Another 48V all-electric gas-free caravan breaks cover
Latest 'limitless power' solar-powered lithium battery system fitted to upmarket Queensland off-road vansDemand is rising for caravans that can run the air conditioner and other appliances for hours on end without having to plug in at a park or use a generator, with Queensland premium off-road specialist Spinifex the latest caravan manufacturer to offer a 'limitless power' gas-free, solar powered 48 volt full off-grid power system.
Recently rolling out of its Deception Bay, Queensland factory was a custom-build 24ft Spinifex Nomadix Premier off-grid luxury caravan fitted with the latest Queensland-designed Safiery 48V battery system, which boasts four Safiery 48V batteries equivalent to 800Ah at 12V, hooked up to a Victron 5000W inverter and six 175W roof-top solar panels.
Unlike the chassis-mounted OzXCorp lithium battery bank fitted to Retreat/ERV and Mountain Trail vans, the Safiery 48V battery system is located in an external front locker alongside ancillary components.
According to a walkaround video on Spinifex's Facebook page, the state-of-the-art power system provides enough standalone battery power for the new owners "to run their air-con and all the other electrical appliances inside purely off the battery system and inverter".
The more efficient 48V set-up is designed to run a number of appliances simultaneously including the Truma Combi hot water/air heater and roof-top air conditioner, 280 litre compressor fridge, convection microwave, 4kg front load washing machine, induction cooktop, Fusion stereo and twin TVs, fitted to the 24ft custom van.
"Running the air-con you can see we're pulling 862 watts out of the batteries... it's not even pulling a kilowatt of power and you've got 5kW available.... so plenty of power available for running all your electrical appliances," Spinifex Caravans sales manager Mark Evans explains during the video.
According to Spinifex, for back-up if the sun isn't shining there's also a Safiery 'Scotty' in-vehicle charger "wired into their tow vehicle (that) will be able to charge the system with up to 3KW".
Based on the aluminium framed/fibreglass bodied Nomadix Premier, the custom van also features extra road clearance thanks to the removal of the wheel arches to deliver a flat floor inside, along with a stronger dual-beam 150mm hot dipped galvanised chassis, front and rear full width toolboxes, and Cruisemaster XT airbag suspension with disc brakes.
Completing the off-grid package is one 80 litre drinking water and five 80 litre freshwater tanks fitted, along with an 80 litre grey water tank.
The 24ft van is not entirely gas free, with a single 4kg gas bottle carried on the drawbar to run a portable BBQ on the slide-out external kitchen, while the apartment-style interior layout includes a rear leather club lounge that converts to another bed, kitchen areas on both sides, a separate shower and toilet and a 'master bedroom' with queen-size walkaround bed.
Towed by a RAM 2500, the big tandem-axle van boasts a Tare of 3440kg and 4500kg ATM. Spinifex hasn't announced pricing but potential buyers would probably need to budget around $180,000-plus for a similar-spec van.
Incidentally, Coomera, Queensland-based Safiery is the latest venture of RV tech pioneer Bruce Loxton, the former owner of Kimberley Kampers.
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