I have been a fan of solar power as long as I have been living on the road. One of the first projects I tackled when I first became nomadic way back in 2006 was adding 130W of solar to the back of my tiny Tab Clamshell. I think it was my abundance of sexy solar […]
RV Electrical Systems
Bus Projects: The Master Tech Marathon
2015 Note: After our awesome 2014 experience documented below, we returned to Master Tech RV in Summer 2015 for a new paint job, hydronics installation, generator swap out and other projects. This time, after a year of getting to know Tim better across the country, we’d be dropping our bus/RV off for 6-8 weeks while we […]
A Year On Lithium
Has it been a year already? When we bought our bus last summer it had no house battery bank or inverter installed – critical features of utmost importance for two Technomads who depend on ample electricity for both our work and social lives. We knew this was an area we needed to immediately address if […]
Project Dominoes – Refrigerator Replacement
There is an exhilarating yet exhausting game that every bus owner, RV owner, boat owner, and home owner will probably play at some point. Project Dominoes. In case you aren’t immediately familiar with the game, let me describe for you a recent relatively epic project dominoes tournament of ours. First, you start with a single […]
Boosted Electrons = Better Views
We’ve had a lot of requests for updates on our lithium battery system, but the truth is that it hasn’t been getting much of a workout. We’ve spent the past several months focusing on being near family, and we haven’t had any opportunity to tackle the solar panel project or to do any boondocking. Instead […]
Our Propane Free Goal
We are deep in the midst of a kitchen remodel this week, and we’ve been posting progress photos on our Facebook page as we go. We’ll do a post with better photos of the completed project later. But because the remodel has involved us permanently pulling our propane powered range / oven, we’ve been getting a […]
Living via Solar Power in an RV (Our Oliver Travel Trailer Install – 2008-2011)
2012 Update: This post was written based off our last RV – a 17′ Oliver Travel Trailer that was designed for being off grid. After 3 years of full time travel in the Oliver, in June 2011 we moved into a 35′ vintage bus to create something more versatile. We are in the process of […]
Propane Powered Generator – Honda EU2000i + Propane Conversion Kit
Though we normally rely on our 200 watt solar system for power, one of the essentials in our technomadic toolbox is our small Honda EU2000 generator that has been modified to run off of propane. [wp_campaign_3] We rely on this generator to top off our batteries when the solar is not able to keep up due […]
Tech Review: Mikegyver 12v MacBook Power Supplies
One particular frustration that has vexed me for over three years now is that there is no “official” way to power any MagSafe-equipped Apple laptops directly off of 12v power.
But there is an alternative…
Mike Lee of MikeGyver.com has made a business of taking genuine Apple MagSafe tips, and splicing them onto 12v compatible power supplies…
Power Efficiency
When we landed in South San Francisco a while back, we had the option at the RV Park we’re staying at to do a monthly rate which was inclusive, or a monthly contract which was $150 less but you paid your own electricity. We took the contract, figuring we had to be using way less […]