Sprache wechseln:
Have you ever struggled with your vehicle’s electrical system? If so, you’re in for a treat today!
Anton Poplett, our man in South Africa, is back with us, and he’s diving into one of his favourite—and occasionally frustrating—topics: the auxiliary electrics in his Land Rover Defender.
Anton is the founder of 4x4outfar, an organisation dedicated to incredible humanitarian and conservation work in some of Botswana’s remotest regions. For him, having a dependable electrical system to keep all his equipment charged and running is essential.
Trust me, he’s faced more than his fair share of challenges over the years. His learning curve has been steep, but he’s narrowed down what works best for him.
Anton shares his hands-on experience and gives tips on how to establish what you actually need as opposed to what is nice-to-have.
Here are some of the tips and facts Anton refers to during our talk:
Remember your power draw in summer will differ from winter. In summer it’s possible the fridges will run for longer hours keeping temperature. In winter, you may use a diesel heater.
With my current setup in summer, I will average using 11% – 14% of my battery. In winter, I will use between 8% to 11%. It varies daily according to temperatures, sunrise, and sunset.
Anton’s current setup
- DCDC charger: Ctek 250SE (lithium) and Ctek Smartpass
- Inverter: Victron 500W inverter.
- Solar panel: 300Watt (plugs in around 16-18Amps depending on angle towards the sun)
- Battery: 305Ah lithium with BMS and bluetooth
- Charging ports: single Distribution box with USB, type c, cigarette light, Anderson plugs with breakers,
Calculating your power draw requirement
Add all of your devices you would like to use off the auxiliary battery. This includes laptop, lights, drones, Camera equipment, fridges/freezer, and so forth. Calculate as an average and when not driving.
Connecting points (like Anderson plugs)
ensure all connecting and joins our firm and cannot rattle loose or cause a disconnection. This will give you false readings.
Wiring
All wiring needs to be adequately dimensioned for usage. For example, the gauge for wiring from the Ctek to the auxiliary battery will of course be much thicker than wiring to charge a USB type C.
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