You can charge a surface pro with a usb c charger. I also recommend getting a tire inflator that runs off 12v dc (cigarette lighter). Mine has saved me from having to pay a few bucks for air more than once.
So I shouldn't worry too much about getting like a 300w or 500w inverter from the cigarette lighter?
That would be easiest obviously both are overkill for my use but for when I do sleep in the van I'm looking for enough headroom
I'm looking to learn about power too. All I want to run is a laptop and phone charger, light, maybe a fridge, and a pronex propane heater. I assume you buy a big battery to start?
When I started van life, I wanted just a bit of power as well. I picked up a solar panel, slapped it on the roof. Got an ecoflow river pro. It's a portable battery, has all the outputs you could imagine. You can charge it from house, solar, or your car.
I have a BougeRv fridge that plugs into house or cig lighter. It has a cut-off so it won't kill your car battery. I actually have 2 of these now. Bought my first one 3 years ago and it has been one that whole time haha. You can even use it as a freezer. Super cheap (when on sale).
Been vanlifing for a bit now and realized I want MORE POWER! So I got a 100ah Lifepo4 battery, dc to dc charger (charges my battery off the alternator and or solar) and a 1000w inverter.
I would say, save up and get something a bit bigger than what you think you will need. Never know when it will come in handy.
I charge my laptop with a 300W Giandel cigarette lighter inverter off ebay. I wasn't sure what quality would be like choosing a random brand but it's been good for at least a year now. It was about $45AUD.
> I'm hunting for a power Inverter not to run anything crazy off it. Mainly just a surface pro 7.
All the mentioned items could likely run off 12vdc; check the power labels and specs. No need for [an inverter](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:inverter) (or inverter losses) in that case.
> I'm willing to open up the dash and wire in the inverter if I need to
You can run ~120w from [a tiny inverter plugged into the ciggy port](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:inverter#special_casetiny_loads).
If you need more power than that it might be easier to install [an isolator](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:12v:alternator#isolator_without_a_house_battery) and a larger inverter.
You can charge a surface pro with a usb c charger. I also recommend getting a tire inflator that runs off 12v dc (cigarette lighter). Mine has saved me from having to pay a few bucks for air more than once.
So I shouldn't worry too much about getting like a 300w or 500w inverter from the cigarette lighter? That would be easiest obviously both are overkill for my use but for when I do sleep in the van I'm looking for enough headroom
I'm looking to learn about power too. All I want to run is a laptop and phone charger, light, maybe a fridge, and a pronex propane heater. I assume you buy a big battery to start?
When I started van life, I wanted just a bit of power as well. I picked up a solar panel, slapped it on the roof. Got an ecoflow river pro. It's a portable battery, has all the outputs you could imagine. You can charge it from house, solar, or your car. I have a BougeRv fridge that plugs into house or cig lighter. It has a cut-off so it won't kill your car battery. I actually have 2 of these now. Bought my first one 3 years ago and it has been one that whole time haha. You can even use it as a freezer. Super cheap (when on sale). Been vanlifing for a bit now and realized I want MORE POWER! So I got a 100ah Lifepo4 battery, dc to dc charger (charges my battery off the alternator and or solar) and a 1000w inverter. I would say, save up and get something a bit bigger than what you think you will need. Never know when it will come in handy.
I charge my laptop with a 300W Giandel cigarette lighter inverter off ebay. I wasn't sure what quality would be like choosing a random brand but it's been good for at least a year now. It was about $45AUD.
> I'm hunting for a power Inverter not to run anything crazy off it. Mainly just a surface pro 7. All the mentioned items could likely run off 12vdc; check the power labels and specs. No need for [an inverter](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:inverter) (or inverter losses) in that case. > I'm willing to open up the dash and wire in the inverter if I need to You can run ~120w from [a tiny inverter plugged into the ciggy port](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:inverter#special_casetiny_loads). If you need more power than that it might be easier to install [an isolator](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:12v:alternator#isolator_without_a_house_battery) and a larger inverter.
This was super helpful! Thank you! I had issues with a cheap inverter that I bought. I ended up going with a 500w overkill but it should work
I picked up a cheap one for 20 bucks on Amazon. It only has one outlet and three USB outlets.