First Kabayan! Great job overall! Just a quick observation: that 3kW inverter might be too much for the small battery. When the engine is idling and the inverter is running at full load, it could draw a lot of current from the alternator, potentially causing it to overheat. Additionally, that 4-gauge wire (if that's the size) can handle around 70-80 amps, which may also lead to overheating. To protect the wire, you could use an inline auto-reset breaker. It’s more convenient than a fuse for this setup, as you won’t need to manually reset or replace it in case of an overload. A LiFePO4 battery would be an excellent upgrade from the current lead-acid (Motolite) battery. For this, you’d need a DC-DC charger instead of the battery isolation relay you're using now. LiFePO4 offers more usable power since it can be discharged almost fully, unlike flooded lead-acid batteries. Lead-acid batteries also experience voltage sag under heavy loads, which is likely why your inverter is beeping due to the voltage drop. Plus, discharging lead-acid batteries below 50% capacity shortens their lifespan.
Thank you for watching, and taking the time to share your valuable inputs! It is always helpful to hear from someone who obviously knows what they are talking about. We are DIYers who just learn as we go along. We'll surely take your suggestions into consideration when we have the next opportunity to upgrade our system. We are still operating under low budget at the moment. Our present inverter is only 2000W and it works great for our needs. So far, our two 80A fuses are still holding up after two years. The previous 3000W inverter was working fine for us until a cat decided to use it as a urinal. 😅 The Motolite lead-acid-battery is our second one already (we used to have an Amaron during our first year). The first one worked fine until its battery life got shorter from disuse. This second one is also a year old, we used it only a few months last year. Our problem was we we didn't use the van for months at a time, so the battery was not charging regularly like it would have if we had been using the vehicle. It would be nice to have LiFePO4 batteries someday. In your experience, how long is their average lifespan? How safe are they?
@@filamstagram You're welcome and thank you! A 2000-watt (2kW) inverter can draw over 160 amps at 12 volts, but it’s manageable if you keep the power draw to a minimum. An 80-amp fuse is suitable for running the inverter at half load (about 1000 watts) but exceeding that will likely blow the fuse. A high-quality LiFePO4 battery is typically rated for 3000 to 5000 cycles, which gives it a long lifespan. I started with a 200Ah lead-acid battery about 15 years ago, and now I have 8 kWh of LiFePO4 batteries. With that setup, I can run my 11,000 BTU air conditioner for many hours using a 2kW inverter. LiFePO4 batteries are generally safe, and their built-in Battery Management System (BMS) adds extra protection. I've had mine for years with no issues. However, I can’t vouch for the safety of no-name brands, as some might not meet quality standards. You can build your own battery setup using CALB or EVE cells paired with a BMS, which can be cheaper than buying a pre-assembled battery. There are two main types of lead-acid batteries: starting batteries and deep-cycle batteries. Deep-cycle batteries have thicker plates and tend to last longer. Starting batteries have thinner, more numerous plates designed for high current output during engine starting, but they aren’t ideal for camper builds because the thinner plates can easy fail due to sulfation. It's the reason why car batteries usually last about 3-5 years. Deep cycle can last over 7-10 years with good maintenance. Lead-acid batteries prefer to remain fully charged; storing them partially charged leads to sulfation, which reduces their capacity over time.
Thanks for all the advice! We'll keep all this info in mind. We'll look forward to researching into these for our next upgrade. We had wanted LiFePO4 batteries for this build but kind of got scared hearing how some LiFePO4 batteries caught fire, but I'm guessing those were the no-name or off- brands that you mentioned. It's a learning experience for us, so we appreciate comments like yours that are borne from experience.
@@MangoKashInThePhilippinesThank you so much for your input. The inverter we are currently using for this setup is only 2000W. Sira na kasi yung 3000W namin. What would you suggest na proper wire gauge pag 2000W?
First Kabayan! Great job overall! Just a quick observation: that 3kW inverter might be too much for the small battery. When the engine is idling and the inverter is running at full load, it could draw a lot of current from the alternator, potentially causing it to overheat. Additionally, that 4-gauge wire (if that's the size) can handle around 70-80 amps, which may also lead to overheating. To protect the wire, you could use an inline auto-reset breaker. It’s more convenient than a fuse for this setup, as you won’t need to manually reset or replace it in case of an overload.
A LiFePO4 battery would be an excellent upgrade from the current lead-acid (Motolite) battery. For this, you’d need a DC-DC charger instead of the battery isolation relay you're using now. LiFePO4 offers more usable power since it can be discharged almost fully, unlike flooded lead-acid batteries. Lead-acid batteries also experience voltage sag under heavy loads, which is likely why your inverter is beeping due to the voltage drop. Plus, discharging lead-acid batteries below 50% capacity shortens their lifespan.
Thank you for watching, and taking the time to share your valuable inputs! It is always helpful to hear from someone who obviously knows what they are talking about. We are DIYers who just learn as we go along. We'll surely take your suggestions into consideration when we have the next opportunity to upgrade our system. We are still operating under low budget at the moment. Our present inverter is only 2000W and it works great for our needs. So far, our two 80A fuses are still holding up after two years. The previous 3000W inverter was working fine for us until a cat decided to use it as a urinal. 😅 The Motolite lead-acid-battery is our second one already (we used to have an Amaron during our first year). The first one worked fine until its battery life got shorter from disuse. This second one is also a year old, we used it only a few months last year. Our problem was we we didn't use the van for months at a time, so the battery was not charging regularly like it would have if we had been using the vehicle. It would be nice to have LiFePO4 batteries someday. In your experience, how long is their average lifespan? How safe are they?
@@filamstagram You're welcome and thank you! A 2000-watt (2kW) inverter can draw over 160 amps at 12 volts, but it’s manageable if you keep the power draw to a minimum. An 80-amp fuse is suitable for running the inverter at half load (about 1000 watts) but exceeding that will likely blow the fuse.
A high-quality LiFePO4 battery is typically rated for 3000 to 5000 cycles, which gives it a long lifespan. I started with a 200Ah lead-acid battery about 15 years ago, and now I have 8 kWh of LiFePO4 batteries. With that setup, I can run my 11,000 BTU air conditioner for many hours using a 2kW inverter. LiFePO4 batteries are generally safe, and their built-in Battery Management System (BMS) adds extra protection. I've had mine for years with no issues. However, I can’t vouch for the safety of no-name brands, as some might not meet quality standards.
You can build your own battery setup using CALB or EVE cells paired with a BMS, which can be cheaper than buying a pre-assembled battery. There are two main types of lead-acid batteries: starting batteries and deep-cycle batteries. Deep-cycle batteries have thicker plates and tend to last longer. Starting batteries have thinner, more numerous plates designed for high current output during engine starting, but they aren’t ideal for camper builds because the thinner plates can easy fail due to sulfation. It's the reason why car batteries usually last about 3-5 years. Deep cycle can last over 7-10 years with good maintenance.
Lead-acid batteries prefer to remain fully charged; storing them partially charged leads to sulfation, which reduces their capacity over time.
Thanks for all the advice! We'll keep all this info in mind. We'll look forward to researching into these for our next upgrade. We had wanted LiFePO4 batteries for this build but kind of got scared hearing how some LiFePO4 batteries caught fire, but I'm guessing those were the no-name or off- brands that you mentioned. It's a learning experience for us, so we appreciate comments like yours that are borne from experience.
Using to lower of a gauge of wire why it’s kicking off the inverter. For 3000 watts I wouldn’t use anything less then #2 wire
@@MangoKashInThePhilippinesThank you so much for your input. The inverter we are currently using for this setup is only 2000W. Sira na kasi yung 3000W namin. What would you suggest na proper wire gauge pag 2000W?
Are you going to do more van camping in places near Tagaytay?
Yes po, since andito lang kami most of the time, marami kaming balak puntahang campsites around Tagaytay.