How to Hook Up a Television

[raypa]

I have been reading around the board and see that people run their TVs off the 12v with a power inverter. I have outlets that have a 12v plug with the cable hookup. WHY? Why isn't the 110ac plug being utilized?

I'm sure there is a good reason, but just don't know why. If it is so you can watch TV with no electrical hookups, how do you keep your battery from dying?

BTW, in my area( Pittsburgh, PA), Target has a 19" LCD with a built-in DVD player on sale for $230. Thought it was a great deal and picked one up for the trailer.

Thanks in advance for the help.
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2002 GMC 2500HD Duramax/ 1997 Starcraft Leisure Star 24

Pittsburgh,PA

[TannerBee]

I'm guessing the 12VDC to inverter setup is so the TV can be turned on anytime and not be dependent on shore power or a generator. And who doesn't love watching "A Clockwork Orange" while driving?
_________________
Floyd and Tanner
Coachmen Santara 35
Rock Hill SC

Time is either spent or invested.

[raypa]

Clockwork Orange: talk about bringing back memories. So if you are not on grid, how do you keep your 12v system from going dead on you?
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2002 GMC 2500HD Duramax/ 1997 Starcraft Leisure Star 24

Pittsburgh,PA

[Motor31]

Four ways:

Driving so the tow vehicle or motorhome alternator charges it during the trip

Solar panels

Generator

Wind-powered generator
_________________
Mike, Nancy and the Fuzzies
2005 MS 38 RL3
2001 Volvo MH (HDT)
2004 R1150RT (piggyback)
1996 Jeep Cherokee (toad)

[elh3946]

[raypa]

Thanks for the responses. I do know that the TVs don't run on 12V and that the inverter changes the 12DC to 110AC. I was thinking that there was more to it. Like the onboard trailer power put off a frequency or you needed a special inverter with wave filtering to run TVs. I forget that when you're not "hooked up" that you are on 12V throughout the trailer.

If it is as simple as using the 12V when you don't have the 110V hookup, I'm looking too far into it...(as always).

Which leads me to another question... (of course).

If we do not have 110V hookups, can you plug the trailer right into the generator? And would this keep the 12V system charged? Should I consider having more than the one battery onboard? How can I monitor battery life during use so I know when to run the genny or "other" power source?

I'm going to be a pro at this by spring.
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2002 GMC 2500HD Duramax/ 1997 Starcraft Leisure Star 24

Pittsburgh,PA

[elh3946]

[Kirk]

raypa,

Actually, that type of connection came from a time when 12V powered TV sets were fairly common. While you can still find a few, there are not many choices in the market today.
_________________
Good travelin !................Kirk
URL: www.adventure.1tree.net
Sent via Starband, Manual Flyer dish.

[Alterego]

12 volt TVs and appliances are still very commonly available.
Here is a couple of the many many places that have 12 volt items for sale:
http://www.12volt-travel.com/
http://www.roadtrucker.com/

[12Volt-Travel]

Hi all,

We noticed that you all are talking about 12 volt televisions for use in your motorhomes. We also noticed that Alterego had mentioned us. Thanks for noticing!

Well, there certainly are advantages to either type of TV. The advantage of using a 110V TV in your RV with a power inverter is that you have a much larger selection of TVs to choose from.

The advantages of a 12V TV are durability, lower power consumption and 12V or 110V operation.

If you have a meter for measuring draw on your battery, you will notice that hooking up a power inverter and just turning it on draws from your system. Don't get me wrong, power inverters are a great thing to have, but we're trying to conserve as much power as possible.

Some of the best power inverters around are 98% efficient at best. This means that 2% of the power that you have will just be thrown away.

The bottom line is this. You can watch more TV with a real 12 volt television. Most of the 12V TVs that you will find on our website draw less than 10 amps. Our latest model to date is a 15.6" widescreen with built-in DVD and only draws 38 watts: about 3.1 amps.

All of our 12V TVs have an ATSC digital tuner built in so there is no need for a converter box. We have sizes from 8.5" up to 19". CRT and Hi Def LCD models are available.

We would like to welcome you all to visit us at www.12volt-travel.com.
All RVTravel.com forum members may use promo code "RVTravel" to save 5% on your order.
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The 12Volt-Travel.com; Supplying Travelers & Truckers with High Quality Products

[mrblanche]

Want a 12-volt TV? Visit your local truck stop. Go to a Petro, TA, or Flying J, and you'll be surprised what you'll find.

[DXSMac]

My first RV, a Fleetwood Jamboree, had a 12v TV set. It was great; could watch TV while boondocking. I didn't run out of power; only boondocked a few times.

JJ
_________________
Please check out my blog on RV'ing without a tow car:

http://rvingtoadless.blogspot.com/

Feel free to leave me any comments.

[obnoxiousblue]

I have two coach batteries running along side my van's stock system. There is a relay to keep them charged off of the engine's alternator and when stopped, I can draw from it without risking losing my start ability. The van has 2 aux 12V outlets and 4 110V that have a jump switch to run on either a shore line when I have hookups, or on an inverter when I need it.

But as for TVs, I have an 8-inch drop down that's mounted above the driver's area. It runs on 12V and has a built in DVD player. When I hook up to 110, I can switch it over to run off the coach batteries and there's already an adapter in line so it doesn't run me low.

I've been contemplating putting a solar panel on my roof. I know of several other VW campers using a small system to keep everything up to par, but don't want to part with the $700 just yet. If there's another forum on this site with regards to solar, I'd love to check it out if anyone knows the link.

[Bebop]

I have about a 12-inch dual voltage, 12 and 110 that has outlived several RVs since I bought it in the late 80s about 20 years ago. It is a Hitachi and has two power cords: one is 110 and one is 12 for a cigarette lighter. It has a built in antenna and an add-on for high channels. It was made by Hitachi and has good color and contrast. Never a problem in all these years and it has a lot of miles on it:)
Bebop

[kingrokon]

As previously mentioned, most modern larger RVs have built in chargers (sometimes called “converters”) that will charge your battery if the “line power” outside cord is receiving power. (The term “shore power” has always seemed affected to me. It’s inappropriately nautical. Not all RVers own a yacht).

BUT: Particularly with older or lower-end RVs, these converters can charge at as little as 3 or 4 amps. Check to see what battery charging capacity your converter is rated at. If you’re using a generator to charge the batteries through the line power cord using such a converter, it can literally take all day to charge your batteries. I’ve seen people at boondocking sites that ran their generator all day and all night, apparently not realizing why it was taking so long to charge their batteries. In the process, they were causing considerable annoyance to the neighboring RVs.

If your converter is one of the ones that have a low battery charging rating, you may want to upgrade to a “3-stage” converter. These keep charging the battery at a high rate until it is nearly completely charged, as opposed to the older style charger that begins tapering off charge rate as the batteries become charged. This means the “3-stage” type can charge the battery in about half the time. These are available in ratings as high as 60 amps or more, but the larger ones are fairly expensive.

A cheaper alternative is to buy an automotive battery charger from an auto parts store. Even a 10-amp model might be an improvement, but try to get a higher amp rating if possible. I have a “Vector VEC1093” (sometimes sold under the Black-and Decker label) 3-stage charger that is rated at 40 amps continuous charge, and still isn’t much bigger than a rather large lunchbox. It has been reliable so far. Using a 2000-watt Honda “quiet” generator, we can charge our batteries enough for two days in two hours. The only drawback is that it has a very dim LED (red light-up type) display that can’t be read easily in daylight. I don’t know if they’ve corrected this in later models. I think Schumacher makes a similar model. It would probably be possible to connect such a charger directly to the battery and mount it semi-permanently somewhere inside the RV or engine compartment - you would have to investigate the details and safety concerns yourself.

If you’re just going to use a generator for battery charging and not for a microwave, a 1000-watt generator will probably be enough. (Lower initial cost, lighter weight to carry, possibly slightly quieter, and less fuel consumption). Stick with the Yamaha or Honda “quiet” generators; the cheaper ones are usually much noisier and less reliable.

When away from line power, typically, using just lights, playing the radio, running the water pump, and occasionally a 12-volt vent fan, we can use about 30 amp-hours a day. (“Amp-hours” are amps times hours of use: 30 amps for one hour, 1 amp for 30 hours, or something in between, and often in several different combinations added together). For running a microwave, most people use a generator, although a LARGE inverter can be used, but will run down the battery in about half an hour, more or less. Nearly all people use a generator (usually at least 3000 watts) to run an air conditioner.

Note that not all the amp-hours that are put into the battery for a charger are retained by the battery. There is always some inefficiency. Usually a lead-acid battery returns only something like 80% of charge that was put into it. So it is usually necessary to charge the battery a bit more than you might expect.