🍊️⚡️ VANILLA’S POWER PLAYBOOK 2025

The Ultimate Beginner-Friendly, Technically Detailed Campervan Power Guide

Written by: John NickollsCampervan: Vanilla – Indium Grey VW T6.1 Pop-Top CampervanBattery System: Exide 115Ah Lead-Acid Leisure BatteryUpdated: August 2025

⚡️ WHAT THIS NOTE IS:

This is a beginner-friendly but highly technical (and slightly over-excited) guide to the complete power setup inside Vanilla, your fully-kitted campervan.

Whether you're reading this as a new camper, a gadget lover, or someone who just wants to know why the fridge stops working at 3AM, this is the document for you.

We’ll cover:

• Your battery system

• How to charge it

• What it powers

• How to manage power off-grid

• When to use your Jackerys

• How your solar panel helps (and its limits)

• Monitoring power without needing a PhD

🔋 SECTION 1: YOUR MAIN BATTERY SYSTEM

⚡️ The Exide 115Ah Leisure Battery (12V Lead-Acid)

This is your only built-in battery in Vanilla.

Ah stands for "Amp-hours." Think of it like a fuel tank for electricity. You have 115 amp-hours at 12 volts.

In real-world terms:

• 115Ah x 12V = 1,380 watt-hours (Wh)

• That’s how much total energy is stored when fully charged.

But here's the catch with lead-acid batteries:❌ You can’t use all 100% of it safely. You should only use 50% to 60% before recharging to avoid damaging it.

🔧 Safe Usable Energy:

Around 700Wh to 800Wh per full charge.

That’s enough to run:

• Your fridge (on average 40W per hour) for 15–20 hours

• Your diesel heater overnight (low amp draw, maybe 2–3 amps total)

• LED lighting and charging phones for days

🔌 What It Powers (12V DC System)

These are devices hardwired into your van or connected to 12V outlets:

• ❄️ Fridge (50L Compressor)

• ✨ Interior LED lighting

• 🌚 Map lights and reading lights

• 🚑 Water pump

• 📱 USB sockets for phones, tablets, routers, etc.

• ⚫️ Webasto Diesel Heater

📊 SECTION 2: BATTERY MONITORING WITH VICTRON SMARTSHUNT

You’re using a Victron SmartShunt with Bluetooth connection to your phone.

This is a small black box that connects inline with the battery and sends detailed data to the VictronConnect app.

📈 Key Info You Can Monitor:

• Battery Voltage (12.7V = full, 12.0V = time to recharge!)

• State of Charge (SOC%) – like a fuel gauge

• Amps In/Out – how much power is flowing in or out

• Watts being used in real time

• Battery history & trends

💭 Simple Explanation:

If voltage drops below 12.0V, you're getting dangerously low.If your SOC is under 50%, stop using power-heavy devices and charge soon.

☀️ SECTION 3: SOLAR POWER – THE XINGCO 120W PANEL

Mounted on the scenic pop-top, your XINGCO PV-XC8.05 panel is:

• 120W (watts of peak solar generation)

• Monocrystalline (efficient in low light)

• Bonded semi-flexible (low profile, aerodynamic)

• Wired with 4mm² cable to minimise voltage loss

• Connected to your Eco-Worthy 30A PWM solar charge controller

⚡️ What It Can Do:

On a good sunny day:

• Generates up to 6–8 amps per hour

• Produces around 50–60Ah daily (approx. 600–700Wh)

That’s enough to:

• Run the fridge all day

• Offset heater usage at night

• Top-up your leisure battery

⚠️ What It Can’t Do:

• It won’t power your microwave or air fryer

• It won’t magically recharge your battery on grey winter days

🙄 Reality Check: Solar helps extend your off-grid time, but it’s not a total replacement for driving or plugging in.

⚡️ SECTION 4: HOOKUP POWER (240V MAINS)

When you're at a campsite and plug into the electric hookup (EHU), Vanilla switches into luxury mode.

✅ What Happens:

• Your Sargent EC155 power control system activates

• Battery charger kicks in and starts replenishing the Exide

• 240V sockets become live

• Use of high-wattage gear is safe and unlimited

🚼 Devices You Can Use on Hookup:

• ☕️ Kettle / Toaster

• 🍿 Microwave

• 🥟 Cosori Air Fryer

• 🍜 Vango Induction Hob

• 🎥 Projector (Beamy)

• 📱 Charge all gadgets without draining the leisure battery

🌐 Hookups are the best time to charge your power stations too!

🏠 SECTION 5: PORTABLE POWER STATIONS (Jackery + EcoFlow)

Your portable gear takes the pressure off your leisure battery.Use these whenever you're off-grid or want to isolate devices from the main battery.

🛠️ Jackery Explorer 240

• 240Wh capacity

• Pure sine wave inverter

• Great for: phones, lights, router, coolbox

🛠️ Jackery Explorer 1000

• 1002Wh capacity

• 1000W inverter

• Powers air fryer, microwave (briefly), projector, induction hob

🛠️ EcoFlow Delta 2

• 1024Wh capacity (LiFePO4)

• Massive power, fast charging

• Great for big weekends or festival duty

🌍 Tip: Use Jackerys to power the projector, air fryer, or anything 240V when wild camping. Save your Exide battery for the essentials.

🔦 SECTION 6: LIGHTING SYSTEMS

You have a serious collection of low-draw, USB-rechargeable lights.

These include:

• BioLite AlpenGlow 500 / 250 / Mini

• BioLite SiteLight string lighting

• Vango Star 500 & Superstar 500

• Solidline ST7R Torch

• Blukar LED Torch

All these lights can be charged via:

• ⚡️ USB ports in the van

• 🛠️ Jackery 240/1000

• 🔋 Power banks

🌟 These lights are super efficient and can run for hours without draining your main battery.

📆 SECTION 7: DAILY ENERGY STRATEGIES

✅ If Hooked Up:

• Charge everything

• Use air fryer and microwave freely

• Don’t worry about battery levels

🚗 While Driving:

• Your Victron Orion 30A DC-DC charger feeds the Exide

• Plug in Jackerys to charge too!

⛅ Off-Grid (Sunny):

• Solar will top-up leisure battery

• Avoid high-power devices

• Use Jackerys for entertainment/cooking

☁️ Off-Grid (Cloudy):

• Monitor SOC closely

• Consider switching fridge to Jackery

• Don’t leave heater running all night unless >60% SOC

🔌 SECTION 8: POWER BANKS & BACKUPS

You also carry a fleet of USB power banks:

• Anker Nano (10,000mAh)

• Anker 165W (25,000mAh)

• EMNT PB10KQCAL01 (10,400mAh)

• YABER 12V Jump Starter (23,800mAh)

These are perfect for:

• Charging phones, cameras, torches

• Running Wi-Fi router

• Emergency 12V jumpstart capability (YABER)

🤝 FINAL NOTES: KEEP IT SIMPLE, KEEP IT POWERED

• Check your battery % each night before bed

• Use Jackerys for anything high-drain

• Solar = top-up, not a miracle

• Hookup = treat yourself

• Driving = perfect time to charge everything

Want to upgrade in future? Think about:

• Adding a lithium battery (more usable energy)

• Installing a DC-DC charger with solar input

• Swapping to MPPT controller for solar efficiency

Until then, you are rocking a brilliant, balanced system. And it’s all powered by the sun, the road, and your brain.

You are now officially: The Power Overlord of Vanilla.

✨🌌🚀