While many caravanners want to experience the “back to basic” life during their caravanning adventure, there are some who don’t. They want the comforts of the electrical appliances during their trip. So, are you still wondering are power packs are useful for caravans?
Of course, power packs are useful for caravans. Especially when you’re traveling to far-off areas in your touring caravan and going to stay there for days to weeks, you can’t live without an electricity supply then.
In many distant areas, usually, you don’t get access to the power supply. So, in that case, the only option you’re left with is the power packs. While a generator is a great option if you want to use high-power drawing appliances, portable power packs are also becoming popular. These include portable batteries that won’t require maintenance like a generator and don’t make noise or fumes.
The best thing about battery packs is they are portable, and you don’t need to fit them in the caravan. Based on your power requirements, you can choose different sizes and capacity batteries.
To find the most suitable power pack for your caravan, you first need to know a few things. We have listed them all in this post so that you can make a better decision for a hassle-free trip.
How Much Power Do You Really Need In Your Caravan?
Every caravan and traveller is different, and so are the power requirements. You can’t get a fixed number of how many volts will be sufficient to fulfill your caravan requirements. Rather, there are a few things that you can consider to have an idea. These include:
How long is your trip? You should pre-plan if you’re going to stay in your caravan on weekends only or for weeks or months.
Where do you want to stay? Either you’ll stay in a static caravan in a caravan park with a 240V power supply, or you’ll stay at some far-off place. At a distant location, you need to be more self-sufficient.
What appliances/devices do you want to use? Do you want some basic electric appliances such as a TV or a few lights or high-power consuming devices such as a fridge, coffee machine, toaster, etc.?
By considering these things, you can get a battery that will be suitable for your requirements.
What Are The Best Camping Battery Packs?
After checking the power requirements of your caravan, you’ll try to find the best caravan battery packs. We’ve made it easier for you; here is a list of the best caravan/camping battery packs:
1. Dometic PLB40 40AH Lithium Battery
2. Zero Goal Battery Packs
3. Baintech Powertop 110AH GEL Battery Pack
4. Enerdive The Archie Portable Power System
In addition to these options, you can also build a ‘power pack’ for your caravan yourself. To do this, take an existing battery and place it in a Battery Box. It’s a handy option but good enough to power appliances during your trip.
Ways To Increase Caravan Battery Lifespan
Once you’ve purchased a caravan battery, you’re surely not going to change it every other day. Neither you should when you can increase your caravan battery lifespan with some care. Here are some ways to increase caravan battery lifespan:
• Avoid draining the battery.
• In a battery pack, connect the batteries of identical capacity in series and identical voltage in parallel.
• Always use a voltmeter to check the charging and discharging of your battery at regular intervals.
• Beware if your battery stinks.
• Limit the use of appliances that consume a lot of power.
• Ensure annual inspection and cleaning on time.
• Switch off the appliances when not using.
Can You Use A Car Battery To Power Your Caravan Appliances?
You can use a car battery to power your caravan appliances if you don’t have a caravan battery. But if you have a caravan battery, you shouldn’t use a car battery then. A car battery can be a saver in tough times, but it can’t be the first choice for your caravan appliances.
The reason behind this is car batteries and caravan batteries have different functions. Due to this misconception, many new caravanners think of using a car battery in a caravan. But a car battery provides high power at once to start the car engine. On the contrary, caravan appliances need steady power for a long time. Caravan batteries are designed keeping their function in mind.
A sudden high power can damage your caravan appliances. So, it’s better to get a caravan battery than using your regular car battery for your caravan.
How Do You Charge A Caravan Battery?
By regular charging, you can ensure to get the maximum out of your caravan battery. When you purchase the caravan batteries, you don’t need to charge them as they are fully charged. Regularly check the consumer unit in your caravan to check the charging level of your battery. It should go below 50% because it will damage your caravan battery.
You can charge the caravan battery in two ways:
When you’re at the camping site and have power supply access, plug in the battery into the available power, it will recharge the battery in some time.
If you’re away from the power supply, you can use voltage-controlled battery chargers to recharge your caravan power pack.
Summary
If you’re a caravaner, you must check your caravan power pack before leaving for your next trip. Yes, you’ll need a power pack, especially if you’re going to stay at a far-off place.
Check your caravan’s power requirements to choose the ideal power pack or battery. In this post, you can find some of the best options to choose from. Moreover, you can also find a handy way to power your caravan.
Spending money on the battery every other day isn’t a wise option, neither you should do this. Instead, you can make your caravan long-lasting with a little care.
If you’re planning to use your car battery to run your caravan appliances, then you shouldn’t unless you’ve no other option. Your car battery is made for your car and has a different function.
Instead of doing this, buy a caravan battery once and make sure to charge it at regular intervals to use it for a long time.
