Portable Battery Box and RTT Farkles

[RoyB]

Outfitting my new Smittybilt RTT. Needed to power it up with a portable battery pack and solar charging.
Wrote and article with tons of pictures on my web site.

www.rvbprecision.com

Hope you like it!

 

[grubworm]

Nice. I recently bought an off-road camper and outfitted it with 200w solar and did a similar thing...yours is very clean and well thought out. I checked out your site, you do very nice work!

 

[RoyB]

Thanks for the kind words....My wife says I like messing with my stuff more than actually using it!
Checl out the article on the solar system on my Toy Hauler....You might appreciate it.

Good luck with your system!

 

[RoyB]

I retired a year and a half ago and have never been so busy! Got seriously involved in "Cowboy Action Shooting" and travel all over the country attending meets. Great fun! Have shot a few times in Louisiana. Those Southern boys can SHOOT! Made me look foolish....

 

[Lumbjack_MC]

I just finished a very similar project for use with my smittybilt RTT! I have used it on one trip so far. Mostly powered my 12v heated blanket and charged my phone on a 5 day trip. Very pleased.

 

[RoyB]

I just finished a very similar project for use with my smittybilt RTT! I have used it on one trip so far. Mostly powered my 12v heated blanket and charged my phone on a 5 day trip. Very pleased.

What do you have for a heated blanket and how long does it heat on your battery? What do you have for a battery?

 

[Lumbjack_MC]

What do you have for a heated blanket and how long does it heat on your battery? What do you have for a battery?

I have this one on Amazon Super worth it, all the 12v ones are throw blankets so they are not very big but when tucked into the sleeping bag they do wonders! Also we plugged them in and warmed them for 30min before bed. My Father in law and I used these ones on our trip last week and they kept us toasty in 28* weather for 4 nights. I charged the batteries to 12.6v and they were at 11.8 when I returned home after 4 nights of 9hrs of use a night. They only use like 45Watts each.

I have a battery pack that has two group 27 deep cycle batteries from COSCO, I put them into an "Action packer" box and eventually switched them into a green colored one and put ports on the box for SAE and Battery quick connects. Then I built a smaller box out of an ammo can as an extension to the big heavy box to go in the tent or around camp. It has 2 USB ports, 3 12V sockets and a wireless phone charger in the top (Set phone on box and it just charges!) super fun project! I am still working on the Solar setup.

 

[RoyB]

Very cool! Nice work. Thanks for the link for the blankets. Will be ordering one .

 

[Wildlee]

That is quite impressive! I just bought a Forest River NoBo 10.6 toy hauler and added the 200w set up with MPPT controller and 2000w inverter in a tongue box. I just run a fan and leds at night and charge phones, very basic. I see you do machining. I was a diver offshore and got into building ROVs for the company and did a lot of manual machining building all the parts for them years ago. I also did a little gunsmithing back in the early 90s. I definitely relate to your website! Im retired and do a lot of wood turning in my shop...always have loved a lathe!

Me and my wife are looking at the No Bo 10.6. We are heading to a dealership few hours away this weekend. Whats your personal thoughts on it?

 

[Jason Jackson]

I have this one on Amazon Super worth it, all the 12v ones are throw blankets so they are not very big but when tucked into the sleeping bag they do wonders! Also we plugged them in and warmed them for 30min before bed. My Father in law and I used these ones on our trip last week and they kept us toasty in 28* weather for 4 nights. I charged the batteries to 12.6v and they were at 11.8 when I returned home after 4 nights of 9hrs of use a night. They only use like 45Watts each.

I have a battery pack that has two group 27 deep cycle batteries from COSCO, I put them into an "Action packer" box and eventually switched them into a green colored one and put ports on the box for SAE and Battery quick connects. Then I built a smaller box out of an ammo can as an extension to the big heavy box to go in the tent or around camp. It has 2 USB ports, 3 12V sockets and a wireless phone charger in the top (Set phone on box and it just charges!) super fun project! I am still working on the Solar setup.

Pretty awesome.

 

[grubworm]

Me and my wife are looking at the No Bo 10.6. We are heading to a dealership few hours away this weekend. Whats your personal thoughts on it?

There are a couple threads on here about Forest River and the NoBo, type NoBo in the search box.

No Boundaries - New trailer by Forest River

I was doing some research for new travel trailers designed for modest off road use and came across a new trailer by Forest River. Model name: No Boundaries...it is not yet available for purchase, but is on order by a few dealers. It has several options, such as an an Overlander Package: 16...

www.overlandbound.com

I got ours in January and really like it now, but had some serious issues with the quality of the build, it had to go back to Forest River just days after we bought it. It was a LOT of hassle getting them to fix their mess and after months, I got it back with most of the problems still there so I just fixed it all myself. I love the design and it is really a great camper to pull and take up mountains and winding roads...trails great and is narrow so it tracks really well. I fixed it and did a lot of mods and really like it now. If you are handy and know a little construction, you can make it good with some screws, good adhesive and time. I posted on other threads and I think I had some pics and more in depth about it. If you dont see the other threads, just message me on here and I will be more than happy to give more details as well as what mods I did that really improved its use. You can type in Forest River complaints on google and see a lot of how crappy their carpentry work is....fortunately, a lot of problems are with slide outs and plumbing and the NoBo has neither, so there is really not a lot that can be seriously wrong with it. Id definitely check one out and go thru it IN DEPTH before signing...again, I can give you some specific things to check before signing off on one. All RV and campers are having major problems and even Airstream is getting bad reviews now, so like everything else, quality is way down and prices keep going up.

 

[Jason Jackson]

I have this one on Amazon Super worth it, all the 12v ones are throw blankets so they are not very big but when tucked into the sleeping bag they do wonders! Also we plugged them in and warmed them for 30min before bed. My Father in law and I used these ones on our trip last week and they kept us toasty in 28* weather for 4 nights. I charged the batteries to 12.6v and they were at 11.8 when I returned home after 4 nights of 9hrs of use a night. They only use like 45Watts each.

I have a battery pack that has two group 27 deep cycle batteries from COSCO, I put them into an "Action packer" box and eventually switched them into a green colored one and put ports on the box for SAE and Battery quick connects. Then I built a smaller box out of an ammo can as an extension to the big heavy box to go in the tent or around camp. It has 2 USB ports, 3 12V sockets and a wireless phone charger in the top (Set phone on box and it just charges!) super fun project! I am still working on the Solar setup.

 

[Jason Jackson]

Would like to know a little more about this. Looks like a larger version of what I have been doing with a MinnKota power battery box. What are the quick connections you used on the larger gauge wire ? Also, what phone charger did you use? If ever you have time. Would like to see pics of that part of the build. Very cool Thanks.

 

[RoyB]

Hi Jason,
The high current connectors are called "Anderson Plugs"...Available on Amazon or Ebay..

I just added two more features....
Another Anderson Plug and a 150A reseable ciruit breaker to run my receiver mounted winch on the rear of the truck
And a lower current set of anderson plugs to connect a 120V-AC Optimate charger when the box is in storage during the off season.

You can check them out here www.rvbprecision.com

Only thing left to do is add a standard cigarette lighter socket for devices that require this type of connection.

There are two phone chargers....The one in the RTT is a simple round, panel mount device that has two USB sockets. I made a little box for it in the tent.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61SypGOXiOL._SL1500_.jpg

And the other USB charger sockets are integral with the solar charge controller. Mounted right on the front of the unit.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41ge3LHcHsL.jpg

Hope this helps!

 

[Jason Jackson]

Hi Jason,
The high current connectors are called "Anderson Plugs"...Available on Amazon or Ebay..

I just added two more features....
Another Anderson Plug and a 150A reseable ciruit breaker to run my receiver mounted winch on the rear of the truck
And a lower current set of anderson plugs to connect a 120V-AC Optimate charger when the box is in storage during the off season.

You can check them out here www.rvbprecision.com

Only thing left to do is add a standard cigarette lighter socket for devices that require this type of connection.

There are two phone chargers....The one in the RTT is a simple round, panel mount device that has two USB sockets. I made a little box for it in the tent.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61SypGOXiOL._SL1500_.jpg

And the other USB charger sockets are integral with the solar charge controller. Mounted right on the front of the unit.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41ge3LHcHsL.jpg

Hope this helps!

Yes! Thank you very much for taking the time.

 

[AL.WVSN]

(I know you can build this your own...but I despised doing electrical stuff - I just dont like it LOL)
Is there a website where I can just buy the whole set up or anyone on here that does this that I can pay someone for this set up?

Thanks