goal zero power packs

[surfivor]

 I'm curious about this anker 400 unit.  Would it have much more capacity than a typical RV 12 volt deep cycle battery ?  It is a lithium battery

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0196GQAKM/ref=as_li_ss_tl?_encoding=UTF8&ref_=de_a_smtd&showDetailTechData=1&linkCode=ll1&tag=oksansay-20&linkId=eb09ef84763a06f6270db138f6c3f095

http://mysolarhome.us/anker-powerhouse-400wh-portable-solar-generator/

Anker PowerHouse, Compact 400Wh / 120,000mAh



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 I wonder how good a job that anker battery would do at powering this lunchbox guitar amp. This amp can run on 4W. I don't understand how this can be a 15W amp yet it is super loud as a 50W amp turned up, but as a practice amp playing that loud is not needed. I guess that battery pack would power various amps.



This is just the amp head, it would run a large speaker such as a 12 inch speaker. I have a cab with 2 12 inch speakers, but maybe I would use a single 10 inch speaker. The amp can output 4, 8, or 16 ohms to the speaker. 8 ohms is often typical. I bought this amp a few months ago, it is a great practice amp or a good backup amp and very small for what it can do. You can play with a full band with this thing, drums and all.
It can play loud and sounds good at lower volumes when some amps are hard to play like that at lower volumes.

https://www.long-mcquade.com/64963/Guitars/Guitar_Amps/Fender_Musical_Instruments/5150III_15W_Mini_Lunchbox_Head.htm

Power Output: 15W (Full Power) - 4W (1/4 power Switch)



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Would that battery also power an ice maker ?

[Carl]

  The Anker unit you linked to is 400 watt hours or FOUR TIME the power of the Goal Zero 100 you refer to above ,so it is a somewhat better sized battery with some 40 Amp hours equivalent storage capability thought with a 120 volt,120 watt output limit...enough to charge most laptops(but some laptops indicat more wattage is used by their chargers) and should power your practice amp and an LED 60 watt equivalent lamp or two at the same time.

  It looks OK though I have no hands on or second hand knowledge of it's ability. The Amp you have is a TUBE AMP and may actually require more power than the 120 watts that the inverter requires as input and input of amps are never equal and tubes require filaments to be lit . I love the little amp though as I had worked for years with audio for bands ,plays,and outdoor venues.

*******Looking closely at the amp,I see the data plate says 100 watts at 120 volts AC...so it should work just fine on this portable power suppy for some 4 to 6 hours as the tube requirements don't use much less power when at 15 or 4 watts*********

For your icemaker question ,check the specs as some may work at the under 120 watt level...but not all.

[surfivor]

  The Anker unit you linked to is 400 watt hours or FOUR TIME the power of the Goal Zero 100 you refer to above ,so it is a somewhat better sized battery with some 40 Amp hours equivalent storage capability thought with a 120 volt,120 watt output limit...enough to charge most laptops(but some laptops indicat more wattage is used by their chargers) and should power your practice amp and an LED 60 watt equivalent lamp or two at the same time.

  It looks OK though I have no hands on or second hand knowledge of it's ability. The Amp you have is a TUBE AMP and may actually require more power than the 120 watts that the inverter requires as input and input of amps are never equal and tubes require filaments to be lit . I love the little amp though as I had worked for years with audio for bands ,plays,and outdoor venues.

*******Looking closely at the amp,I see the data plate says 100 watts at 120 volts AC...so it should work just fine on this portable power suppy for some 4 to 6 hours as the tube requirements don't use much less power when at 15 or 4 watts*********

For your icemaker question ,check the specs as some may work at the under 120 watt level...but not all.

 I was trying to figure out some of this stuff. The battery says 3.9 V and the amp requires 120 V but I guess that doesn't matter?  The camper I am buying is going to have a 12 V deep cycle battery I assume but the guy at the RV place said that I couldn't use it to power a small guitar amp. I'm not sure if he is right or not ..

 It seems like years ago I was using a 12 V portable battery to power a small guitar amp .

 I don't know why that amp is so loud. I have 15 W practice amps that are no where near loud enough to play with a drummer but that little EVH amp is super loud when you turn it up and it is tiny

[Carl]

I was trying to figure out some of this stuff. The battery says 3.9 V and the amp requires 120 V but I guess that doesn't matter?  The camper I am buying is going to have a 12 V deep cycle battery I assume but the guy at the RV place said that I couldn't use it to power a small guitar amp. I'm not sure if he is right or not ..

 It seems like years ago I was using a 12 V portable battery to power a small guitar amp .

 I don't know why that amp is so loud. I have 15 W practice amps that are no where near loud enough to play with a drummer but that little EVH amp is super loud when you turn it up and it is tiny

Your amplifier requires 120 volts at 100 watts for power.This can be provided by an inverter easily from you 12 volt battery in your vehicle for a 4 hours or more without need to recharge and with say a small fan and some lighting (with a healthy battery)

The ANKER power unit uses a single lithium cell at 3.9 or so volts and 120 amp hours (a big single battery is tougher than a multi cell unit,THIS IS A GREAT WAY TO DO THIS) and it has an inverter to step up the 3.9 volts to get the 120 volts out that many devices need for power.The ANKER is portable and has it's own battery so it would be a good 'cabin' unit while all you require is an inverter to power 120 volt devices while in your camper.

[Carl]

  I looked at portable(you can add water to a reservoir rather that use plumbing for water) ice makers and most (for $100 to $150 or so) can make ice within 15 minutes of start and require some 200 to 300 watts to power them. So I would suggest an 800 watt or more class of inverter to provide your camper AC power and understand that the icemaker will only run,BY ITSELF,no other powered iems,for about 2 hours from your 'house' battery without some external charging applied.

  I still suggest an 800 to 1000 watt or so inverter as they will last a long time and have better cooling available for your camper PLUS many include USB charging the some find important

  Your camper battery should have an attachment called a BATTERY ISOLATOR  that charges it from the truck alternator while the truck runs though making ice while driving might not be advisable as water in a reservoir may be not so stable...though I have used an icemaker on a boat I helped wire for a friend with solar and a big battery bank that we placed some ping-pong balls in the reservoir to stabilize the water and help prevent spills and also only half filled the reservoir also (baffles may work to some success). That is a lot of power and expense when you can pay less for a good ice chest and buy a bag or two of ice for a long weekend of cold drinks.

 For the cost of the ice maker and cost to power it,you would be better off with an ice chest ...until the end of the world ,and then ice might be worth the cost.Just my thought on your project.

[kid_couteau]

Ok kids classtime 

I think one of the issues here is, and I do not mean this offensively, you do not understand how the math behind this works.

Please allow me to help.

Most batteries are termed in volts and amps or amp hours to be specific.

Most devices are in watts of power per hour of use.

Thus if you have a device that draws 50 watts of power and you have a 12 volt battery with 20 AH [amp hours] to see how long it will run "roughly" use this formula.

W=watts
E=volts
I=amps

W/E=I

So in our example

50/12=4.1666 amp use per hour so a battery with 20 AH will run the device for about 4 hours give or take.
This is a simplified view as you have to take into consideration the battery type amd amount of discharge it can handle per cycle.

Hope this helps...and I hope I didnt miss anything, not much coffee yet

[kid_couteau]

Also many companies that make these banks try to deceive us by saying,"Our bank hods 12,000 mAH of power.

It takes 1000 mAmps to make 1 Amp

So in reality this 12,000 mA power bank is a 12 Amp battery.

[Carl]

Also many companies that make these banks try to deceive us by saying,"Our bank hods 12,000 mAH of power.

It takes 1000 mAmps to make 1 Amp

So in reality this 12,000 mA power bank is a 12 Amp battery.

Yep and that's not even the metric system. Many give you the battery capacity at the battery voltage,like 3.9 volts,and then tell you the inverter increased voltage to add to the confusion.

[Carl]

Ok kids classtime 

I think one of the issues here is, and I do not mean this offensively, you do not understand how the math behind this works.

Please allow me to help.

Most batteries are termed in volts and amps or amp hours to be specific.

Most devices are in watts of power per hour of use.

Thus if you have a device that draws 50 watts of power and you have a 12 volt battery with 20 AH [amp hours] to see how long it will run "roughly" use this formula.

W=watts
E=volts
I=amps

W/E=I

So in our example

50/12=4.1666 amp use per hour so a battery with 20 AH will run the device for about 4 hours give or take.
This is a simplified view as you have to take into consideration the battery type amd amount of discharge it can handle per cycle.

Hope this helps...and I hope I didnt miss anything, not much coffee yet

You did miss the fact that a battery can,in good health,be used to only 50 to 80 percent of it's rated capacity safely and the high percentage of discharge will cause faster shortening of the overall life of the battery and FAST CHARGING (above 1/10 of the amp hour capacity) will also damage the cell chemistry.

  That is why my math might look strange,I use real world usage rather than actual unicorn math of the sales pitch .

I re-reading I see you did include the rate of discharge,but I put in within my estimate so as to simplify the message.

[surfivor]

How does that anker 400 3.9 volt battery compare as far as output to a regular 12 volt battery such as a car battery or a typical RV deep cycle battery ?

[creuzerm]

I recently picked up a 288Wh clone off of Amazon on a flash sale. I also picked up a Coleman 100w solar panel from Sam's Club on end of year clearance.

I will never not have one again. 

Having a small turnkey unit that has multiple charge sources is very convenient. It's small and light enough that my kids can use it. Big win.

The solar panel got a 2x4 roof rack frame on the roof of my van so it is mobile and is where I am. I can take it off the vehicle with 8 screws.

The biggest advantage is I get to **think** solar.  Park in the shade for a cool car vs in the sun to charge the battery. 

I paid $175 for the pair, but I got really good transient prices.

 When I move this year,  the new place will likely build a diy 1kw solar and battery system on the garage as well as a few smaller systems for each of the other outbuildings.

Loving what I am learning with the ready built unit.  So handy to bring power to a need without needing a long extension cord.