Funny you should ask.
I was in the hunt for a new TV last year. I had a 13" CRT TV that came with the Roadtrek
from the factory, and found out it drew about 108W, so to conserve power, and get a more
updated TV I started looking around.
The only decent quality 12V DC flat screens (specs-wise) I could find when I was looking
last year, was made by Jensen (aka ASA Electronics) in Elkhart, Indiana. They were true
12V DC power (possibly dual power, with a 110-120 AC option, I can't remember now) and
I sent them an email asking where I could get one. They suggested RV and Marine supply
retailers might have them. It seems some RV manufacturers use them as OEM factory
installs in their rigs, but they aren't normally sold by themselves. I checked around near
me, and sure enough, and no one had any in stock, and some places hadn't even heard
of them (12VDC powered LCD TV). So they might work, if you can find one. Maybe a wrecking
yard for RVs might have salvaged one or two?
So, not wishing to wait until my next trip to Indiana, I began searching the web for a
very low wattage draw 110 V AC powered TV, and settled on a Sharp flat screen 19" LCD
TV (LC19SB27U or UT) which only draws 29W. I now use it and run it off of a 150W
mini-inverter which plugs into the coach battery system in my Roadtrek. I have another
small (100W) inverter that I charge stuff with, or run our netbook from while we're out on
the road. I also have a small DVD player which we rarely use, but it's 12VDC powered.
I think there may be more options available for 12V DVD players. Try Walmart?
The TV cost me $330 (Canadian dollars) at Best Buy Canada.
The inverters I picked up at Canadian Tire on sale for abour $20/each.
You can probably get them just about anywhere. Both are fused for safety.
As I suggested, the DVD players are probably available anywhere too, but maybe Walmart?
If not, try an RV retailer or a Marine Supply store. They usually carry more 12V DC stuff.
You might also want to switch the dome light incandescent bulb in your Aerostar to an LED bulb
if you can find some. They draw about 1/10th the power of a standard incandescent, and will
save you some battery power off of your engine battery when you use your dome light at night.
Until you get some sort of coach battery system set up. Just a thought.
There are some
threads on here that discuss LEDs as an option to save battery power.
Hey again lightspeed,
It occurs to me that to minimize space, you might consider a slightly thicker flat panel LCD
TV, with a built in DVD player. I'm also not sure about recording, but there might be one that does.
This site has some TV/DVD combos listed, so they do exist in 12V DC format.
http://www.roadtrucker.com/electronics-4.htm
Might be worth a think?
No idea what they consume power-wise, but you might want to do a bit of research on them.
12 volt tv question and dvd recorder
Linear Mode
