How to thrive on a non 240v site!
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Hi [Deleted User User]
The unit we have made is on a small trailer so it can be moved around the site easily. It does contain a 200ah battery which is also charged by the solar panel as well as the caravan or motorhome if plugged in. The units battery powers a led light and a 600w inverter to convert 12v DC to 240v AC (but only providing about 5amps max) for charging things like tooth brushes, phones, laptops etc (this is just so people can sse what is possible).
A basic system for a van would be a fold out 80w panel and a regulator such as this on ebay you can carry it in the outfit and fold out and connect to your battery compartment when on site.
See more at http://newtongrove.co.uk/how-to-thrive-without-a-240v-ehu/ some better pictures of it at bottom of page
Regards John1 -
That's the point John - being able to show what is possible. I would agree that a 'basic' system for a van would be 80watt but if they want to be off EHU almost permanently, I would be recommending starting at 120w. You want to write to the CMHC and tell them about your setup. You must be the first in the country to offer such a service- it's worth the club taking notice but of course- you're non EHU aren't you - if you have as much luck as I did don't hold your breath!! 😂😂😂😂😂
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On Merve's thread recommending his wonderful Lake Dist. site, we got off-topic and I promoted a rant about the CMC doing remarkably little to publicise information about all things solar. While I was rightly reminded there's a lot of it on sale, so the information's there, I still felt that you have to want to look in the first place, and know where to look to learn more. I reckon that while this post specifically wonders about connecting the Newton Grove unit marries up to one's own van/MH, I still feel this post helps reinforce my point. We have to do some digging, and that's enough to discourage the faint hearted. Not like those here!
Good luck with the research, [Deleted User User] :-)1 -
You're right, Merve, in both respects, it is more luxurious, and yes there is no sound like pattering rain on the roof as you snuggle down... whether in a van or a decent tent! In the past we've had concerned caravanners asking if we were OK after the storm, as they'd been tossed and battered all night, with a torn and bent awning, and in some cases water had forced its way into their vans, while we sat snug and dry in our tent, and the ground didn't rock!
Our van has none of the dials, gauges, thermostats, microwaves, sound systems, etc which most modern vans seem to have. In some ways, it's the nearest thing to a tent we could find which has comfortable beds off the ground, an inside loo, and neither needs pitching, nor folding away wet while the rain batters you as you're packing, to later re-pitch soggy tent material. And yes, it does have basic electrics, so we survived in freezing temperatures with our small heater way better than the tent would have allowed. We're thoroughly converted!0 -
Wondering whether it's better to ask for people's tips on making caravanning greener on this thread, which seems to be thriving again, or to start a new one, as it's really a new topic.
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Well Hedge, I think it's one of the same thing. Being off grid is a greener way of doing things.I remember when I was starting off on this project, 50% was the fact that it was a greener way of doing things and 50% of it was I could caravan so much cheaper- I've been proved right on both counts. All ideas are very welcome on here but if you think a new thread will help, go for it. 'How to thrive on a non 240v site' pretty much involves anything that makes life better for the non EHUer. Green issues included. I can virtually guarantee that opinions will be free flowing!
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I have to say John that your website and the information you have provided is superb. What an effort! There is so much information there, You deserve the thanks of the caravanning community for your foresight and tenacity for bringing the opportunity of offgrid experience and prospects to those who would look at it. You also deserve great success with your site. Well done- excellent. You even have the link to the PDF for the Red Guide info. You have done more for the potential non EHUer than the club has- and by a long way- DDs comment in his last paragraph say it all. If only there were more like you......
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Merve
I agree the bigger the better!
We did have a guest who used it last year and asked if he could send in an image and a description to the Caravan Club magazine I said great go ahead (better than if I sent it in!)
Not been published but he got this reply -"Thank you for your email to The Magazine Department of The Caravan Club.
I will forward it to the Editor for consideration in the magazine.
As you can imagine, we are offered far more material than we can possibly use. However, we would like to keep your photo on file with a view to publication at some future date but I'm afraid we cannot make any promises.
Once again thank you for taking the time to write to us."
Not holding my breath either1 -
Just back from holiday. Some figures what they are worth
8 nights @ £7 per night non-ehu
5 nights@ £14 ehu
5 nights Welsh national Rally £70 (I think)
Solar panel kept everything topped up off ehu
Off ehu We used approximately 1kg of gas per day safefill ran out halfway through ehu stay . Refilled at a cost of £9. Biggest saving however was not the non ehu but because we stayed local we did a grand total of 748 miles a lot less than going to France or Germany.
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You couldn't put a 13 in the locker though Boff - I have used them before the appearance of Safefill. I took 2 (or were they 19s??) to Scotland and thank goodness I did- it was at Christmas time and the temperature never got above freezing for 10 days and -15 at night!
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Actually a 13 will fit in my gas locker. The blurb says 2 x 11kg. I do no people who use 19kg bottles less so now than in the past because of safefill. I would never use one because they are too heavy for me to carry.
Friends of ours had a custom made Vanmaster, which had a rear wet room for their disabled daughter. They were told by VM (not the current owners of VM btw) to put 2 13kg Calor's in the front to counter balance the rear weight.
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Yes, it would have been 19s then. I know I had to stand them outside on the ground so the outlet of the cylinder was below the bulkhead regulator so no oils or other detris could enter the regulator and destroy it. I don't like having gas tanks outside the van. I remember them being very heavy. Never again thank goodness!!
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You never stop learning do you? By watching servicing videos on caravans on YouTube, (very good for self maintenance) I discovered that the tv ariel can be turned off! The red light always shone in the overhead locker and I hadn't realised there was an on/off switch as it was not visible. According to the video maker, the ariel can use quite a bit of power so, that's another way of saving power. We are in Wales at the moment and weather isn't great. No bright sunshine but the panel is working and the batteries are holding up well.
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Just to finish this off. We did a further off ehu at a rally last weekend. Yesterday refilled the safefill cost me £8.03.
So that is a total of 15 nights off ehu and 5 on so total cost of gas used £17.03. The included extensive use of the Weber Q including forgetting to switch it off once. So an extra £1.15 ish per day for gas assuming no use while on ehu.
Put it another way if the CL off grid was £7 per night, and with £14 per night that is £6 per night saved or £90 saved. It's not all a bed of roses, I did have to use a pan to heat the milk for my wife's coffee using a pan rather than the microwave and err actually that's it.
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Similar gas usage to me. Just done 5 weeks without plugging in and gas consumption worked out at about £1 per day. We actually did 6 weeks but for the first 5 days we did have Ehu as it was included but the battery charger was off as the SP looked after the batteries.
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It's great to see Boff and others reporting back to the thread on real life savings. As reported earlier, we are in Wales at the moment enjoying off grid at its best. The rain has been falling freely but never the less, the SP has done what it should- kept us in power. After this fortnight I will dig out all the records of my years adventures and post the costs to the thread. Thanks guys.
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Hi all Thriving Non EHUers
Kevlon a while back offered a spreadsheet of Non EHU CL sites. I thought this was a great idea as you are not able to search the CAMC website CLs to show results for sites that don’t offer EHU
So after getting in touch with him he agreed to allow ne to update the existing data and tweaking it a little with a view to make it available online.
I have only just published a PDF view of it on our website together with a sharable link to view the Non EHU CL sheet in google docs (will some brief instructions for anyone who needs it) see the page here
Or direct to sheet here (if link works in this post forum)
As it is new and not tried and tested much if you come across an issue or would like us to edit/add an entry please leave a comment on the sheet page or email me here.
Keep Thriving - John - Newton Grove CL2 -
Great news John. I had noticed how awful the search facility was on the club website- you ask for no facilities and you get everything from EHU to washroom and showers!! The spreadsheet will have to be kept up to date on a monthly basis as and when closures or (hopefully) new ones come on line. Great idea and it's something that the club should be doing- yet more evidence that they don't have non EHU in their priorities. Only the direct to sheet link is readable
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For anyone who may not be convinced with our clubs lack of support for thriving on non EHU or indeed the massive benefits from using Safefill and other refillable gas bottles, just scroll up to the top of this page and click on "Advice and Training". Now look for anything connected with Solar Panels, Refillable Gas Bottles or indeed power inverters. What have you found? Nothing, zero, zilch, nought.
Ive had a thought! What if all of the positive contributors to this forum were to vote for their favourite CL of the year. I would like to bet that Newton Grove would get their vote. What John has done to encourage non believers into witnessing for themselves what is easily possible should be applauded by one and all, not least our club. If Johns fabulous CL were to win then surely they would have to take heed of what we are attempting to do. That is simply to enlighten others that there is an alternative to the source of power that our club is hell bent on promoting much to the detriment of our planet.
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Merve I have now found an opensource pdf viewer plugin that is free for the website and will allow you follow the links but it opens in the viewer window (so have to use browser back button to go back!) can also be printed or downloaded.
I hope to get time to keep it up todate on a monthly basis.
Something like this would not be required if the club allowed you to search for Non EHU sites!0 -
Good work John. Thank you so much. We are all in your debt.
Kevlon, I fully appreciate and agree with what you are saying. I don't think it's a secret that you are one of the people who found the non EHU threads on this website and decided to do what others had found was perfectly possible. The problem we have as far as I see it is this. Firstly, we have no help from the club and I think, after all the evidence, help will not be forthcoming. Yes, there are non EHU pitches etc on club sites and that is a good thing so at least there is some sort of recognition.
Secondly, although there are a goodly number of non EHUers (I am surrounded by them right now) and the number is growing all the time, the actual amount of those using and posting to the threads is infinitesimally small- what? 10, - 15 at the most? And against a membership of over a million? To back my claim up, since starting down the non EHU road, although I have met dozens of people who have discovered the same as I have, not one posts to the website- 99% of them either don't know it exists or if they do, never use it. I always try to encourage them to post their experiences as it's easy to ignore one or two, it's not so easy to ignore many.
Then we have the trolls! Who come on and not being interested in it themselves, take great pleasure in poking fun or being plain abusive about something they know nothing about as far as experience is concerned. I am not interested in trailer tents for example- can you find any posts in that section from me? Let alone posts taking the pee or being abusive? No. Why would I? I can only come to the conclusion that we as a group and me in particular as one of the main proponents of non EHU IS pressing a button somewhere, - are we making them feel uneasy? but of course, that will be utterly denied by those who prefer to try to cause problems rather than concentrate on subjects they are involved in or have an interest in. Ignoring them is the way to deal with them. So, we have to continue to communicate our message, not to convert or to 'save' the world as has been said, but to allow people like you to have a different approach to their caravanning. You , I think, would be one of the first to admit that it has had a massive change on how you caravan now, to what the 'status quo' had you doing? We know that there are folk out there who find the non EHU threads annoying but there are many more who find them educational, interesting and money saving. So yes, any ideas are most welcome.
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