Thursday, April 01, 2010 at 9:40:00 AM - by Jeanne Roberts
Because the economy isn’t quite as horrid as 2008, when many families decided that “staycations” were the best option dwindling household budgets could provide, a few RV owners are making plans to take their vehicles back on the road this summer.
Traveling across the country by recreational vehicle is less expensive than renting motel or hotel rooms, or spending an entire week at a resort. It is, however, still costly, largely because of fuel prices, which fell in January – though never below last year’s low – but now seem to be rising again in preparation for summer travel plans.
Little can be done about fuel costs, but RV owners can lower travel costs, and their environmental footprint, but taking advantage of the literally hundreds of solar RV options on the market, like solar lights, air conditioning, hot water and even solar radios and televisions.
Speaking of lights, how about powering up your RV evenings with a string of solar LEDs? Weighing just 1.5 pounds, the lighting string clips to the RV awning, and contains an automatic timer, allowing the lights to run from dusk to dawn with no intervention needed.
You can also buy a solar security light that weighs five pounds and will, after charging for four hours, run for up to eight hours to provide 2X illumination around your home-away-from-home (ideal if you happen to overnight in the boonies). Installation is so easy a newbie with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers can get it up and running in five minutes.
For owners of older RVs, air conditioners now come in a solar-powered variety, meaning more cool for fewer fuel dollars, and a really tiny environmental footprint as well. Made by such companies as Airxcel of Wichita, Kansas, the solar-powered AC units are affordable and relatively easy to install.
If you have roof space left over, consider solar hot water heating, for another cost-reduction strategy. Because most of the bathing, washing and cleaning will be done once the RV is parked, solar hot water systems make an ideal RV addition, allowing you to heat the water all day and use it abundantly at night.
RV equipment manufacturers also offer solar-powered food refrigeration. The most revolutionary, in terms of performance versus wattage required, is the SunDanzer. At 8 watts, or 12 volts, this system will cool enough food for an average family, and one model – which hooks directly to solar panel – is used in third world countries for keeping medicines cool at very low cost. The only difference with the SunDanzer? It opens from the top, like a conventional freezer.
Lastly, for hardcore offroad enthusiasts, a solar cooker can be used to purify water from a standing pond or water source of questionable quality. Simply attach an inexpensive device, called a Water Purification Indicator, or WAPI, to determine when the water from the cooker is safe to drink. No more hours of boiling, or precious fuel burnt, and the solar cooker can also be used for food, outside the RV, to allow air conditioning or fans to maintain a livable temperature inside the vehicle.
To save even more energy, and reduce your carbon footprint, switch all bulbs to CFLs, use rechargeable batteries running off solar power for your hand-held electronics, flashlights and small appliances, buy local foods where possible, sort recyclables, and burn propane instead of natural gas where possible.
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