Newbie/Oldie and a question

[Nemesis56]

Greetings.  Been lurking around for a couple of weeks.  Great site.  Very hepful.
I've been into camping for 30+ years now.  Started with a 1968 Plymouth that we'd sleep in the trunk.  Moved up to a cabin tent , and finally hit the big time.
Found an almost pristine 1982 Coleman Redwood (still had the palstic wrapping on the bunks and cushions) that was almost never used, for next to nothing. Very basic no refrigerator, Air Cond or furnace.  Basically a portable tent with a propane stove and and an ice cooler. Been inside a warehouse for I don't know how long.  Anyway having never had one before, my question is :  I have a 115-120 VAC shoreland hookup (I do own a boat, not sure of the terminology) with a 15 amp duplex outlet. It works great.  I do not have a 12 volt converter. Either it never came with one or it was removed.  I am a Union Electrician by trade, so I do understand electrical principles and concepts. What do I need to setup the low voltage side of this setup?  I'm figuring a deep cycle battery, a converter,
(saw the one y'all were talking about in the banner.  Very impressive) and a 12 volt receptacle.  Anything else I might be overlooking?  I know how they're wired and the principle behind them.  Just never dealt with them much before.   Thanks for looking and any light you might be able to shed (no pun intended) would be greatly appreciated.  I'm figuring I can make a decent setup for about $200.00

[rmojo]

I guess I don't know what you are looking for.  A convertor turns 110 ac into 12 v DC for the overhead lights.  Some of them also provide charging of a battery.  But if all you want is to use a battery then in most cases you just need to hook it up to the convertor.  Most of them will have a switch on them to switch from AC to DC. I hope that helps.  If not, please let us know what you are looking to do...ie rewire. If you have overhead lights on on 110 ac there is a convertor.

[tlhdoc]

What are you planning on running off of the 12 volt power?

[Nemesis56]

What are you planning on running off of the 12 volt power?

A couple of lites, a cell phone, maybe an oscilatting fan.  Nothing more than 10 amps.  There is no converter or battery.  Basically all I have is 110 AC.  The only lighting is a 110 table lamp plugged into the AC outlet.  It is wired for 2 12 volt lites, but they are not hooked up to anything power wise. If I apply 12 volts to the black and white wires where the converter should be located (big empty space), they come on.  I'm basically going to do a low voltage rewire.

[tlhdoc]

Then you should be set by replacing the converter, adding a battery, and a set of Coleman/Fleetwood battery wires.  Coleman/Fleetwood trailers should have a white plastic connector on the tongue to connect the battery to.  Stop by a Fleetwood folding trailer dealer and get a set of battery wires (black +, white -).  The positive wire has a self resetting circuit breaker on it.

[Nemesis56]

Well I got it all straightned out.  Bought a 20 Amp smart charger/converter power distribution panel, wired in 2 extra interior lites, 1 outside lite for the awning area, 2 12 volt receptacles, and a deep cycle 105 AH battery.  Absolutely fantastic! Ran everything inside black 3/8 raceway.  Looks like it came from the factory.  Could  not get a wiring harness for the battery anywhere so I made one up using 10ga stranded wiring, hearshrink, auto reset breaker, soldered lugs, No Lox and a knife type battery switch.  Got a Plastic battery tray and box at Pep Boys for $15.00.  Total project with the battery cost me $160.00  Ran all the lites, a cell phone, and an oscillitaing fan for 2.5 days with out using any shore power.  Still had plenty of battery left. Charged up about 4 hours and then automatically shut off.  I love it!  Thanks guys/gals for all your help and suggestions.

[dthurk]

Well I got it all straightned out.  Bought a 20 Amp smart charger/converter power distribution panel, wired in 2 extra interior lites, 1 outside lite for the awning area, 2 12 volt receptacles, and a deep cycle 105 AH battery.  Absolutely fantastic! Ran everything inside black 3/8 raceway.  Looks like it came from the factory.  Could  not get a wiring harness for the battery anywhere so I made one up using 10ga stranded wiring, hearshrink, auto reset breaker, soldered lugs, No Lox and a knife type battery switch.  Got a Plastic battery tray and box at Pep Boys for $15.00.  Total project with the battery cost me $160.00  Ran all the lites, a cell phone, and an oscillitaing fan for 2.5 days with out using any shore power.  Still had plenty of battery left. Charged up about 4 hours and then automatically shut off.  I love it!  Thanks guys/gals for all your help and suggestions.

Sounds like we should be asking YOU for help.

[Nemesis56]

Sounds like we should be asking YOU for help.

I'll be glad to help if I can.  At first my wife and kids were like..." Oh brother...Dad's got aother toy project going.  After using it this weekend, They're all like..."This is soo neat".  Planning out the project was probally the most time consuming.  Once I figured out what I would need material wise, It was a piece of cake.

[AustinBoston]

I suspect that you will soon want to charge from the tow vehicle while travelling.  A charge line needs to be fused/breakered at both ends because there is a source of power at both ends.  A short will just as easily draw power from either battery.

Austin