Quote: Originally posted by manemzjum on 19/8/2009
Hi first post new to caravaning just bought a second hand caravan planning our first trip to alton towers with kids 27th aug
My question is about the amp usage at the site
I am led to belive or assume that when i am hooked up at the campsite that this will charge my 12v battery inside the van that powers the lights ect.
Also that this will use 4-5 amps of my power now taking into account that most campsites have a 10amp hook up this dosent leave much left because the fridge will also be running off 240v at site aswell so how do i know how much that will be using by the looks of things if i was to use any other electrical device inside the van the fuse would blow
i have a laptop which charger is 1 amp in power so if my battery is charging and the fridge is on would turning on the tv put me over my limit
Is there a device which could be attached at home to the power cable to measure amp usage as i have the cable to run power from household mains socket
The thing to watch with a mains hook-up supply in a caravan are those appliances that use heating elements like kettles, water heaters, space heaters and even free standing heaters. Don't take the kettle from your kitchen as that could take all of your 10amps, buy a low wattage version. Each amp of supply gives you 230 watts so 10 amps equals 2300 watts. Every appliance has marked on it the max consumption on built in appliances in the caravan the instruction books will give you this information. Other appliances that you use in the caravan only have a modest consumption of electricity. Charging the battery will probably account for less than one amp.
David
Topic: Campsite amp usage
