Inverter question

MaxStravinsky said:
Most of this is going right over my head - all I want to do is be able to watch movies on my laptop when the power is out.[grin]
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Well, "Dell" is kind of vague. But...

For how many hours/days do you want?

That's the real question. Heck, you could just get one of the larger car jumpstarter battery packs, with built-in inverter for the recharging circuits, and built-in AC power-out inverter, but you're not going to run most laptops past 3-4 recharge cycles, depending on the laptop's battery size and the jumpstart battery pack you buy. So do the math from that - how long does the laptop run showing movies; what is the capacity of its battery pack; what is the capacity of the jumpstart battery pack?

So... what laptop are you trying to power? (We can look up its battery and you can tell us how long it runs on battery showing movies...)
 
Prepper said:
Perhaps, but then you got to deal with gas storage and rotation, changing the oil every 25 hours of use in the generator, generator only lasting a few hundred hours, etc. I personally wouldn't run a generator to only watch movies... if I'm running a generator, I'm also powering the fridge and pellet stove, and a lamp as well as some USB chargers.

By the way, to the OP, it is important to keep in mind that a car battery is not a near-umlimited source of power. A laptop will have a fairly significant battery drain. Say your battery has 109 Ah, then you really shouldn't use it beyond 50% of its capacity. So, that's 55 Ah. A typical efficient laptop is going to use around 30 watts (but it can vary a lot... my old work Lenovo used 90!) So,

V * A = W
or
A = W / V
A = 30 / 12 = 2.5 amps

Thus, for a 55 Ah in half the battery, that is 22 hours of run time. Which is something, but it isn't a week-long ice storm blackout.
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You can always idle the car to recharge the battery. Just make sure you don't run down the battery so much that you need a jump!
 
nhams said:
You can always idle the car to recharge the battery. Just make sure you don't run down the battery so much that you need a jump!
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Yup, for the literal car battery solution. For separate marine battery, then it is a concern.

By the way, I also would be reluctant to run my car for hours just to watch a movie. I'd want to be at least powering fridge/stove as well. The car wouldn't have to run 100% of the time, but how much is anyone's guess. Run too much, you waste gas that may be difficult to replace. Run too little, and it won't start.
 
MaxStravinsky said:
I've got a Dell. I have movies and tv shows on dvd, so no downloading necessary.

Thanks for all the information, now I know what direction to go in .....
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Chances are you can buy a charger for your laptop that plugs into the cig lighter socket. Call Dell and ask them or post the specific model and someone will look it up for you.

You really don't need to over-complicate things with deep cycle batteries and inverters if you're just looking to watch movies for a couple hours during a brief power outage.
 
For apartment dwellers who can't run a generator and park on the street, we usually recommend a jump pack. They start at $50 though our favorite Clore JNC 660 is about $110.

Now you can buy LiFeP04 jump packs that are a few ounces. They do not do well in the cold but hold charge for months. We've had the Antigravity XP1 since it came out.

http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/antigravity-micro-start-xp-1-power-supply
 
garandman said:
The pussification of America continues.

Dude, you need an MEP003 diesel genset, "just in case." [smile]
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fyi gman - I'm a dudette.

Thanks for the suggestion of the jump pack - I've got a few stupid questions :)
Would I just plug my laptop into the jump pack?
Can the jump pack be recharged?

Thanks for all the help everyone!
 
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MaxStravinsky said:
Thanks for the suggestion of the jump pack - I've got a few stupid questions :)
Would I just plug my laptop into the jump pack?
Can the jump pack be recharged?

Thanks for all the help everyone!
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Yes and yes, if you get the right jump pack. They are all meant to be recharged, so that's the easy part. Plugging your laptop into it, you want to find one with a built-in DC-AC inverter and standard power outlet. (Not just a 'plug' inbound for charging the battery - many have what looks like a household PLUG onto which you put an extension cord for charging the jump starter.). Make sure it says it's rated for at least what your laptop's power supply says its max input draw is. Most are rated over what most laptops require off AC to charge. Figure you need at least 100W rating.

If you search "jump pack with inverter" on Amazon, you'll see a lot of options. The Duracell 1300 is a good unit to compare others to (I'm not recommending for or against it; just it spells everything out in the description). That one has an 18Ah battery --> 18Ah * 12V is 216 Watt Hours, which you won't want to use ALL up 'cause it'll start to kill the battery, but at - for example - 20W consumption on the laptop, figure an extra 9 hours of use. There are much larger portable-ish home battery power units as well. Just search around in that category. Depending on your laptop model, that could be 2-3 charge-ups right there (or just 9 extra use hours if you leave things plugged in). Some of these units can recharge off your car lighter socket, too, though at that point it's probably better to skip the middleman and just charge the laptop off the car with a little in-car inverter.
 
I guess it comes down to how much you want to spend.

The Lithium jump packs have direct DC output for many laptops. They're small and light and portable, but pricy.

The Micro-Start XP-1 PPS (Personal Power Supply) is the best-selling mini jump-starter product that started it all. So small it fits in your pocket yet so powerful it starts Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles, ATVs, UTVs, Snowmobiles, Watercraft, more! Charge & Power Everything: 19V Laptops, 12V Devices, and USB Devices!

It has FOUR on-board power ports: a 19V for Laptops, a 12V standard output for all 12V Accessories, and TWO USB outputs for powering 5V USB-charged devices.
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But that's a $150 battery!

Harbor Freight has a jump pack for $60 that will be $45 Nov. 10-13. You'd still need the DC laptop charger (some come with one, some you have to buy). Either of these choices would allow you to charge your phone with the USB port as well.

Yet another option is a UPS - Uninterruptible Power Supply. Those plug into the wall so they're always charged up. For $150 to $200 new you could get a device that would power the laptop, an LED light, and the auger on a wood pellet stove. A friend of mine bought one used from a data center and can run most of his house for four hours, or laptop, internet and lights for eight.

That raises another question - where do the movies come from? If you are streaming you're going to have to power your internet connection devices.
 
All I have to say is the original poster was talking about watching a movie on his computer in the car and somehow some of the answers are like " First go to harbor freight and buy a chainsaw then clear all the trees for 3 acres then order 30 yards of concrete for the footings, then install the solar array make sure the battery bank is large enough install a USB, micro USB and a standard receptacle. Make some furniture from all the trees you cut down and start a campfire. Brew some coffee. Plug in your laptop and watch a movie easy peasy. All good info but hilarious stuff.

Sent from my SM-G928P using Tapatalk
 
I don't know about other makes but I've a Honda EM4000SX which is a non-inverter type generator and it has an auto throttle switch which when on reduces the idling and quiets it down quite a bit.

cockpitbob said:
I think you only get that with Inverter generators and they cost at least double for the same wattage.
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http://invertersrus.com/product/powerbright-pw2300-12/ Probably a little more than what you were looking for, but I built this into my truck. It runs a couple of circuits if I back feed the garage from it and it will charge my JNC 660 jump pack too. My GMC has 2 built in batteries , this has never killed the truck. or the 145 amp alternator
 
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Not a lot of laptops will take in power on a USB port, though that's changing. Anyhow, that Anker's not gonna power her laptop, though with 134Wh that can be all used to near zero hundreds of times, it's pretty good compared to the Duracell, which has almost double that capacity but, because it's using a lead-acid battery, you wouldn't want to drain it all the way down too many times.
 

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