Balancing Travel, Business, and Batteries with a Solar Energy Entrepreneur - RVE 389
The RV Entrepreneur
RV LIFE
4.8 • 544 Ratings
🗓️ 10 April 2025
⏱️ 51 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Morgan Munkvold joins Jim to share her journey from a Subaru Outback to van life and entrepreneur. She discusses the evolution of her travel experiences, and lessons learned along the way to starting her own solar power design and installation company. She reflects on the challenges of entrepreneurship, the importance of community, and her transition from a consulting career to merging her business with Explorist.Life.
Morgan emphasizes the joy of connecting with nature and people while navigating the ups and downs of life on the road. She shares the intricacies of setting up off-grid electrical systems, the benefits of merging businesses for support and knowledge sharing, and the importance of effective communication within a distributed team. Discover insights on balancing work with a love for travel, common mistakes in solar power setups, and the significance of planning and budgeting for the best solar energy system to meet your needs.
GUEST BIO: Born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Morgan Munkvold is a passionate road traveler who hit the road solo in 2015 and later moved into a Ford Econoline for full-time van life. Her early struggles with power systems inspired her and her husband to launch an off-grid solar installation shop in 2022. After merging with EXPLORIST.life, Morgan now helps fellow travelers stay powered up and prepared for life off the grid.
Connect & Learn More:
https://shop.explorist.life/about-our-services/
https://morganmunkvold.substack.com/
https://www.instagram.com/morganmunkvold
Episodes Mentioned:
Adventure Van Expo
https://therventrepreneur.com/rve304/
Caravan to Alaska
https://therventrepreneur.com/rve385/
Moonfab
https://therventrepreneur.com/rve372/
RESOURCES:
Power Audit Calculator
https://explorist.life/power-audit-calculator/
ABYC Certification
https://abycinc.org/abyc-for-technicians/
Asana Project Management
Honeybook CRM
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I think it was a reconnection to humanity that I really enjoy because the people that you meet |
| 0:05.7 | when you're out on the road, we're all just trying to find the joy in it all. |
| 0:12.6 | Welcome to the RV Entrepreneur Podcast. The weekly show for nomads, work campers, |
| 0:18.2 | RVers, and entrepreneurs looking to earn a living or build a business while enjoying the RV lifestyle. |
| 0:24.3 | This week's host is Jim Nelson. |
| 0:26.7 | Let's settle in and enjoy the RV Entrepreneur podcast brought to you by RV Life. |
| 0:37.1 | Hey everyone, Jim here once once again from RV Life. |
| 0:40.8 | And welcome back for another powerful episode of the RV Entrepreneur podcast. |
| 0:46.5 | You'll hear what I mean by that in a minute. |
| 0:48.3 | I'm really excited about today's conversation because it hits home with a few topics that really power me up |
| 0:55.0 | life on the road self-sufficiency in my rig and my work overcoming challenges and |
| 1:01.6 | turning those lessons into thriving business ideas our guest today is Morgan |
| 1:06.8 | Monckfold from explorist life the experts at simplifying electrical systems for nomadic living. |
| 1:14.2 | We actually have quite a bit in common. Both of us have chased adventure, found freedom on the road, |
| 1:20.2 | and learned, sometimes the hard way, how critical power and connectivity are when you're living and working from anywhere. |
| 1:28.5 | And, like me, Morgan has taken these real-life experiences and turned them into something much |
| 1:34.0 | bigger, helping others do the same. Yes, we're talking solar power here, but our discussion is |
| 1:41.2 | about much more than mere solar panels and wiring diagrams. |
| 1:45.2 | This is about creativity, problem solving, finding that balance between building a business and fueling your wanderlust, and once again, the power of community, which, fun fact, is how Morgan and I connected, thanks to the three-legged dogs and her work with |
| 2:01.0 | roughware, which ties back to our own tripods community. There are no coincidences. |
| 2:06.3 | So get ready to get inspired, to power up both your rig and your business, right after we |
| 2:12.3 | take care of some quick business here. This episode is made possible by TravelFi. Want reliable internet without the hassle. Meet |
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