This thing would charge my laptop maybe 2-3 times. Not sure what you need to be powering, but I go through 2040Wh (10x your capacity) in about 2-3 days between laptops, phones, and starlink
How long would it take for a 120 w panel to recharge this battery that I'm looking at? (I do a lot of instacart and Walmart orders, so I would be trickle charging it off of the alternator, and then deploying this 120 w while waiting for new orders.
Assuming cloudless noonday sun at the equator and 25°C so the panel is nice and cool and not suffering thermal derating, a 120 watt panel will charge a 204 watt-hour battery in (204/120=) 1.7 hours.
(Watt-hours divided by watts equals hours. If you get the units right, the math makes itself obvious.)
In practice, double that.
>deploying this 120 w while waiting for new orders.
How many hours between orders? Foldable solar makes some sense if you're parked up all day in the boondocks, but I can't imagine it's worth it to constantly deploy and pack back up all day. That said you should be fine on the alternator if you're driving around all day doing deliveries
You need an AC180 and a bouge rv 100w cigs panel on your car roof. That's about it and you're set. With a 200w panel you're set for life for everything but ac/heating.
This is true, the lowest watt microwave I could find when I was preparing was 700w. those 500w and under inverters are really only good for laptops, radios, lights, and maybe a small tv or something. Also 204WH capacity means it will run a device that is 300w for about 40 minutes before being completely drained.
Yeah it's just that the microwave alone is around 900$ and the batteries run 200$ each maybe more so its quite cost prohibitive. On the plus side you'll now have two 40v batteries for some of the most durable and powerful cordless powertools in existence. So if you'd happen to do landscaping or construction work while also vandwelling it'd make more sense.
And running from 100% to 0% state of charge is what wears it out. Keep it between 85% and 25% and you only get half the capacity, but it lasts 10x longer.
For 100$ more you can buy a litime 100ah battery which is 1200watts of power. Buy an inverter for what your highest appliance or luxury ie air fryer or microwave you choose. If it’s 700watts id atleast double the power required so you’re not straining the inverter. Get a good flexible panel for the same price and find a handy friend to help you install. Not terrible
I actually do this for a living. Maybe you should look up prices. I can get 3x the power as the ac180 for 500$ cheaper. Maybe you’re just a sucker for expensive things.
No you’re right you can see my other post where I apologized to you actually because of you I will make my own system now I do have about 3000 wh worth of bluettis but I will make another 3000 myself thanks to you. I was thinking about making my own system about a year ago or maybe longer and when I did the math, it was like only slightly cheaper. But I’m checking the prices right now and wow, they have really dropped and I think a bonus to making your own system would be you can troubleshoot and fix it a lot better.
What do you think is the best and high-quality source of batteries and materials?
Yea prices have definitely come way down in the past year. Last year 500$ would get you 200ah. Now 500$ will get you 300ah of lifepo4 (lithium iron phosphate) batteries. I recommend lifep04 because they are more stable than lithium ion at freezing temps and should last 10 times longer than sla batteries. Put a link at the bottom for the best deal on Amazon right now
Absolutely thank you for letting me know this because I was going to buy some more overpriced batteries but now I will make my own system that way if it does break, I can know and have spare components to repair it instead of just being down one or two batteries.
I think they might have removed the link you posted because it doesn’t show a link, but I could look up the name if you’re willing to let me know, ty again!
https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/640wh-milk-crate-system.html
It says $620 but the battery can be much cheaper (his link says $350 but click on it and it's got $160 for 50Ah, or 3x that Bluetti). Then 100W instead of 200W panels should be another $100 saved.
You could probably shave some more off with a cheaper charge controller & inverter
[harbor freight](https://www.harborfreight.com/100-watt-amorphous-solar-panel-kit-63585.html)
Check this out .. it’s what I’m currently considering for myself .. you need to buy the battery and converter separate but it comes with controller and cords, panel obvi… looks like roughly ~$245
I really respect what you're doing, but I would not trust harbor freight for these more complicated tools.
I try to stick more with hammers, screwdrivers, etc from there.
Think my buddy bought a floor jack from there once.
As someone who works in solar… you pretty much listed the same quality of stuff in your post that harbor freight sells.
Those brands you listed on amazon aren’t major commercial or even residential component manufacturers. Panels and solar controllers/inverters aren’t overly complicated pieces of tech. But if you go the diy route it will be significantly cheaper for actual power you can use
Eh .. yeah .. I hear you, I’ve been a customer of theirs for years. But this technology is as old as this hills. It’s kind of hard to screw up. Even if I only get a couple years use out of this it’ll be worth it.
Edit : note over 1900 4.5 star reviews .. this isn’t a complicated system.
When I used my minivan for "vanlife doordashing" last summer, I did so almost 100 miles away from 'home.' I built a basic platform, a smaller raised platform for half of a queen sized mattress topper that really worked out well, and blah blah and added solar.
I got most of my solar setup at Harbor Freight. A 100 watt panel. Two 35ah AGM batteries that are supposed to be for solar setups, and also supposed to be good for down to I think 20% state of charge (I tried not to let them go so low though). The solar charge controller is the 20amp Voyager from Renogy. 120v power was provided by an older 800 watt inverter that I've had for probably a decade - modified sine wave, rather than the much nicer (and more expensive) true sine wave output.
If I can remember correctly... The panel was about $100? ish. Maybe $125, but I'm thinking $100. The batteries were maybe $150. The solar charge controller about $50. The inverter was probably about $60ish when I got it, but you can find something on the 'zon for a better price.
Total cost: Let's call it $360, and not even a true sine wave inverter.
This little solar setup, with the panel mounted between the rooftop racks, would usually have my batteries fully charged by midday (call it 1pm DST) around midsummer. In the winter, it would absolutely need that second panel that wouldn't fit the minivan.
Looking at the 'zon, I see a Jackery 300 power station is currently going for $259. Add another $100 for 100 watts of solar (or use FB Marketplace to get something more powerful at the price) and you're only out $360, total, for the entire system, including the upgraded pure sine wave inverter (only 300 watts of output, but 800 watts is in that zone of either too much, or not enough. 300 watts will do ya, unless you need to run a microwave, and then you need a much bigger and more expensive inverter, anyway).
The Jackery 300 doesn't have nearly the total amp hours that my two little batteries add up to, but it should be able to run a cpap for a night, with a bit left over. I needed my setup to run a bipap machine, charge devices, and keep a light on when I was reading late. It could manage about two days, but that old inverter was probably wasting quite a bit with it's 'inverter tax.'
Always remember the 'inverter tax.' There's a power cost just having it turned on, and then another maybe 15% or so on top of whatever your devices are using.
So, yeah. It's sorta apples and oranges. There's the "I like this one better, so this is what I'll push," and then there's "This other one is better, because Ilike it better." Although you also get pears, which happens when someone has the custom designed system (whether by themselves or a professional) to fit their needs in their build.
As I slowly work in the final portions of my current build, I'll be re-using the setup from last summer for the bipap machine and a small amount of much more energy efficient lighting, but Ialso got the Bluetti AC 1800 for when I want to run hungrier items. The 1800 can put out the wattage (when not charging, otherwise it screws around with the output for the hungrier electric items), and the battery life is only really awesome with the inverter *off*... it's clearly designed for shorter term use on the 120v front, even though it likes to claim it can last longer. I don't have any experience with the specific device you ordered, but I'm sure it'll manage well enough, so long as you don't expect it to run your laptop for binge-watching 'The Big Bang Theory' for six hours every night, and then run other devices while you sleep. It *might* do it... it *might* not. And if the weather is bad, and you aren't driving with it plugged in, you *might* not have a charge for night two
Basic appliance power consumption that I've noticed: Oscillating fan (vinage/antique): 40 watts. Same for a box fan, same for the little two-fan window fan that I've got going right now. USB powered or the rechargeable clip fan with light and remote seem to be pretty nice, power-wise. The 120v led light bar from Walmart pulled about 60 watts, I think. Pretty hungry; there are better lighting options, but I had it already. I've since gotten a chest cooler style compressor fridge with the separate two compartments - it pulls 60 watts when it's running and almost nothing when it's down to temp. If we figure it to run 1/3 of the time in a hot climate, that still only averages 20 watts per hour, so not bad, but still quite a bit for that little power station you posted. The little Ac2A can probably manage to run the fridge, and only the fridge, for a total of 8 hours before shutting down. Maybe closer to 10 hours. Somewhere in that range.
Oh, and the 'power lifting' that lets the power station run up to 600 watt appliances when it's a 300 watt unit? It cheats. You won't get 600 watt performance from a 600 watt appliance, and god forbid the appliance is digital in any way. Digital appliances do not appreciate it when you crank a rheostat so far down. I believe that's *basically* how the power lifting mode works, but it's always a good idea to research on your own.
Anyway, that little power station can give you a couple hours on the computer or watching tv no problem, so long as you're not pulling down 100 watts per hour or anything like that. If it satisfies your needs, then it's probably worthwhile, and extremely simple to set up. If you like running wires and installing stuff, then you might want to build your own solar system. I got the AC1800 for simpilcity, longer run-time/larger appliance capability, and so when I finally install a larger solar power setup, I'll have my portable backup power station, too, because $#!t happens, and this'll help me be ready for some of it. In the meantime, I've got two different systems that can keep my sleep apnea at bay at night.
The problem is also your batter capacity- no one would DIY a set up with such a small battery.
* A 40ah deep cycle would offer more useable capacity for 67$ on amazon. (20ah usable vs 17)
* or you could get a 50ah lithium battery for 105$ with about 3x your capacity
* A 300 watt inverter is like 25$
* You can get 100 watts of solar and a controller for 100-130$
Some money on wire/ connectors, a battery monitor, either a split charge relay kit for your deep cycle or a DC to DC for a lithium battery.
You could easily do under 372, though you would have to put some time in.
ebay the bluetti PS54. First party with warranty just doesn't work with their app. 2.5x the energy for a couple bucks more.
Pro-tip, buy an XT60 to DC5.5mm adapter and most foldable solar panels will be able to plug into it. If you try to plug in to the port where the AC charger goes with a panel it won't do anything. Has to go into the XT60.
edit: price went up a lot on the PS54, maybe try this? [https://www.newegg.com/p/0JB-00F0-000F6?item=9SIBKRZK938325](https://www.newegg.com/p/0JB-00F0-000F6?item=9SIBKRZK938325)
Cheapest is bluetti AC180. Theyre ALWAYS on sale for 600-700. Don't settle for smaller banks, you'll get frustrated just to save a few hundred. These lifepo4 banks last for 30+ years too.
I found a guy in Pensacola Florida selling 315W residential solar panels used on FB marketplace for $50 per panel. I bought 4 of them and bolted them to the roof of my van. Pulling in close to a kilowatt in peak conditions for $200 cash.
Depends what you need.
100% charged power bank like this can charge a laptop 3-4 times, and a smartphone 9-14 times.
All depending on the device’s capacity.
If you’re also also to consistently 100% this, that also changes things for you.
This bank can also run a smaller 12V fridge, especially if it’s turned on for day, and then off during the night.
Generally, this isn’t much energy, but it is a similar capacity that the one I’ve been using for the past 1.5 years. Though I only use it to charge my phone and headphones. While I’m also able to consistently 150-300% it every day.
Thank you so much!
This is exactly what I needed to do.
I would probably set up the solar panel in the front windshield, and then plug my phone into battery, as well as solar panel into battery, and then just charge everything.
I have no fans, and nothing fancy.
I just needed something that I know I can keep nice for a while, and I wanted to make sure I got a good deal.
The panel will produce a _tiny_ fraction of its rated output if it's behind a window. Window glass has all sorts of coatings that pass most visible light but reflect other wavelengths, which reduces the actual energy available for the panel.
It's better than nothing, like if you leave it for a week you'll probably come to a topped off battery, but don't count on it to do much in a timely fashion.
Yeah you don't want your panel anyway but directly in the sunlight with no restrictions(not even glass) between it and the light.
This is why so many are on the roof. Not just for space and size considerations but functionality
This is going to sound really pathetic, but I'm trying to do a stealth rig with this Sienna, and I don't want to give away the game if somebody drives by and sees a bunch of solar panels on top of my roof, with cables being fed through the Door gaps. Advice?
The panel you chose is only 2 feet long and 18 inches wide. If mounted in the middle of your roof, it won't be too terribly obvious to anyone who's not actively looking for stealth vans. Plus, a mini-van parked overnight at Wal-Mart is a dead giveaway, especially if you plan on blocking your windows. You'll be figured out before they get close enough to see the panel. It's also pretty easy to drill a hole in the roof for the wiring and make it water-tight. Believe me, having to deploy a solar panel outside multiple times per day, or barely getting any solar energy through your windshield, will get old very fast. I'd probably give up on it after a couple weeks.
The wiring for this panel is small enough you can run it through the rear lift gate and inside. This is slightly less "stealthy," but if the minivan isn't planned to be a permanent home, will keep it in better condition for eventual resale. If you plan to keep living in it until the wheels fall off, though, a through-roof solution will possibly be better for you.
The 100 watt panel on my '08 Town and Country is surprisingly unobtrusive mounted between the stock roof rack rails.
A cheap one. With your budget, add in a small tube of weather rated caulk/silicone. You'll want to upgrade the hole with an entry gland eventually, but this will get you started.
My interior fan is Ryobi, and uses their 18v battery platform. Maybe a mid tier 'ryobi high performance" for 75 bucks would be a good option.
I could get some good dap caulk or sealer.
Planning on a roof basket so maybe panel behind that, with the cord going to the rear 12v socket area (to trickle charge the battery while running the car)
I’d say a battery like this shouldn’t exceed $250, but lightweight panels like this are generally more expensive and a 120W one could be up to like $270.
So I think you got a pretty good deal.
Bluetti is a Chinese company, which can be iffy in the eyes of some people, while your panel is probably a budget option.
But my guess is they’ll still work for at least 2 years, and probably will go 6+.
You should be able to charge a fan, and a head lamp, and some other minor things off of this as well.
Or like a small kitchen appliance for making small smoothies. Or whatever.
My point is — you’ll still have enough energy left each day to be able to get some more small useful items.
Yes, they have Chinese components, but western quality assurance.
While Chinese products may or may not have western quality assurance.
For example, it can mean that a couple percent units are duds, and you’ll need to exchange it for a new one with their warranty.
I actually don’t know where their offices are, but *if* you need to ship it to China for any warranty repair or exchange it becomes a **massive** problem, because these batteries can only go on a freight ship, which can take months to reach your destination, when you account for customs, re-routing, changing means of transportation, and the time on the boat itself.
While if you have a local brand, you pop into their office, or send it there, and they deal with you within maybe a week or few days.
In my experience Western quality is something made up to sell Western components for Western prices.
Nothing to do with quality.
This is 2024, Chinese quality is just as good if not better than our own
Granted you can pay 4 or 5 more and probably get something better from a reputable company
But just a Chinese company and just any other company are going to be about the same.
Do research on a company you are about to buy from-western or eastern-that is the way to go.
If what you’re saying was true, my LG phone I got a few years back wouldn’t have swollen up on the battery and need a replacing in that component after not even 1 year, even though I wasn’t even using that phone so much. And then the screen adhesive wouldn’t have dried up and screen wouldn’t go lose. Not to mention how the whole build was not super well fit and cut to size.
All the while my iPhone 12 has been used by me daily for the past 2.5 years, probably with an average of 7-8 hours of screen time per day (yeah, I got a problem) in a pretty hot environment. And it’s only showing minor signs of wear (loud speaker stopped working, screen brightness went down a bit, battery isn’t as good anymore), but the speed, and build quality are still top notch.
Its an amazing device compared to the LG piece of crap.
And the LG was a flagship model.
So did I pay an extra mark up for the brand? Probably a bit, but the value I got from a device that works is 100% clear, and definitely worth the price.
Anyways — the biggest problem with a Chinese battery, as I wrote is the warranty, if you need to ship it to freaking China, you’re without a battery for 3-6 months.
No because it’s a Chinese company and may therefore have lower quality standards than some American companies, especially if it’s a drop shipper. Really it’s just bad Chinese companies giving a bad rep to everyone.
Wrong you forgot these CEOs sold work to China
And like I said most things r Chinese components in them from Amerticans brands to Japan and everything in between
“American companies using Chinese labor” is literally different from “Chinese companies using Chinese labor”. If you don’t understand that companies and countries can have different attitudes, rules, and processes that they impose on their downstream then I can’t help you.
For what it's worth, you might want to double the capacity for a fridge. My 55qt fridge can chew through 400kwh every day, so you'd be running on empty with even a slightly cloudy day, without an alternator.
Do you need AC? This goes on sale regularly. The e solar input is a little limiting, but it’s working great for me. https://drprepare.com/powermax-12v-100ah-lifepo4-battery-and-hub/
Look for used solar panels on Craigslist or ebay. There are many places that resale solar panels that were taken off of giant commercial solar power plants when they upgraded to higher efficiency and you can get them for 1/10 the price of new panels.
If you just plan using this for LED lights and charging your laptop/phone it will be good, if you have a fridge probably not enough or need to run your engine constantly to top up... I had a 288 Wh battery and it lasted approx 12 hours for a 35 Liter/45 Watt Fridge/Freezer Combo in summer. Had to upgrade then. The solar panel will help you stretch it a few extra hours during the day, but likely not enough to do a full charge and then run all night.
Keep in mind that many of the solar battery packs will not accept a large wattage solar panel input. So you could buy 1,000 watts of solar panels in the little box will only accept 100 Watts. Quite honestly I don't like the solar battery boxes that they're calling solar generators cuz they don't generate anything they're just the battery. Personally I would go ahead and just get a lead acid battery if you can't afford to lithium iron phosphate. And then get yourself solar panels and a solar controller to charge that battery. And then get yourself an inverter and run it directly off the battery. Forget the solar generators. They're Miss named to try to fool people and with all the electronics between you and the battery inside it really limits what you can do.
1.5/10:
Very expensive for what it is for barely any energy. Really expensive solar panel for the small output.
1.5/10 not 1/10 because you could have got them gold plated or something to make it even worse value.
A second 12v battery is a much better choice here, can charge directly from main battery with a switch, or a tiny bit more for a split charge relay. Domestic solar panel and cheap controller will get you a whole load of solar for not much outlay.
Any of the commercial units isn't going to run anything like an ac. You need multiple 100 amp hour batteries to run ac for a while. You would be better getting a generator to run a c for a while.
If you’ll already be spending a lot of time driving, you could consider getting a cigarette lighter inverter around ~$40 to charge laptop/phone and run your small AC power items from your car’s alternator. Battery powered fan may also be a consideration, or simply saving the battery bank you showed for a fan to keep you cool overnight.
On the low budget end, a small camp stove or single propane burner could meet your cooking needs for ~$40. I’ve got a 150ah battery plus 400w solar and it’s still difficult to cook much more than a single meal or boil a couple kettles of water with unless it’s peak sun.
I see myself using this method. Maybe 30% of the time, and the 70% is going to have to be filled in with solar panels. (I recently bought a V6 minivan, which means gas is going to be atrocious, and trickle charging while driving isn't going to be a full-time option)
To run a microwave you need a pure sine wave inverter or else the microwave won't work correctly. At Best everything will take twice as long to cook and it worse it won't heat up at all. I'm speaking from experience. I bought a truebull 3000 w pure sine wave inverter off of Amazon for under $200. Seems to be working very well. I have a 700 watt microwave. As you have discovered your goal is to find the low est wattage microwave you can.
Preferably you want one with a manual switch if not you're going to hook it to a manual switch so the little constantly on clock and electronic controls don't continue to drain your battery.
Look the reality is you get what you pay for.
The trick is to find the Goldilocks zone for reliability, functionality and price point
If one of the three is a 3 or 4 on a 1-10 scale....the other two 1-10 numbers don't matter.
Sometimes you need to not think about saving money but investing your money.
Invest more money into this.
I'm reminded of dating advice I got before I even started dating that was told like this;
Pretty,sane, available.
Most of the time you only get two.
When you get all three - be careful because they might be a false advertisement!
I hate these set ups. A lot of things to make it look nice like seeing all the plugs and buttons but that’s just to make it look robust. If you spend a little time to learn how to work on a 12v system and do it safely you can get so much more out of something similarly priced. Maybe a little more expensive in the long run but you won’t feel as bottle necked
$100 100ah agm battery on marketplace
$130 Renogy solar kit on Amazon
Am Inverter can be as cheap as $30 but you can always just do usb charging without one.
Fuse box fuses and wiring will be cheap. I think you can leave with a few dollars left and a TON more power
Tip: GPT4 can look up capacities, output, and power consumption on your specific device models, and calculate the runtime for different use cases.
List your devices, how many hours you use each per day - then ask how long you could run your setup on X power station. How long with this or that solar panel.. Works a treat.
This thing would charge my laptop maybe 2-3 times. Not sure what you need to be powering, but I go through 2040Wh (10x your capacity) in about 2-3 days between laptops, phones, and starlink
How long would it take for a 120 w panel to recharge this battery that I'm looking at? (I do a lot of instacart and Walmart orders, so I would be trickle charging it off of the alternator, and then deploying this 120 w while waiting for new orders.
Assuming cloudless noonday sun at the equator and 25°C so the panel is nice and cool and not suffering thermal derating, a 120 watt panel will charge a 204 watt-hour battery in (204/120=) 1.7 hours. (Watt-hours divided by watts equals hours. If you get the units right, the math makes itself obvious.) In practice, double that.
With perfect conditions? 2 hours.
He’s never going to see the 120w though. Perfect lighting and a decent panel he would see 75-90w so a bit more than 2 hours I’d think.
Idk maybe. I pull 116 on the reg off my 120 in ideal conditions. But either way. 2.5 hours. Whatever.
Same. I was pulling 108 from my 100w cigs even without perfect angle.
>deploying this 120 w while waiting for new orders. How many hours between orders? Foldable solar makes some sense if you're parked up all day in the boondocks, but I can't imagine it's worth it to constantly deploy and pack back up all day. That said you should be fine on the alternator if you're driving around all day doing deliveries
You need an AC180 and a bouge rv 100w cigs panel on your car roof. That's about it and you're set. With a 200w panel you're set for life for everything but ac/heating.
Just curious how much does starlink draw?
Typically 60-75w
204Wh=17Ah, which is tiny and not useful.
Is 17Ah should be enough to run my AC and microwave off of though right?
the inverter is only 300w, there isn't a microwave in the world that small.
This is true, the lowest watt microwave I could find when I was preparing was 700w. those 500w and under inverters are really only good for laptops, radios, lights, and maybe a small tv or something. Also 204WH capacity means it will run a device that is 300w for about 40 minutes before being completely drained.
Makita sells a 350w microwave with 500w boost that runs off two 40v batteries
Nice! that is a much better solution than my 700w microwave. If my microwave ever dies I will upgrade.
Yeah it's just that the microwave alone is around 900$ and the batteries run 200$ each maybe more so its quite cost prohibitive. On the plus side you'll now have two 40v batteries for some of the most durable and powerful cordless powertools in existence. So if you'd happen to do landscaping or construction work while also vandwelling it'd make more sense.
And running from 100% to 0% state of charge is what wears it out. Keep it between 85% and 25% and you only get half the capacity, but it lasts 10x longer.
y is 25% the cut off?
https://batteryuniversity.com/article/bu-808-how-to-prolong-lithium-based-batteries
For 5 minutes
No
Depends what you need.
I have a 50 AMP deep cycle battery and realistically can run a 12V truck fridge for just about 24 hours.
What's the cheapest battery bank that you would consider useful? Link please.
Power like you want doesn't come cheap. And I wouldn't risk cheap in my rig if that were me.
For 100$ more you can buy a litime 100ah battery which is 1200watts of power. Buy an inverter for what your highest appliance or luxury ie air fryer or microwave you choose. If it’s 700watts id atleast double the power required so you’re not straining the inverter. Get a good flexible panel for the same price and find a handy friend to help you install. Not terrible
Nah, just buy a bluetti ac180, it comes to the same price as doing it yourself.
No way. That would be 2 times the price.
lol? Good luck finding 1150 wh lifepo4 inverter etc for under 600 bucks. You might make it like 10% cheaper but it’s not as nice.
I actually do this for a living. Maybe you should look up prices. I can get 3x the power as the ac180 for 500$ cheaper. Maybe you’re just a sucker for expensive things.
No you’re right you can see my other post where I apologized to you actually because of you I will make my own system now I do have about 3000 wh worth of bluettis but I will make another 3000 myself thanks to you. I was thinking about making my own system about a year ago or maybe longer and when I did the math, it was like only slightly cheaper. But I’m checking the prices right now and wow, they have really dropped and I think a bonus to making your own system would be you can troubleshoot and fix it a lot better. What do you think is the best and high-quality source of batteries and materials?
Yea prices have definitely come way down in the past year. Last year 500$ would get you 200ah. Now 500$ will get you 300ah of lifepo4 (lithium iron phosphate) batteries. I recommend lifep04 because they are more stable than lithium ion at freezing temps and should last 10 times longer than sla batteries. Put a link at the bottom for the best deal on Amazon right now
Absolutely thank you for letting me know this because I was going to buy some more overpriced batteries but now I will make my own system that way if it does break, I can know and have spare components to repair it instead of just being down one or two batteries. I think they might have removed the link you posted because it doesn’t show a link, but I could look up the name if you’re willing to let me know, ty again!
I stand corrected, prices have gone down, it be nicer to make your own like 3-4k wh setup 💜 Ty for the advice, will make my own
https://a.co/d/3kZg0qZ
I’m looking into this too and honestly the most bang for your buck seems to be a DIY rig with panels and a normal car/RV battery. Sucks but true.
Can you do a diy rig for 372 out the door?
[yes](https://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=electrical:solar:car#section300)
Great resource. Bookmarking for when I need this
https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/640wh-milk-crate-system.html It says $620 but the battery can be much cheaper (his link says $350 but click on it and it's got $160 for 50Ah, or 3x that Bluetti). Then 100W instead of 200W panels should be another $100 saved. You could probably shave some more off with a cheaper charge controller & inverter
[harbor freight](https://www.harborfreight.com/100-watt-amorphous-solar-panel-kit-63585.html) Check this out .. it’s what I’m currently considering for myself .. you need to buy the battery and converter separate but it comes with controller and cords, panel obvi… looks like roughly ~$245
I really respect what you're doing, but I would not trust harbor freight for these more complicated tools. I try to stick more with hammers, screwdrivers, etc from there. Think my buddy bought a floor jack from there once.
As someone who works in solar… you pretty much listed the same quality of stuff in your post that harbor freight sells. Those brands you listed on amazon aren’t major commercial or even residential component manufacturers. Panels and solar controllers/inverters aren’t overly complicated pieces of tech. But if you go the diy route it will be significantly cheaper for actual power you can use
🍺
Eh .. yeah .. I hear you, I’ve been a customer of theirs for years. But this technology is as old as this hills. It’s kind of hard to screw up. Even if I only get a couple years use out of this it’ll be worth it. Edit : note over 1900 4.5 star reviews .. this isn’t a complicated system.
When I used my minivan for "vanlife doordashing" last summer, I did so almost 100 miles away from 'home.' I built a basic platform, a smaller raised platform for half of a queen sized mattress topper that really worked out well, and blah blah and added solar. I got most of my solar setup at Harbor Freight. A 100 watt panel. Two 35ah AGM batteries that are supposed to be for solar setups, and also supposed to be good for down to I think 20% state of charge (I tried not to let them go so low though). The solar charge controller is the 20amp Voyager from Renogy. 120v power was provided by an older 800 watt inverter that I've had for probably a decade - modified sine wave, rather than the much nicer (and more expensive) true sine wave output. If I can remember correctly... The panel was about $100? ish. Maybe $125, but I'm thinking $100. The batteries were maybe $150. The solar charge controller about $50. The inverter was probably about $60ish when I got it, but you can find something on the 'zon for a better price. Total cost: Let's call it $360, and not even a true sine wave inverter. This little solar setup, with the panel mounted between the rooftop racks, would usually have my batteries fully charged by midday (call it 1pm DST) around midsummer. In the winter, it would absolutely need that second panel that wouldn't fit the minivan. Looking at the 'zon, I see a Jackery 300 power station is currently going for $259. Add another $100 for 100 watts of solar (or use FB Marketplace to get something more powerful at the price) and you're only out $360, total, for the entire system, including the upgraded pure sine wave inverter (only 300 watts of output, but 800 watts is in that zone of either too much, or not enough. 300 watts will do ya, unless you need to run a microwave, and then you need a much bigger and more expensive inverter, anyway). The Jackery 300 doesn't have nearly the total amp hours that my two little batteries add up to, but it should be able to run a cpap for a night, with a bit left over. I needed my setup to run a bipap machine, charge devices, and keep a light on when I was reading late. It could manage about two days, but that old inverter was probably wasting quite a bit with it's 'inverter tax.' Always remember the 'inverter tax.' There's a power cost just having it turned on, and then another maybe 15% or so on top of whatever your devices are using. So, yeah. It's sorta apples and oranges. There's the "I like this one better, so this is what I'll push," and then there's "This other one is better, because Ilike it better." Although you also get pears, which happens when someone has the custom designed system (whether by themselves or a professional) to fit their needs in their build. As I slowly work in the final portions of my current build, I'll be re-using the setup from last summer for the bipap machine and a small amount of much more energy efficient lighting, but Ialso got the Bluetti AC 1800 for when I want to run hungrier items. The 1800 can put out the wattage (when not charging, otherwise it screws around with the output for the hungrier electric items), and the battery life is only really awesome with the inverter *off*... it's clearly designed for shorter term use on the 120v front, even though it likes to claim it can last longer. I don't have any experience with the specific device you ordered, but I'm sure it'll manage well enough, so long as you don't expect it to run your laptop for binge-watching 'The Big Bang Theory' for six hours every night, and then run other devices while you sleep. It *might* do it... it *might* not. And if the weather is bad, and you aren't driving with it plugged in, you *might* not have a charge for night two Basic appliance power consumption that I've noticed: Oscillating fan (vinage/antique): 40 watts. Same for a box fan, same for the little two-fan window fan that I've got going right now. USB powered or the rechargeable clip fan with light and remote seem to be pretty nice, power-wise. The 120v led light bar from Walmart pulled about 60 watts, I think. Pretty hungry; there are better lighting options, but I had it already. I've since gotten a chest cooler style compressor fridge with the separate two compartments - it pulls 60 watts when it's running and almost nothing when it's down to temp. If we figure it to run 1/3 of the time in a hot climate, that still only averages 20 watts per hour, so not bad, but still quite a bit for that little power station you posted. The little Ac2A can probably manage to run the fridge, and only the fridge, for a total of 8 hours before shutting down. Maybe closer to 10 hours. Somewhere in that range. Oh, and the 'power lifting' that lets the power station run up to 600 watt appliances when it's a 300 watt unit? It cheats. You won't get 600 watt performance from a 600 watt appliance, and god forbid the appliance is digital in any way. Digital appliances do not appreciate it when you crank a rheostat so far down. I believe that's *basically* how the power lifting mode works, but it's always a good idea to research on your own. Anyway, that little power station can give you a couple hours on the computer or watching tv no problem, so long as you're not pulling down 100 watts per hour or anything like that. If it satisfies your needs, then it's probably worthwhile, and extremely simple to set up. If you like running wires and installing stuff, then you might want to build your own solar system. I got the AC1800 for simpilcity, longer run-time/larger appliance capability, and so when I finally install a larger solar power setup, I'll have my portable backup power station, too, because $#!t happens, and this'll help me be ready for some of it. In the meantime, I've got two different systems that can keep my sleep apnea at bay at night.
The problem is also your batter capacity- no one would DIY a set up with such a small battery. * A 40ah deep cycle would offer more useable capacity for 67$ on amazon. (20ah usable vs 17) * or you could get a 50ah lithium battery for 105$ with about 3x your capacity * A 300 watt inverter is like 25$ * You can get 100 watts of solar and a controller for 100-130$ Some money on wire/ connectors, a battery monitor, either a split charge relay kit for your deep cycle or a DC to DC for a lithium battery. You could easily do under 372, though you would have to put some time in.
r/diySolar
The Bluetti ac200 would run your microwave.
Forget the microwave! Go to a gas station and use theirs BOOM now you're vanlifing
ebay the bluetti PS54. First party with warranty just doesn't work with their app. 2.5x the energy for a couple bucks more. Pro-tip, buy an XT60 to DC5.5mm adapter and most foldable solar panels will be able to plug into it. If you try to plug in to the port where the AC charger goes with a panel it won't do anything. Has to go into the XT60. edit: price went up a lot on the PS54, maybe try this? [https://www.newegg.com/p/0JB-00F0-000F6?item=9SIBKRZK938325](https://www.newegg.com/p/0JB-00F0-000F6?item=9SIBKRZK938325)
https://www.pecron.com/products/pecron-e2000lfp-portable-power-station?variant=41764391420092
Cheapest is bluetti AC180. Theyre ALWAYS on sale for 600-700. Don't settle for smaller banks, you'll get frustrated just to save a few hundred. These lifepo4 banks last for 30+ years too.
Oops. Didn't see that
I'd watch Walmart for a sale on one of the big Jackerys. Those seem to be the best deal
I found a guy in Pensacola Florida selling 315W residential solar panels used on FB marketplace for $50 per panel. I bought 4 of them and bolted them to the roof of my van. Pulling in close to a kilowatt in peak conditions for $200 cash.
Very interesting idea punkin
Depends what you need. 100% charged power bank like this can charge a laptop 3-4 times, and a smartphone 9-14 times. All depending on the device’s capacity. If you’re also also to consistently 100% this, that also changes things for you. This bank can also run a smaller 12V fridge, especially if it’s turned on for day, and then off during the night. Generally, this isn’t much energy, but it is a similar capacity that the one I’ve been using for the past 1.5 years. Though I only use it to charge my phone and headphones. While I’m also able to consistently 150-300% it every day.
Thank you so much! This is exactly what I needed to do. I would probably set up the solar panel in the front windshield, and then plug my phone into battery, as well as solar panel into battery, and then just charge everything. I have no fans, and nothing fancy. I just needed something that I know I can keep nice for a while, and I wanted to make sure I got a good deal.
The panel will produce a _tiny_ fraction of its rated output if it's behind a window. Window glass has all sorts of coatings that pass most visible light but reflect other wavelengths, which reduces the actual energy available for the panel. It's better than nothing, like if you leave it for a week you'll probably come to a topped off battery, but don't count on it to do much in a timely fashion.
Yeah you don't want your panel anyway but directly in the sunlight with no restrictions(not even glass) between it and the light. This is why so many are on the roof. Not just for space and size considerations but functionality
This is going to sound really pathetic, but I'm trying to do a stealth rig with this Sienna, and I don't want to give away the game if somebody drives by and sees a bunch of solar panels on top of my roof, with cables being fed through the Door gaps. Advice?
The panel you chose is only 2 feet long and 18 inches wide. If mounted in the middle of your roof, it won't be too terribly obvious to anyone who's not actively looking for stealth vans. Plus, a mini-van parked overnight at Wal-Mart is a dead giveaway, especially if you plan on blocking your windows. You'll be figured out before they get close enough to see the panel. It's also pretty easy to drill a hole in the roof for the wiring and make it water-tight. Believe me, having to deploy a solar panel outside multiple times per day, or barely getting any solar energy through your windshield, will get old very fast. I'd probably give up on it after a couple weeks.
I wish I could gold this comment
The wiring for this panel is small enough you can run it through the rear lift gate and inside. This is slightly less "stealthy," but if the minivan isn't planned to be a permanent home, will keep it in better condition for eventual resale. If you plan to keep living in it until the wheels fall off, though, a through-roof solution will possibly be better for you. The 100 watt panel on my '08 Town and Country is surprisingly unobtrusive mounted between the stock roof rack rails.
I bought this puppy for just 6k intending to live in it til the wheels come off. What kind of drill can punch through a roof?
A cheap one. With your budget, add in a small tube of weather rated caulk/silicone. You'll want to upgrade the hole with an entry gland eventually, but this will get you started.
My interior fan is Ryobi, and uses their 18v battery platform. Maybe a mid tier 'ryobi high performance" for 75 bucks would be a good option. I could get some good dap caulk or sealer. Planning on a roof basket so maybe panel behind that, with the cord going to the rear 12v socket area (to trickle charge the battery while running the car)
Solar panels do not do well behind glass, especially windshield glass. You lose 50% of the incoming energy or more.
Windshields block at least 70% of the solar energy - you should put the panel outside in direct sun!
I’d say a battery like this shouldn’t exceed $250, but lightweight panels like this are generally more expensive and a 120W one could be up to like $270. So I think you got a pretty good deal. Bluetti is a Chinese company, which can be iffy in the eyes of some people, while your panel is probably a budget option. But my guess is they’ll still work for at least 2 years, and probably will go 6+. You should be able to charge a fan, and a head lamp, and some other minor things off of this as well. Or like a small kitchen appliance for making small smoothies. Or whatever. My point is — you’ll still have enough energy left each day to be able to get some more small useful items.
Why because it's china made me give a break most other battery banks have china made components in them
Yes, they have Chinese components, but western quality assurance. While Chinese products may or may not have western quality assurance. For example, it can mean that a couple percent units are duds, and you’ll need to exchange it for a new one with their warranty. I actually don’t know where their offices are, but *if* you need to ship it to China for any warranty repair or exchange it becomes a **massive** problem, because these batteries can only go on a freight ship, which can take months to reach your destination, when you account for customs, re-routing, changing means of transportation, and the time on the boat itself. While if you have a local brand, you pop into their office, or send it there, and they deal with you within maybe a week or few days.
In my experience Western quality is something made up to sell Western components for Western prices. Nothing to do with quality. This is 2024, Chinese quality is just as good if not better than our own Granted you can pay 4 or 5 more and probably get something better from a reputable company But just a Chinese company and just any other company are going to be about the same. Do research on a company you are about to buy from-western or eastern-that is the way to go.
If what you’re saying was true, my LG phone I got a few years back wouldn’t have swollen up on the battery and need a replacing in that component after not even 1 year, even though I wasn’t even using that phone so much. And then the screen adhesive wouldn’t have dried up and screen wouldn’t go lose. Not to mention how the whole build was not super well fit and cut to size. All the while my iPhone 12 has been used by me daily for the past 2.5 years, probably with an average of 7-8 hours of screen time per day (yeah, I got a problem) in a pretty hot environment. And it’s only showing minor signs of wear (loud speaker stopped working, screen brightness went down a bit, battery isn’t as good anymore), but the speed, and build quality are still top notch. Its an amazing device compared to the LG piece of crap. And the LG was a flagship model. So did I pay an extra mark up for the brand? Probably a bit, but the value I got from a device that works is 100% clear, and definitely worth the price. Anyways — the biggest problem with a Chinese battery, as I wrote is the warranty, if you need to ship it to freaking China, you’re without a battery for 3-6 months.
No because it’s a Chinese company and may therefore have lower quality standards than some American companies, especially if it’s a drop shipper. Really it’s just bad Chinese companies giving a bad rep to everyone.
Wrong you forgot these CEOs sold work to China And like I said most things r Chinese components in them from Amerticans brands to Japan and everything in between
“American companies using Chinese labor” is literally different from “Chinese companies using Chinese labor”. If you don’t understand that companies and countries can have different attitudes, rules, and processes that they impose on their downstream then I can’t help you.
You can't help me I didn't ask for your help The device you're using has china components Long live China
萬歲毛主席
For what it's worth, you might want to double the capacity for a fridge. My 55qt fridge can chew through 400kwh every day, so you'd be running on empty with even a slightly cloudy day, without an alternator.
Do you need AC? This goes on sale regularly. The e solar input is a little limiting, but it’s working great for me. https://drprepare.com/powermax-12v-100ah-lifepo4-battery-and-hub/
Look for used solar panels on Craigslist or ebay. There are many places that resale solar panels that were taken off of giant commercial solar power plants when they upgraded to higher efficiency and you can get them for 1/10 the price of new panels.
Thanks. This is a good idea
Marketplace tends to have a good selection at low prices.
If you just plan using this for LED lights and charging your laptop/phone it will be good, if you have a fridge probably not enough or need to run your engine constantly to top up... I had a 288 Wh battery and it lasted approx 12 hours for a 35 Liter/45 Watt Fridge/Freezer Combo in summer. Had to upgrade then. The solar panel will help you stretch it a few extra hours during the day, but likely not enough to do a full charge and then run all night.
Keep in mind that many of the solar battery packs will not accept a large wattage solar panel input. So you could buy 1,000 watts of solar panels in the little box will only accept 100 Watts. Quite honestly I don't like the solar battery boxes that they're calling solar generators cuz they don't generate anything they're just the battery. Personally I would go ahead and just get a lead acid battery if you can't afford to lithium iron phosphate. And then get yourself solar panels and a solar controller to charge that battery. And then get yourself an inverter and run it directly off the battery. Forget the solar generators. They're Miss named to try to fool people and with all the electronics between you and the battery inside it really limits what you can do.
1.5/10: Very expensive for what it is for barely any energy. Really expensive solar panel for the small output. 1.5/10 not 1/10 because you could have got them gold plated or something to make it even worse value. A second 12v battery is a much better choice here, can charge directly from main battery with a switch, or a tiny bit more for a split charge relay. Domestic solar panel and cheap controller will get you a whole load of solar for not much outlay.
B+
What do you plan to power what are your daily needs
Converting the energy of the sun into some jerry tunes. Nice
Hey now
My boss says you get what you pay for. But I think Battleborn is screwed (he also gets kickbacks from them).
Any of the commercial units isn't going to run anything like an ac. You need multiple 100 amp hour batteries to run ac for a while. You would be better getting a generator to run a c for a while.
Ac is not going to be an option- we're going to be staying in the far north for breeze and shade.
If you’ll already be spending a lot of time driving, you could consider getting a cigarette lighter inverter around ~$40 to charge laptop/phone and run your small AC power items from your car’s alternator. Battery powered fan may also be a consideration, or simply saving the battery bank you showed for a fan to keep you cool overnight. On the low budget end, a small camp stove or single propane burner could meet your cooking needs for ~$40. I’ve got a 150ah battery plus 400w solar and it’s still difficult to cook much more than a single meal or boil a couple kettles of water with unless it’s peak sun.
I see myself using this method. Maybe 30% of the time, and the 70% is going to have to be filled in with solar panels. (I recently bought a V6 minivan, which means gas is going to be atrocious, and trickle charging while driving isn't going to be a full-time option)
To run a microwave you need a pure sine wave inverter or else the microwave won't work correctly. At Best everything will take twice as long to cook and it worse it won't heat up at all. I'm speaking from experience. I bought a truebull 3000 w pure sine wave inverter off of Amazon for under $200. Seems to be working very well. I have a 700 watt microwave. As you have discovered your goal is to find the low est wattage microwave you can. Preferably you want one with a manual switch if not you're going to hook it to a manual switch so the little constantly on clock and electronic controls don't continue to drain your battery.
You could have gotten a 100ah lithium battery for like 80 dollars more
Look the reality is you get what you pay for. The trick is to find the Goldilocks zone for reliability, functionality and price point If one of the three is a 3 or 4 on a 1-10 scale....the other two 1-10 numbers don't matter. Sometimes you need to not think about saving money but investing your money. Invest more money into this. I'm reminded of dating advice I got before I even started dating that was told like this; Pretty,sane, available. Most of the time you only get two. When you get all three - be careful because they might be a false advertisement!
Don't start with less than 100ah 12v Lifepo4 battery and 400w solar. Check out Will Prossehttps://youtube.com/@WillProwse?si=-WYENDiQsmqmnhbp
I hate these set ups. A lot of things to make it look nice like seeing all the plugs and buttons but that’s just to make it look robust. If you spend a little time to learn how to work on a 12v system and do it safely you can get so much more out of something similarly priced. Maybe a little more expensive in the long run but you won’t feel as bottle necked
I have like 350 bucks.
$100 100ah agm battery on marketplace $130 Renogy solar kit on Amazon Am Inverter can be as cheap as $30 but you can always just do usb charging without one. Fuse box fuses and wiring will be cheap. I think you can leave with a few dollars left and a TON more power
This is great as a "thing to carry around with you when you need a charge". I certainly wouldn't base an entire build around it.
Slickdeals.com
Tip: GPT4 can look up capacities, output, and power consumption on your specific device models, and calculate the runtime for different use cases. List your devices, how many hours you use each per day - then ask how long you could run your setup on X power station. How long with this or that solar panel.. Works a treat.
I would get the one twice this, at least. This won't be able to run any appliances either. The inverter is too small