Jim Burns wrote:
This is for all the RV'ers and/or pilot/campers in the group. I'm wondering
if anybody has ever made an "APU" out of an RV type AC to DC power
converter.

I do some airplane camping each year as well as own a fifth wheel.



I was wondering if something like the RV converters that take 120AC and
convert it to 12DC could be used to hook up to the apu plug of our Aztec. I
can think of several uses that take more amps than what a little battery
charger would put out, plus it would be super portable.

Where does the DC come from? You're not starting with your airplane
battery are you?



I see that there are several different output amperages available. 30 amps
would probably do everything I'd want.

A rule of thumb for these setups is you need 10 amps of battery power
for each 100 watts of AC power generated.


Our cabin heater, fans, and fuel
pump draw a max of 20 amps. If it is even possible (and safe) could it be
used for jump starting the engines?

Are you asking if you could use the aircraft battery to jump start the
airplane? That makes no sense. If the battery can't start the plane
the normal way then hooking up an inverter, which has some loss to
inefficiency, will never start the plane. If you want some electricity
the easiest way is to find yourself a Honda 1000 watt generator. They
weigh hardly anything, are very quiet and run about 20 hours on a gallon
of gas. They can be found used on ebay for between $400-500.


Each starter draws about 15 amps max.

Yeah, but in reality once one is started you got free juice right?