Do I need house batts?

[the_experience03]

If you stick to exactly what you have listed then no, I really don't think you need house batteries. This would be especially true if you went with a starting battery bank that had some oomph like triple Group 31's or a single 8D. That would give you the ability to just turn the bus off and go inside the grocery store or Wal-Mart or eat a decent meal or whatever. Just make sure you leave some space to adapt to running house batteries in the future in case plans change.

[GoneCamping]

While I don't plan on doing any dry camping, I still have a pair of Group-31 house batteries... You can never tell when you are going to be stuck without power, either at a campground when the power goes out or on the side of the road somewhere. Even a single battery is useful, and also can be used for a jump start in an emergency...

[the_experience03]

Buses need a lot of power to start so having some more on tap is NEVER a bad thing.

I wasn't sure if you were talking about running your converter and genset ALL the time. If that is the case then I guess you won't need house batteries, but MAN that would get old, not to mention the threat of parking in a no-idle zone. Without proper certification as an APU you might not be able to run the genset. That means 12 volt accessories for only a very short period of time. I would urge you to consider running SOME battery power. Like I said...the gen-set could get old.

[the_experience03]

APU=Auxiliary Power Unit which pretty much boils down to a small diesel fired (in the case of a semi anyway) generator unit for running the AC or providing electricity for the TV. It also generates heat to heat the cabin and to keep the engine warm in cold climates. The biggest thing is they are certified by the government for their purpose. Ah regulations...