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Interesting "can of worms"

This is what you should be seeing.....
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Here's what I tried to show last night, this is with the "shore" power dis-connected and the solar panel not plugged in, but all my normal DC loads still connected. Going to monitor all the different loads and then see if my solar panel will produce enough power with indirect light(this trailer is about 1' less in height than the toy-hauler) so we'll see.
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So I've got 48hrs of data logged now and things look very promising. With no shore power connected these are DC current numbers.

Trailer dis-connect in the "off" position - no measurable current draw

Trailer dis-connect in the "on" position(nothing running but everything energized) - 240mA

Trailer dis-connect "on" and the inverter "on" for the TV - 450mA

I'll mount the panel and plug it in today and see where were at with it being under the canopy to see if it's putting anything out!
 
That was a total failure, under the canopy I only gained .05 volts all day. I just switched over to shore power and it's pulling 1.8amps right now, we'll see how it drops in the morning after the battery is back up to full charge.
 
The results are that on shore power I don't draw less than 1.4 amps, so I will want to pick-up a solar maintainer. In the mean time I need to fix the 3 butchered outlets I uncovered so I can get this all done, I've got a trip to Luna Lake in a few weeks!
 
I received my 20W panel (less than 1 lb) on Friday. It's doing great with the trailer dis-connected from shore power. I still need to find a place to mount it, but that's easy!
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I still have to clean-up all the loose ends on mine, but the game just started over. I lent my buddy 13k$ to buy a trailer for him and his wife. It a 2016 Starcraft that's in great shape but we need go over it to see what all he's going to need for our lake trip in a few weeks. It never ends!
 
I'm also working on the trailer today as I only have about a week left till we leave. So I pulled out the AV system to provide better access to the receptacles to provide some good backing/secure. Sure a lot of wiring going on!
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Pretty cool, I shorted the AV unit when re-installing it. Before I grabbed a DVM to start checking it out , I looked at the Power Distribution unit and there was a "indicating" led showing a blown fuse, sure saved me a lot of work!
 
Sheesh.

What did they use to cut those holes for the wires? A dull apprentice?
 
That's the sad part, being a IBEW electrician for 45yrs and a City of Phoenix building inspector for 20yrs nobody can see what's behind all those "pretty" finished walls!!!!!
 
I am with you.

I was a general contractor for more than 10 years. Some of the stuff that people cover up is just nuts.

The newer the work is, the worse it is. Pride in craftsmanship is gone. Now it is all about the quick buck.

I keep finding stupid choices in my shop building (built about 15 years ago). Whoever did the roof skipped about half the nails for the shingles. Whoever did the drywall used 1 1/4" screws for 5/8" sheetrock. Morons.
 
I got one of those "Element" extinguishers for my XJ. It looks like a good idea. I see two possible challenges with it however. One is that it has no indicator to satisfy vehicle check requirements. The other is that its use is not as intuitive as the standard "pull the pin, pull the trigger and aim" extinguishers. So now I am carrying two extinguishers. One for me to use if I really need an extinguisher and one to satisfy the rest of the world.
 
FWIW, I'm at Quemado lake in New Mexico because of all the fires and forest closures in Arizona. Luckily this is a very similar campground at 7400' up in the NM mountains. It's nice to be out of the heat!
 
The dogs are tired after the trip!
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This trailer is back on the repair list, I had terrible water hammer this past week so I have additional work to do while I've got the car trailer project going!
 
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