# Boat & Camper Setup, Trip to Big Lake, AZ w/ My Son!



## therobzilla (Jul 23, 2013)

This was the latest trip to our favorite area of AZ, Alpine/Big Lake, AZ. The daytime temperatures are amazing and the nighttime temps are down right cold. However 4 hours away in the Phoenix area it's 115* outside. For Arizona state lakes, these are some decent fish.

You can catch a glimpse of my camper/boat setup, I will try to get some others posted next time I get a chance. We had a blast!

Rob


----------



## Jim (Jul 23, 2013)

I love that setup, it has been something I have wanted to setup for along time. Im going to show my wife this post so she can see I am not the only one who wants/has this setup.


----------



## RiverBottomOutdoors (Jul 23, 2013)

Jealous of that setup. I hear the open road calling!


----------



## TNtroller (Jul 23, 2013)

very nice setup, don't think I would be home very much with a rig like that.


----------



## therobzilla (Jul 23, 2013)

Thanks guys, I do spend quite a bit of time on the road, I travel for a living as a Senior Sales Manager for a large national company, so it enjoys me to spend work time and play time together, there are quite a few times where I will work all week, and live in the camper and then play out of town in the boat. The company loves it, all they have to pay for is the food and fuel, instead of airfare, rental cars, meals out, entertainment and all the items that go with travel.

I love it because I get reimbursed for ALL MY FUEL, and food, and then I end up playing at my final destination. I would never be able to travel to some of the places I fish at some times....

You can't see it, but there are two monster 240 watt solar panels on the roof that take care of quite power.


Thanks again for everything this site has taught me, Jim great place, hope to be a regular poster here now.

Rob


----------



## Jim (Jul 23, 2013)

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=323362#p323362 said:


> therobzilla » 23 Jul 2013 01:30 pm[/url]"]Thanks guys, I do spend quite a bit of time on the road, I travel for a living as a Senior Sales Manager for a large national company, so it enjoys me to spend work time and play time together, there are quite a few times where I will work all week, and live in the camper and then play out of town in the boat. The company loves it, all they have to pay for is the food and fuel, instead of airfare, rental cars, meals out, entertainment and all the items that go with travel.
> 
> I love it because I get reimbursed for ALL MY FUEL, and food, and then I end up playing at my final destination. I would never be able to travel to some of the places I fish at some times....
> 
> ...



Awesome Rob! Just awesome man. :beer: Tell me more about the solar panels. Do they bank the energy into some batteries or is it.....use it while the sun is out and then use something else.


----------



## therobzilla (Jul 23, 2013)

Jim,

Hang on, I'm kinda of a geek when it comes to slide in campers and all things associated with them, counting the one I currently own, I have previously owned 4, this is my 5th, I have been through the truck camper thing to the greatest degree.

The solar panels are mounted on the roof of the camper, they have feet that attach the panels to the roof and are adjustable, as during different times of the year, the solar azimuth is different based on longitude and latitude, so in order for the panels to collect the most amount of energy from the sun they have to be adjustable. The panels always need to point due south. Ironically, there are some pretty killer apps available for most smart phones that grab the GPS coordinates and the elevation, and you set the phone up against the panel and it pretty much self adjusts itself, all you have to do is secure the elevation of the panel. It's pretty cool, and it doesn't need data for the app to work, it uses GPS from the phone. 

Anyhow, to answer your question, the panels work both ways, I have removed the built in generator in my camper and replaced it with four 6 volt golf cart/RV batteries, they are tall and very heavy, they are wired in series to create 12 volts. When you use the 6 volt battery, and wire them together to create 12 volts it creates a very large what's called AMP Hour capacity. Mine have a 480 AMP Hour capacity, in my camper that's a ton of hours using everything DC, all the light in the camper internally and externally have been replaced with LED's so it draws very little amperage. 

So the solar panels wire into whats called solar controller, it, takes the electricity that's generated from the panels, and then it charges the batteries that are already in the camper and then the controller is wired into my Inverter, which then runs anything 110 AC, on a normal day it very common for the panels to generate 14 to 16 amps of 12 volt electricity, this is a great thing, its' then runs through my campers CONVERTER which smart charges the batteries, and keeps them topped off and prevents overcharging. The Converter that comes with most campers won't allow this to happen, as the manufactures of campers are cheap and install cheap converter, you have to purchase an aftermarket Converter to keep the batteries safe. 

So without all the technical jargon, it does both, it uses the electric generated to run anything both DC and AC. The best part of the setup is, it was very easy to install, it's not cheap, good solar panels are pricey, but they are worth it, on a somewhat overcast day, my panels will still generate at least 3 to 6 amps of DC power. It basically keep everything always charged up.

The only thing the panels won't run is the microwave, and the Air Conditioner, that's what the generators are for on the front rack I built.

So there is the long an short of it, to put it mildly, I could camp for a very long time as long as I had water and propane, I have dry camped at one point for 20 days without any outside assistance, and almost no generator usage.

The best part about the solar panels, is I have a special plug that comes off the solar controller that charges my trolling motor batteries without a generator. Never have to hear the generator running and the trolling batteries are always charged. #-o 

Thanks,
Rob


----------



## therobzilla (Jul 23, 2013)

Some other shots:

Enjoy
















Some older some newer.

Rob


----------



## AZwadder (Jul 24, 2013)

Beautiful rig Rob! Good to see you and your son spending quality time =D> Fished Big Lake many times, there are some lunkers hiding there if the wind doesn't blow you off the mountain.. Spent the last 35 years fishing the White Mountains and Rim lakes, Love it up there!


----------



## therobzilla (Jul 24, 2013)

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=323419#p323419 said:


> AZwadder » 2 minutes ago[/url]"]Beautiful rig Rob! Good to see you and your son spending quality time =D> Fished Big Lake many times, there are some lunkers hiding there if the wind doesn't blow you off the mountain.. Spent the last 35 years fishing the White Mountains and Rim lakes, Love it up there!



I love fishing the Rim lakes it's my getaway from work and life. Big Lake has some monsters in it, however Willow Springs is my favorite, it's quick and has some good bottom structure to it. I've see some REALLY BIG FISH come out of that lake! 

Do you live in the valley? Have to meet up sometime and trade some stories..... LOL


----------



## AZwadder (Jul 24, 2013)

Yep sure do, I17 and Carefree Hwy area. I fish Lake Pleasant and Alamo often.. I've got a little place in Peeples Valley, when up there I fish the Prescott and Williams lakes.

My favorite lakes on the Rim are Blue Ridge Res. and Knoll Lake! The ride on the Rim Road to Knoll from either direction is just amazing! Although it is gravel (washboard) I don't mind, that = less people at the lake. Awesome fishing at both!

Cool story about Willow Springs...Stopped there on the way home from a float tube weekend at Bear Canyon Lake, floating along shore I spotted a Bald Eagle eyeballing me from a big old tree, I caught a small rainbow, unfortunately he inhailed my hook. Too small to keep but going to die, I tossed him towards the Eagle and kept on fishing. After a short while, him flopping around was all that bird could handle..Swooped down grabbed the little guy and flew away. Something I've never had happen before! Just love witnessing Nature do what it does.


----------



## EdmundHarvey (Nov 8, 2013)

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=323397#p323397 said:


> therobzilla » 23 Jul 2013, 21:38[/url]"]Jim,
> 
> Hang on, I'm kinda of a geek when it comes to slide in campers and all things associated with them, counting the one I currently own, I have previously owned 4, this is my 5th, I have been through the truck camper thing to the greatest degree.
> 
> ...


Nice one man.. You are lucky to have 5th one as I am still searching first truck of my life.. I would love to get similar one and will share some pics very soon


----------



## FishingCop (Nov 11, 2013)

That's a great set up Rob, I was thinking of something like that when I retired almost 6 years ago, sadly, my wife became ill and my fishing trips have been over since - but your set up looks wonderful


----------



## elkhornsun (Nov 15, 2013)

The difference in temperature is influenced a great deal by the amount of concrete and asphalt in greater Phoenix where the peak temperatures are not in the early afternoon but at 10 PM. We have friends who are retired and live there but I cannot understand why.

I like the way you setup the front rack so that the cooler does not block the radiator. The store bought racks all seem to have this flaw and it is more of a problem with hauling or towing a heavy load and affects both the radiator and the transmission cooler. 

With your job setup I would recommend talking to your tax accountant about per diem expenses. In most parts of the USA the per diem allowed by the IRA is inadequate for the actual hotel and meal expenses but with a camper in a campground or RV park and doing your own cooking the per diem works out very well. I would want reimbursement on a cents per mile from a company and not having them pay for fuel, etc. which is a minor portion of the cost of buying, insuring, maintaining, and operating any vehicle. Worth having your CPA do the math for you. 

The rich have two big advantages over people who work for a living, they get to write the drafts for what becomes the tax code and they have better CPA's and tax attorney. Anytime I can find any advantage that works for me and my company I grab onto it.


----------

