Bob K

[Bob Keating]

Hi all! I am a newby here and this is my first post.

My question is this, is 120 V shore power enough when storing my '09 Cayman to keep the batteries alive and power the bay heater?

I can run a dedicated 30A or 50A for this, but it seems like overkill.

[Scotty Hutto]

Bob,

I keep my coach plugged in to a 15a 120v receptacle when I’m storage.  That keeps the batteries charged, residential fridge cold, and bay heater running. 
 

Now, I *wish* I had a 30a (or at least 20a) circuit so I could run the AC when I’m working on the rig, but it’s a rented space, so not an option for me.  
 

One note: if you are using the bay heater that came with the coach, it’s 12v and runs off the house battery bank. IF it runs continually the inverter/charger can struggle to keep up if you have it limited to 9a (Because of the 15a circuit)…. Ask me how I know…

Hope that helps.  

[Bob Keating]

Thanks! I was not aware the bay heater was 12V only. I live in Oklahoma, and the climate requires only limited use of the bay heater in the winter.

I just raised my barn door, so future storage will be in an insulated barn.

[jacwjames]

I survived with just a 20 amp circuit for +20 years in my old house.  Could not run the AC or heat while I was working on anything in the motorhome or while prepping to go on a trip.

Built a new house and I went crazy I installed three 50 amp circuits,  I in the garage, one mounted outside on the corner of the garage that I used while I completed the house, and then one on an RV pedestal.  The RV pedestal comes in handy for visitors. 

I just built my garage and feed another 50 amp circuit from the RV pedestal to power the RV and a shop area. 

IMHO    if you are going to add power at minimum I'd install a 30 amp but for the additional cost of going to 50 it would give you a lot of flexibility. 

Edited March 12, 2021 by jacwjames

[DavidL]

1 hour ago, Bob Keating said:

Thanks! I was not aware the bay heater was 12V only. I live in Oklahoma, and the climate requires only limited use of the bay heater in the winter.

I just raised my barn door, so future storage will be in an insulated barn.

and you probably know that insulation only helps if there is also a heat source inside the barn.  Insulation with no heat just delays the inevitable frozen pipes.

[Ivan K]

10 minutes ago, DavidL said:

and you probably know that insulation only helps if there is also a heat source inside the barn.  Insulation with no heat just delays the inevitable frozen pipes.

I have to concur with this statement after my experience with recent TX freeze. The blackouts stopped my shop oil heater and while insulated, temp inside dropped to 22F. I had to run the generator to feed an electric heater and a drop light since we were not winterized and loaded up to leave for Q as soon as the ice was gone. Never had to do it before, unexpected experience... now I have an exhaust outlet port in the shop wall.

[Bob Keating]

Thanks for all of the feed back. Should have stated that the barn also  has heat.