Ok–fair warning up front: this post is probably going to sound like a little bit of a rant. One of the high-current 12V loads I needed to figure out how to power as part of the 48V lithium-ion project was the generator, and if you’ve been following the lithium house battery project, you already know…
Windows Updates and Reducing Data Usage, Especially with Multiple Devices
Let’s face it–most full-time RVs have more than one electronic device running Windows. While there are certainly some that stick to Apple (pricey) or Linux operating systems (free!), this post will hopefully be useful to those of you wishing to squeeze the most out of your data plans.
Time to unload some dead weight!
And by that, I’m talking about the rest of the old 12V to its final resting place–getting rid of the 6V batteries, and re-purposing the spot they’ll leave behind. Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it?
Line Splitter to go with Clamp-On Meter
Last time, I forgot to mention one thing you’ll want to have to go with the clamp-on meter–a line splitter for plugging in to standard 15-amp outlets. What does this do? It breaks out the line wire to where you can clamp around it by itself. Without getting too far into the details, the clamp-on…
My New Favorite Multimeter, and Measuring Inverter and Charging Efficiency
A little while back, I posted a short writeup on a plug-in ammeter I’ve used to measure current on circuits with standard ATO blade-style fuses. When running through trying to find out which circuits have loads on them, it’s still as easy as it gets, especially when you don’t have good access to the wiring….
Having a Little Fun with Lithium Batteries
This amounts to a bit of a side project, but provides a platform for really testing what the Volt lithium ion batteries are capable of. You can tell by the image above that I’m talking about putting lithium ion batteries, from a Chevy Volt, into a golf cart. Why not just replace the lead acid…
Wiring a US-spec Smart ForTwo (451) for Flat Towing
Ok, so this project isn’t something for my RV. My parents have a small motorhome, and have occasionally towed a Saturn Vue behind it. There’s a Smart Fortwo in the fleet now, and given that it weighs about half what they’re towing now, it makes sense to get the Smart all set up.
Measuring Current on DC Circuits
On most RVs, there isn’t a nice wiring diagram with fusing, grounding and splice locations, wire colors, and printed circuit identifiers like we expect on a car. When something isn’t working, it’s often not obvious what circuit it’s on; when a fuse blows, we often don’t know what’s on the circuit that might have caused…
Ten Years on the Road!
It’s kind of hard to believe, but I’ve just crossed the 10-year mark as a full-time RVer! For this post, there won’t be much text–just a few pictures highlighting some of the places an RV has taken me in that time.
The Grey Ghost’s New Kitchen, Part 6: Loose Ends
This has dragged on quite a while, and will probably continue to, but I thought it might make sense to post some comments on a number of smaller items so far in the project. Some are just notes on how I’ve done certain things, others are thoughts on what I’m planning. As always, comments and…