Dry Camping Tips please |
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Kenn
Senior Member Joined: 15 Jan 2010 Location: Fort Drum, NY Status: Offline Points: 612 |
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Posted: 02 Apr 2012 at 9:54am |
How long will it charge the batteries? How much charge is the TV providing to the batteries? If I run a generator, how long will it take to charge the batteries? |
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2010 RPOD 176 (Silly-POD), 2011 Forest River Stealth 2612, and 2014 Forest River XLR 380AMP |
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tedbear
Senior Member Joined: 05 Mar 2009 Location: Omaha, NE Status: Offline Points: 190 |
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If you're like me, a single 50-something with no kids who goes camping to get away from the city, the people and the noise, then it's all about dry camping. Where there are electrical hookups, you will have the "livingrooms on wheels" and the kids, their bikes, and everything else that can possible make noise. I search out the unimproved areas with no power, haul my own water, and stay as far off the grid as I possibly can. However, I do carry a weather radio and a 12-volt TV so I can stay up on the weather forecast (which got me out of the way of an ice storm a year and a half ago). Instead of the AC, I have a 12-volt fan, and I use a large cooler and ice for my perishable food. If it's chilly, the propane heater works great, and I conserve fuel by cooking over coals when possible. I adopt my tent camping experience to the RV, which seems luxurious by comparison, so it's also a matter of what kind of mindset you have.
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leonlewt
Groupie Joined: 14 Feb 2012 Location: Alberta, Canada Status: Offline Points: 52 |
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very good point,...thanks. 2 months away from the first voyage,..can't wait.
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HerbL
Groupie Joined: 15 Jan 2010 Location: Connecticut Status: Offline Points: 51 |
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Don't forget, most tow vehicles will charge the battery. In a pinch you can run the TV for a while to partially recharge the battery. Not the most efficient method, but it works and a lot cheaper and lighter to haul than a generator.
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Alex&Marie
Newbie Joined: 25 Feb 2012 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 34 |
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Hi we just picked up our new 177 and am reading the forums avidly to see what other's experiences have been.
We have done a lot of sailing and have mostly not used marinas but instead stayed at anchor overnights. It is free and is usually quieter. With boating there are lots of resources on line that talk about good spots to do this -- it is called gunk-holing and is analogous to dry camping. Anyway, are there good references for places to dry camping?
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Alex and Marie
2012 R-pod 177, 2006 Toyota Tundra |
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headcold
Senior Member Joined: 27 Jan 2011 Status: Offline Points: 142 |
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Hi Larry:
What's the portable sewer (tote) to which you refer? Is it a Port-a-potty like we used to lug along on whitewater raft trips? |
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Larry
Senior Member Joined: 22 Jan 2010 Location: Fairfield, CA Status: Offline Points: 344 |
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I also have a Honda 2000 Generator and also a tote (portable sewer) which I use when dry camping. Get some battery operated stick up LED lights so you don't have to use the pod's lights. It would be helpful to have two propane tanks and two 12-volt deep cycle batteries as well.
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headcold
Senior Member Joined: 27 Jan 2011 Status: Offline Points: 142 |
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I should have said "Every year." Every month would be nice too.
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headcold
Senior Member Joined: 27 Jan 2011 Status: Offline Points: 142 |
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Every month, I dry camp a month in the Southern Utah desert, 30 miles from the nearest conveniences. The secret: A Honda 2000 generator to keep the batteries up to snuff. One propane tank will last at least three weeks of use, even in cold weather, but I set my furnace thermostat to to higher than 40 F. in the evening. Nevertheless, I carry a smaller spare just in case, and I often cook outside on a coleman camp stove. Water is a problem, and find myself having to pack around five six-gallon water containers, which I have to fill up on a weekly basis. Of course, I go in with a full water tank. I also bring an external portable latrine, rather than fill up the black water tank.
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Heidi
Senior Member Joined: 16 Jul 2009 Location: Cicero NY Status: Offline Points: 285 |
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We dry camp for a week at a time every summer. We do not shower in the pod or use the water heater then but we will run the lights, fridge on propane, we use the stove, flush the toilet no showers. I only turn the water pump on when the pressure drops then turn it off again. We have just the standard battery and propane tank and they last us a week with extra. I have run the furnace to warm things up before bed. but don't normally need heat during the summer. We have a small generator just in case but have not needed it.
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we R-pod people
175 ,2 peeps and one small horse |
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