Campervan Upgrades and Updates; A $5000 Battery!!? 

Thanks so much!

Thank you so much. Sounds like you're having a great summer.

Yes! You have to live in it for awhile.

Yes, I also got lost at the paper towel installation but the whole thing was facinating

I doubt we will do this but a second alternator is probable.

Interesting. Do they build one on the short chassis? 144.

My dad (who lived to 100), said you have to pick your parents carefully. 😅

LOL. Just takes time.

I would like to replace our fan with the Maxxair.

Sounds perfect.

Not cheap though. If you want to off grid it’s the only way. For you as you travel part time and enjoy parks with hook ups it may not be worth it. I hate engine maintenance so not having a generator is a bonus. Plus, on a Promaster the spare lives where the generator would go.

LOL. The place in our van that gets super dusty is under the seats. Seems like I'm wiping them down every week.

Ours has been very reliable. Just had it in for its 60,000 mile service and no issues.

We feel the same. Would love a George van built on the Ford AWD. That said, we are still happy with our rig.

Energymaven@gmail.com. Cell coverage is spotty here. Will respond as coverage permits

Ours exhaust to the outside as well but apparently, in the combustion process, propane produces more than diesel. We haven't noticed a big moisture issue in our van but we don't camp below the high 20's.

I haven't had to defrost it on a trip yet. We go 2 months without doing so and haven't seen a drop in the fridge temp. The freezer doesn't keep the ice cream hard enough for our liking so we don't usually keep any. When outside temps are really hot, I have to set it at max but normally it is set at 2 or 3 (out of 4).

We're back home where the temps are almost always perfect (mid 70's). Heading out tomorrow for a short trip and it's supposed to be cooler.

We probably won't go to the same extremes that Doug has, but it is tempting. The generator is the lowest hanging thing under the van (so more apt to hit rocks on dirt roads). The generator is a pain because we never use it but still have to run it to keep it working. We've had our share of issues with the propane system. I don't know what Doug plans to do to take the place of his hot water heater but I know he has an induction cook top as I do. I'm just glad he is willing to be the beta tester.

@@FromShetoMe The water heater is the last appliance I need to use propane for. The Ascent hot water heater is really great, it will be hard to find something I can replace it with that works as well. It doesn't use much propane, if I have to refill more than once a year I'll reconsider.... As for the generator, after 4 years and 40,000 miles I've run my generator for a total of 3 hours.... all to run the air conditioner. I'd rather have the 120 lbs of cargo capacity than continue to carry the generator :) Also the 2nd alternator I'm having installed to fast charge the batteries will provide 3300 watts of power, compared to the 2600 watts that the generator would provide.

I’ve heard similar stories about diesel heaters. We certainly aren’t doing it but sounds like Doug’s works well.

The Esbar D2 is super quiet, it sounds like a fan is running under the rig. No smoke, flames, or excessive fumes. I've had mine running in below freezing weather with strangers standing a few feet away from the exhaust talking and hanging out. No one seemed to notice or care.

I have never heard of anyone wanting to install a generator. A portable Honda will be much more quiet. I have yet to meet anyone who likes or uses theirs because they are noisy and smelly. Check to see if Owl Vans can give you a referral. They are big out west. I assume you’re familiar with Bob Wells and RTR. He has a website that might have good resources. Keep me posted on your progress. I’m always interested in new info.

Thank you for the referrals. I will keep you posted.

I've tried to do some research on the subject and it appears that propane does produce more moisture than diesel. But beyond that, I can't verify. I have heard it from others as well. Maybe you can get to the bottom of it.

@@FromShetoMe the "wet heat" community wisdom comes from a time when unvented propane heaters were common. Like MrBuddy or Olympian Wave 3. With a typical propane RV furnace, the exhaust is vented outside, so moisture is not a problem (although they are obviously not as efficient, since a lot of heat is exhausted as well). I hate to be a nit-picker, but I would like to bring attention to another possible error in the video. I would be shocked if the batteries from PleasureWay did not have a BMS built in. Most lithium batteries have a BMS built in that will prevent charging below 32 degrees to protect the batteries. In my opinion, there is no way a canadian rv company would use batteries without this protection, but I admit I have no first hand knowledge of that specific battery.

@@i9im241 I don't mind nitpicking. It can be quite helpful in avoiding passing around bad information. I don't think PW has a BMS because they don't mention it in any of their literature. I'll have to dig further into the "wet heat" issue because I've read others have experienced a difference in condensation between the two. We haven't found condensation to be an issue but we don't camp below upper 20's and we live in the dry west.

Good to hear from you. Glad everything is fixed. I heard about a women's travel group recently that made me think of you. It's called Sisters on the Fly. I suppose I was reading "fly" as in fishing fly.

We'll probably go that same route--a portable battery for winter travel. Or a better option for us is a second alternator. That would make a huge difference. What year is your Travato? I thought they all had lithium batteries since around 2017/18.

@@FromShetoMe 2020.5. But Travatos don’t all have lithium. They still have the G and the GL‘s and the K and the KL. Some of the other models are all lithium - like Owen & Lynn‘s Revel. Lithium in Travatos is still an option. A second alternator…? I have a lot to understand - I’m not really sure what they do. I know that they convert mechanical to electrical, but not sure what that is in real world application. Is that what recharges your battery while driving? But you already have some lithium as I recall…

@@TrishBenedict Yes, a second alternator would charge your batteries faster. That’s probably the route we’ll go. Changing to lithium batteries will require lots of other components to be changed. Probably at least $10k I would think but may be worth it if you are running short on power.

@@FromShetoMe $10K seems about right. Shortly after we bought the Travato last year I called Battle Born and they emailed me list of components we’d need. That price list came out to $4300 for three BB batteries, upgraded inverter, soft start. If you’re handy, you could probably stop right there, do the work yourself, and pat yourself on the back. Many of the handier folks on the Travato FB group have done that. But we don’t have a house with a big garage anymore. We’re in a senior community - think Laguna Woods (same developer). But even paying someone else to do the installation, $10K is a far cry from the $30K inflated price tag if you buy a lithium model! And as far as I can tell, the only advantage to getting a Travato with a factory-installed lithium system is that it also comes with auto-start which starts your car engine if the charge on the lithium drops down below a certain point. Since we don’t live in the South or Midwest and generally just avoid the hot months, that doesn’t seem like anything that would justify the additional $20K price tag of the factory system over the price of a stock model with a basic retrofitted lithium system. But for under $2000 we could get a MaxOak or Jackery lithium battery pack, stick it under the bed, run the microwave and induction cooktop and coffee boiler off of that. It would be a messy kludge and we’d be tripping over power cords, but as I said, we would have the added advantage of being able to bring it into the condo when we have power outages. With the big Dixie fire raging, orange skies, and the AQ here in the Bay Area running in the Unhealthy range, PG&E gets nervous and may institute one of their PSPS shutoffs any time.

@@TrishBenedict And another expense with buying a new rig is the sales tax. That would be more than the upgrades. We’ll be driving our rig for many more miles.

Wilco swing hitch and Hollywood rack but check out the 1up system. I’ve heard good things about it.

@@FromShetoMe Thank you. My e-bike is heavy for me to fold and lug it up in my van. Putting it on the back of my van, I think would be the better option.

@@susansimon734 The 1Up has an option where you can ramp your bike up.

We’ll probably just go with a second alternator. Doug and I discussed that we don’t think the one alternator charges effectively. We have a stand alone battery with solar panel coming that should take care of our wintertime needs.

@@FromShetoMe If you install a DC to DC charger and the renogy 40 amp is only 170 dollars on amazon, it will solve your battery charging problem when driving. They will not charge properly without it. It boosts the charging voltage and regulates to prevent overcharging and will not over burden your alternator.

@@danielgjb Interesting. Thanks. I learn so much from you guys.

The heater feature was important to me because I live in an area that gets below freezing overnight. If I take my Ascent out for the day after it had been sitting overnight, the batteries have been below freezing. Before I upgraded I'd have to remember to open the back and turn off the charging circuits or risk damaging the Pleasureway batteries.

Comment noted.

@@FromShetoMe I enjoy the breadth of the topics you cover and hope you continue to speak to the full range of your interests.