Now that this winter storm is behind us.... I've been looking at the smaller battery powered backup generators.
Something to charge multiple phones, computers, maybe run a small fan. Portable is good so I can take it hunting/fishing/travelling/road trips/etc.

I understand how they are rated (by watts) - obviously impacts price.

Options - solar charging may be nice in the future, but not needed now.

Might be nice to have an option to jump start a car - but it seems those battery units are more stand alone.

This one seems to be mentioned alot and "recommended" on Amazon

Jackery Portable Power Station

Anyone have any experience with these? Thx SW '86

I bought this one a few years ago.

https://www.amazon.com/POWEROAK-Portable-Generator-Emergency-Inverter/dp/B06XW1G24Q

Works well. Won't charge fully on 12v. Takes ~8hrs to fully charge on power from the grid. Charges in 4-5 hours with a decent solar panel and good sun.

I suggest buying the largest capacity one you can afford. That 400Wh will run a 10" 12v box fan all night while charging a phone but will be dead after 8 hours. If you're just charging phones/ipads, you should get plenty of charges from something a bit smaller, but the incremental cost to get double the power isn't much.

If you keep an eye on Woot, they frequently have "solar generators" on sale for decent prices. I usually see them at least once a month

Stuff like that will only charge small things like phones and such. For not much more money you can get one that can do space heaters and hot water unit which would be much more versatile.

I have something similar to the Jackery. I got it for a camping trip to run my CPAP. I've since added a Westinghouse Igen 2500 inverter generator so I don't use it that often. I will admit I got it out and made sure it was fully charged in the event my first two contingencies failed. They are ideal for having on outings if yon only need to power devices, but not something that would withstand a week long weather anomaly.

Honestly as soon as I get my 2021 REI dividend, I'm using it toward this. This, IMO, would be just as practical as having the large bulky battery pack (which the jackery is), but much easier to store/pack on trips.

https://www.rei.com/product/180608/goal-zero-nomad-50-solar-panel

I paid the same for my 4000w generator. Although I'd probably use that device more than I will use my generator.

I have a goal zero yeti 3000. I use it for blackup power and when camping/hunting and I do not need to run appliances or AC/heat. Works great but still need generator for the big stuff.

I can run my portable refrigerator for 6 days on the battery.

I have been looking at these, specifically to run a CPAP at night. That was the worst thing about the rolling blackouts was the freaking CPAP going off every hour or so.

Now I'm really looking at purchasing a large generator to run backup power on with a transfer switch. But since most of those apparently run pretty dirty power for electronics, I am thinking about either getting one of these for CPAP and other electronics or just getting a smaller inverter generator for those situations.

The BALDR is another one that I was looking at as an alternative to the Jackery


https://www.amazon.com/BALDR-Portable-Generators-Flashlight-Emergency/dp/B07YWWVRWD/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2FFENQJN9UW4O&dchild=1&keywords=baldr+500w+portable+power+station&qid=1613786854&sprefix=baldr+%2Caps%2C485&sr=8-3

Another option is getting one you can connect to your car battery. Was looking at a 1500 watt inverter from harbor freight. I can keep it in my truck for whenever I need it or go camping.

Basically what I did except I found an open box deal on Amazon warehouse.

jakeaggie84 said:

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Another option is getting one you can connect to your car battery. Was looking at a 1500 watt inverter from harbor freight. I can keep it in my truck for whenever I need it or go camping.

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The potential issue with that is what happens when you use it too long and your car won't start? Not the best idea when going camping. Great if you're driving though. That's where the solar "generators" are nice b/c you don't have to risk running down your starting battery.

Also, I don't believe HF sells any pure sine wave inverters which is what you want for charging/running electronic devices.

Question on these things (Jackery and BALDR)..... would one likely be able to charge them with your running generator without worrying about the high THD coming out of them?

Yeah. I would be more comfortable connecting it to the battery while the car is on.

I got about 25 hours of idle time on half a tank of gas from my f150. It has a built in inverter that was nice to have this week.