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"Watt" Portable Power Station and/or solar panel combo are you using?

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussion' started by Black Wolf, Jun 7, 2022.

  1. Jul 25, 2022 at 11:12 AM
    #151
    Tundra234

    Tundra234 New Member

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  2. Jul 25, 2022 at 1:05 PM
    #152
    BayRunner

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    Thanks for the links. Those look like it will do the job:

    • Battery: 200 amp hours, 2400 watt hours will run your dryer for 34 hours before needing charging.
    • Solar panels: 4 x 100 watt panels giving a total of 400 watt charging. Usually only get about 75% charging in direct sun so count on 300 watt charging g is direct sun.
    • Controller: needed to manage the solar charging
    • Sine wave inverter: needed to plug you AC plug from the dryer to the battery.
    Overall looks like a good setup and I think Renogy is a good company. By no means is this a portable setup so if you are counting using this for mobile camping then is is not the right setup. This is a fixed mound setup. Hope this helps

    Edit: the only thing to consider is if there are several days of clouds, the battery could run out of juice.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2022
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  3. Jul 25, 2022 at 1:14 PM
    #153
    Tundra234

    Tundra234 New Member

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    Thanks. Yeah I'm not sure what to do. It sucks having no power at the storage place. Jackery recommended their Explorer 2000 Pro power station, but it says that it needs 6 solar sells to charge it. Their cells that they recommend at $699 each. :eek:

    https://www.jackery.com/products/explorer-2000-pro-portable-power-station
     
  4. Jul 25, 2022 at 2:30 PM
    #154
    BayRunner

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    That Jackery unit is over priced. If you wish to also have a portable power station that you can take camping, this is what I suggest:

    • Get the Bluetti AC200Max power station. This provides 2048 watt hours which will power your dryer for 29 hours at 70 watts. You can then take this with you when you need power while camping. It is also considerable cheaper than Jackery and has a better LifePO battery.
    • https://www.bluettipower.com/products/ac200max-power-station
    • The Bluetti uses a standard MC4 connector for solar panels, so you can still use the Renogy solar panels and connect with an MC4 wiring setup. You’ll need Y adapters to connect multiple panels. The good thing is that the Bluetti can handle up to 900 watts of solar charging so you can have up to 9 or 10 Renogy solar panels. Remember that the actual solar charging is only about 75% so that’s why I said up to 10 panels. As cheap as the Renogy panels are, this is the most cost affective setup for solar panels.
    • This setup will give you the best of both worlds. Fast 900 watts of fixed solar charging and a portable power pack that can be used elsewhere.
     
  5. Jul 25, 2022 at 3:09 PM
    #155
    Tundra234

    Tundra234 New Member

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    Looks like a descent unit. There is a combo on Amazon where it comes with a 200 watt solar panel. I don't need a "rapid charge" but would I need more than the 200 watt panel for charging?

    BLUETTI Solar Generator AC200MAX with 200W Solar Panel Included, 2048Wh Portable Power Station w/ 4 2200W AC Outlets, LiFePO4 Battery Pack, Expandable to 8192Wh for Home Backup, RV Camping, Emergency https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B61SB751
     
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  6. Jul 25, 2022 at 4:12 PM
    #156
    BayRunner

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    That’s a decent price to include a solar panel. That solar panel is a folding portable type with a “kickstand” setup. It’s definitely good for camping but leaving it unattended I would think would need some type of structure to keep it pointed towards the sun. Very easy for wind to blow it off the little kickstand and then it’s flat on the ground. But it’s defiantly easier to deal with than many fixed panels wired together and mounted on some sort of structure. You’ll get about 150 watts of charging with that panel in direct sun. So in a simple scenario of a sunny day:
    • Your dryer uses 70 watts per hour. A 12 hour night will drain the battery by 840 watts
    • Next morning and a sunny day, 12 hours of sun will charge about 150 watts per hour for a total of 1800 watts
    • Through out the day the dryer is still using 70 watts per hour for again a total of 840 watts of use.
    • 1800 watts of solar charge minus 840 watts of dryer use will still yield a plus 960 watts for the day
    • So in a sunny day and ideal conditions, that panel could keep up with the needed charging.
    • On the flip side, if you get a day of pure clouds and no sun that day, the battery could drain after three 12 hour cycles of no solar charging (night, day of clouds, night) . This would be true regardless of the solar array used and also the setup Renogy proposed.
     
  7. Jul 25, 2022 at 5:48 PM
    #157
    Tundra234

    Tundra234 New Member

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    Thanks for the info. I can easily come up with something for mounting the panel when unattended. It sounds like this setup would be the way to go and definitely better than damprid or nothing at all.
     
  8. Jul 25, 2022 at 6:27 PM
    #158
    BayRunner

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    Sounds good. BTW, I just had one of those Bluetti AC200Max delivered and it’s a good size unit. Comes in close to 60 lbs.
     
  9. Jul 25, 2022 at 7:18 PM
    #159
    Tundra234

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    Wow...sounds solid.
     
  10. Aug 3, 2022 at 9:29 AM
    #160
    Shamrock92

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    Ok - so this damn place is getting to be hazardous for my wallet.

    Made me decide I needed to get one of these things. Was researching getting something in event of storms/use around the farm - wound up snagging a deal on a Bluetti EB70S off eBay. Was around $430 shipped - thought I’d try it out - worst case of t shows up and isn’t quite up to their standard - I paid with Amex so get their extended warranty protection.

    Looked at EB120 on Amazon direct from Bluetti for 799 - seems to be a little more power and capacity / but also heavier. I’m kind of debating - would it serve me better having more capacity around the house ? Guess I try out what I bought before jumping up to the next level.

    Now to find a decent solar panel - might watch harbor freight tent sale for a couple. Don’t have to get the highest capacity / but faster is always better too.
     
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  11. Aug 3, 2022 at 11:40 AM
    #161
    BayRunner

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    Yea, this site tends to create bad spending habits. :)
     
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  12. Aug 3, 2022 at 3:39 PM
    #162
    Shamrock92

    Shamrock92 New Member

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    Starting with dropping 55 grand on a new Tundra and immediately dumping another 5 in “upgrades”
     
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  13. Aug 3, 2022 at 3:56 PM
    #163
    BayRunner

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    CFAC7834-453C-4095-9CE9-210745637C84.jpg
     
  14. Aug 4, 2022 at 9:55 PM
    #164
    SAGE63

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    Are you sure that is all.... not 10 11 15...
     
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  15. Aug 4, 2022 at 10:08 PM
    #165
    BayRunner

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    :rofl: I stopped counting a long time ago. Easier to swallow that way.

    Me: Might get this for the truck. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten anything.

    Wife: It was just yesterday.
     
  16. Aug 5, 2022 at 8:32 AM
    #166
    Warreng

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    Bluetti 150 for our fridge. Sits just perfect in the DC.

    3DD7B6B0-F75E-43FC-885C-E5A4E7192097.jpg
     
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  17. Aug 5, 2022 at 8:59 AM
    #167
    dittothat

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    id skip the HF panel and wait (if you can) until the renogy panels go on sale on Amazon. Black Friday the 100w were $65. I doubt you’ll find a cheaper $/watt than that. Not bad panels too. Anyway, just my $.02
     
  18. Aug 6, 2022 at 8:06 AM
    #168
    Shamrock92

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    So I’m starting with a Dokio(so) off Amazon. It’s portable - 100 watt and was like $119.

    Portable is a selling point for at least 1 - I’ll likely get a couple to mount aroumd the farm at a few points and these look like good options for that. As mentioned - price per watt is lowest / just need to watch for a sale. Up there it doesn’t matter of I have the fastest/highest watt as my needs will just be keeping a couple of backup units charged and then using them for some light duty in backwoods.

    For the main home and travel needs - plan is get a higher capacity unit eventually and probably a 200 watt portable panel. Stuff ain’t cheap - but really the price is small compared with being without power the first ice storm or hurricane that comes a bit farther inland than expected.
     
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  19. Aug 6, 2022 at 8:11 AM
    #169
    dittothat

    dittothat New Member

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    @Shamrock92 if you have time, check out will prowse on YouTube. Guy is a solar guru. He has links on his videos to where to source larger capacity panels for really cheap. Like 300w for $50 kind of cheap. Obviously those panels are a tad too big for our trucks, but good info to have on hand
     
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  20. Mar 4, 2023 at 3:37 PM
    #170
    irontmp

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    I have spent the last month or so watching youtube videos like crazy on Solar generators. Being that I live in an apt that is really my only viable option for power in a loss of electricity type event. They are expensive but sometimes your best motto is "buy once cry once" when it comes to expensive items. It looks like I will spend just under $3000 on a unit with 400watts of solar panels and a faraday bag for it. Im trying to convince myself this will pay for itself in the long run. A gas or propane genny will not work in an apt at all so it is get a solar genny or get nothing at all. Being a newlywed I am concerned how my wife will fare in a grid down situation so I am wanting to make things as comfy as possible for her in case some type of event happens. Hurricane, tornado, tsunami, grid collapse etc Ive got it down to 2 solar generators but Im leaning towards one in particular. The bluetti 240 is my second choice. cost is aprox $2400-2500 with everything I need. it has 2400W of battery to use but the inverter is only 1000W so it isnt very strong. It will give me 1500 or more charges before 80% of battery is left. However it will run my refrigerator for a day or more. That will work! My first choice is the Bluetti 200P which has 2000W of battery storage and a 2000 W inverter. it is capable of 3500 charges before going down to 80% battery capacity. This unit also has quicker recharging abilities and more ways to recharge it. at a cost of $300 more so far this is my choice because of the superior battery and more ways to charge. Does anyone have any real world experience with any of these products? Both will fit my needs I think
     
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  21. Mar 22, 2023 at 2:44 AM
    #171
    RichterScale

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    Not a portable power station, but a possible option that I haven't seen on the table yet:
    Renogy 40amp DC-DC charger
    Renogy 2000w inverter
    (2) Duracell deep cell 6v golf car batteries wired in series.
    I had this setup in my van for a couple years and got one long road trip out of it before losing the van in a wreck. I pulled it all out and may reuse it in the truck.
    I had a 110 receptacle hard wired to the inverter and a 12vdc fuse panel for everything else. 12v was a chest fridge, water pump, maxair roof vent fan, lights and a few small computer fans. The hardwired 110 outlet ran a household hair dryer and a toaster. They were both under 1000 watts and we only ran one appliance at a time. Besides that, I only used it a few times to for the tool battery chargers.
    The DC-DC charger keeps the batteries charged when the engine is running.
    It's more work to install and more permanent than a portable unit, but everything I needed to be operational cost me well under $1000. I haven't priced anything lately. I put this together in early 2020 and I want to say the charger was $150ish, inverter was under $300, batteries were under $100 each, and then the DC fuse panel, wiring, ends, doodads, etc.
    If you camp and road trip a lot, have a space for it in the vehicle and don't mind the installation, it's one option to consider.
    A $2-5k portable unit and monkeying with solar panels wasn't for me.
    I also didn't have to do much math or worry about how much sun I got on a given day.
     
    Last edited: Mar 22, 2023
  22. Mar 22, 2023 at 6:27 AM
    #172
    BayRunner

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    Yea, DC to DC charging is ideal when your running a bank of lithium batteries in your truck (vehicle). Lithium batteries put too much strain on the alternator for charging so the DC to DC does well to recharge the bank after dry camping use.
     
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  23. Mar 23, 2024 at 12:02 PM
    #173
    Black Wolf

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    Testing out my new EcoFlow setup. Two 110W panels connected to the River 2 Pro.



    20240323_125426.jpg
    20240323_130629.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2024 at 12:11 PM
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