Crowdsource camper design for Cybertruck

[Newton]

My neighborhood's hill has become one of the last battlegrounds. On one hand, I'm glad it didn't get into the towns. On the other, it's nerve wracking to wait for it to be over.

The weather has calmed and the firestorm abated over the weekend, and the storms that threatened dropped more rain than lightning, and the winds spun around the mountains and pushed the fire into itself. But the last two days the flow was more 'normal' and started pushing the fire towards my hill again so...

But no houses listed as burned in my street. Looks like they saved far more than were lost.

-Crissa

Gotta love CA, glad to hear your safe, At least there hasnt been a big earthquake in a long time. But with 2020 and all who knows, lol. Over here in the east bay(livermore) it's been so ridiculously smokey. Finally able to see some stars and breathe some fresh air tonight. I hope CT has the hepa filter option

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[lam@cocf]

A 100ah 12v battery is 12v*100a=1.2kwh (@1a draw... less at high amperage draws).

300w solar is 300w only at peak, you get less than that most of the day. So that would say, fill a 100ah battery on an average day. But you want to have more storage than that for the good days or days you use less.

I don't know what I'm adding here, just thinking out loud. I'm charging a laptop, two ipads, two phones, and other battery packs with 140 watts of solar on a single 100ah battery and the battery is barely getting used.

Using the truck's battery saves weight and bulk, and has the potential to turn daylight hours into miles.

-Crissa

If I was just charging a few devices I'd charge off the truck and not worry about it but if I'm honest I spend way too much time on the internet so . . . .

The reading I've done shows that each set up can be very different. Recommendation is to calculate the actual usage for your set up and have a three day battery bank. That number should be based on a real snapshot of your usage with the expectation that there will be cloudy days, etc..

I've seen the Dometic line up and really like the refrigerated drawers. If room allows I'd like two, one set to fridge temp and one to a freezer temp.
I'd like an induction plate for cooking. Easy clean and storage with efficient energy usage.

 

[Crissa]

I don't know why more RVs don't have solar. It's free power and they're not doing anything with that roof anyhow.

-Crissa

 

[lam@cocf]

In another thread someone said something that got me wondering. Install a Wall on the trailer? Input from solar on the trailer roof | interior side - plugs/wiring | exterior side - connectors for truck charging. No 'compatibility' issues. Not the cheapest way but maybe the simplest?

Or has someone already explained why this won't work?

 

[Crissa]

Install a Wall on the trailer?

Well, the wait list is probably the biggest hurdle.

-Crissa

 

[lam@cocf]

Well, the wait list is probably the biggest hurdle.

-Crissa

Powerwalls are wait listed? I had no idea. But if the batteries are going to make a serious leap in technology then buying now isn't the best idea anyway.

 

[Newton]

Powerwalls seem overpriced, especially for a non grid application. if you really want lithium, there are 12 and 24v lithium suppliers on alibaba for about 300$ per 100 amp hours... now that i look at prices the powerwall isnt that overpriced.

Im not good with the electrical stuff but I think the powerwall amounts to the same energy as about 1000 amp hours of 12v batteries,so like 10 deep cycle's you can get from walmart for 150$ each - $1500 but over twice the weight @ about 600lbs vs powerwalls 250lbs.

I dont know if the powerwall has a direct 120v/240 plug into it for the tesla charger. plus I dont think u can charge while moving.

 

[Crissa]

Powerwalls aren't about weight to capacity, either, so there's that.

But it would be a neat option to get.

-Crissa

 

[Newton]

Powerwalls aren't about weight to capacity, either, so there's that.

But it would be a neat option to get.

-Crissa

I know, but I brought it up because people are talking about using them in trailers, and i dont see a reason to pick a powerwall for a trailer battery storage rather than a substantially cheaper lead acid system. Other than weight savings.

 

[Crissa]

I know, but I brought it up because people are talking about using them in trailers, and i dont see a reason to pick a powerwall for a trailer battery storage rather than a substantially cheaper lead acid system. Other than weight savings.

Lots of weight.

And my point was a Powerwall wasn't light, by lithium battery standards.

-Crissa

 

[ldjessee]

Considering the slow charge and probably slow discharge rate of a 'house' battery for an RV, even an old Nissan Leaf battery pack would be fine (does not have cooling and probably do not need it for RV use). 30kWh is probably way too much, but you could split it in 1/3rds and sell the other 2/3rds to other RV owners...
And even if it has degraded so that it is only 80% capacity, still more than enough to run an RV for several days without any charging...

 

[lam@cocf]

I know, but I brought it up because people are talking about using them in trailers, and i dont see a reason to pick a powerwall for a trailer battery storage rather than a substantially cheaper lead acid system. Other than weight savings.

I just thought of it for system compatibility to plug into the truck. Like if you're boon-docking for an extended period and don't want to go find a charging station. It seemed like (assuming you have the $$$$) an easy way to insure against problems or voiding any warranty.

 

[slee44]

Good idea...

I’d love to have the CT has backseat door to get into the truck bed w/o going out because I would use the back seat as bed for me and my wife, and I would use the rear truck bed as my office so that I could keep on working while I travel around the states. And it would be nice if the CT has equipped with pre-mounted base for a satellite starlink antenna for the internet. And I am dreaming of the bed would be easily converted to an office that needs some 120v outlets for laptops and refrigerator, small removal table, etc… The reason I’d love the CT have camper design model is that I wouldn’t need to purchase a nucamp 320 style trailer that makes easy to drive and camping very easily and saving a lot of money not buying a mini trailer.

 

[CyberMoose]

I had some similar ideas as well. I probably wouldn't use the bed as an office myself just because when I am on my roadtrips or using it instead of a hotel, I plan to put a good size mattress in the back, a camping fridge/cooler that I can plug in when I have things to cool, and the Ltracks will make it easy for me to contruct a little shelf across from me for my alarm clock and a bottle of water. I'm also hoping that we can turn the bed lights on an off with the App so I don't have to move to the front. If I need to use my laptop for anything, i'll probably just use it on my lap with an external fan/mat while sitting in the front passenger seat, or since i'll be away from home, stop at a coffee shop and do my work there.

I wouldn't really need the passthrough to do this but the passthrough would give me two things that I really want. The first being a night sky to look up at; I love camping far away from cities where I can see all the stars and northern lights when I go up that way. The second thing is stealth camping; I do a lot of traveling for work and I will just use the cybertruck instead, I don't want to pull into a walmart or casino parking lot for the night and have to get out of the truck, move to the back, open the cover, get in and then close tailgate and cover. I'm sure people would understand but it would look weird just the same.

I'm sure after Cybertruck has finished all the preorders, It'll be pretty normal to see Cybertrucks in places you would normally see RV's and Camper trailers park for the night. Going to need some window shades for sure because it's likely that people will want to check out the new Cybertruck and peer in through the windows.

 

[larryboy31]

I've seen people make videos where they slept overnight in a Tesla with the AC on and i think they lost around 10-15% battery. obviously this will depend on how insulated the steel is, whether you are cooling down everything or just the cab, the temerature you want and outside. Overall it seems pretty efficient for cooling, and with such a big battery, you'll use a smaller percent.

One thing I would love to see as an option is camper mode select climate control. If i'm sleeping in the vault without any pass-through open, I wouldn't want to be wasting energy to keep the cab cool. Although that might be difficult, personally i wouldn't want vents in the bed of my truck.

I use my truck as a truck and I am concerned about stuff that gets into the bed either accidentally or on purpose finding its way into the cab. Ashes, trash, firewood, rain, snow and other things might cause problems. I also think that if a person slept over night in the close d vault moisture could condense and it might rain inside! The vault cover does not seem to be insulated at all. It appears to be too thin to be both strong and insulated.