Advantages and Disadvantages of 12 Volt RV Appliances

There are days when any electrical appliance in the house, including the vacuum cleaner, seems to offer more entertainment than the TV set said, Harriet Van Horne. One reason is that there is a time when you realize how much benefit these products can offer and how difficult life would have been without these tools.

With technological advancement, having a set of useful appliances is not a luxury anymore. It has become vital to our lives. Undoubtedly, there are some of these machines that can make your life super easy at home or while you are traveling.

When you talk about RV trips, having some basic appliances can make your weeklong trips more comfortable and enjoyable. You don’t have to worry about making your morning coffee, getting a reasonable supply of food packed in your refrigerators, easy ventilation, heating, cooking, and much more.

However, while you buy these must-have items for your RV, few things matter a lot. For example; the quality, size, efficiency, and power requirements.

Having a number of 12-Volt appliances during your RV trip is a great idea as in any case, you can't compare the RV electric supply with your home and high voltage appliances may consume a lot of power.

Some RVers and campers believe that 12 Volt appliances are all that suits during road trips. These appliances usually run on DC power from your RV and are usually plugged in female sockets or cigarette lighter available in the vehicles.

Examples of 12 Volt RV Appliances

Some of the basic 12 Volt RV tools include:

• 12 Volt Coffee Maker RV
• 12 Volt Blender
• 12v Kettle / Jug
• Sandwich press or grill (12v)
• 12-volt Frying Pan
• 12v Slow cooker
• 12 Volt Rice Cooker
• 12-volt microwave
• 12v Foodsaver Vacuum Sealer
• 12v heater for RV
• 12v RV Fridge
• 12Volt Fans
• 12v campervan lights

Let’s have a look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of these appliances.

Advantages of 12 Volt RV Appliances

1. Portability

12 Volt appliances are great due to their portable nature. These appliances can run on batteries. The only requirement is that you have 12V electric power.

This portability makes these units suitable when you are traveling. You can recharge your batteries as and when you want and take advantage of these items. Make fresh juices, smoothies, cook in portable RV stoves, keep your food item cools and get warm in extremely cold weather with these appliances.

Take the example of a 12 Volt RV Fridge. Even if you have a 12 Volt refrigerator that looks like a large traditional model, it is easier to handle than a propane unit. You don’t have to reroute the propane system to move them where you want. Just find the 12 v socket and switch in.

2. Efficiency

Most 12 Volt RV appliances can meet your needs in an efficient manner. You can rely on them as long as you are taking care of recharging your batteries. Let’s take the case of a 12 Volt RV fridge; this operates on similar principles as that of a residential unit with perfect cooling capability. The only difference is that it runs on a 12 Volt instead of 120V AC.

If you are going for a propane-based unit, it may not work very well when your vehicle is parked on an unlevel surface. Also, you don’t have to worry that your food will spoil if the propane runs out accidentally. This can be understood from the fact that most of your RV lights also run on 12-volt power and you will get to know about power failure when your lights stop working.

3. Suitable for Camping

Since 12 Volt appliances are portable in nature, they are most suitable for camping and traveling purposes. You can comfortably enjoy your trip while having almost all the appliances with you. There is a 12-volt electric blanket that can warm it up for you to enjoy an awesome sleep.

4. Low Power Consumption

Most of quality 12-volt appliances consume low power. For example; if you want a 12V TV, you can easily find one for your truck or RV motorhome and can enjoy news, stories with great picture quality with low power consumption. You can have these televisions in various sizes. Similarly, with very little power, you can get delicious spaghetti cooked in your RV portable 12 Volt stove or oven in a few minutes.

5. Affordable

With 12 Volt appliances, you can enjoy everything down the road and those are pretty much affordable, in particular, if you do a cost-benefit analysis.

6. Easy Availability of Appliances

When you think of 12-volt appliances for your RV; you have a large selection of these appliances easily available. These appliances are made particularly for 12 Volt systems due to their usage in your RVs, trucks, and boats. 12-volt appliances eliminate the energy loss that happens during the conversion process.

You can even get a 12-volt frying pan and cook your favorite food. This frying pan can be easily used when you want to cook inside your RV. Just plug into the vehicle’s power socket and cook your food without the hassle of burning coals or when you don’t want to grill something outside your RV.

Disadvantages of 12v Appliances

1. Most of the RVs now have built-in heating, ventilation, oven, and refrigeration. You may think buying additional 12-volt appliances is not a good idea, but these items actually help you out when you want to save on main power and want to have some backup things always ready for you.

2. Some Rvers think that the storage space is not as much as the price. However, if these fridges are compared to ice-based coolers or chillers, they are still the most affordable option.

3. Some 12 Volt RV appliances may not be suitable for larger motorhomes such as a small RV heater or small RV 12V fan. However, these heaters are often used to provide additional heating in RV during extreme weather conditions.

4. 12 Volt RV appliances mostly rely on your RV batteries, so if your batteries die, these appliances too. Even, some RVers also think that 12 Volt appliances can kill your batteries too quickly, however, that happens when your battery is already not properly working or charging.12 Volt appliances rely on battery charging so you have to make sure that you have got your 12v RV Battery, 12 Volt Plugs, 12v Circuit Breakers, and 12 Volt Sockets all working efficiently. Other essential accessories that you may want to check on include RV Tap Adapter, RV Cable Ties, 12 Volt connectors,12 Volt Relays, 12 Volt Pigtails, 12 Volt PlugSocket Sets, or 12 Volt Studs.

All these items can be ordered online in RV parts shops and help in making your 12 Volt appliances work for your maximum benefit. You can also check on motorhome voltage regulators that persistently check on line voltage conditions. They use a special transformer to improve the voltage when incoming line voltage is low and can damage essential items such as RV air conditioners, refrigerators, and others. Another beneficial item in improving the efficiency is to incorporate trailer voltage regulators

5. Some 12 Volt appliances may not suit RVers who want to store or process huge amounts of food at once. Some of these units usually come in small sizes as compared to standard gas or propane-based products.

6. A limited amount of appliances can be used at the same time

Conclusion

A 12 Volt RV appliance is an affordable, efficient and useful choice for RVers who want all the comforts during their RV trips. These appliances can run on 12-volt power batteries and give you excellent results on the go. Although for some RVers, these appliances may seem to be unnecessary, once you use them, you will acknowledge that these products are worth investing in. It is also important that you keep your 12 voltage system efficient by regularly checking on them.