Buy all your VW California Accessories at the Club Shop Visit Shop

New Cali owner Microwaves

N

neally

Messages
12
Location
polegate
Vehicle
T6.1 Ocean 204
Hi all
I’m a new California 6.1 owner how do people use a microwave in them when not hooked up to a 240v supply & are there any combi ovens or air fryers than can be used
 
neally said:
Hi all
I’m a new California 6.1 owner how do people use a microwave in them when not hooked up to a 240v supply & are there any combi ovens or air fryers than can be used
Click to expand...
By spending a lot of £££££’s I’m afraid.

You're looking at Solar Panels, the more the merrier and either changing the leisure batteries to Lithium + a more powerful Inverter or a Lithium Power Bank with built in Inverter.

The built in Inverter is 300w only and to run what you want you’re looking at a 1000w + inverter with a significant increase in on-board battery power.
 
I bought a small MW for the Cali and it was easily powered with the Ecoflow Delta 2. After 1 trip away I felt it was more hassle than it was worth, so it sits patiently in the spare room. Think carefully if you really have to have one.
 
I bought a small Salter 2l air fryer for use on EHU when I don't want to drag the full kitchen setup (which needs an awning). It's great for doing a few chips etc. which are a bit more of a faff in the ridgemonkey. Its small(ish) but still takes up a fair amount of room so I don't take it on every trip.

In the future I might explore a power pack, but as we mostly stay on sites with EHU, it's not really an issue at the moment.

I wouldn't even consider a microwave, the ridgemonkey, saucepan, a kettle and (if needed) the air fryer covers virtually any cooking scenario you might consider.

Some people also swear by Remoskas, but I haven't felt the need to go and buy one yet.
 
I wouldn’t go for a microwave if not on EHU. Part of the joy about no hook up, and camping in general, is cooking outdoors when you can, hunkering down indoors when you can’t. We bought a small microwave last year for a family holiday, i was handed the “must sterilise baby bottles” card to get it over the line! Since then we haven’t used it, so it’s back in its box in the garage. Even a small microwave is a big lump to carry around.
 
montyburns1982 said:
I bought a small Salter 2l air fryer for use on EHU when I don't want to drag the full kitchen setup (which needs an awning). It's great for doing a few chips etc. which are a bit more of a faff in the ridgemonkey. Its small(ish) but still takes up a fair amount of room so I don't take it on every trip.

In the future I might explore a power pack, but as we mostly stay on sites with EHU, it's not really an issue at the moment.

I wouldn't even consider a microwave, the ridgemonkey, saucepan, a kettle and (if needed) the air fryer covers virtually any cooking scenario you might consider.

Some people also swear by Remoskas, but I haven't felt the need to go and buy one yet.
Click to expand...

I too use a small air fryer, running off a 1000w inverter and recent conversion to LifePo4 supported by solar.
The air fryer is so versatile and does replace a few pans also draws only a small amount of current from battery.
I too had considered including a low wattage MW but I think some of the replies in this thread and cost etc makes me think not really needed.
 
neally said:
Hi all
I’m a new California 6.1 owner how do people use a microwave in them when not hooked up to a 240v supply & are there any combi ovens or air fryers than can be used
Click to expand...
where ould you like to keep it?
 
neally said:
Hi all
I’m a new California 6.1 owner how do people use a microwave in them when not hooked up to a 240v supply & are there any combi ovens or air fryers than can be used
Click to expand...
i have a smaller microwave which originally tried to use in the main cabin on the sole hookup powerpoint, but found it impractical due to space and position of PowerPoint, so installed a new power point in the rear on the wardrobe side wall. Literally the wiring into the RCD was about half a metre and very easy (although I did get an electrician to do it for peace of mind) , socket picked up from eBay that matched to the existing.
Now used it continuously when on hookup ( most of the time for us). It sits on the shelf facing out the door so is very practical for cooking, especially as microwaves are so quick
Now we regularly enjoy on first night away a nice M&S curry meal deal, perfect!!!
 
sounds like you need a motorhome. a microwave in a cali is ridiculous. you can heat beans on the hob. you can cook curry on the hob. what more do you need ? if you want a full dinner go to the pub. microwave meals are sh1te
 
We love to get Tesco ready meals and golden rice or pasta bags that we microwave ion our 700w unit, They take around 6 mins each so actually very little actual power consumption if only feeding two.

As others have commented, the best route for hairdryers and air fryers is a solar generator like EcoFlow or Jackery and Bluetti.

We adore our Bluetti AC 200 max and charge it while driving from the 12v socket, then solar while stationery. I've made many posts about this if you wish to read them.
 
VW California is not a motorhome or even a campervan, you have to make compromises or buy another car to avoid being disappointed. California often costs more than a ,,normal'' campervan with a toilet and shower. There is no room for a microwave or oven. occasionally you can heat something up, make coffee, make scrambled eggs. Life actually goes on outside California, cooking also if you like to cook during holidays. My wife for example prefer to taste local cousine.
 
Is there a restriction on what is the maximum power output microwave you can you on EHU - I am looking around and I can see that because its designed for a camper or caravan its more expensive- I am wondering if I got a small domestic one that would work ok

TIA
 
I’m not a microwave advocate (see post#5) but 800w models work fine on a standard EHU as they pull a little over 3 amps. The physical size of a 700/800w microwave is about as small as they come - still sizeable to carry around when touring!
 
This is the thing; microwaves aren't foldable/collapsible and are quite big to start off with. Even with all the power options ticked, you've still got a big and bulky box to carry about. Where would it even go when in use? On top of the hob? Takes that out of use then.

The only solution to all these accessories is to carry suitable awning to set up a "kitchen" in, but then you are increasing faff and reducing mobility. Your choice really, but less is more in my opinion. A Cadac? Yes. RidgeMonkey? Yes. But that's about as far as it goes, and I'm pretty passionate about cooking.
 
I would probably use in the awning but your right what if I pop out for the day, I was trying to avoid cooking in the Cali as dont want it to smell and not a big fan of naked flames in the Awning, Have heard the work Cadec mentioned a lot is there a particular model that is compact and easy to store.

The first outing we took a BBQ and charcoal - bit of a faff and messy to put away so always looking for a good alternative
 
RockinNRollin said:
But that's about as far as it goes, and I'm pretty passionate about cooking.
Click to expand...
To me the use of a microwave is about *not* cooking, i.e. heating a microwave meal, fast and easy. I use it on the slide-out boot tray. Just for the occasional weekend outing, not for holiday trips.
 
Less is more, do you need all these electric appliances to survive, I find adapting menu to simple two pan meals work’s best, or even one pan in the cadac.
 
I’m not advocating the use of microwaves - even as, whilst writing, I’m defrosting some lamb chops (at home, in my kitchen), but this is the spec of the microwave we got to help look after a newborn … thin end of the wedge I’m sure ;) .

IMG_6344.jpeg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Elly Swanson
Cooking group
2
Replies
27
Views
5K
Tandt
T
K
New Cali 140SE owner
Replies
9
Views
2K
sapto
sapto
O
240v socket only works when hooked up. Is this correct?
Replies
18
Views
2K
jonr71
jonr71
Oldskoolcali06
Early Cali... Does hook up charge engine battery?
Replies
4
Views
828
Oldskoolcali06
Oldskoolcali06
Californiahendo
New owner .. help required …
Replies
0
Views
2K
Californiahendo
Californiahendo

Useful links

VW California Club

  • Comfort Insurance
  • VIP Membership
  • Comfort Insurance
  • CampervanBits Accessories
  • Conquest
  • Hire a Vw California

About us

The VW California Club is the worlds largest resource for all owners and enthusiasts of VW California campervans.

Our Partners

Our Partners

Back
Top