Wiring in Solar Generator To WFCO Power Center

[wsterling]

I have a Bluetti AC200P and plug the trailer into the AC outlet to top off the house battery and run appliances. I think I could use the charge in the Bluetti more efficiently by using the 12V output to charge the battery and run the 12v systems. Has anyone tried doing this? I found a thread on a DIY solar form that sounds like I just need to pick up the Bluetti aviation plug and wire it into the WFCO 12V fuse bus. I am not sure if there is anything else I need to worry about other than letting it run too long and overload the lead acid house battery.

[jkwilson]

That’s not going to be very efficient. Lead-acid charging is about 50% efficient. You’d effectively have twice the power available if you run equipment straight from the DC output and forget charging the onboard battery.

Using the AC output to charge the battery is even worse, since you still have the inherent charging inefficiency of the battery plus the inefficiencies of both the inverter and converter. You’d probably be doing well to hit 30% of the power from the Bluetti being stored in the onboard battery.

[wsterling]

That’s not going to be very efficient. Lead-acid charging is about 50% efficient. You’d effectively have twice the power available if you run equipment straight from the DC output and forget charging the onboard battery.

Using the AC output to charge the battery is even worse, since you still have the inherent charging inefficiency of the battery plus the inefficiencies of both the inverter and converter. You’d probably be doing well to hit 30% of the power from the Bluetti being stored in the onboard battery.

How would you run from the Bluetti and not charge the house battery? Switch the battery disconnect once at camp and turn on the Bluetti? The Bluetti has a 24V internal battery, and leaving its internal step-down convertor and screen on does add some parasitic losses. Probably not as much as charging the lead acid battery.

[jkwilson]

How would you run from the Bluetti and not charge the house battery? Switch the battery disconnect once at camp and turn on the Bluetti? The Bluetti has a 24V internal battery, and leaving its internal step-down convertor and screen on does add some parasitic losses. Probably not as much as charging the lead acid battery.

I’d probably look at a marine battery switch like a Perko. Have the connection for the Bluetti as one battery and the onboard battery as the other.

[Redapple63]

That’s not going to be very efficient. Lead-acid charging is about 50% efficient. You’d effectively have twice the power available if you run equipment straight from the DC output and forget charging the onboard battery.

Using the AC output to charge the battery is even worse, since you still have the inherent charging inefficiency of the battery plus the inefficiencies of both the inverter and converter. You’d probably be doing well to hit 30% of the power from the Bluetti being stored in the onboard battery.

I fully agree with this. Your best bet is to just use your Bluetti by running individual items inside your rig. Unless it is a big battery it’s not like to have enough to run stuff like your microwave. I have a 500 watt version and in just use it in the rig while boondocking.

Good Luck
Bill

[wsterling]

The unit I have is pretty big, it will provide up to 2000 watts continuously. I plug the RV directly into it and can run the microwave as long as I don’t have any other large draws going like the converter in its bulk stage.

[wsterling]

I wound up wiring in a battery switch, a quick disconnecting cable using XT60 connectors, and a Bluetti Aviation plug so I can now run the 12V circuits off the Bluetti or lead acid battery.

[huntindog]

How would you run from the Bluetti and not charge the house battery? Switch the battery disconnect once at camp and turn on the Bluetti? The Bluetti has a 24V internal battery, and leaving its internal step-down convertor and screen on does add some parasitic losses. Probably not as much as charging the lead acid battery.

Turn off the converters breaker.

[wsterling]

Turn off the converters breaker.

Definitely, I think the Bluetti has protection from a 2nd power source being on the line, but I still don't want to waste the energy on running the converter when I flip on the 120V output of the solar generator. I am also concerned about forgetting to turn the converter back on when I am using shore power. It's just another thing to remember, and I will inevitably forget about it from time to time. I'll probably put a label on the battery switch to remind me to flip it back and forth on state changes.

[jkwilson]

Definitely, I think the Bluetti has protection from a 2nd power source being on the line, but I still don't want to waste the energy on running the converter when I flip on the 120V output of the solar generator. I am also concerned about forgetting to turn the converter back on when I am using shore power. It's just another thing to remember, and I will inevitably forget about it from time to time. I'll probably put a label on the battery switch to remind me to flip it back and forth on state changes.

I think you’ll be surprised how in tune you are with power use and setup when your power doesn’t just magically come out of the wall. You think about all water, power and waste when you are off-grid, and that doesn’t stop when you have shore power again. Not a bad thing to be aware.