Good Sam Club Open Roads Forum: Tech Issues: Portable Solar Generators


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Skibane

San Antonio, TX

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Posted: 08/21/22 07:09pm

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jaycocreek wrote:

Skibane wrote:

The average RVer already has a sizeable battery bank in his RV, along with several different ways of recharging it.

Why would he/she not want to use it?

An example would be...My TC came with one group 24 wet battery/one 12v plugin and no usb ports..Not much usable power there..

Adding extra USB ports or DC power outlets to the average RV isn't difficult, expensive or time-consuming.

As soon as your Group 24 battery ages out, it can be upgraded to something larger - or to a LiFeSO4 replacement.

jaycocreek

Idaho

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Posted: 08/21/22 07:20pm

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Your right and I have..I also use the power station to run one or both of my compressor fridge freezers when we travel in the car or van plus in the house on occasion..Last power outage it ran my 50 inch tv and the internet router all day....

Like was said earlier,there not for everyone but some find them usefull like myself....If you shop and watch,they can be found really cheap...Saw a 1500wh Bluetti with a 1000 watt inverter for $368 for a very short time but I bought a 100ah lifepo4 instead..lol

Lance 9.6
400 watts solar mounted/200 watts portable
500ah Lifep04

Gdetrailer

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Posted: 08/22/22 08:37am

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jaycocreek wrote:

I think they have some "merit" for low power/low demand portable use for short time uses.

Sort of like the tiny 500W 2cycle gens that Harbor Freight sold back in the 1970s for under $100..

But to use to "expand" your RVs battery system, it isn't a good choice due to them being much more expensive than just buying additional batteries per Ahr and as I pointed out.

In the case of EBL the only way you get 12V is through the cig lighter plug which is limited to 8A or 8Ahr if you like or you have to use the inverter output to power your converter to add to your battery capacity which is double conversion. With double conversion you easily are losing 20% of your capacity for each conversion so 83Ahr now becomes about 50Ahr..

Makes sense if you are going to be several hundred feet away from your RV and need some power without running an long extension cord.. But to sit beside your RV to power a TV or fridge, not so much..

jaycocreek

Idaho

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Posted: 08/22/22 09:05am

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Quote:

But to use to "expand" your RVs battery system, it isn't a good choice due to them being much more expensive than just buying additional batteries per Ahr and as I pointed out.

I agree 100%..

There idle draw is out of this world and for lower wattage use also..I see the people read the reviews and complaints and they still buy them..Unbelievable..

JtTribe

California

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Posted: 08/30/22 08:52am

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I agree with jaycocreek they have their place in regards to mobility and packaging. I've personally have 2 lithium batteries in my rv with a 2000w inverter however, that's more of a setup and forget situation. In my jeep when overlanding and offroading the convience of mobility of like an EBL or other brand packs are my go to. Enough power to stay self efficient with a 12v fridge and electronics/ heating blanket. I have some findings from my last 30 day trip using one ill post it on here soon.

JtTribe

California

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Posted: 09/05/22 08:37pm

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Alright ladies and gentlemen, I’m back to report on how my testing was with the EBL Voyager 1000 I tested. To start things off, I’m an outdoors off-road enthusiast who loves spending his time outdoors regardless of the activity. Some of my main hobbies are boating, fishing, camping, and off-roading on my quad or dirt bike. I also spend an average of 50 nights per year in my roof top tent. Mind you I still manage to work full time as a System Administrator in the IT field. I’m fortunate enough to have the opportunity to telework. So long as I have power for my laptop, phone and have decent signal I can work anywhere. That is where this 1000-watt-hour unit and 100-watt Solarapollo panel come into play.

I can be mobile with this unit. It is small enough, light enough, and super easy to carry with its built-in handle. The total unit weight is 18lbs. Daily at any given time, I can simultaneously charge my laptop, phone, and power or charge another device so long as I don’t exceed the recommended limit. Even then this unit has a safety feature to automatically shut off if your power draw exceeded the limit.

I did some charge testing on this unit and was able to charge the following items x number of times with 1 test per item starting at a full Voyager battery. - HP laptop 20 full charges - Samsung Note Tested with over 25 full charges - Roof Top Tent lighting tested over 90 straight runtime hours - Electric heated blanket 5 hours straight runtime for 4 nights in a row - Portable 12v fan 62-hour straight runtime - Drone batteries 23 full charges - Cannon camera batteries tested over 20 full charges with plenty of room for more (Solarapollo 100Watt Panel)

Would I recommend this unit to? This unit is a midsize unit there are smaller size units however its all dependent on the power you need for your rigs. I would recommend to anyone who likes to spend some time outdoors and has the need to power some electronics or creature comforts. It can support devices for a family of 4 easily with moderate use. If you also plan on using a solar Solarapollo panel for charging you could essentially have continuous power indefinitely so long as your cautious on your usage and have adequate amount of sun. Specs: This unit has 3 USB- A, 1 USB- C, 12v, and 2 AC outputs, and wireless charging. It also has a DC input for charging via cigarette lighter. You can also pair with the unit a Solarapollo panel and essentially run continuous power while keeping this unit’s battery topped off. Recharge Times: AC Adapter: 8-12 hours via 12V Car adapter, Solara

pianotuna

Regina, SK, Canada

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Posted: 09/06/22 01:04am

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JtTribe,

Thanks for the report. How much does the unit cost?

Regards, Don
My ride is a 28 foot Class C, 256 watts solar, 556 amp-hours of Telcom jars, 3000 watt Magnum hybrid inverter, Sola Basic Autoformer, Microair Easy Start.