Will Powerpack sort out how to get electric in my garage?

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holmslaw said:
Or 3Mw for 0.288 seconds :rolleyes:
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Actually, no. Maximum power can only be drawn when the load impedance matches the battery's impedance. Even then, half the energy is wasted. The rated current I think is 250A and that will be at something less than 12V, so less than 3kW (maybe 2kW).

If the OP can make do with 25W of 12V fluorescent lighting, he will get something less than 10 hours from a new 20Ah battery.
 
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12v for definite, no point going 240 for your needs.

Stick a solar panel or two up as well, unless you're using it constantly it could trickle enough in to avoid you lugging it anywhere.
 
I'm sure it'll be as reliable as would be any small petrol engine and generator made to be as cheap as possible from a maker you've never heard of and sold by non-specialists.

There are probably good reasons why it's a lot cheaper than, say, a Honda.

Might be worth a punt, but I'd be more tempted to check with hire companies to see if they have any reputable make s/h ones for sale.

If you do buy a cheap one and you want to use it for more than just lighting check how good a sine-wave it puts out, and how good the voltage and frequency regulation is, or you might damage a power tool that costs more than the generator..
 
My father-in-law uses a cheap small generator when on holiday in a camper van and for the few times used is great.

A friend in the Falklands tried a series of cheap generators and they just shook themselves to pieces. But they were being used 8 hours a day every day.

And this is the real point. For the odd time then cheap is OK. For everyday then it needs to be low revving 1500 rpm or less. Or over 5kVA to have a motor able to stand long use.

There are some very good generators which combine an inverter with the generator so they can tick over on light load and rev up as the load increases. There is also the WhisperGen which uses a Sterling engine and hard to hear it is running.

But it is a balance between cost to buy, amount of use, and power required.

As to solar panels and wind chargers yes they do work. But cost to install is high. One idea I did see was a bicycle wheel with a hub dynamo (Really an alternator) and rim swapped for a hoop and tape rapped around the spokes. Using a 12 volt battery with centre tap and rectifying the output as 2 half waves. Very good for garage in between building as not attempt to turn into wind just set to catch wind funnelled by buildings. Did not matter which way it turned.

As to comments on AH the problem is then more you draw the less the battery capacity. You often see two ratings @10h rate and @20h rate. So if one lamp lasts 5 hours two lamps will likely only last 2 hours not 2.5 hours because of the rate at which you are drawing power. So to carefully calculate how long it will last is pointless.

I was looking at some Christmas lights with solar panel and considering if they would power lights in my shed. Considering an old emergency lamp rewired. All good fun but until build one does not know if it will work.
 
One can have a pretty good idea that it won't work often enough for long enough for it to be worth trying... ;)
 
If you're looking for battery/inverters then best to make up your own kit. Batteries at that size are cheap as are the inverters -you could add a solar panel and still have change from that £70+.
Have a look at LEDs - I have some in the garage and they are surprisingly good stuck in Gu10 holders. I also have some 12V chains in the chicken house which are superb (and no need for inverter losses). They also overcome the problem of fluorescents confusing you when looking at rotating shafts. As said many times above it all depends on your needs, so, if you're not sure just put up a simple system at low cost. A system which is built for 20 years, but is inappropriate after 2 would be a ...........!
 
Thanks for all your posts - for soem reason I didn't receive email alerts??

Anyway, I'm going with the battery - just cant do with the noise or fumes from a gen and petrol is so expensive.

I just need 1 or 2 decent lamps to run on 12v. Can anyone recommend me a something please.

Cheers
 
D

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