Sprinter 170 — Full-Time Moab Van Build
van · 12V system · Moab, UT
Mercedes Sprinter 170 high-roof with 400Ah LiFePO4 under the bench seat. Full-time digital nomad setup — Starlink runs most of the day, induction for cooking, 12V compressor fridge, diesel heater for shoulder seasons.
Daily load
4,749 Wh
Daily Ah
396 Ah
Battery
1000 Ah LiFePO4
Solar
1200 W
Load budget
| Load | Watts | Qty | Hrs/Day | Wh/Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12V Marine Fridge | 45 | 1 | 16 | 720 |
| Starlink | 75 | 1 | 16 | 1,200 |
| Laptop | 60 | 2 | 6 | 720 |
| Induction Cooktop | 1800 | 1 | 0.25 | 450 |
| Electric Kettle | 1500 | 1 | 0.15 | 225 |
| Interior LED Strip | 12 | 1 | 5 | 60 |
| LED Cabin Light | 5 | 3 | 4 | 60 |
| Roof Vent Fan | 15 | 2 | 10 | 300 |
| Freshwater Pump | 60 | 1 | 0.5 | 30 |
| Phone Charger | 10 | 2 | 3 | 60 |
| WiFi Router | 10 | 1 | 24 | 240 |
| Heated Blanket | 60 | 1 | 6 | 360 |
| Diesel Heater Blower | 30 | 1 | 10 | 300 |
| CO DetectorCRITICAL | 1 | 1 | 24 | 24 |
Battery bank
5 × 200Ah in parallel
Your daily consumption is 396Ah. With 2 days of autonomy, you need 792Ah of usable capacity. LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) batteries should only be discharged to 80% depth of discharge, so you need 989Ah of total capacity. We recommend a 1000Ah bank (5 × 200Ah in parallel), giving you 800Ah of usable capacity — enough for 2 days without any charging.
Solar array
6 × 200W panels · 125A charge controller
Your daily consumption is 4749Wh. With 5.8 peak sun hours, a 75% system efficiency factor, and LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) round-trip efficiency of 96%, you need 1137W of solar panels. We recommend 6 × 200W panels (1200W total). This array will produce approximately 435Ah per day at 12V. You'll need a charge controller rated for at least 125A. MPPT recommended — higher efficiency at this array size.
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