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 Randomstickynote
 
Registered: 07/25/09
Posts: 824
Loc: TX 
Last seen: 7 months, 4 days
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 simple solar system, mobile office? 
#12635915 - 05/27/10 02:45 AM (2 years, 11 months ago) |
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So in the coming weeks there might be quite a long stretch of time where I'm going to need to power a laptop and cellphone for my job without access to an electric grid/outlet power. I'm pretty sure phone service will work where I will be at the time, and that I'll also be able to get mobile internet, or tether the laptop to the phone for internet service, so getting calls and entering orders into a database/sending orders to drivers isn't going to be an issue, powering the devices is going to be the issue.
I'm going to be selling my current laptop for as much as I can get and buying an asus netbook, SO the laptop will at least be able to make better use of it's battery power, good 6-8 hours off a fully charged battery.
I'm thinking either a tried and true portable gas generator, as that's definitely going to work, or a small solar kit such as this:
http://www.amazon.com/Sunforce-50044-60-Watt-Solar-Charging/dp/B000CIADLG/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=garden&qid=1274939369&sr=1-5
I'm assuming from the reviews that this thing can charge 12 volt car batteries or something similar correct? If so I'm assuming I can attach something like this to the battery:
http://www.amazon.com/Cobra-Watt-Power-Inverter-output/dp/B001RNOHBC/ref=pd_sim_e_2
Plug the laptop/cell phone right in and run them off that no problem? Could anyone possibly explain, or point me in the right direction to find out how to figure out how long a 12v battery could charge a laptop? Also is there possibly a more efficient/cost efficient way? I might need this setup to work for anywhere from a month or two up to a year, so $300 for a setup that will last me at least a year is no big deal in my eyes, and will probably always come in handy in the near future given my situation.
Just to note, those two devices are the only ones that will be absolutely necessary to run at this time. Also, though I'll basically be camping out/living in a temporary shelter, I will still have my car and a steady income to buy gas, so if all else fails I CAN charge the laptop through the power outlet in the car, but I'd like to keep that as a plan-b.
Any advice is appreciated, sorry I'm not too knowledgeable when it comes to electricity, haven't taken time to learn that much yet.
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bloodsheen
ChemChaplin
Registered: 09/24/08
Posts: 2,664
Last seen: 1 day, 14 hours
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Hm, I would actually be more worried about the time of day you will be doing w/e it is your doing. Idk if its advisable to be charging a car battery with that solar panel thing while also using your laptop. That battery life of your laptop is likely at low-ass power, so if you only get like 4 hours out of your laptop battery you better pray that your other battery will have enough juice to get done what you need done, with daylight to spare to charge your battery for the next day. I don't know that much about the electrical part of this either, but i'm just pointing out some possible logistics issues
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A cautious young fellow named Lodge / Had seat belts installed in his Dodge. / When his date was strapped in / He committed a sin / Without even leaving the garage. That's clever, isn't it?-A boy and his dog
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 koraks
Registered: 06/02/03
Posts: 20,133
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Re: simple solar system, mobile office? [Re: bloodsheen]
#12636984 - 05/27/10 10:15 AM (2 years, 11 months ago) |
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Ok, some simple math:
- The solar panel you linked to is supposed to generate 60W. Let's assume it actually does that (most of the time, it'll probably run at lower efficiency, so take this into consideration! Clouds, dust, angle of light incidence and imperfect alignment of the panel may all limit efficiency, including losses in electronic circuits, etc. etc.)
- Let's assume you have a 12V battery with a capacity of 100Ah (regular/small car battery), which equals 12V * 100Ah = 1200Wh (Watt-hours).
- Let's also assume you manage to have a perfect, lossless connection between the battery and the solar panel, which should be warranted by the charge controller that goes with the solar panel.
- Finally, let's assume the battery of your laptop has a capacity of somewhere around 5000mAh (= 5Ah), on which it is going to run 6 hours. The battery should have a voltage of about 7.4V if Google is right. This results in a battery capacity of about 5Ah * 7.4V = 37Wh
With the above assumptions, it should take about 1200Wh / 60W = 20 hours to fully charge the 12V/100Ah battery. Hence, this will take you 2-3 days in optimal conditions (summer, good weather, perfect alignment, etc.)
That same battery will provide about 1200Wh / 37Wh = 32 charges for your laptop battery (again, assuming 100% efficiency throughout the network), which should equal about 6 * 32 = 192 hours of running time. That sounds pretty feasible to me, but again, take into account that you'll lose efficiency throughout the chain of components, so don't be surprised if you end up with much lower values in reality. I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up somewhere in between 25% - 50% of what I calculate above, which should still result in realistic numbers assuming you don't need the laptop to work 8 hours a day, every day. Also assuming that you're in a somewhat sunny location that allows you to recharge the battery frequently.
Regarding the cellphone: that's probably consuming only a small fraction of energy compared to the laptop, especially if you use it sparingly.
Oh, and keep in mind that your solar panel will charge the battery only very, very slowly if you run the laptop directly from it as well. I recommend fully charging the battery at every possible occasion using a wall outlet, so you only need to 'top if off' when you're en route. So best pack in a 110V battery charger for your 12V battery as well.
Apart from the above: if you travel by car, just charging a battery using the engine of the car is of course the easiest and cheapest way to get this done. If you have a car and enough fuel, don't bother with the solar stuff.
Edited by koraks (05/27/10 10:17 AM)
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Randomstickynote
Registered: 07/25/09
Posts: 824
Loc: TX
Last seen: 7 months, 4 days
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Re: simple solar system, mobile office? [Re: koraks]
#12638152 - 05/27/10 02:09 PM (2 years, 11 months ago) |
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Cool, makes sense to me. The laptop will only need to be used in 10 minute bursts, up to 20 times a night, the phone will need to be on all day. According to whether or not I can get connect to a RDP connection on the cellphone (looks like I'm good if I get one running android or windows mobile) the laptop will only be used when absolutely necessary. Also when in use it's not very power intensive, just taking an order from clients, calling the driver, and entering the order into a database and sending it to their PDA's so they can get the signature.
I wont need to run the laptop during the day at all on weekdays, only at night.
I wont have access to wall outlets at all during this time (except at public locations) at this time at all. I'll be squatting/camping on a friends land while I help him build his earthship, and then he's going to let me do that indefinitely while I keep my job and do some intense saving for my own little plot, which since I wont be paying rent, will only be for about a year.
Sounds like I'd be better off hooking my car up so that it can charge extra 12v batteries while I'm using it running errand/getting supplies, and try to charge the laptop and cell as often as possible from public locations like the library?
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koraks
Registered: 06/02/03
Posts: 20,133
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Quote:
Randomstickynote said:
Sounds like I'd be better off hooking my car up so that it can charge extra 12v batteries while I'm using it running errand/getting supplies, and try to charge the laptop and cell as often as possible from public locations like the library?
That's by far the cheapest and most reliable manner, and quite possibly also the most environmentally friendly one, coincidentally.
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arainbow
Hippy
Registered: 02/04/08
Posts: 690
Loc: Palnet Earth
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Re: simple solar system, mobile office? [Re: koraks]
#12650850 - 05/29/10 04:01 PM (2 years, 11 months ago) |
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get a full tank of gas a 400 watt inverter a new deep cycle battery 100AH , some jumper cables and a 10 amp battery charger for the times you can use line power
run every thing from the deep cycle battery to make sure you don't get stranded by a dead battery
jumper the deep cycle battery to the car to charge it and try to use less than half charge to prolong battery life
total coast will be around $100.00
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There is more joy in heaven over one of us perfected,
than over ninety-nine naturally evolved angels.
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