n1369e

I want to charge 10 cell battery at the field with no AC power. Charger is a 1010 thunder Power and 1430 Thunder Power.
I can't use the car battery in the car with leaving the car running. What are some suggestions, please?

ltc

My Feedback: (3)

My first recommendation would be a Honda eu2000i inverter generator.
I've had one for over 8 years and it is flawless. Ultra quiet,l long run time, Honda quality, parts and service, inverter output is safe for any electronic load. Also has a 12V 8A courtesy DC output as well.

my second thought would be a solar power station, a Goal Zero Yeti perhaps
http://www.goalzero.com/p/165/goal-z...olar-generator
Or
http://www.goalzero.com/p/140/goal-z...olar-generator

a third option would be to bring a marine battery or as DIY A123 pack, which would allow for a couple of charge cycles at the field.

Anthony-RCU

My Feedback: (2)

Second the generator. Tried the marine battery for a while. Only a few charges at low rates before voltage is too low to accomplish anything. Same weight as the generator and must be recharged after every practice session.Most solar systems of significant capacity are much too big and expensive to really be cost effective. Added the appropriate disconnect to my house so I can use the generator for emergencies.

n1369e

Thank you for your suggestions. That helps.

n1369e

Thank you for answering, I appreciate it.

cmoulder

+1 on the Honda generator. check out wisesales.com

The price might not be the rockbottom lowest you can find on the web, but service is excellent, shipping is cheap and fast.

Niall

I also use a Honda generator but the smaller eu1000i,

Niall

Propworn

My Feedback: (3)

There are a wide variety of generators that will do the job with as many different price ranges. For the amount of usage most generators will be adequate. Buy the best you can afford. The smaller ones are trick of course but you limit yourself. If you get one a little larger it works well for a multitude of uses as well as charging your flight batteries. I purchased a 1500 watt unit I can run both my server power supplies with a peak output of 24 volts at 47 amps. This runs my Powerlab 8 and parallel board just fine. So far the most I have had on the board has been 4 6S 4100 packs at the same time no issues. Other times I have 3 or four chargers running of the individual power supplies at 12 volts each when I am charging several different cell count and capacity packs. I use it to power the campsite at night and charge the lead acid batteries at the same time. I have a Honda 3000 watt for around the house it’s just too big to take to the flying field. The smaller one takes less room and is much easier to handle. Honda is a great generator but it’s also the most expensive.

Dennis

ltc

My Feedback: (3)

Having spent many years around generators when my son was racing, I've never found a better generator than the Honda eu inverter series.
Quiet, auto throttle for fuel consumption, always easy starting, great network of dealers and online parts and documentation, easy to maintain and the inverter has been very reliable.
I currently have a 1000i, 2000i and 7000i.
Quiet operation is a huge consideration ... spend 16-20 hours a day parked next to a cheap generator that is running at full throttle constantly and bad things can happen to the generator when no one is looking ... just saying

I've never used one, but heard pretty good things about Yamaha inverter generators as well...same sizes as the Honda eu series.

I have begun looking at other non gas generator options (for those times when I don't want to bring gas ... since I only fly electric).
The Xantrex XPower 1500 looks like a pretty good option.
Under $500, 1500W for 1 hour maximum, 12VDC and 120VAC, easy transport and I can put my charger case on top!
http://www.shopepal.com/p-10038-xant...FaVxOgod7mcAlg

serious power

Hi,
That will only charge 2 x 10s packs and it will be slow as it has a 50Ah lead acid as a source.
It may not even be deep cycle ??

Brian

n1369e

Thanks for the suggestions. This is what I needed.

Propworn

My Feedback: (3)

If you don’t want to run a generator your options are lead acid batteries. If you want to charge at a decent rate the 1430 charger on 24 volts will do it. This means two batteries in series. If you want to do some flying you’re going to need at least 150 Ah batteries. These batteries usually run about $300 and up each.

I tried the battery route including using a battery isolator so I could charge the batteries from the car. For large capacity packs this never worked well. A lot of car running and slow charge times.

The only way I know of to keep up with the demand of the larger packs is a generator and a charger that will handle at least 24 volts at 40 amps. I use a Powerlab 8 with parallel board for the large packs. I have three other chargers for the smaller packs all the way down to the indoor stuff. These need a 12 volt input.

For a power supply I use two 12 volt 47 amp server power supplies. One has a floating ground on the 12 volt side allowing them to be safely connected in series. This supplies the 24 volt 40 amp need of the Powerlab. When I am in need of a 12 volt supply for the other chargers I just remove the series jumper and plug directly into the first power supply without the floating ground. Two boxes and one 60lb generator I can charge all day long without any problems. After a lot of years this has worked out to be the best setup for me. Here are two pictures of my chargers and power supplies.

I have a Honda EP2500CX and it’s just too big so I purchased a Champion 1200/1500 generator and it has worked absolutely fine for my intended purposes. I think it cost about $200 on sale.

turboromy

After considering Honda and Yamaha, I purchased Ryobi generator. It's slightly bigger and just as quiet.
Weighs about the same and starts very easy as well. One feature that I really like is it comes with handle and wheel built in for easy transportation.
Long tern reliability of course is unknown since I had it only a month. But for RC use, I think Ryobi is more than good enough.

ltc

My Feedback: (3)

It would be an option for smaller packs and parkflyers.
Unfortunately, batteries have a very long way to go in order to catch up with gasoline with regards to energy density.

Propworn

My Feedback: (3)

Not so my friend

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRpMV-Gf0hA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=369h-SEBXd8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_ukLgsGEzs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8Pb_psj1A8

ltc

My Feedback: (3)

I believe I am correct. The volumetric and thermodynamic efficiency of today's batteries are still a long way from fossil fuel gasoline...from an engineering perspective, it's not even close.
If this were not the case, electric vehicles would be 99% and not 1%
Running an off the grid solar house with batteries vs a generator is a pretty easy to grasp demonstration.

Propworn

My Feedback: (3)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoFVO31CbE0

2walla

My Feedback: (10)

I use an old honda em650. Whisper quiet, light, and adequate to run a 500 watt power supply. You can buy them from 50 on up. You dont need the precise voltage and frequency control of an inverter generator to run most dc power supplies.

ltc

My Feedback: (3)

Battery powered cars are cute, but again, if battery technology was anywhere close to fossil fuels w.r.to volumetric thermodynamic efficiency, there would be no gas engines or gas generators. Everyone would just have battery packs.
it would mean this thread would never have been started since you would simply bring your battery powered portable power pack to the field to run your chargers all day.
a small Honda generator can produce 1000W output for 12 hours on 1 gallon of gasoline.
i don't believe there is a battery that is about the same size/weight that can even come close.... Like within an order of magnitude close.