Yeti 400 to power fridge? alternative to dual battery
- Thread starter e60ral
- Start date
e60ral
Banned
they probably didn't consider a 30lb package to PR in their price
try ordering from goalzero direct, or try REI or a major amazon seller
wait till after tomorrow though, they have new products that are supposed to launch so prices might drop
omaguz
New member
Thanks [MENTION=113833]e60ral[/MENTION], I'll keep an eye out on the new launching. Keep us posted on your decision!!!:thumb3:
adaml
New member
I'm sorry but can you explain this setup a little more? I don't understand the order in which this would be potentially wired.
e60ral
Banned
One option would be to plug the yeti into the factory 12v, the other option would be to plug the yeti into an always-on 12v that has an automatic disconnect that turns off the plug when the 4runners battery gets to a specific voltage.
I think I will probably plug try plugging it into the factory outlet so I'm not running the starting battery down so often
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
e60ral
Banned
One thing I am trying to figure out now is if the Yeti will charge at <14V
The charging input is listed as 14V-29V on the spec sheet, and I found a post at the bottom of this page that says it stops charging at 13.95V. That would mean that our 4Runners would not be able to charge the 4runner with the 12V plug and would mean this idea doesn't work.
I had a chat with their customer support but it wasn't helpful, they just linked to the 12V plug adapter you need and basically said "yes, this is for 12V cig port." That was through their live chat, I'm going to call when I get a chance.
EDIT:
Spoke to their customer support, he didn't sound certain but put me on hold to ask someone and said that yes the 13.8V outlet will charge the yeti 400. I don't know what to say about that one post on ExPo, I guess we will find out.
The charging input is listed as 14V-29V on the spec sheet, and I found a post at the bottom of this page that says it stops charging at 13.95V. That would mean that our 4Runners would not be able to charge the 4runner with the 12V plug and would mean this idea doesn't work.
I had a chat with their customer support but it wasn't helpful, they just linked to the 12V plug adapter you need and basically said "yes, this is for 12V cig port." That was through their live chat, I'm going to call when I get a chance.
EDIT:
Spoke to their customer support, he didn't sound certain but put me on hold to ask someone and said that yes the 13.8V outlet will charge the yeti 400. I don't know what to say about that one post on ExPo, I guess we will find out.
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e60ral
Banned
The Lithium 400 is live on their website
Goal Zero Yeti 400 Lithium Portable Power Station | | Goal Zero
Unfortunately they didn't drop the price for the regular Yeti 400.
Goal Zero Yeti 400 Lithium Portable Power Station | | Goal Zero
Unfortunately they didn't drop the price for the regular Yeti 400.
weeeee
New member
This was me. I can do another GB on the Renogy stuff if you guys are interested. It's way cheaper than the branded Goal Zero stuff.
For my setup, I have a single Odyssey Group 31M in place of the stock battery (no dual battery setup). Fully charged with a fridge it usually gets me 1-2 days without needing to start the truck. To prolong this, I bring along a Renogy 100W folding suitcase. On average I get about 4-6amps @ 14V of float, which is good enough to power my fridge for about 3-4 days in one place. I typically don't stay in one place too long so it's just added convenience on long trips.
Solar Panel Writeup is here:
I have a waterproof plug with 10AWG wiring on the cowl of my windshield. It performs double duty. I can plug my solar panel directly into it or my trickle charger at home.
Don't get me wrong- a Yeti can be useful in charging electronics, powering fridges, lights etc. but a bigger 31M battery can too. The only downside would be fully discharging your main house battery, but I have a battery monitor and a fridge low voltage cutoff, so some of those factors are mitigated. If need be, on a clear day I can probably recharge a fully discharged 31M to re-start the truck in a 8-9 hours.
The other factor is portability- I can't really move my battery as easily as a power pack, but I usually camp where the truck is.
e60ral
Banned
The main reason I'm not going deep cycle is because then you need to upgrade the alternator or plug in a maintenance charger to properly charge and neither are an option for me right now.
Adding another 33ah battery to the yeti is $50-$60, so capacity isn't an issue. Reading reports from fridge users I think 33ah is what I need, but if I ever needed more capacity I can throw 1 or 2 cheap 33ah in a cheap battery box and attach them via the Anderson plug to create a battery bank.
This setup is for day to day use, not just camping. If this was just for camping a portable solar panel would be a good solution, but I use my fridge every day.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
Adding another 33ah battery to the yeti is $50-$60, so capacity isn't an issue. Reading reports from fridge users I think 33ah is what I need, but if I ever needed more capacity I can throw 1 or 2 cheap 33ah in a cheap battery box and attach them via the Anderson plug to create a battery bank.
This setup is for day to day use, not just camping. If this was just for camping a portable solar panel would be a good solution, but I use my fridge every day.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
ridefast
New member
This was me. I can do another GB on the Renogy stuff if you guys are interested. It's way cheaper than the branded Goal Zero stuff.
For my setup, I have a single Odyssey Group 31M in place of the stock battery (no dual battery setup). Fully charged with a fridge it usually gets me 1-2 days without needing to start the truck. To prolong this, I bring along a Renogy 100W folding suitcase. On average I get about 4-6amps @ 14V of float, which is good enough to power my fridge for about 3-4 days in one place. I typically don't stay in one place too long so it's just added convenience on long trips.
Solar Panel Writeup is here:
I have a waterproof plug with 10AWG wiring on the cowl of my windshield. It performs double duty. I can plug my solar panel directly into it or my trickle charger at home.
Don't get me wrong- a Yeti can be useful in charging electronics, powering fridges, lights etc. but a bigger 31M battery can too. The only downside would be fully discharging your main house battery, but I have a battery monitor and a fridge low voltage cutoff, so some of those factors are mitigated. If need be, on a clear day I can probably recharge a fully discharged 31M to re-start the truck in a 8-9 hours.
The other factor is portability- I can't really move my battery as easily as a power pack, but I usually camp where the truck is.
This is the Hot Setup!!!!
Id be interested to see what a GB looks like on a folding 100w suitcase.
Ill have to build a standalone battery-solar-fridge system that I can move between rigs.
gundrted+t4r
New member
I have a dometic 3-way fridge in my truck camper. Granted its a larger then the on you have and runs 12v/120v/LP. I think my fridge is a 12-15A max draw on 12v. I have about 360w of solar panels with a BlueSky control and on a sunny CO day I can put out 16-19A.
Here is what you use case was:
You state ..... vehicle battery will power the fridge until it shuts off at 12V, then the Yeti 400 will power the battery .... This doesn't make any sense. Was it a typo and you'll be using the Yeti to power the fridge? If you were using the Yeti to recharge your main battery, it would un-trip your low voltage disconnect and redrain your battery.
My 2 cents
You are over complicating this and you said you don't want to spend a lot of money. This is spending a lot of money. Yeti, solar panels, solar panel controller, wiring, solar panel stand. Never mind the space all the stuff takes up.
My short answer is ... You are asking for a lot of trouble running your main battery down to 12v. buy a second battery mount, battery, starter relay/battery isolator and quality inverter. If you want solar, do something like weeee did.
First the Yeti line are very nice, but they are nothing more than a battery, inverter and display. They wrap that in a nice pretty package and charge you a LOT of money for it. Overall the Yeti is not designed to run any very large. The power outputs and amps are very low for what you are paying for.
A 100w solar panel will take a VERY long time to charge a 33ah battery. The average 100w panel only puts out 3-4amps and that all dependent on the controller you are using. Also that is assuming a perfect clear day and alignment to the sun. 3-4amps is no more than your average off the self automotive battery charger. That could easily take 8-10+ hours to charge a dead 33ah battery. If I remember correctly my BlueSky controller was over $250. Never hook a solar panel to anything without a controller in the middle. They are not designed to work that way. 3 to 4 100W panels would ensure you could at a reasonable speed and still have juice left over.
BTW ... Amp Hours are how long, in hours, it would take a 1A draw to complete drain the battery. 1A is half the power it takes to charge an iPhone. If your draw is 7A, the battery will last 33/7 = 4.7-ish hours.
Here is what you use case was:
You state ..... vehicle battery will power the fridge until it shuts off at 12V, then the Yeti 400 will power the battery .... This doesn't make any sense. Was it a typo and you'll be using the Yeti to power the fridge? If you were using the Yeti to recharge your main battery, it would un-trip your low voltage disconnect and redrain your battery.
My 2 cents
You are over complicating this and you said you don't want to spend a lot of money. This is spending a lot of money. Yeti, solar panels, solar panel controller, wiring, solar panel stand. Never mind the space all the stuff takes up.
My short answer is ... You are asking for a lot of trouble running your main battery down to 12v. buy a second battery mount, battery, starter relay/battery isolator and quality inverter. If you want solar, do something like weeee did.
First the Yeti line are very nice, but they are nothing more than a battery, inverter and display. They wrap that in a nice pretty package and charge you a LOT of money for it. Overall the Yeti is not designed to run any very large. The power outputs and amps are very low for what you are paying for.
A 100w solar panel will take a VERY long time to charge a 33ah battery. The average 100w panel only puts out 3-4amps and that all dependent on the controller you are using. Also that is assuming a perfect clear day and alignment to the sun. 3-4amps is no more than your average off the self automotive battery charger. That could easily take 8-10+ hours to charge a dead 33ah battery. If I remember correctly my BlueSky controller was over $250. Never hook a solar panel to anything without a controller in the middle. They are not designed to work that way. 3 to 4 100W panels would ensure you could at a reasonable speed and still have juice left over.
BTW ... Amp Hours are how long, in hours, it would take a 1A draw to complete drain the battery. 1A is half the power it takes to charge an iPhone. If your draw is 7A, the battery will last 33/7 = 4.7-ish hours.
e60ral
Banned
A second battery is not an option, it would cost about $500 more.
If I charge the yeti through the always on outlet with a low voltage disconnect it would have the capacity of the starting battery to whatever voltage I choose then the yeti beyond that as the yeti would be able to charge faster than the fridge can discharge it. I've basically ruled out this option at this point, adding capacity to the yeti seem like a better option if 33ah is not enough. I don't initially plan on getting solar simply because I can't use it daily. If I wanted to its cheap to add though since I wouldn't need a charge controller (on account of the yeti having one). I wouldn't use Goal Zero brand solar, there are much cheaper options.
____________
If someone can show me something better for the same price ($350), or double the capacity and have 66ah for about $410 I'm all ears.
So far all the suggestions are basically "if you spend $800+ it will be better"... I have no interest in spending that much money
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
If I charge the yeti through the always on outlet with a low voltage disconnect it would have the capacity of the starting battery to whatever voltage I choose then the yeti beyond that as the yeti would be able to charge faster than the fridge can discharge it. I've basically ruled out this option at this point, adding capacity to the yeti seem like a better option if 33ah is not enough. I don't initially plan on getting solar simply because I can't use it daily. If I wanted to its cheap to add though since I wouldn't need a charge controller (on account of the yeti having one). I wouldn't use Goal Zero brand solar, there are much cheaper options.
____________
If someone can show me something better for the same price ($350), or double the capacity and have 66ah for about $410 I'm all ears.
So far all the suggestions are basically "if you spend $800+ it will be better"... I have no interest in spending that much money
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
Last edited:
Dropzone
New member
$500 more for the dual battery set up than the $400 Yeti?
I guess I am seeing different prices... I figure I can install dual batteries for $400-450. I also already have a 160 amp alternator..
e60ral
Banned
2 batteries + alternator + isolator + wiring + mount for second battery... that's about $800 when i check it
if you can put that together cheaper you should do so and sell it as a kit
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e60ral
Banned
I wasn't sure the yeti was enough capacity, and even though it is expandable if I knew i probably would need to expand it right away I figured I should do something else
I ended up just going single 31m battery with a lithium jump pack for backup and onboard charger for battery maintenance and long-term parking. I bought a Duracell Ultra Platinum (East Penn/Deka) 31m battery for $200 after rebate from batteries plus.
I like the expandable capacity of the Yeti 400, but if you don't need that the Anker PowerHouse 400Wh lithium battery has been on sale recently for $330 so its another option if you catch it on sale
Adding my experience. I tried running what the OP originally planned, and it didn't work out for me. I only got one night of power for the fridge, at best, even when keeping the yeti plugged into the 12v while on the road. The 12v wouldn't serve enough power to keep up with the demand. Could just be my truck, but it was massively frustrating.
I've since installed a 31m battery in place of stock and ran an ARB wiring kit to a constant hot outlet in back. First journey with this setup coming shortly, so we'll see how it goes.
I've since installed a 31m battery in place of stock and ran an ARB wiring kit to a constant hot outlet in back. First journey with this setup coming shortly, so we'll see how it goes.
This was me. I can do another GB on the Renogy stuff if you guys are interested. It's way cheaper than the branded Goal Zero stuff.
For my setup, I have a single Odyssey Group 31M in place of the stock battery (no dual battery setup). Fully charged with a fridge it usually gets me 1-2 days without needing to start the truck. To prolong this, I bring along a Renogy 100W folding suitcase. On average I get about 4-6amps @ 14V of float, which is good enough to power my fridge for about 3-4 days in one place. I typically don't stay in one place too long so it's just added convenience on long trips.
Solar Panel Writeup is here:
I have a waterproof plug with 10AWG wiring on the cowl of my windshield. It performs double duty. I can plug my solar panel directly into it or my trickle charger at home.
Don't get me wrong- a Yeti can be useful in charging electronics, powering fridges, lights etc. but a bigger 31M battery can too. The only downside would be fully discharging your main house battery, but I have a battery monitor and a fridge low voltage cutoff, so some of those factors are mitigated. If need be, on a clear day I can probably recharge a fully discharged 31M to re-start the truck in a 8-9 hours.
The other factor is portability- I can't really move my battery as easily as a power pack, but I usually camp where the truck is.
So you can just hook those solar panels straight up to the deep cell battery and go that route? I'm installing a group 34 odyssey tomorrow and I like that route.
