Jackery Explorer 500 Portable Power Station?

3 years 9 months ago #687525 by Finn
So any electrical engineers here?   So if this thing was fully charged, how long could it run this TV for:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N4TOXFG/ref=emc_b_5_t

I'm looking for something that will power our campsite and of course power my camera charger.  

Thanks gang. 


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3 years 9 months ago - 3 years 9 months ago #687536 by Nikon Shooter
The two AA batteries will not power the screen but only the chips con-
trolling the unit.

The 500W capacity of the power station, without the consumption in
amps of the set, cannot give an estimation the running time even if the
voltage in known. I only know the standby 0,5 W figure.

One could figure that at 120 V, the power supply will provide 4,1666 A.
This last number divide by the requirement of the set in A gives the time.

You will have to foresee good popcorn supplies in any case.  :rofl:

I am not an electrical engineer.

Light is free… capturing it is not!
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3 years 9 months ago #687561 by Rawley Photos


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3 years 9 months ago #687563 by Rawley Photos
"According to the company, that means roughly seven hours of run time for a 32-inch TV or 39 hours for a small car fridge. "


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3 years 9 months ago #687568 by Greg Friedman
Way cool.  Never knew something like this existed.  We do a lot of camping, so I was on this companies site and noticed they have a 1000W, this thing could power laptop and charge my cameras a zillion times it seems!  This was always one of the big reasons we cut our camping trips, well at least for me.  There are 2 other photographers that head out with us.  If I'm understanding this thing correctly, I can get their solar panels, which will keep this main unit charged, which will provide plenty of power at night when editing photos from the day?

https://www.jackery.com/products/explorer-1000-portable-power-station


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3 years 9 months ago #687587 by Inez Villarin
Well this is handy, you can run your strobes off of something like this.


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3 years 9 months ago #687630 by CharleyL
Keep in mind that you don't get something for nothing, especially when trying to run 120 volt AC powered equipment from these.

I read the review and it is quite accurate. Yes, you can power TVs from this power station, but it takes roughly 10 times more watts of 12 volt battery power from it than you can get out of it at 120 volts AC. A 2 amp 120 volt AC TV that requires 240 watts of energy at 120 volts AC, will require about 260 watts of DC power from the power station to produce the power required for the TV (with 20 watts loss due to the power conversion, fan, and heat generated). Because the power station only has 518 watts of total capability, this means that the TV connected all by itself to this unit will nearly completely drain the power station in about 2 hours, if it draws the estimated 2 amps of power at 120 volts AC. You could charge your camera batteries several times, OR watch your TV for about 2 hours, OR run a portable radio, BUT NOT a toaster, Toaster oven, Electric frying pan, etc. If you tried plugging in one of these, you would likely kill the power station. You might get by using LED photo lights for several hours, if you don't use the power station for anything else but the LED photo lights. Most photo Even just one 500 watt 120 volt AC Tungsten photo light would require too much power for this power station and it would be fully discharged in about an hour. 

For longer and more power availability, you should consider a small gas generator with several thousand watts of power output at 120 volts AC. The new Honda versions are surprisingly quiet now and about the same weight, and a 50 ft 12 gauge power cord would space it far enough away that you could charge your batteries, AND watch TV, AND run your LED photo lights all at the same time, BUT still no toaster, frying pan, etc, unless you unplugged everything else and only ran just one of these. Most of the Honda or similar generators of this size and weight will run 8 hours or more before needing refueling, and only take a couple of gallons of gas when they do.

I am a retired EE Automation Engineer and have considerable experience with power conversion. This type of power station unit is very quiet, nice to have, and very convenient, but people tend to expect them to take the place of the power company and they are far from it. They are also very expensive when compared watt for watt of capacity with a small 120 volt AC generator. They do, for a short time provide needed AC power, if you don't overload them, but it won't be very long before you will have to find a power company connection or a source of generated power, to recharge the battery in them. They make larger ones, but they are too heavy to carry conveniently, and they get very expensive as they get larger. I would much rather prefer a small gas engine AC generator than one of these. Battery technology just isn't good enough yet. Cheaper to buy per watt of capacity, nearly the same weight, and much longer running at nearly full capacity.


Charley 


The following user(s) said Thank You: can992188
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3 years 9 months ago #687663 by Howard Swanson
+1 Honda generators have come a long way.  We had a small one in our old RV and not only was it super quiet, it worked well.  Now this and this Jackery are completely different animals.  If you want battery power, for limited items, this Jackery 500 or 1000 is a good option.  However if you plan on plugging a TV into it, then get yourself a small gas powered generator as suggested above.   


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3 years 9 months ago #687753 by ThatNikonGuy
Double up on those 100W solar panels and this could become super handy


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3 years 9 months ago #687895 by Kenta
So can you run a computer off this?  Not out camping, but as a power back up in your home?


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3 years 9 months ago #687896 by Nikon Shooter

Kenta wrote: So can you run a computer off this?  Not out camping, but as a power back up in your home?


One can expect some computer working time with it
for sure and recharge during the day.

Light is free… capturing it is not!
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3 years 9 months ago #687966 by Moe
Serious power in that thing


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