(I WROTE THIS BLOG LAST NIGHT BUT FORGOT TO HIT PUBLISH)
The next step in our RV power setup arrived today by FedEx. It was already delayed one day in Chicago, due to the bad weather yesterday. Well, it got here just in time today before the big storm hits again tomorrow!
Steve excitedly examined the package, which appeared to be in really good shape. FedEx treated this box well.
Soon he had it unpacked and let it warm up for the required 6 hours to get it to room temperature before messing around with charging it up any further. It already came pre-charged at 57%.
We downloaded the Bluetooth / Wi-Fi app to our phones and got all of the settings figured out for what we would be using it for. This is going to be a really nice addition to our camping experience.
This unit will take the place of a couple additional deep cycle batteries, as well as have inputs for solar or generator or DC charging from a vehicle's alternator while we drive. It also contains a built-in MPPT solar controller, a pure sine wave 2400 watt inverter, UPS unlimited power supply interruption, and surge protection. It operates from either Bluetooth or Wi-Fi to our phones, which makes it easier for us to monitor and control it.
We can use it as a separate power source out in the cargo trailer. It can be used to charge our e-bikes, or any other equipment we have out there. I can also use it for my sewing machine while sitting outside in the campsite.
But the best use is that it has a large 30 amp RV outlet on it. We can take our big motorhome cord and plug it into the Bluetti Power Station, and it's like doubling our on board battery capacity!
This is a LiFePO4 lithium iron phosphate battery as opposed to a lithium ion battery.
Not only can we use this for camping, but it can be a backup power source in our home if the power goes out. We can use it to run our home refrigerator, and our modem and router for the Wi-Fi. Plus a few lights and be able to recharge phones etc. With our 2 natural gas fireplaces not needing any electrical power to heat the home, we are all set in case of a power outage.
Back to the "Blue Eddie"... My talk-to-text wants to call it that instead of Bluetti, ha ha.
Main reason for picking this up was because we were going to get some additional batteries to utilize in the cargo trailer behind our motorhome. Last week Steve installed a 320 watt solar panel to the roof of our cargo trailer. This cargo trailer hauls our e-bikes, extra camping gear, and our lawn chairs.
He made the panels tiltable in either direction if need be. But really, on our last motorhome we had 500 watts of panels and never tilted them. They always charged up well before noon to 100% on our battery bank.
But the added benefit of making them tiltable is he was able to then work on the wiring to guide it down through inside to the cargo trailer.
He ordered this little junction box to guide this solar panel specific wire connectors down into the cargo trailer interior.
He took pictures of the process yesterday of drilling a hole right through the roof! Gasp! Then he added a rubber grommet into the hole. From there he cleaned the exterior surface very well with rubbing alcohol. Then he was able to stick down the gland junction box using very strong butyl tape. This is the same tape we used when we replaced the motorhome windows on the Safari. From there, he screwed it down tight and then he covered all the exterior edges with a good thick layer of Eternabond tape. I think he did a very good job!
Now that he guided the wires down to the inside, tomorrow we will go out in the garage and set up the "Blue Eddie" and see how well it works within the cargo trailer.
In Wisconsin, we have been blessed finally with some snowfall! It was really beautiful last night floating down like a snow globe. Earlier in the day it was very wet and icy and slushy. Towards evening the snowflakes turned big and fluffy. It was beautiful.
With the fresh coat of snow on the ground, these two absolute silly dogs had to get outside and romp and play. Who would believe that they are 1 and 11 years old. That is 7 and 77 years old in dog years????
By mid-afternoon, the snow let up and the sun actually peaked out with beautiful blue sky. Steve rushed out to get the snowblower going and get this wet heavy stuff out of the way. We are due for a big storm coming and then some very sub-zero temperatures. The stuff will freeze like a rock if you don't get it off the driveway now.
While he was doing that, I was laying out these quilt blocks in a pleasing pattern on our king size bed in the bedroom. This is going to be a queen size quilt with borders around the edges.
I settled into my she shed and started sewing the blocks together into long strips. Each one is labeled with a hunk of blue painters tape designating row and column to keep them in order and facing in the right directions.
Silly little Nicholas, our new little rescue puppy, was totally convinced that the sewing machine was going to EAT ME!!
Once I propped him up on my sewing chair, He settled down and let me continue sewing.
They just released the weather storm warnings for what's coming in Wisconsin. I know across the whole country, there's a bunch of crazy weather. Looks like we are maybe going to end up with another foot of snow. It's the blasting winds that are going to be a problem. They said the wind gusts are going to be like an EF 2 tornado. It will be blizzard conditions!!
We are just going to stay home and hunker down. Everything is stocked up in the cabinets in the fridge so we will be just fine.
With wind gusts of 50 mph and about a foot or so of snow, we are kinda in the middle of a messy blizzard. Going to stay in today and not even bother shoveling or snowblowing. Why? It will just blow back again!
Here are some pics I snapped a few minutes ago....
This snow is piled up a foot or two deep on the deck, right up to the patio doors.
The winds are whipping around the motorhome where the ground underneath is almost swept bare,
but the drifts are building in the driveway and front yard.
They are about 3-4 feet deep by all guess. I ain't going out there to measure them!!!!
The plow just went through on the road in the background,
but with this wind the drifts in the yard will just keep getting bigger and bigger
Good thing it's Sunday and we don't have to wade through these banks to get to the mailbox???
I don't think Ducky Dog is too thrilled about going out in the storm either....
We still have power yet, though lots of folks around us are already out. I have run extra buckets of water to hold onto, just in case. If the power goes out, of course our well pump doesn't pump water out of the faucets. In a real pinch, we could fire up the generator in the motorhome and run a cord into the house.
But for now, we are fine. We have the catalytic heater here on the main floor that doesn't require any power to operate, just LP gas. (Steve moved it in from the motorhome for the winter to use in the house as supplementary heat) The big furnace downstairs needs power, but we don't really need it if the power goes out. We have the fireplace too, but with such gusting winds, we don't want anything blasting down the chimney and blowing sparks into the room.
Just heard on tv that the metrodome in the Minnapolis collapsed under the weight of the snow in this storm. Oh gosh! We sure hope nobody was hurt--- they had already cancelled the game because the opposing team could not even fly into Minneapolis airports.
We are gonna stay in, stay warm, and forget about going anywhere. The Packer game will be on tv, if the power stays on. Otherwise I suppose we could trudge out to the motorhome to watch the game and fire up the generator to watch it out there!!! From your Diehard Packer Fans in a Wisconsin Blizzard-----
Yup, the storm blasting the midwest has made it’s huge arrival and this is the result….
This snow is very wet and heavy and clings to everything….
I took this one through the patio doors…. the rest of the pics I opened a door, clicked the camera, and shut the door… QUICK!
The blue spruces up by the house seem ok, but we lost a few trees down along our river from the weight of the clinging snow
This is out the side door aiming towards our road…. of course you can not see the road beyond those pine trees, because it was buried under 2 feet or more of drifts!
Even the tall cedar arborvitaes in front of the house which are pretty protected became overladen with snows and hanging way down. Even when we knocked the snow off, they do not spring back up again. Hope they aren’t ruined???
It was blasting so bad, the birds abandoned the feeder and went to hide. You can not even see the river beyond the trees in this pic, visibility was almost nil.
All of these pics were taken earlier in the day on Wednesday…. since that time, we got a lot more snow and blowing too.
The winds are blowing horrendously and now the temps dropped… we are below zero this morning, and not to get above 10 degrees all day. The wind chills are wayyyyy below zero too. ACK Where is summer?
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