110 volt to 24 volt convertor??

[whistlingdeuce]

I may have a challenge for the steel soldier gods. I have a M146 that I turned into a camper. After going on several trips to various campgrounds around my area I have seen something that I want to add to mine. A lot of campers have a wire running to the plug of their trailers to allow the running lights to be turned on without the truck being hooked up. They run off of the camper batteries which are in turn charged with an on board charger from the AC power that they use from the campground for everything just like a normal house.

Instead of either adding an extra set of batteries on the trailer plus a battery charger or running off of the truck batteries with a charger does anyone know of a converter that goes from 110 volt AC to 24 volt DC that I can just splice in to the trailer plug and run my lights that way?? I did find this...

Waterproof Transformer Converts 120V/280V AC to 24 Volts DC - capcity to 6.3 Amps - MagnaLight

I am no electricain so when it comes to amps and ohms and all that I am totally lost. I cany imagine the few clearance liights and tail lights will pull that much and this should be ok but before I spend $150 on this I want a second opinion. Thanks for any and all info.

 

[jaxsof]

Look some more. 24vdc power supplies are not rare animals.
Amazon.com: 24vdc power supply

or a battery charger:
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&sugexp...f.,cf.osb&fp=5c1cfefc6cf9fd25&biw=995&bih=621

 

[natem]

If you want mil spec try something like this.............a field surgical light power supply.

 

[hunderliggur]

Lots of places to get 24V commercial power - boating supplies, solar/off grid suppliers, truck supplies, amateur radio supplies. I would recommend some kind of battery and a 24V battery charger. This will handle any surges better. You are looking for watts (and ohms). Ohms don't factor in to this question. Add up the wattage of all the bulbs then double it for a safety margin. On the other end of the scale, I am getting a slave cable and connector to hook up my M1009 to my house Solar PV as a generator to recharge the batteries when my load > sun supply

 

[jaxsof]

Lots of places to get 24V commercial power - boating supplies, solar/off grid suppliers, truck supplies, amateur radio supplies. I would recommend some kind of battery and a 24V battery charger. This will handle any surges better. You are looking for watts (and ohms). Ohms don't factor in to this question. Add up the wattage of all the bulbs then double it for a safety margin. On the other end of the scale, I am getting a slave cable and connector to hook up my M1009 to my house Solar PV as a generator to recharge the batteries when my load > sun supply

You mean Im not the only SS-er in MD to go solar?

 

[Recovry4x4]

Albeit not small, there is one in the back of about every shopvan.

 

[cbvet]

You can also use two 12 volt converters in series to get 24 volt. Just make sure the housings (if metal) are insulated from each other.
I've seen 12 volt units real cheap at flea markets & garage sales.

 

[Irv]

Go to Good Will or any second hand store and look for a battery charger for a wheel chair. Lots of them are 24v. I usually see them for $5 to $10 and they work fine. Irv

 

[Kohburn]

most likely you will want something to regulate the flow of power (like a charge controller) so that you don't cook off your batteries.

if you have trouble finding a properly sized battery charger then you can use a 24vdc power supply and then run it through a solar charge controller before hitting the batteries.

 

[Wildchild467]

What about the power supply that is in the back of the M109 Shop vans? i know that is a power supply, but would it also charge the batteries like you want it to? just a thought.