Hi all, I have a lot of gadgets including a laptop that need to be kept charged while off the grid in the van. I did not want to use the leisure battery. After looking at many battery generators a decided on a Litionite 1000w battery.

a lot of gadgets

off the grid

I see.

I’m sure that unit is stuffed full of the latest and greatest in chinesium components, and will work fine for at least 3 months.

The video also claims that it can charge from 66% to 100% in “2-3 hours”, but the manufacturer says it takes 19 hours to fully charge. Also, nothing on the actual output capacity of the unit.

I don’t get the point, given that the capacity of a lead-acid leisure battery is about the same. You’ll also use the higher-quality chargers that come with your devices, instead of the cut-price garbage I’m sure this unit contains.

I don’t get the point, given that the capacity of a lead-acid leisure battery is about the same. You’ll also use the higher-quality chargers that come with your devices, instead of the cut-price garbage I’m sure this unit contains.

I can see the point, in that it’s probably significantly lighter and more portable. We used to use SLA’s in peli cases with 4 or 5 pin (12V or 24V) sockets which we used for powering cameras in inaccessible locations when filming. They were a bit of a trudge to carry up a Scottish mountainside though!

For just using in a van though, You could probably buy 4x the capacity of leisure batteries, and a small inverter , split charge relay, wiring, switches etc. And get all the advantages of leisure batteries, principally that IME the words “portable” and “breakable” are synonymous. Stick some batteries in a cupboard or under a seat, and have some fixed sockets on the other hand and they’ll last indefinitely. And by the time you’ve reached your destination they’ll always be charged, no taking them into the house, or having to remember to plug them in.

I chose a lithium battery for the following reasons:
– for the same mAh capacity you can discharge a lithium battery to 0’ish without damage many times. For lead acid it is recommended not to exceed 50% repeatedly. Therefore lithium has 2x effective capacity.
– portable’ish
– lighter in comparison to a lead battery but is extra weight :-/
– multi-use given but is expensive
– my Mac could discharge my already scarce 2x 90Ah (really 45Ah) lead acid batteries when they need to keep van kit running off grid in approx 4 recharges.
– my lead acid leisure batteries and the van are second hand 2 years old so not in optimal condition.
– reduce my battery anxiety!

@twrch At 1m50sec there is a graphic showing the capacity of the unit. The unit can sustain ~500w from one AC port.

Just some food for thought…

for the same mAh capacity you can discharge a lithium battery to 0’ish without damage many times. For lead acid it is recommended not to exceed 50% repeatedly. Therefore lithium has 2x effective capacity.

Lithium batteries have a cycle life of around 300-500 cycles, and 3 years (ie, they degrade over time, even if not being used much). They also last longer if you don’t fully discharge them. A lead-acid leisure battery will be about the same, with maybe a higher number of years.

multi-use given but is expensive

This is probably the least convincing part of this unit – the video already shows it can’t charge a Macbook without using the AC inverter output along with the standard Macbook mains charger. Hence my original point – the various DC outputs and mains outputs will use the cheapiest circuitry, and will not perform as well as the OEM chargers. You already have those – why not use them?

– my Mac could discharge my already scarce 2x 90Ah (really 45Ah) lead acid batteries when they need to keep van kit running off grid in approx 4 recharges.

Have you tested this? The figure you really want is Watt-hours, which is the actual amount of energy stored. 2*45Ah, times the battery working voltage (which is 12v), gives watt-hours of your two batteries at 50% discharge. You have about 1000Wh in your existing leisure batteries, even at 50% depth of discharge. A Macbook has a ~65Wh battery, so that’s 15 complete charges (but with nothing else being powered).

reduce my battery anxiety!

Does your van have a meter to indicate remaining capacity and current rate of usage? That might help.

At 1m50sec there is a graphic showing the capacity of the unit. The unit can sustain ~500w from one AC port.

Ah, I was talking about the total power capacity, not the maximum power it can put out. I’d like to have seen the reviewer do a few 100% discharge/recharge cycles, and ideally, again after a few months of use.

surely this just moves the battery anxiety to another device.

why not fit solar panels + use 12v chargers and remove the anxiety all together.

500 quid for a big battery (whats a battery generator ? does it make batteries?) gets you a lot of lovely free solar power.

inverters seem like a somewhat pointless loss creation device unless you have some gadget that absolutely must have 240v – possibly Tinas industrial cameras might but a macbook certainly doesnt need 240v.

inverters seem like a somewhat pointless loss creation device unless you have some gadget that absolutely must have 240v

They are, but options for chargers that take 12v input (especially for laptops and the like) are more limited.

when your laptops a macbook its a non issue. you can get 12v official ones or if your as happy with chinesium as above you can buy em for 20 quid.

I used to have one for my old dell work laptop. – i’ve not yet looked into it for the new HP one but i no longer rotate so no longer carry my laptop out of hours.

If your using some pcworld special laptop it might be an issue

https://youtu.be/__5aCCZZqDU

Looks like not everyone like them!

The disappointment of the USB-c for not charging my Mac has been alleviated mostly by being able to trickle charge via the 12v 10A to USB adapter. But atm is only a 500ma device. Still ok to charge the Mac when not is use though will take a while. Like over night.

Note I do not have a habit of discharging my to zero. I wanted my use case in the van to be to use the Mac then charge when not in use.
Mind I have gone from 100% to 5% in 2 hours when rendering at full pelt. This worst case scenario was what I was catering for but I do not expect this to happen very often. So I do have plenty of head room.

My experience of solar panels and being able to work as expecting and if so work in a timely manor especially in a climate like Scotland is for me not a viable option. The panels would
have to be quite a size before being able to get the turn around time I want.

6v golf cart batteries in series. 80% discharge and real deep cycle.

But atm is only a 500ma device. Still ok to charge the Mac when not is use though will take a while. Like over night.

So you have a regular 12v to 5v USB, 500mA adapter, and are using a USB A to USB C cable to charge your Mac? Have you tried this out? A 5v, 500mA adapter would take about 30 hours to charge a Mac, if it worked.

I’s £500?

You could get a normal battery and a decent solar panel for that and never run out.