GoRV - Digital Magazine Issue #83 | Page 52

RV FEATURE
Did our real-world experience align with the theory ? Put it this way : over two long days , we blasted each of the four Sirocco fans on a combination of their highest and lowest settings continuously , without pausing to charge them , and each fan was still confidently spinning by the time we packed up . All in all , we were pretty happy .
But let ’ s extrapolate . After all , these fans are designed to be mounted inside a van which would have , at a minimum , a 100Ah battery on board . In this case , and assuming no other load on the battery , you ’ d achieve 833 hours of run time on the fan ’ s lowest setting , and 286 hours on its highest setting .
You can absolutely apply this formula to other appliances , such as your caravan ’ s TV , too . For example , let ’ s say your van ’ s TV draws 10A . Well , dividing 100Ah ( the van ’ s hypothetical battery capacity ) by 10A gives us 10 hours of run time .
We had these brackets specially 3D-printed .
This would be a useful exercise for all caravanners . If nothing else , it would get you thinking about the power draw of your appliances which , in turn , would get you thinking about your options for charging your batteries , and indeed the efficacy of your 12V system as a whole .
Just remember , it ’ s a theoretical exercise that in the real-world would be affected by a host of variables , including the age and condition of the battery , and its true state of charge .
That said , the Sirocco II fans did a great job at providing some reprieve from the brutal sun . No , they ’ re not designed for this type of portable use , but running them off 6.5Ah batteries was a surprisingly effective way to provide a host of people reprieve from the heat .
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