[GaryBIS]

Hi,
Was wandering Costco today and noticed they had the Yeti1000 for $999.
http://www.goalzero.com/costco/

In one 42 lb box that measures 10 by 15 by 14 inches, they provide a 1000 watt-hr (83 amp-hr) LI battery, 1500 watt pure sine inverter, PWM solar charge controller, battery monitor system, AC outlets and DC outlets, and USB charger outlets.
It will charge from solar panels, 12 volts DC(eg from the van), and/or AC shore power.

Seems like this might make a nice solution for someone who wants a very simple, all in one box electrical system for a conversion. It could be mounted in such a way that the outlets are directly accessible to plug things into. Or, it could be enclosed and your run a little wiring from its plugs to outlets anywhere in the RV.

It could be installed in such a way that it could be removed easily and used outside while camping, or as emergency power for a power outage in your home.

It looks like it may be able to take solar panels up to 360 watts -- they have to be less than 30 volts, so the nominal 12 volt panels in parallel would likely work.

Could not find the manual for the yeti1000, but this is the manual for the yeti1400 (its bigger brother):
http://www.goalzero.com/creative/assets/guides/Y1400Li.pdf

The Yeti1000 may be a unique offering for Costco. They sell a Yeti1400 on their site for $2000, which looks very similar, but with a 1400 watt-hr battery.

They list the battery type as Li ion NMC, so not the LiFEPO4 used in a lot of RV conversions. They list the life as "hundreds of cycles", not the thousands of cycle claims you usually see for LI van batteries -- maybe they are just being conservative (or realistic) in the life claim. Maybe someone knows how the these two Li chemistries compare?

They also make an lead acid AGM version.

I know all of us that have slogged through the usual RV electrical system component selection, wire sizing, fusing, grounding issues... would never consider such an easy solution -- or would we

Gary

 

[Burgman]

I purchased the Goal Zero Yeti 1000 Li a few weeks back. I'm only running a maxair fan, arb fridge, and laptop.
Gary, Where did you see it could handle 360 watts of solar? I have 2 Grape 180's, but upon reading through the owner's manual, it states 240watt max from solar into the anderson power pole input and 120watt from the 8mm input port.
Total combined power input of 360watts.
I know I'lll never get a true 360watts from my two 180's, but would it be safe to get a controller and limit the power output from the solar into the Yeti battery?

 

[GaryBIS]

I purchased the Goal Zero Yeti 1000 Li a few weeks back. I'm only running a maxair fan, arb fridge, and laptop.
Gary, Where did you see it could handle 360 watts of solar? I have 2 Grape 180's, but upon reading through the owner's manual, it states 240watt max from solar into the anderson power pole input and 120watt from the 8mm input port.
Total combined power input of 360watts.
I know I'lll never get a true 360watts from my two 180's, but would it be safe to get a controller and limit the power output from the solar into the Yeti battery?

Hi,
This is from the user manual on the 1400:

"There are three different inputs you can use when charging your Goal Zero Yeti from
solar, two of which are located in the “INPUT” area in the top left corner of the Goal Zero
Yeti faceplate and a third one located inside the storage compartment under the top
lid. One of the front ports and the port inside the storage compartment are round 8mm
ports designed to be used with Goal Zero Solar Panels. Each input port can handle up to
120W. The Anderson Power Pole port is designed to be used with larger or higher power
solar panels and can handle 360W of power, which is the total capacity for power across
all input ports"

But, this is from the 1400 manual -- I could not find the manual for the 1000, and I suppose it might be different?

What's your impression on the Yeti1000? Good quality? Satisfied so far?

Gary

 

[nebulight]

There are a lot of drawbacks to a system like this for any long term use and that's recharging the battery. There is no fast charging from the alternator or AC supply. I looked into it a while back:

http://www.promasterforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60762

 

[GaryBIS]

Hi Matt,
Its clearly not a good choice for you. You are knowledgeable about electrical systems, able and interested in doing the homework to design and build a system that meets your heavy use needs. I'd guess you enjoy the whole process as a challenge (as did I).

But, I think its a good match for people who don't want to spend days researching a good design, and who feel very uncomfortable with doing the design, assembly and wiring -- often for good reason. For this group, it seems to me this could be a very good solution. All the components are inside one box, are compatible with each other, and all the assembly and wiring is done. As an added bonus the system is physically small and weighs very little.

Its not so much that the system uses LI batteries as it is that it gets over the need to design and build an RV electrical system from scratch -- there are just a lot of people that this is a very major barrier for, and this offers a pretty functional solution right out of the box.
Actually, the AGM based system offers most of the same benefits.

I think there may be another group of people who have the electrical skills, but for whom a simple, one box, compact solution is appealing -- they just don't see the need custom designed system with tentacles all through the van. And, being able to take it out of the van an use it for other things is also appealing.
Everyone's got their own list of requirements and skills.

As far as charging goes, agree that the shore power charger is slow, but you could put 200 watts (or more) of solar on it, and for a lot of van electrical systems, just solar would be enough to keep the system charged up most of the time (as a number of folks with a couple hundred watts of solar have reported).

Gary

 

[nebulight]

Hey Gary,

I 100% agree with you, for a basic setup this is a VERY attractive solution. Heck, even for my needs I was seriously considering it, but my main issue with it always came back to charging. Solar is great, but with my heavy use, I don't think solar could keep up with the loads I'd be drawing from the battery. If you are just running a fridge, fans, lights, ect., then solar could keep up no problem. For those with propane or other cooking methods, this is a slam dunk if the price fits your budget.

When I was doing research on Goal Zero products, a lot of the comments I was reading always came back to the same thing which was it was a lot of money for what you were getting. However I still think that for such a compact package, you are getting a good value for what you're paying.

 

[shortone]

Thanks for this post , and the comments and opinions. I might be one of those people this would work well for. We don't plan on extensive trips or heavy DC usage. I'll have to look into this some more.

 

[carnut]

One of the advantages could have been warranty. Unfortunately it looks like only 1 year. Seems pretty poor for occasional users of an expensive item. I would have liked to see 5 years on the basic unit and some kind of pro-rated battery warranty based on age, charge cycles, power usage, or combination. A smart device should certainly be able to keep track of battery usage/life.
Without a decent warranty, the integrated approach actually adds long-term cost risk. The whole thing is junk if only one component fails.

 

[Burgman]

Here's what the GZ Yeti Li 1000 user manual says:
"There are three different inputs you can use when charging your Goal Zero Yeti from
solar, two of which are located in the “INPUT” area in the top left corner of the Goal Zero
Yeti faceplate and a third one located inside the storage compartment under the top
lid. One of the front ports and the port inside the storage compartment are round 8mm
ports designed to be used with Goal Zero Solar Panels. Each input port can handle up to
120W. The Anderson Power Pole port is designed to be used with larger or higher power
solar panels and can handle 240W of power. The combined input power maximum is 360W."

I do like the 1000 so far. Very light, easy to move in and out of van, and simply interface. Pretty much plug-n-play lithium system for $1000. And Costco has a great return policy (I think) to compensate for Goal Zero's lame 1 year warranty. I just hope GZ was being conservative when they said "hundreds of cycles" as NMC should outlast AMG, but not LIFEPO4.
I saw on the sprinter forum someone had been charging the Li 1000 from an inverter plugged into the van 12v outlet while driving.

 

[carnut]

... And Costco has a great return policy (I think) to compensate for Goal Zero's lame 1 year warranty. ...

Good point. Even if it doesn't qualify as a major appliance under their "concierge service" extended warranty, they'll probably offer a reasonably priced extended warranty. I tend to buy expensive electronics or appliances from Sam's Club (no local Costco) even if the price is a little higher just so I can get a cheaper warranty. Sorry Best Buy, your warranties are way overpriced.

 

[perezoso]

Wow. Coincidences. I just joined the forum and by chance just bought one of these yesterday for my conversion of a 2017 PMC Tradesman.

I need to power a 40 liter Dometic fridge, LEDs, laptop, and odd other small electronics. I am cooking with fossil fuel and outside (camper boxes on rails to pull out the back).

After weighing the advantages (simplicity) of this thing against the drawback of not being able to fast charge in situ (unless I plug in the van), I was convicved it was easier and not all that much more expensive that building my own AGM system. And I'm sure it will be lighter and take up less space.

I intend try to get a little extra juice with a solar panel (size not decided, I want to see the cargo box mounted on the van before picking a panel) and, while "not recommended", in a pinch you can charge this thing off the van's 12v.

The overarching point, though, is that I think it will get me through at least 3 days of independence from 'shore power', and that's the goal. If the solar rig works well, I hope it might manage 4 or 5.

Compared to the other two new Yeti lithium units, for me this is the one to buy. The 400 is too small and while the 1600 would be nice, in terms of $$$ per 12v amp hour, this one is significantly less expensive than either of those two.

 

[silverstable]

Burgman, I bought the Yeti 1000 last week & there was a postcard in my box offering a 2-yr warranty if I registered on-line thru the Goal Zero website. I've had my personal van (former shuttle van) for just about a year & while I have played around with a couple of seating arrangements, I am just getting ready to start adding more stuff to make weekend & day-tripping more fun.

Like you, I like the ability to take the yeti out & use it for other things. We are also in the desert southwest, so when it is over 100 degrees & the van is not being used, the yeti will have a cooler spot in the house.

A couple of other aspects I saw in the manual are the ability to change the battery if needed & the ability to chain additional units together for more capacity.

 

[dttocs]

For our latest trip, we got a Goal Zero Yeti 1000 Lithium from Costco, as an initial electrical system. My theory was that we would use it as a temporary system on our Promaster once it arrives. We're using it to power my wife's CPAP ~300Wh per night, plus a bit of phone charging, so our loads probably exceed where this is useful.

We're charging it with 2x Renogy 100W panels. The Yeti 1000 has 2 Anderson Power Pole connectors for solar input, so I built a 30' PowerPole to MC4 extension cable and used Y-cables to connect the 2 panels in parallel (wire sizing for 3% voltage drop, so I'm not dealing with huge cables).

Overall, we aren't too impressed:

- in full sun, with panels angled precisely, the PWM solar charger tops out about 135W (panels in parallel as recommended by Goal Zero), that's <70% of nameplate max on the panels
- 1000 Wh (80 Ah) battery is too small for our needs
- no DC charging option (yet), since Goal Zero DC chargers are set up for their non-Lithium batteries
- AC charger is slow, 57W input from A/C, where a larger AC/DC converter could provide up to 1800W. (OK 1800W charging is a bit excessive, even if it is only 1.8C, well within typical Lithium battery tolerances, but 57W is 3% of that)

It is convenient to be able to park in the shade and have panels in the sun, but takes much of the day to charge from 40% -> 100%, even reorienting panels regularly for max input. The AC charger is even worse, with 18 hour charge cycle.

Maybe by adding alternator charging while driving, and mounting panels on the roof we could make this work, but I expect we'll spec out a larger system and return the Yeti.

 

[dklassen]

I've been looking at this one. Charges much faster, can use any battery as a second. A bit pricey but I hear there are deals to be had.

https://www.inergysolar.com/product/kodiak/

 

[Josh Cissell]

For our latest trip, we got a Goal Zero Yeti 1000 Lithium from Costco, as an initial electrical system. My theory was that we would use it as a temporary system on our Promaster once it arrives. We're using it to power my wife's CPAP ~300Wh per night, plus a bit of phone charging, so our loads probably exceed where this is useful.

We're charging it with 2x Renogy 100W panels. The Yeti 1000 has 2 Anderson Power Pole connectors for solar input, so I built a 30' PowerPole to MC4 extension cable and used Y-cables to connect the 2 panels in parallel (wire sizing for 3% voltage drop, so I'm not dealing with huge cables).

Overall, we aren't too impressed:

- in full sun, with panels angled precisely, the PWM solar charger tops out about 135W (panels in parallel as recommended by Goal Zero), that's <70% of nameplate max on the panels
- 1000 Wh (80 Ah) battery is too small for our needs
- no DC charging option (yet), since Goal Zero DC chargers are set up for their non-Lithium batteries
- AC charger is slow, 57W input from A/C, where a larger AC/DC converter could provide up to 1800W. (OK 1800W charging is a bit excessive, even if it is only 1.8C, well within typical Lithium battery tolerances, but 57W is 3% of that)

It is convenient to be able to park in the shade and have panels in the sun, but takes much of the day to charge from 40% -> 100%, even reorienting panels regularly for max input. The AC charger is even worse, with 18 hour charge cycle.

Maybe by adding alternator charging while driving, and mounting panels on the roof we could make this work, but I expect we'll spec out a larger system and return the Yeti.

So far the most I've seen out of my 2, 100W Renogy Eclipse panels is 178w. But my batteries have been charged and full before full sun at high noon so I don't know if I could get higher than that or not. My friend that has solar on his boat was pretty impressed with the 178w.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[accrete]

don't quote me on this but, as a in-my-25th-year working for Costco... If i am looking for a large techie-gizmo and Costco has it i jump. Their treatment of members is tops in the retail industry.

I've been considering the GZ lineup, and most recently the 1400. The electrical needs in our van v1 were taken care of via one of the B&D jump start units and i believe the agm battery inside was along the lines of 17ah! That would last us all week of recharging our iPads/Phones and similar. The only other electrical use would be a short ~30min~ nightly pre-bed run of our MaxxFan to freshen up the air as needed, and for 7 years we have been running the MF like this right from our starter battery in the chevy with no issues (yes we do have an emergency jump start kit, but never needed it). Since our needs are small, and will be designed similarly (but the roof fan will be tied into any GZ this round) in the PM, i feel confident the GZ will work for us. As for solar i would prefer utilizing a couple of high quality flexible/flat ~100w panels mounted directly to the roof with Eternabond as i've seen in some builds < still in research mode on that.

Thom

 

[GaryBIS]

So far the most I've seen out of my 2, 100W Renogy Eclipse panels is 178w. But my batteries have been charged and full before full sun at high noon so I don't know if I could get higher than that or not. My friend that has solar on his boat was pretty impressed with the 178w.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

Hi Josh,
I think the 178 watts for a panel rated at 200 watts is good.

Most of the panels are rated under STC conditions -- 1000 watt/sqmeter sun intensity, 77 F PV panel temperature. These are both optimistic -- especally the 77 F PV panel temperature.

There is a PTC rating system that is required for panels sold in California that gives more real world power ratings -- they run about 20% lower than the STC ratings.

On cold winter days here in MT at 5000 ft altitude we occasionally exceed the STC ratings, but not often.

Gary

 

[beewill]

I've been looking at this one. Charges much faster, can use any battery as a second. A bit pricey but I hear there are deals to be had.

https://www.inergysolar.com/product/kodiak/

Curious if you decided to go with the Kodiak? I like the simplicity of setup and being able to remove it easily, but trying to figure out how to hookup the DC connections. Wondering if a small fuse panel connected to the external battery posts would work.

 

[dklassen]

Haven't completely decided yet. Still waiting for the van but I'm getting close to ordering stuff. Looks like the only DC outputs are the two 15a ea. car sockets. I suppose you could break those out to a fuse panel.

 

[zwarte]

For another successful option for a person who doesn't want to design a system from scratch:
I have a 130 amp hour battery in an ArkPak. I charge it using

1. 110v AC or
2. the alternator on my PM or
3. 2 100 watt Renogy solar panels.


This has worked very well to power lights, Engel fridge, Fantastic Fan and to recharge my electronics.

The battery is AGM and costs about $250. The ArkPak is $450. So cheaper. https://www.arkportablepower.com/products/arkpak-730-portable-power