to travel just to
set up a travel vehicle. I’ve learned a lot with your solar installs. I’m
thinking I’d like to go with a box-van or a ‘U-Haul’ style van. Heavily
insulate it and install: water tank, pump, water heater, heat/AC, solar,
battery bank, sink, compost toilet, shower, recliner chair, TV, work desk
etc… Good travels Eric!
Petalpresser says:
March 20, 2015 at 1:25 am (UTC 0)
Totally speechless, Eric! You are so talented. Btw, I love seeing the
technical parts of your videos. Not that I’ll do that but it can’t hurt to
learn a new thing. ~Connie
Steve C says:
March 20, 2015 at 2:23 am (UTC 0)
you have a 225 watt panel, that is not enough to charge 400ah, you need 100
watts per 100ah to properly charge the batteries.
4 gauge wires used to connect them in parallel and a charge controller good
for at least 50 amps and have it be a MPPT.
that is quite a power bank for a van, you won’t run out of battery.
another thought is getting a continuous use solenoid and have it set up to
send power from the alternator to the batteries while the van is running,
this will help out at night if for some reason you draw them down too far.
Sher Thom says:
March 20, 2015 at 2:49 am (UTC 0)
Cell phone tower batteries are definitely expensive, around $600 each. Very
nice gift. Hope the guy was on the up and up since companies and cities
take battery theft from cell phone towers very seriously.
NDNomad says:
March 20, 2015 at 2:56 am (UTC 0)
That was a good closing by the way. It sounded sincere and nice. Not being
fesecious, it fits, use it. You guys have a good night and i’ll see you
tomorrow. Your project makes me miss working on my first camper. Love it.
Good luck with wayne’s project.
Jed
jeffrey g says:
March 20, 2015 at 3:35 am (UTC 0)
Maybe this has been brought up already but won’t you only be able to use
roughly 7 gallons of the water in the roof mount PVC since you put the
spigot in the middle of the pipe? I realize that an aggressive angle would
be helpful in getting the most out but there is still a residual in the
tube. Other than that it is a great idea for warm water in a warm climate.
Just my personal observation. No haters here, I enjoy the videos.
divemor says:
March 20, 2015 at 3:56 am (UTC 0)
If you truly have a rear main bearing seal leak which is a seal on the end
of your crankshaft. Dropping the transmission and replacing a gasket isn’t
the fix. There is a crank case additive that could possibly help but in my
case I had to have the rear seal replaced. It is above the oil pan. This
fix worked for a little while but then it started leaking again (only when
the engine was running). The mechanic said the permanent fix was to drop
the crankshaft and have it turned. That wasn’t practical on my old Ford I
hope your problem is something other than a REAR MAIN BEARING SEAL but if
it is I would try the oil additive first. Good Luck.
Tenspeed TheBikeHanger says:
March 20, 2015 at 4:05 am (UTC 0)
I love the shower idea, it is brilliant and stealthy, perfect for your van.
Listen, if you drilled a small 1/8 – 1/4 inch hole at a high spot you
wouldn’t have to unscrew the filler to depressurize and the hole would be
small enough nothing would get in there to contaminate the water and water
wouldn’t slosh out. Loving this refurbishing, best content you’ve ever had.
You should stop talking about trolls and lawsuits and all that other
stuff. Keep it to yourself so they can’t plan against you. It takes away
from your channel.
Angela M says:
March 20, 2015 at 4:35 am (UTC 0)
“Black van, rear lot.” LOL. Hmm.. sounds like the beginning of a good porn
flick. :-)
Nitro Nomad says:
March 20, 2015 at 5:34 am (UTC 0)
Where would one find used cell tower batteries for sale?
PIMP says:
March 20, 2015 at 6:22 am (UTC 0)
All you do is eat JUNK food, don’t you think you’re fat enough ?
benny s says:
March 20, 2015 at 6:28 am (UTC 0)
These batteries are amazing.. cant wait to see these at work. thanks for
sharing all the technical details, its one of the best parts of your
channel :)
Robert Bailey says:
March 20, 2015 at 7:03 am (UTC 0)
A thought on your “water heater”. The way that the faucet is mounted in the
center of the end cap means you’re only going to be able to use half of the
water in the pipe. It will never drain below the level of the faucet. Take
that end cap off and add a PVC elbow pointing down. Put the end cap and
faucet on the bottom of the elbow.
Najeeb Alkudcy says:
March 20, 2015 at 7:12 am (UTC 0)
Oh and I think you should have another PVC pipe on the other side to keep
it balanced especially during cornering.
GrizzlyDaveCowboy says:
March 20, 2015 at 7:18 am (UTC 0)
All your weight is on the drivers side, water, batteries, you etc. You
might consider moving the water to the passenger side, that would also put
it to where you could consider using the side doors as supports for a
shower enclosure. Just a thought.
Bob McDonald says:
March 20, 2015 at 7:26 am (UTC 0)
Look at you! You haven’t been this inspired and positive in a while and it
is great to see! The video’s are benefiting from your enthusiasm. Despite
the naysayers, your camper van is a breath of fresh air for this channel.
John Browning says:
March 20, 2015 at 8:19 am (UTC 0)
Yeah I mean, I love this stuff about the batteries, heck you gave tons of
info at the very beginning, and you’re showing expensive and highly
functional stuff so that we know: 4 of those is $1500ish alone, or
whatever, because who knows how to do this stuff? We’re all learning off
the web so I feel we need your extra “non-travel” stuff, thanks!
Misti Forrest says:
March 20, 2015 at 8:19 am (UTC 0)
+Nomadic Fanatic The comment sections of your videos are full of good
actionable information provided by knowledgeable people. You have created
a very fertile ground here, Eric. You should be proud of yourself…not
for just what you are doing, but for the forum you have provided for others
to view and learn from!
Nantahayala says:
March 20, 2015 at 9:08 am (UTC 0)
If the transmission is good in the van you could get a small popup camper
which would help you out. Just a thought.
shossain50 says:
March 20, 2015 at 9:36 am (UTC 0)
I wish my life was full of freebies
CITAP1 says:
March 20, 2015 at 9:49 am (UTC 0)
Nice catch on the batteries. Are they AGM or sealed lead acid? If not, be
sure to seal and vent them from your living space. An idea to baffle the
water in your solar heating pipe. Cut the pipe into 5 or 6 sections. Get
some pipe couplers and 4″ white test plug disks. Glue the disk into one end
of each section of pipe then glue into a coupler. Drill a 1/2-3/4″ hole at
the edge of each disk and position each disk hole to the bottom of the
pipe when reassembled. When the pipe is reassembled, you will have a baffle
every 16″ or so to prevent the hard brake slam rocketing pipe situation
from happening. Also, install a section of unistrut under the pipe to
minimize sag from water weight. You should be able to use 3 or 4 unistrut
4″ conduit pipe clamps to secure your pipe to the unistrut and the
unistrut to your roof rack. Look and think about your roof rack attachment
to the van, is it strong enough to handle all this added weight. Also, be
sure to position the solar panel to prevent highway speed air from getting
under it. Solar panels have broken from fluttering in the wind on the road.
Have a great productive day. Scratches for Jax.
Stephen Hunter says:
March 20, 2015 at 10:05 am (UTC 0)
None of your videos seem to be monatized . Why is this?. I’m sure your fans
would be willing to watch ads if it supported you…
Bruno Gianelli says:
March 20, 2015 at 10:25 am (UTC 0)
I’m with you for everything but the liquid tape–if/when moisture gets in,
it will corrode the contacts very quickly, and you won’t know until you
have a failure.
I bought a sheet of clear lexan and placed it on top of my battery bank; no
more worries of dropping tools, etc, and I can see if corrosion starts to
build up on the contacts.
Great video. Thanks!
Ramon Fuentes Cruz says:
March 20, 2015 at 10:40 am (UTC 0)
Very nice set up…. Wish I can do something similar in future… My house
has a 240 v panel that w like to feed with an inverter like that
one…Thanks for you info…..
cybot63 says:
March 20, 2015 at 11:09 am (UTC 0)
I would like to use that syste4m to run on in the day time when the hydro
company charges double for the hydro here in Ontario Canada because they
also charge twice as much for delivering the hydro to you too. so it would
save a lot of money and I can use hydro when I need it instead of waiting
till 7pm to cook dinner or watch the news. Here I pay 700 a month to heat
the 1000sf house and 350 dollars of that is for them to send the hydro to
me through a wire that is on public property that I pay taxes for.
JOHN BROWER says:
March 20, 2015 at 11:39 am (UTC 0)
liquid wrench,liquid tape it’s all good stuff…LOL. I should have went
with a good inverter first..that was a good call….And it is definitely a
learning experience and there’s an an enjoyment when you sit back and see
all the hard work you did… Thanks for the shout out of my channel 🙂