Charging batteries in the backcountry

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AstroBee United States of America
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Charging batteries in the backcountry

#1

Post by AstroBee »


I've finally got my system down to where I'm happy with power consumption but I've never had the ability, until recently, to go several nights on a camping trip and be comfortable with my power requirements.
I originally started out with a Goal Zero Yeti 400 which provides 35amp hrs of power and includes a pure sine-wave inverter for recharging my 6-year-old ASUS laptop when needed as well as DC power to the mount and accessories.
I then bought a NUC and Pegasus Astro Ultimate Power Box v2 to mount on the scope to power and control everything.

I use TeamViewer to access the NUC wirelessly via a small TPLink wireless router that creates a hotspot in the field.
I recently replaced the battery in my laptop so I can now get a full 8 hours of use on it. It's a small 15" i3 laptop. But with the NUC onboard actually doing all the work, I only power up the laptop at the beginning of the evening to get everything running, then I power down the laptop and access the NUC via TeamViewer with my Android tablet that will run 3 or 4 nights on a full charge. I use the tablet just to monitor the NUC but can actually make changes too if necessary. It's just a bit more difficult since it's a touch screen instead of mouse-driven and also, the smaller screen area makes seeing some of the tiny info a bit more difficult.

I recently discovered that the Yeti 400 has two ports, one on each side, that allows additional batteries to be linked to double or triple the power. I always thought those ports were for linking Yeti's together but after doing some research I found out that just another regular 35amp hr battery with the proper cabling can be added, therefore doubling the capacity. So with the new battery I now have 70 amp hrs of power. I don't like to let my batteries (lead-acid) discharge below 50% without a recharge so really it gives me a full 35 amp hrs.

Over the course of the last couple of nights with a total run time of 13 hours my system was discharged last night down to 60% so I decided to try out the final component in the rig. A friend was getting rid of some older solar panels and just so happened to have one designed by Goal Zero for their batteries. I picked up a Boulder 100 panel from him at a huge discount over the new cost and had never used it. Today, I decided to see how long it would take to charge my 70 amp hr system up to 100% from a 60% mark. It wasn't the best day with intermittent clouds and occasional full sunshine but I'm happy to report that even with less than perfect sunshine I was able to bring my system charge up to 100% in just under 4 hours.
Here's what the rig looks like in my yard while charging.

Image Image Image
As you can see in the final closeup of the control panel on the Yeti, with about 80% clear skies I was getting about 77watt hours of power from the panel. Not bad! I did see it go as high as 94watts during a small break in the clouds and perfect angles. Speaking of angles, if you are thinking about adding solar panels to your system, the angle most definitely makes a huge difference so you need to adjust their position every couple of hours to keep them pointed directly at the sun.
Greg M.~ "Ad Astra per Aspera"
Scopes: Celestron EdgeHD14", Explore Scientific ED152CF & ED127 APO's, StellarVue SV70T, Classic Orange-Tube C-8, Lunt 80mm Ha double-stack solar scope.
Mounts: Astro-Physics Mach One, iOptron CEM70EC Mount, iOptron ZEQ25 Mount.
Cameras: ZWO ASI2600mm Pro, ZWO 2600MC Pro, ZWO ASI1600mm
Filters: 36mm Chroma LRGB & 3nm Ha, OIII, SII, L-Pro, L-eXtreme
Eyepieces: 27mm TeleVue Panoptic, 4mm TeleVue Radian, Explore Scientific 82° 30mm, 6.7mm , Baader 13mm Hyperion, Explore Scientific 70° 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, Meade 8.8mm UWA
Software: N.I.N.A., SharpCapPro, PixInsight, PhotoShop CC, Phd2, Stellarium
https://www.nevadadesertskies.com
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KathyNS Canada
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Re: Charging batteries in the backcountry

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Post by KathyNS »


Nice report! Thanks.
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DSO AP: Orion 200mm f/4 Newtonian Astrograph; ATIK 383L+; EFW2 filter wheel; Astrodon Ha,Oiii,LRGB filters; KWIQ/QHY5 guide scope; Planetary AP: Celestron C-11; ZWO ASI120MC; Portable: Celestron C-8 on HEQ5 pro; C-90 on wedge; 20x80 binos; Etc: Canon 350D; Various EPs, etc. Obs: 8' Exploradome; iOptron CEM60 (pier); Helena Observatory (H2O) Astrobin
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Re: Charging batteries in the backcountry

#3

Post by SkyHiker »


That's quite some power production! Now, if all campgrounds would allow "solar charging only" for RVs, maybe we can finally shut those horrible generators down! The price of that panel isn't too bad.

I do the same thing with my Android, it's great for remote control of my Pi without needing a power hungry laptop or a keyboard freezing up.
... Henk. :D Telescopes: GSO 12" Astrograph, "Comet Hunter" MN152, ES ED127CF, ES ED80, WO Redcat51, Z12, AT6RC, Celestron Skymaster 20x80, Mounts and tripod: Losmandy G11S with OnStep, AVX, Tiltall, Cameras: ASI2600MC, ASI2600MM, ASI120 mini, Fuji X-a1, Canon XSi, T6, ELPH 100HS, DIY: OnStep controller, Pi4b/power rig, Afocal adapter, Foldable Dob base, Az/Alt Dob setting circles, Accessories: ZWO 36 mm filter wheel, TV Paracorr 2, Baader MPCC Mk III, ES FF, SSAG, QHY OAG-M, EAF electronic focuser, Plossls, Barlows, Telrad, Laser collimators (Seben LK1, Z12, Howie Glatter), Cheshire, 2 Orion RACIs 8x50, Software: KStars-Ekos, DSS, PHD2, Nebulosity, Photo Gallery, Gimp, CHDK, Computers:Pi4b, 2x running KStars/Ekos, Toshiba Satellite 17", Website:Henk's astro images
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AstroBee United States of America
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Re: Charging batteries in the backcountry

#4

Post by AstroBee »


Not many affordable battery or solar options out there for running some of the heavy-duty equipment like RV air conditioners and heaters. Check out my friend's youtube video on his battery setup. This is the guy that sold me the Boulder 100 panel.

https://youtu.be/5YuhDFJfwNQ
Greg M.~ "Ad Astra per Aspera"
Scopes: Celestron EdgeHD14", Explore Scientific ED152CF & ED127 APO's, StellarVue SV70T, Classic Orange-Tube C-8, Lunt 80mm Ha double-stack solar scope.
Mounts: Astro-Physics Mach One, iOptron CEM70EC Mount, iOptron ZEQ25 Mount.
Cameras: ZWO ASI2600mm Pro, ZWO 2600MC Pro, ZWO ASI1600mm
Filters: 36mm Chroma LRGB & 3nm Ha, OIII, SII, L-Pro, L-eXtreme
Eyepieces: 27mm TeleVue Panoptic, 4mm TeleVue Radian, Explore Scientific 82° 30mm, 6.7mm , Baader 13mm Hyperion, Explore Scientific 70° 10mm, 15mm, 20mm, Meade 8.8mm UWA
Software: N.I.N.A., SharpCapPro, PixInsight, PhotoShop CC, Phd2, Stellarium
https://www.nevadadesertskies.com
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pakarinen United States of America
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Re: Charging batteries in the backcountry

#5

Post by pakarinen »


And you can float around the pool while the panel does its thing. Perfect!
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I drink tea, I read books, I look at stars when I'm not cursing clouds. It's what I do.
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AT50, AT72EDII, ST80, ST102; Scopetech Zero, AZ-GTi, AZ Pronto; Innorel RT90C, Oberwerk 5000; Orion Giantview 15x70s, Vortex 8x42s, Navy surplus 7x50s, Nikon 10x50s
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