Gas or no gas

[MCB6148]

Hi I have owned a Fiat Ducato dethleffs for a year, never motorhomed before, it has a gas oven, grill and 4 ring hob the thing is we don't like gas so are planning on removing the unit that houses it , the fridge has been removed and replaced with a cooler by previous owner and looks a bit rough, we plan on replacing the unit and fitting a under counter fridge freezer, using an induction ring that can be put away and a halogen oven allso removing gas boiler and replacing it with an electric shower , so saving weight, no gas inside home , we have a good sized genarator and two good solor panels, what do you think .

 

[Simon Meadwell]

Generators are frowned upon on here.

 

[Carolyn and Kev]

Welcome to the forum

Regards Carolyn

 

[meanders]

You would need a significant sized lithium battery installation together with a large inverter unless you only ever intend to be on sites with electric hookup. Can be done and there are plenty of lithium and inverter threads on here. A 'Silent' generator such as the Honda's still create more noise than some people find acceptable, so it's not just on here they are frowned upon. Some sites do not allow their use at all, and many rallies restrict the time and duration they can be run for. Almost any none Honda will be fair too noisy for most other campers who are away for peace and quiet.

 

[Madcaravanner]

Are you planning on touring in winter and what battery bank are you using from what you have described if you don't have external power you will need a big Lithium set up

Generators are generally frowned upon on this side of the pond the American RV's do have them built it , but you will find lots of sites say no generators

you say you don't like gas that's your option but you need to work out what power you will be drawing and how much you have available - 16amp hook up is the most you ever get and if you tour Europe you could have as little as 6amp


Good luck I hope things work out

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[meanders]

Just thinking about it, an electric shower is typically 7kW. That's way more than a 16a hookup can supply as it's the order of 30a at 230v. Some sites only have 10a or even 6a hookup. On the latter you can't even use a domestic electric kettle or toaster.

If you ran the shower off an inverter, it would need to be rated at least 7kW which is a lot of power. If my maths is right you would be drawing about 600a from your battery bank which needs seriously large cabling.

The weight of batteries, inverter and cabling alone would I suspect exceed your available payload.

 

[MCB6148]

Hi I have 3 leisure batteries, two big solor panels and a generator and don't plan on using sites, so if I kept the gas for the shower and used the generator for the fridge freezer would that work or should I just go for a fridge without a freezer. The home will be in Spain for most of the time , thanks for the input.

 

[meanders]

You can run a compressor fridge freezer from an inverter. It also depends on what type your three batteries are. Still think you will likely need to upgrade to lithium.

 

[PaulW2]

Hi I have owned a Fiat Ducato dethleffs for a year, never motorhomed before, it has a gas oven, grill and 4 ring hob the thing is we don't like gas so are planning on removing the unit that houses it , the fridge has been removed and replaced with a cooler by previous owner and looks a bit rough, we plan on replacing the unit and fitting a under counter fridge freezer, using an induction ring that can be put away and a halogen oven allso removing gas boiler and replacing it with an electric shower , so saving weight, no gas inside home , we have a good sized genarator and two good solor panels, what do you think .

Have you thought about having a diesel heater instead of a gas one? That way you could keep your plumbing and shower setup and also have habitation heating.

 

[MCB6148]

Hi I have a diesel heater so it is just the fridge to think about, won't the generator run the fridge freezer.

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[PaulW2]

Hi I have a diesel heater so it is just the fridge to think about, won't the generator run the fridge freezer.

No, wouldn't suggest that. You can have a 12v compressor fridge (many vans do) which will run off your habitation battery.

 

[meanders]

It means you will have to run the genny continuously to keep the fridge cold. PaulW2 is giving good advice.

 

[MCB6148]

Hi this is all good advice, so fridge or fridge freezer and wouldn't I have to charge the batteries all the time .

 

[PaulW2]

With your 2 solar panels and three leisure batteries you should be good for quite a while, and just drive or hook up to mains when needed.

 

[MCB6148]

In my van I have hook up and a 240v plug and cable wired into the hook up system, wasn't sure how this worked until I got a full Hab check.

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[MisterB]

As you haven't yet told anyone what type or size of batteries, everyone is trying to advise you on what they think you have, it would be easier if people knew. Also do you have a budget to spend, again so people know what to advise you on.

There are some diesel combi type heaters that will also heat hot water, so need for the electric shower, which as has been pointed out, will take a fair whack out of your batteries.

Also if you're going to be continually driving every couple of days, then a decent B2B is going to be worth the expense.

How you use your van will often dictate what you need to purchase/install. If you go to the shops every day and plan meals, eat fresh, you might not even need a fridge, a cool box might suffice ..... So it's a bit like you asking how long is this piece of string that you're holding ....

I suppose in short, there are no simple answers, just lots Funsters trying to provide you with one or two of them

 

[peterc10]

In my van I have hook up and a 240v plug and cable wired into the hook up system, wasn't sure how this worked until I got a full Hab check.

I am afraid that you have now run out of your 5 free posts. In order to post again you will need to subscribe. Most of us think that the £20 per year is the best investment we make for our motorhome.

 

[chrisjones69]

Hi I have owned a Fiat Ducato dethleffs for a year, never motorhomed before, it has a gas oven, grill and 4 ring hob the thing is we don't like gas so are planning on removing the unit that houses it , the fridge has been removed and replaced with a cooler by previous owner and looks a bit rough, we plan on replacing the unit and fitting a under counter fridge freezer, using an induction ring that can be put away and a halogen oven allso removing gas boiler and replacing it with an electric shower , so saving weight, no gas inside home , we have a good sized genarator and two good solor panels, what do you think .

Firstly what is so wrong with gas? If you are using a generator it uses petrol, just as dangerous as gas. Using electricity off grid will be very difficult, I really don't see the point. But up to you.

 

[Trackman]

I'd sooner gas than petrol in my van, so no generator unless a heavy & expensive diesel one.

 

[steve69]

Generators are frowned upon on here.

They're frowned upon in quite a lot of places too.
As asked above. What is wrong with gas?

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[elwyn horton]

We hate gas too, but…
We have a Trauma combi E, the gas bottle has to be turned on to get the thing working at installation stage. But after that I have only had to open the gas valve a couple of time in 6 years. The boiler provides 10l of really hot water, using electric only, so plenty for a couple of showers.
We also use air fryer, and microwave for cooking.
For alfresco we use an electric barbecue and a single induction hob.
French sites often have 6 amps, so we have a Swiss Plus toaster and kettle.
The Microwave works on 6 amp, but only on low or defrost, just takes a lot longer, but we can still cook everything, the boss says food tastes better cooked slowly anyway.

 

[Jagorover]

My 12v dometic fridge freezer (60 litre) will seriously suck the life out of my new lead acid batteries 2 x 115ah. We have 240w solar ( using 3 panels total) and with good sun we can go 3 nights, that's all. Luckily we have a generator under the van for top up but running that for an hour won't really do much to charge up . I think you will regret losing the gas.

 

[meanders]

Not having a pop at the OP, but do need to point out that as said by others petrol is more volatile than gas and causes more deaths. Also, electricity, even at 12v is hardly risk free. There are over 100,000 vehicle fires every year in the UK with the biggest cause being electrical issues followed by petrol. About 70 people die each year from domestic electrocutions, yet the number due to gas explosions is negligible. Gases do cause a number of deaths each year but that's where people are deliberately breathing them in for a high.

The big benefit of gas is that you can smell it. You can't smell electricity!

 

[Jon Stewart]

The big benefit of gas is that you can smell it. You can't smell electricity!

Whoever had the idea to add mercaptans to the gas was a genius.

In other news, St Greta can see carbon dioxide. Would it be possible to train her to see carbon monoxide as well?

 

[Bessy765]

We have for occasional use a Honda EU01 genny that runs off our LPG tank, used on rallies or remote places when no sunshine. Not aires, sites etc where it may cause annoyance. Even then the most charging rate without it screaming its head of is around 20/25 amps. So 2 x 100 lithium down to say 30% is going to take sometime to fully charge. So better for us is gas for the fridge, cooking and heating 2 x 30 litre tanks. If full sun and our 700 watts of solar has charged the batteries i will run the fridge on mains via the inverter. Not as efficient as direct 12 volt d.c. but near enough when the excess power would be not used. Everyone to their own.

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[Brains]

There is a reason why almost every motorhome and caravan in Europe runs heating and cooling on gas.
Unlike electricity, gas is cheap, efficient and most importantly, its available wherever you vehicle is, as you carry it with you.

As far as I'm aware there are no production 'Electricity only' vehicles (although the time can not be far off)
I admire you idea, but I think you are 5 years too early.

Having to set up and then fire up the genny every time you want a cup of tea will not win you any friends.