Portable Power Pack

[OllieChristopher]

Maybe its just another manifestation of the recent trend of changing meanings of words to suit nefarious social agendas.

Ultimately, "marketing" is just as evil as war-mongering and fascism.

Would it be asking too much to please stay on topic? Those kind of comments do not belong anywhere on Expedition Portals platform and serves no purpose.

So here is my Solar Generator setup:


The beauty of it is versatility in a very small and lightweight package!! It can be used as a solar generator or power pack. I can plug my inverter into my truck beds 12 volt port or Anderson connector socket. Then it it will quick dual charge my Jackery 300 by plugging my USB C and 110v power brick into the inverter.

Or I plug my Jackery into one of my truck beds 12 volt sockets and lay out my solar panel when stopped and camping for dual charging through my solar charge controller. This will charge both house battery and Jackery at the same time. The solar panel can also be plugged directly into the Jackery solar generator. Lots of options in a compact package.

My next step is to get a small 12v cooler, portable compressor, and some led lights for the truck bed. Between my house battery and the Jackery 300 It's more than enough for my needs. I can even charge my cordless, phones, tools, jump pack, and drones with this. The only upgrade needed will be another 100 watt solar panel for the long trips.

 

[john61ct]

I have an isolated auxiliary battery mounted under the hood, charged solely off the alternator.

If we’re referring to batteries by what’s charging them does that make my battery an alternator generator? Maybe an engine generator? Maybe it’s a gasoline generator.

Well said.

It's a battery. Make it easily portable, it's a lithium battery in a box.

Add some connectors and circuitry for conversion / charging / monitoring

it's a powerpack.

When you find one that lets me easily replace the battery inside when it's EoL, rather than assuming I'm OK with just tossing the whole unit, let me know.

 

[OllieChristopher]

When you find one that lets me easily replace the battery inside when it's EoL, rather than assuming I'm OK with just tossing the whole unit, let me know.

Look no further than the Jackery solar generators!! Very easy to service with simple hand tools. All the components are replaceable. With over 500 full discharge to charge cycles and even after that having 80% of usable battery charge, it's going to last a long time before batteries will need replacement.

Anyone that can build their own solar generator will have no issues servicing a Jackery. And with a three year warranty it can't be beat for value, function and usability.

Also it is going to be very difficult to get the same amp hours out of a portable DIY solar generator and stay at or under the weight and size of a Jackery.

Now of course it can be argued that with a DIY you get to pick and choose your components. If that is what you are looking for then go to it. It's all a compromise with whatever you choose.

 

[john61ct]

Look no further than the Jackery

Excellent!

a purchase link to the replacement battery would be appreciated

from anyone, or I'll google later

 

[john61ct]

Still, most lithium powerpack vendors do not even offer replacement batteries.

The old-school lead jumpstarters just used stock little 12V units used to cost maybe $15.

Ha ! Of course ‘easy’ is relative...
I seen inside a Jackery. Its not like UPS where anybody can open a cover and exchange its battery.
Jackery requires substantial disassembly to exchange.

 

[OllieChristopher]

I seen inside a Jackery. Its not like UPS where anybody can open a cover and exchange its battery.
Jackery requires substantial disassembly to exchange.

A solar generator is a completely different device than a UPS. The UPS runtime is measured in minutes so of course the batteries are easy to change. I too have seen inside a Jackery solar generator. It is no more difficult to access components than a home built unit.

I can understand if it's complicated for you. There is no shame in that. And that might be a reason to consider an already built solar generator anyway.

Still, most lithium powerpack vendors do not even offer replacement batteries.

Reason replacement batteries are not offered is because they are going to be obsolete by the time they fail. Lithium technology is moving so fast forward that the battery you install in your DIY unit today, is no longer being made by the time it needs to be replaced. And that time is going to be many many years and charge cycles down the road.

a purchase link to the replacement battery would be appreciated

from anyone, or I'll google later

Why are you needing to replace a battery so soon? No need to search for something that is not broken.. When it's time to replace the battery you measure the dimensions and build a battery bank that closely matches the watt/amp hours of the unit. This is no different or difficult than the DIY unit you built yourself. Easy peasy!

I get a good laugh at those who argue the ready made units are ready for the land fill when they break. News flash, anything on earth that is a man made mechanical device can and will fail at some point. It will eventually make it to the trash can no matter what it is.

Listen guys it's not rocket science. These solar generators are really slick units. Whether you make one yourself or purchase one ready to go there is always a compromise in price, weight and ease of use.

 

[jadmt]

I am surprised some of these DYI guys don't start putting together packages to sell. sounds like they have the ability to put together a far superior product than a Jackery 500 or 1000 at a much lower price point. Seems they could be making a nice profit by doing so.

 

[OllieChristopher]

I am surprised some of these DYI guys don't start putting together packages to sell. sounds like they have the ability to put together a far superior product than a Jackery 500 or 1000 at a much lower price point. Seems they could be making a nice profit by doing so.

I hear you there!! Unfortunately it is an impossible task when you factor in the labor involved. Even slapping one together quickly, a one off would take a good part of a day.

I'm excited to see the new Jackery 1500 that will be announced in less than a few weeks. And Jackery is also making a big daddy 2000 to compete with the others in that segment.

 

[jonathon]

I’m buying a Dometic PLB40 soon. I’ve tried to make the math work on DIY but it doesn’t pencil out for my uses. My requirements are:

• Portable
• Able to be charged at a low enough rate to use the 12v port in most vehicles
• Safe to keep in the passenger compartment
• Compatible with solar charging
• Runs my ARB 47l fridge all night

Lead batteries are heavy and with the requirement of needing to be AGM the price goes up to $250-$300 with the core charge. A 50ah LFP is much lighter and range from $400 for the Amazon special up to $575 for Battleborn.

Next I’d need a way to charge. The Victron 9 amp DC-DC charger is about $70 on Amazon and would be compatible with the factory upfitter wiring in my Ram which can safely handle 14 amps continuous draw. I’m not sure if 9 amps is too much for our Subaru’s 12v plug in the cargo area. Add a solar controller for as little as $20 for a cheap PWM controller or as much as $90 for a Victron 75/15 MPPT controller.

If I went Battleborn 50ah, Victron charger, and Victron solar controller I would be in it for about $740 before I even started on the box and wiring. I should be picking up the PLB40 for under $700 and while it may not charge as fast it is turn key and checks all the requirements.

Am I missing something?

 

[67cj5]

When I started looking around at various options to keep power to my 12v fridge (after coming from a Suburban that had a dual battery) the "choke point" always seemed to be: How do you charge up the battery pack when you don't have a 120vAC source?

I think the drawback to the commercial units is that because they are intended for a "plug and play" customer (i.e. a customer who is not adept or comfortable at doing any kind of electrical work) they are stuck to using the really marginal 12v "cigarette lighter" type power port that has become the industry default. Of course, we all know the problem with the "12v power port" is that it was never designed to be anything other than a cigarette lighter and as a result, is really limited in terms of the number of amps it can safely conduct. Most are fused at 10A and a very few at 15A, although if you look at the tiny wiring that is attached to those power ports, IMO even 10A is risky for any length of time.

But, until and unless a better "industry standard power port" becomes common (maybe something like the "Powerlet" ports used on many modern adventure-type motorcycles) the power-box manufacturers are stuck with it. As a result, any "power box" is going to be very slow to charge when hooked up to a 12v DC source unless the user adds a DC-DC charger (which is ultimately what I did.)

My Dometic PLB-40's 12v Sockets are rated at 15A, I like em because what the fridge uses during night is very little and the Solar or Cigar Socket in the Van can charge it back up in less than an hour. At night it will use less than 0.42Ah per hour Or equal to 13% of the power over a 12h + period.

I love the charging speed, It's a game changer.

 

[67cj5]

I’m buying a Dometic PLB40 soon. I’ve tried to make the math work on DIY but it doesn’t pencil out for my uses. My requirements are:

• Portable
• Able to be charged at a low enough rate to use the 12v port in most vehicles
• Safe to keep in the passenger compartment
• Compatible with solar charging
• Runs my ARB 47l fridge all night

Lead batteries are heavy and with the requirement of needing to be AGM the price goes up to $250-$300 with the core charge. A 50ah LFP is much lighter and range from $400 for the Amazon special up to $575 for Battleborn.

Next I’d need a way to charge. The Victron 9 amp DC-DC charger is about $70 on Amazon and would be compatible with the factory upfitter wiring in my Ram which can safely handle 14 amps continuous draw. I’m not sure if 9 amps is too much for our Subaru’s 12v plug in the cargo area. Add a solar controller for as little as $20 for a cheap PWM controller or as much as $90 for a Victron 75/15 MPPT controller.

If I went Battleborn 50ah, Victron charger, and Victron solar controller I would be in it for about $740 before I even started on the box and wiring. I should be picking up the PLB40 for under $700 and while it may not charge as fast it is turn key and checks all the requirements.

Am I missing something?

I use the PLB to run my ARB 47L and another to run my ARB 78L, The 47L uses very little power at night so the PLB can be topped up in less than an Hour.

 

[jonathon]

I use the PLB to run my ARB 47L and another to run my ARB 78L, The 47L uses very little power at night so the PLB can be topped up in less than an Hour.

That is awesome!

 

[1000arms]

"Battery Packs" are storage devices. "Battery Packs" aren't "Solar Generators". Refrigerators aren't "Food Generators".

I think "Solar Generator" is a deceptive and dishonest marketing term when applied to a battery pack. Battery packs are storage devices, which are charged and discharged, but don't generate electricity. Refrigerators are also storage devices. One can put food in a fridge (at least until it is...

expeditionportal.com

... Take the solar panels out of the loop and now you have a power pack. ...

Thank you for acknowledging that.

 

[NitroExpress]

I purchased a Goal Zero Yeti 500x thinking it would be a premium solution to providing power to my Dometic CFX 55IM fridge. Unfortunately, the unit (after testing for two weeks with no problem) would randomly shut down the 12v power outlet (I tried both the cigar plug and the 6mm output plug). After ruining food and causing a lot of headache on a 10 day trip, I returned and attempted to troubleshoot and solve the problem with Goal Zero. Unfortunately, their customer service is terrible, so I'm back to looking for a workable solution.

My use case is just to simply power the fridge for up to 20 hours, and refill the "not-a-solar-generator" from the built in 115v outlet in the bed of my Jeep while I drive. Aside from the faults with the Goal Zero product, this was working well for my needs.

I'm currently considering:
Jackery Explorer 500
Dometic PLB40
Purchase a Battle Born 50ah battery and a proper charger

The National Luna box is very interesting, but way overkill for my use.

I wish the form factor on the Jackery was different. With the handle sticking up, it will force me to re-think where I mount it vs. the Goal Zero.

 

[67cj5]

I purchased a Goal Zero Yeti 500x thinking it would be a premium solution to providing power to my Dometic CFX 55IM fridge. Unfortunately, the unit (after testing for two weeks with no problem) would randomly shut down the 12v power outlet (I tried both the cigar plug and the 6mm output plug). After ruining food and causing a lot of headache on a 10 day trip, I returned and attempted to troubleshoot and solve the problem with Goal Zero. Unfortunately, their customer service is terrible, so I'm back to looking for a workable solution.

My use case is just to simply power the fridge for up to 20 hours, and refill the "not-a-solar-generator" from the built in 115v outlet in the bed of my Jeep while I drive. Aside from the faults with the Goal Zero product, this was working well for my needs.

I'm currently considering:
Jackery Explorer 500
Dometic PLB70
Purchase a Battle Born 50ah battery and a proper charger

The National Luna box is very interesting, but way overkill for my use.

I wish the form factor on the Jackery was different. With the handle sticking up, it will force me to re-think where I mount it vs. the Goal Zero.

My PLB-40's have been running fine for 2 years and they make life so easy. I like using them with my small Dometic fridge because it will run for 4 or 5 days from the PLB-40 and it will run my larger fridges for 3 or 4 days depending on the ambient Temp.

Hope you get it sorted soon.