Ever look at your Boho Camper Van and wonder how all the electrical stuff works? What’s a volt? What’s a watt? What’s a watt-hour? What do all those words even mean?
Let’s break it down like you’re five years old — using water, sunshine, and your Boho Van.
Understanding Volts, Amps, Watts
Think of electricity like water flowing through a hose.
Volts are like the water pressure.
Amps are how much water is flowing.
Watts are how strong that spray is when it hits something, like a water wheel or your hand!
Let’s say your Boho Van is the water source, the hose is the wiring, and the water spinning the wheel is your electrical power. Simple, right?
🔴 What’s a Volt?
Volts are the push. The pressure. Most camper vans — including most Boho Vans — run on a 12-volt system. That’s like having a hose that sprays gently but steadily. Higher volt systems (like 24V or 48V) are like turning the faucet way up for more pressure — but in van life, 12V is perfect for lights, fridges, fans, and other gear.
🔵 What are Amps?
Amps are how much electricity is flowing. If volts are pressure, amps are how much water is actually moving through the hose.
If you're running just a small light, it might use 1 amp. If you’re powering the air conditioner, that might take a lot more amps. The more things you turn on, the more amps you’re pulling from your battery.
🟡 what are Watts?
Watts are like the total power being used. If volts are the push and amps are the amount flowing, then watts are the result of those two combined.
To figure out how many watts something uses, just multiply:
Volts × Amps = Watts
For example, if your fridge uses 5 amps and your van runs at 12 volts:
12 × 5 = 60 watts
So your fridge is using 60 watts of power to keep those snacks cold.
Using the analogy of water helps visualize the diffference between volts, amps and watts.
🪫 measuring battery power
Now that you know how power flows, let’s talk about how it’s stored — because that’s what matters when you’re camping off-grid in your van.
🟢 What’s an Amp-Hour (Ah)?
Amp-hours are how much electricity your battery can give you over time. Think of it like how big your water tank is.
If your van has a 400Ah battery, that means it can give you:
400 amps for 1 hour, or
200 amps for 2 hours, or
20 amps for 20 hours
You get to decide how fast you use it up — just like sipping or chugging from a big bottle of water.
🟠 What’s a Watt-Hour (Wh)?
Watt-hours are like measuring your battery in terms of power instead of flow. It tells you how many watts you can use for how long.
To find watt-hours, multiply:
Amp-Hours × Volts = Watt-Hours
So, if you have a 400Ah battery and your van runs at 12V:
400 × 12 = 4,800 watt-hours
That’s how much total energy is stored in your battery.
⚫ What’s a Kilowatt-Hour (kWh)?
This one’s easy — 1 kilowatt-hour is just 1,000 watt-hours.
So if your battery stores 4,800 watt-hours, that’s 4.8 kilowatt-hours. This is the same thing your house energy bill is talking about when they say “kWh used.”
Amp-Hours and Watt-Hours can further be visualized using the water hose analogy
🛠 Using Volts, Amps & Watts
Let’s say you’re camping somewhere magical and off-grid. You want to use your lights, your fridge, maybe charge your phone and play some music.
If you know how much power each thing uses in watts, and you know how many watt-hours your battery has, you can figure out how long your energy will last before you need to recharge (with solar, shore power, or the van’s alternator).
It’s like checking your water bottle before a hike. You just want to make sure you have enough before heading out.
🎒 Let’s Review
Volts = Pressure
Amps = Flow
Watts = Power
Amp-Hours = How long your battery can flow amps
Watt-Hours = How long your battery can provide power
Kilowatt-Hours = Just a bigger number of watt-hours
Once you get this, everything in your van’s electrical world starts to make sense.
🌞 Final ThoughtS
You don’t have to be an engineer to understand your Boho van’s power system. You just need to know how to think in water and sunshine.
With a solid battery, a smart setup, and maybe a solar panel or two, you’ll be ready to power your next off-grid adventure.
And if you ever need help? Contact Boho Vans — we’re happy to keep the lights on.