See also: 12V Portable Power Options with a Fridge
All in One
If you are travelling in a car, SUV or Ute, rather than a Campervan or Motorhome with a built-in power supply, a Portable Power Station and a solar panel may well be all you need for a portable (and sustainable) 12V power supply for off-grid adventures.
Some suppliers are now putting together Power Station and Solar Panel ‘bundles’, marketed as ‘Solar Generator Kits’. These kits are an attractive all-in-one off-grid solution for powering fridges, CPAP machines and lights, while also charging mobile phones, iPads, drone batteries and laptops.
These generator kits really are the easy, no fuss way to get an instant, sustainable, portable 12V power supply.
Size does matter
If you are shopping for one of these solar generator kits, the first question you will find yourself asking is….. what size? This is one of those ‘how long is a piece of string’ questions. It depends on many variables based around your particular needs and circumstances.
Consider power station size options, based on battery capacity, as Small, Medium and Large….
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- Small: 40 – 80Ah (512 – 1024Wh) – Weekend excursions
- Medium: 100Ah – 160Ah (1280 – 2048Wh) – Week-long trips
- Large: Over 170Ah – Long term off-grid living
Of course, with a decent solar panel, and sunny skies, the batteries in these power stations can power your devices for much longer than would the stand-alone power station. The generator bundles are usually matched with an appropriate sized folding solar panel or solar blanket. (A 200W panel is a good size for a medium size power station.)
Retailers like to use the Wh (Watt hours) number, rather than the Ah (Amp hours) number when listing battery capacity, because they are bigger numbers and sound better. But once you get into it, Ah is an easier comparison. Some model names use the W (Watts) output of the 230V inverter.
Also keep in mind that higher capacity power stations are physically bigger, and much heavier than lower capacity units. If you are moving the unit around from car to campsite, this is important.
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- Small: 3 – 8 kg
- Medium: 20 – 25 kg
- Large: 40+ kg (usually fitted with wheels)
Another factor to consider is that these power stations can be used as backup generators to keep the fridge running at home when there is a grid power blackout. For this reason I find a ‘Medium’ size model is a good all-rounder option.
The Lithium batteries in power stations are Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries – known as LiFePo4 batteries. These batteries don’t mind being charged regularly to 100% capacity, but their longevity can be maximised by not regularly discharging below 20%, and storing the battery at 60% capacity when not being used for more than a few weeks.
Cycles
The longevity of most Lithium power stations are rated in cycles – the number of times that the battery can be recharged from 0% to 100%.
If you charge from 50% to 100%, that is ½ a cycle.
Don’t get too anxious about this. Most power station batteries are rated between 2000 and 3000 cycles. If you recharge the battery from 50% to 100% 60 times a year, and the battery has a 3000 cycle rating, your power station will be good for 100 years!
What is available
Below are some examples available from popular suppliers. Check the relevant website for smaller and larger capacity power stations.
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| Bluetti | EcoFlow | iTechWorld | KickAss |
See also: 12V Portable Power Options with a Fridge