Electricity: One Giant Leap in Car-Camping Comfort

When I first started camping in a vehicle, I really wanted a way to be able to get electricity into the car overnight, knowing that this would open up a world of possibilities, making the difference between comfort and mere survival. Creating a level place to sleep was a requirement for me, but having electricity would lead to unimaginable luxury. In my mind, this luxury would involve having a way to charge a laptop and cell phone, having a light that didn’t run on batteries, and ultimately having a way to heat and cool the space. Yes, cool the space (that will come in a future post). But before heading down this road, I ruled out the expense of battery packs and all sorts of inverters. I wanted cheap, simple, proven, and reliable, and the system had to be quick and easy to deploy at a moment’s notice (in the dark, in the rain, in the snow, and so on).

Since many state parks and private campgrounds provide electricity at their RV sites, I simply needed an easy way to get the electric into the vehicle. For a time or two, I simply strung an extension cord through an open window. This worked. However, I quickly discovered some drawbacks – rain and mosquitoes. I needed a way to get power through the “hull” of the vehicle without leaving a window open.

Early on, we simply strung an extension cord through the window (Ridgway State Park, Colorado)

A quick search online led me to discover the concept of “shore power.” When boats dock, many have the ability to “plug in,” so that they use power from the “shore” instead needing to constantly generate power on board; thus, “shore power.” I went to a local marine supply shop to see what might be available, but the solution I decided on for our Honda Odyssey was a shore power inlet ordered through Amazon.com. For about $15 (and another $15 for the 1-7/8” bit), and another $10 for about two feet of 12-2 wire and a female plug end, I had the necessary materials.

Shore Power Inlet (for getting power through the hull of a boat)

If I had it to do over, I might use one more like this (no wiring required, the cord is built in)

What hurt the most was drilling the hole in the rear drivers-side quarter panel of our van! It just seemed wrong to drill a hole in a perfectly good van, but I knew that with 150k miles on it, every mile from here on out was a pure blessing from God, so I might as well drill away and make this home away from home quite a bit more functional.

I found a place where I could access the port on the inside (where the interior trim curved outward and stayed pretty much right next to the exterior steel), and I drilled away. From there, it was simply a matter of installing the port and doing some basic wiring. When the project was completed, all I had to do was pull up to a campsite, run an extension cord from the power box at the campsite and plug it into the port, and then I had power on the inside of the vehicle, with no rain and no mosquitoes.

Although the backside of the shore power inlet is not pictured directly, this is the short cord on the interior of the van

This setup worked for years until I moved into the Subaru. With fewer miles, I knew I’d have a much harder time talking my wife into drilling a hole in the side of our Subaru. So there must be another way.

While looking around under the rear of the car, I noticed rubber plugs in two drain holes (?) in the spare tire well. I also noticed that Subaru provided threaded holes for tow bolts (covered by a little plastic pop-out piece when the hooks are not deployed) – one hook port in the front bumper, and one hook port in the rear bumper. After removing the spare and removing one of the drain plugs, I threaded a heavy gauge all-weather 15-foot extension cord through the bottom of the spare tire well, under the rear bumper cover, and out the tow-bolt port. I then installed the tow hook and zip-tied the male end of the extension cord to the tow-bolt. I then cut a slot in the spare tire drain plug before reinstalling it around the cord (to keep water from coming up through the drain hole). I then reinstalled the spare tire and ran the female end of the extension cord into the trunk area of the Subaru. Mission accomplished – power in the cabin without drilling any holes!

Drain hole in the bottom of the spare tire well

Extension cord running from the drain hole under the rear bumper cover

The current set-up: Extension cord coming out of the rear tow-hook port and zip-tied to the tow hook

NOTE: For a while, I put only a few feet of the cord in the car and coiled about 10 feet on the tow hook, thinking that I could pull up to a campsite, un-Velcro the coil, and plug in. What happened, though, is that the coiled cord had a tendency to flop rather noisily in the breeze while driving. So, what I do now is carry a 25-foot, 12-gauge, all-weather extension cord with me, and I use it to bridge the gap between the car and the power at each campsite. I’ve found that this is much easier and faster to deploy each night and to quickly re-coil when leaving the campsite each morning.

The original "coil" that I left attached to the tow hook.

On the inside, I’ve discovered that the best outlet multiplier is a 5-outlet multiplier made by Yellow Jacket. The model I’m using allows everything to be plugged in at the same time. Some of the others I considered had plugs that were too close together for some electronics and their oversized plugs.

Yellow Jacket Heavy Duty Outlet Multiplier

For light, I leave a small switched-nightlight plugged in so that I can use it if necessary. The small light is perfect for reading and for setting up the interior for camping at night. The remaining plugs are used for charging my phone and laptop, heat, a fan, a bucket heater for shower water (more on that in a future post), and A/C (again, more on that in a future post).

LED Nightlight with On/Off Switch

This setup has worked nearly everywhere, with the one exception being a park in Washington State that only had 30-amp service. Later that day (on my way to another park), I went out to Wal-Mart and picked up a 30-amp to 15-amp adapter that I now keep with my car-camping gear. Nearly all RV sites provide 15-amp service in addition to higher amperage, but this one provided only 30-amp, so I am now prepared for next time.

30-amp Service at Lake Easton State Park (Washington)

30-amp to 15-amp Converter

Adding electric to the car-camping experience has been a huge blessing. Some state parks charge a few dollars more for a site with electric service, but it is well worth it!