Hopper 3 power usage with a 1200 watt inverter

[AAASATELLITE]

I have a 1200 watt inverter equipped on my 2017 Fleetwood Jamboree. It came with a residential refrigerator that only runs on AC power and uses 780 watts of power to run and draws 6.5 amps. The inverter is powered by two 6 volt batteries which provides 120 volts ac that must be kept charged in order to run the fridge and the flat screen tv's. Im trying to determine how many watts of total power is used at the same time when dry camping (no shore power) to run my fridge,1 32 "flat screen and my Hopper 3. I'm also cosidering adding solar to aid in keeping the batteries charged. I use a full size dish on a tripod with a hybrid LNB for use with my Hopper. I know I can also get AC power from the generator but most campsite will not allow use of a generator after 10:00 pm. I'm mostly a night owl and want to use my tv afer hours and still not worry about my fridge shutting down from lack of power from the inverter. Is this even possible? Any input from anyone tying to do this with an inverter would really be appreciated!

 

[navychop]

Hopper 3 draws 24.2 W, sometimes a bit less.

Your TV probably draws 100-400W.

I’d think that refrigerator is a LOT for 6 volt batteries. How long have you run it on batteries?

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[AAASATELLITE]

I agree that is a lot for 6 volt batteries but these are special heavy duty deep cycle batteries like you find in golf carts designed for high output usage so they evidently provide enough power to the inverter for AC use. I currently do not own this RV but it is one I am definitely am considering buying depending on the use of this inverter. The guy selling it lived in it for two years and never used the inverter function since he was constantly connected to 30 amps from the power box and he didn't even know that the tv's could use inverter power. If the fridge had the propane option this conversation wouldn't be happening.

 

[navychop]

Two years of essentially no use of deep cycle 6 volts is not good for them. Check for corrosion and water level. Be nice to test them, disconnected. But really, that’s not a decision criteria on the purchase.

You’re talking around 225 amp hours per six volt golf cart battery.

So how many days before recharging?

BTW, I had but rarely used a pair of 6s in my last RV. I’m always plugged in with the current one. If I ever buy another, I want a residential style refrigerator as I’m tired of the problems with dual fuel units. I’ll rarely dry camp again.


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[HobbyTalk]

Best to buy a nice little Honda 2000w inverter generator. You will not be happy using an inverter w/2 6v batteries to run all of that.

 

[NYDutch]

The two 6-volt batteries are in series and act as a single 12-volt battery with a ~225 AH capacity. Since the batteries should not be discharged below 50% of their capacity, the usable capacity is only about 112 AH. With the loads you've listed plus typical lighting, etc, the battery charge might last about 24 hours. A daily 2-4 hour charge from the generator running would be needed for an extended stay depending on your charger capacity. If you should need to run the furnace during cool nights, that will significantly shorten the battery run time. Many of us with residential fridges in our RV's use 2 or 3 12-volt or 6-volt pairs as a minimum.

 

[lfp302]

6.5 amps at 120 volts would load the 12 volt battery system past 65 amps.
If the refrigerator ran full time, with a rating 112 amphours, the batteries will be dead before 2 hous are up.

 

[Claude Greiner]

There is a sticker on the dish box that says the wattage.

The older boxes where as much as 60 watts at one time

 

[NYDutch]

6.5 amps at 120 volts would load the 12 volt battery system past 65 amps.
If the refrigerator ran full time, with a rating 112 amphours, the batteries will be dead before 2 hous are up.

We don't know the complete ratings or the expected duty cycle of the fridge in question, so it's difficult to guess with any accuracy. The residential fridge in my RV for instance, draws up to 6 amps momentarily at startup, but only up to 2 amps while running with a ~25% duty cycle. Most of the time it runs at ~1.2 amps except when the auto-defrost fan in kicks in.

 

[AAASATELLITE]

Thanks to everybody for responding to this thread. I know I'm bad at keeping up with responses so I apologize to you guys who took your time to investigate my issue and respond. We are going ahead with the purchase so I guess I will learn the definitive answer from experience. What I've learned since starting this conversation is that I should plan on adding solar panels to keep the batteries charged when using a residential fridge.
That won't happen until next year.

 

[AAASATELLITE]

We don't know the complete ratings or the expected duty cycle of the fridge in question, so it's difficult to guess with any accuracy. The residential fridge in my RV for instance, draws up to 6 amps momentarily at startup, but only up to 2 amps while running with a ~25% duty cycle. Most of the time it runs at ~1.2 amps except when the auto-defrost fan in kicks in.

I appreciate your reply, BTW what RV do you own? If you had it to do over again would you go with a residential fridge or go for propane/electric? Are you using 2 12 volt batteries or 6 volt?

 

[NYDutch]

I appreciate your reply, BTW what RV do you own? If you had it to do over again would you go with a residential fridge or go for propane/electric? Are you using 2 12 volt batteries or 6 volt?

We currently have a 34' Georgie Boy Landau Class A. We had a Norcold propane/electric fridge originally, but when it started failing, we elected to replace it with a Haier residential fridge that fit almost perfectly in the same space for a much lower cost than repairing or replacing the Norcold. In the three years we've had the residential fridge, we've never regretted making the swap. The temps are more stable and the extra space is really nice, as is the auto defrost. We have two Group 29 12-volt Everstart MAXX marine deep discharge batteries that easily keep the fridge running for 24+ hours.