r/Portable_PowerStation

Hello,
I'm looking for a useful nomade battery that can handle a heater all night for an every day living in a small van.
But I need it to be not too heavy (so I can move it outside to charge and take it back inside) and that can charge with solar pannels.
Would someone have some advices please ?
Oh and I think I would be using a oil heater that use 500W.
Thank you !

New to solar and I think I understand it but wanted to confirm. I bought one of the last Oupes 2400(orange sides) to offset the a/c electric bill during the summer/day. Not the best unit and I wouldn't buy another one since I can't add batteries and the long 6.5 hour charge time but here I am. I bought Two Dokio 400W 31V Panels and a Midea 8Kbtu "U" inverter a/c. I tested this setup with an old 5Kbtu unit and got 8.5 hours of run time before hitting 5%. The 5K drew 450 watts and the new Midea should draw 335 watts per the videos I watched. My problem is I only get about 6 hours a day of good sun and they only produced 580 watts but were just on the ground at at angle.

My plan is to run the Midea from 10am to 6pm on the unit but with the restricted sun hours it won't charge while running that long. I think if I add 2 more panels and add a MPPT to throttle the panels so I have 450-475 input watts at each Anderson input(500W max each) I should finish the day with about 60% or more charge and that would be enough to use the next day before the sun hours hit. I have sun from 11am to 5pm.

So the question is: Can I use a MPPT for this plug and play unit?

Wondering if anyone out there is using a Reliance Pro/Tran transfer switch with their power stations for home backup and/or to switch a couple circuits to the power station to use solar power.

What systems/brands are you using?

So far the power stations I'm finding require an adapter of some sort to get to the L 14-30 side on the transfer switch, such as a TT-30P Male to L14-30R Female camper-type adapter. I haven't seen any power stations that have the L 14-30. Is that just how it is? :D

Additional info if helpful - This is an existing Transfer Switch that is powered by a portable gas generator currently.

The Ecoflow Delta 2 Max has 2 solar inputs, so I have 2 strings of panels connected. Each has a pair of 200w panels mounted on a fence facing south. Towards the end of the day these don’t produce much. so I sometimes will swap out one of the strings to a portable 450w panel that I can face west and get a couple more hours of sun. I have very limited space that gets sun, so I can’t have a large array.

I would like to permanent mount a pair of 250w panels facing west and have a way to easily switch between it and one of the other strings without have to manually disconnect the cables. (I struggle with disconnecting mc4 connections, even with the tool). Does a switch that can do this exist?

I bought a 40V 300-Watt Portable Battery Inverter Power Source and 40V Battery Charger. I just had a power strip plugged into it. The power strip had a phone charge, an Apple Watch charger, and a lamp. The lamp wasn’t on. I woke up after about 3 hours and the battery was dead. I know the battery was fully charged. It did this twice for two different and healthy batteries. Is that normal behavior?

I’ve seen some YouTubers suggesting to use a solar disconnect for power stations, so you can disconnect and connect under load to avoid damaging the power station or causing a fire. I’ve also seen a couple of videos where they advise against using one, because it adds an additional point of failure. I have a small 800w array that‘s connected full time to a 2000kWh Ecoflow delta 2 max with 2 extra batteries. Can anyone share any opinions on using a disconnect switch in this scenario?

I’m terminally ill and have some equipment that I need to run if our electricity goes out. It’s a non-invasive breathing machine and charging to my power wheelchair if necessary. I have a suction and cough assist as well. Now that I’m typing this probably my medical bed as well to continue the adjustments while I’m in it.

I have NO idea where to even begin for this. I’m gonna be dead in 2-4 years so a whole home seems overkill, but my breathing machine can only last 6 hours on battery so if it goes out I’m dead as well lol. I mean obviously I’d just call an ambulance to take me to a hospital but I’m trying to avoid that.

How do I go about figuring out what I need? The only thing I know about the ventilator is:

**AC and DC Power Specifications**
**AC Power Range:** 100 to 240V, 50 to 60Hz

**AC Power Consumption:** 90 W continuous (3.75 A), 120 W peak (5 A)

**External DC Power:** Can run on external DC via optional power supply or external battery systems.

I’d prefer one of those larger battery generator types but I’d get whatever would be required.

Hello everyone! Which affordable power station would you recommend for
Mac mini m4 prom4 Pro
14 core cpu
20 core gpu
24gb ram
1tb ssd drive

There have been sudden power outages in my area over the past few days (1-2 hours, and it's almost a week now), and I'm afraid that it might affect/damage the setup I have.

I use a dual monitor setup (1 main Asus TUF VG3A series and 1 portable Arzopa monitor plugged into a Ugreen dock); The rest of the accessories are wireless, so they're not a big deal.

I mainly work on editing (Final Cut Pro)

I've searched for a power station, and there are a lot of good options for it, however, I have a limited budget.

So here are the only options I have:

• EcoFlow DELTA 3 1000 Air
• BLUETTI AC70P 1000W

Which one is better? or would you recommend another power station?

Thoughts on everyone’s preference. I am simply looking at my first backup power source in case we lose power (family of four). Just currently want for the basics maybe a fridge some fans and some lights. I already ordered and received the Jackery 1500 v2 from Costco with the panel (I know it’s a crappy 100w panel) for $600. And now I’m seeing the Anker s2000 at Home Depot for $600 without any panel. Might be able to get for $540. What would you guys prefer? Interested for your opinion. Anker has the bigger battery, Jackery has less more wattage. Neither I believe can expand via battery.

Thanks for your help!!!

I’d like to ask for recommendations about batteries.

Here is my setup:
- 320W 40V panel (Q Peak duo BLK-G5 320)
- 40A 12V/24V MPPT charge controller (TrakMax)
- 2000W 12V Giandel inverter

I’d like to run this for stuff in my shed at my new place. I’ve used this setup before in a portable manner and charged car batteries and ran a few things off of it. Everything is already hooked up in the shed except for the battery. I have connections and heavy gauge wires for everything.

Ultimately I’d be great to buy a 200Ah (or at least a 200A BMS) LiFePo battery. Preferably new. I know this will cost a bare minimum of ~$300 for what I believe would be a decent model. Maybe I am wrong and a medium quality battery would cost more, so please tell me if this is the case, and feel free to offer a brand you trust. The 200A BMS is required to use the inverter to its fullest extent.

However, I don’t really need to use the system like that. It would be cool to be able to use it for a microwave but I don’t really need that. It would just be nice to be able to run a few things with this system, like a refrigerator, or minifridge, tv, maybe a sound system in the shed.

Since I’m budgeting for $300 eventually, I don’t really want to spend more than like $70 on any kind of batteries right now. I saw a Facebook marketplace ad for Northstar 12V 100Ah sealed lead acid batteries for $80 that could supposedly discharge at 180A I’d need to run 2000W. It’s very hot (100F) where I am and the shed is even hotter, which is and do these batteries. I also thought about just finding a used car battery for like $30, or even trading two I have in my yard in at the junkyard and buying two junkyard ones for $30 when they subtract the core charge.

I know lead acid has all kinds of problems. I’d be willing to spend $30 to get it running though and I could tie the batteries in parallel. I’m hesitant to spend $80 on the large SLA battery knowing it will degrade quickly in a few years and also may have so much voltage sag it wouldn’t run things like a cooking hot plate or whatever. But I don’t really plan on using it for that.

What do you guys think? Where is an easy way to buy just a smaller battery to run things like a fridge that is not just a complete waste of money? If I am going to be wasting money I don’t really want to waste $80 on the larger battery. Is there a way to buy quality used LiFePo? None of this is essential so it doesn’t really matter if it eventually gives out. Thanks in advance!

_______________________________________

More info about why I built this system this way:

I started my system with the panel after it was gifted to me, then bought the MPPT. I could add just one more panel using 12V, since one panel already generates ~27 amps at 12V, and the MPPT is capped at 40 charging amps. I selected a 12V inverter for maximum battery interoperability and would like to keep that system voltage for now. I sized the 2000W inverter as I did so it can run any one appliance at a time that could possibly be plugged into a standard 120V 15A outlet. The system does a lot of room for expansion later but for now I’m keeping just this equipment.

I am trying to figure what type of power station I need to power my downhole well pump (240v 20 amp breaker) and my refrigerator (110v 20 amp breaker) during a power outage.
I imagine the best way is to direct the power from the battery system back through the panel box via a plug-in generator inlet box.
I have a gas generator to recharge the power station.
Would I need 50 amp or 30 amp capacity?
What power station on the market could do this without doubling up 2 120v power stations?
I’m a retired contractor and have done tons of residential wiring over the years but this is out of my range of knowledge. I am certain if I need to make my own set-up out of available components, I could do so, but I need a plan.
Thanks all.

If a gas generator is used to recharge a PPS, is it recommended to use only an Inverter generator, or can a "regular" generator be used?

Going camping for 3 days, looking for a portable battery station for camping under $200 any recommendations

I see all
The descriptions on the ads but not sure what they really mean . First is like 1024Wh then 2000W . I am looking at two scenarios . One is what size to run fridge tv and modem
As we had a bunch of power outages . Also what would I need for a freezer. And what kind of times .

Also for
2000w ( guessing watts) does that mean add everything plugged in . Like fridge is 600 tv is 300 and modem is 200 so
Need at least 1100’watts ?

Hello all:

I'm just getting into the market for potentially buying some type of power station (preferably with solar) to use as a very basic home backup system for when the power goes out occasionally.

I've kind of narrowed it down to the Jackery 1000V2, as it looks like Best Buy Canada currently has them on sale for what I think is a decent price ($799.00 for the one that comes with a solar panel).

My main concern during a power loss event is being able to occasionally run our sewage exhaust pump (kinda like a sump pump I guess) located in our basement. The pump is a "Liberty Pumps Pro 380" model, and it lists some of the specs on the unit (115V, 12Amp, and 4/10HP), with a 41 Gallon Basin. I don't really know much about power draw/requirements (just started looking into this stuff!), but from my little bit of research thus far, it looks like this pump would need about 1380watts while running, but would need closer to 2500watts surge/to start up initially? If that's correct, then the Jackery 1000 V2 SHOULD be able to power the pump, since it has 3000watts peak, correct? Since the pump only comes on for literally 5 seconds, maybe 2-3 times a day total (only needed when someone uses the shower/downstairs sink/toilet, and then only when the tank is full). Since it only turns on a few times a day for a few seconds per use, I'm assuming the Jackery would be fine powering it? If the power was out, the Jackery would only really be needed for the pump, and maybe a few other essentials like keeping our small fridge going, and maybe a couple lights/phone chargers when needed.

I've heard the included solar panels aren't the greatest with the Jackery, but since I would need very little actual power from the unit, I'm thinking the included panels would be sufficient even if the power was off for several days and I could easily spend an entire day charging the unit with the solar panels if needed.

Brownouts here in the Philippines are one of those things you can never really predict. Sometimes it’s just an hour or two, but there are times when the power is out long enough to become a real inconvenience.

I used to just rely on power banks, but they’re obviously limited once you need to keep several things running. Lately, I’ve been looking into [**portable power stations**](https://s.shopee.ph/5q7G7dXbB6) as a more practical backup power supply for home.

One brand that keeps coming up in my research is [**EcoFlow**](https://s.shopee.ph/20uXYcladV). I like the idea of having something that can basically sit charged and ready, then use it when there’s a power outage — phone charging, Wi-Fi/router, lights, laptops, and potentially other small appliances depending on the capacity.

It seems more convenient than having to deal with fuel and the noise of a traditional generator, especially if you’re living in a condo or subdivision.

For those in the Philippines who already use a **portable power station / emergency power supply**, what setup are you using?

Is EcoFlow actually worth it, or are there other brands/models that offer better value for money?
Would also be interested to hear how long your setup normally lasts during a **brownout in the Philippines**.

Power went out so I picked up 2 Ecoflow Delta 3 pros. Hoping to get power back soon, but then what do I do with them. May sell them and buy a bigger unit but will still have the same question, what is the best way to store them? Should they go in a relatively cool closet, should they be fully charged or discharged or should I keep them plugged in to grid power? Thanks.

Edit to say, I bought these units because they were the only ones of any decent capacity available locally, anything would have taken days or weeks to receive. If you are thinking about buying a power station for an emergency, definitely do it sooner rather than waiting. I could have gotten a much bigger unit for what I pass for the both of these.