Now i am not sure if I have a solution or just made another problem for myself so any advice will be appreciated.
I have a marine grade deep cycle battery marked 12V/80AH (20 HR)/140 min (RC).
a 300 watt inverter -
a small $18 box fan from K mart marked 30 cm box 240V 50 HZ 45W
I charged up the battery hooked up the inverter then a extension lead from the inverter to the box fan and turned the inverter on then the box fan. Seems to run nicely and quietly. I only ran it for about half a hour. Would this be an ok solution to run for an hour or so of an evening to get the hot air out of a small van while trying to get to sleep? As there are no kids I intend taking the grille off the front to facilitate air flow, especially at the lower speeds which I intend to use to conserve battery life. I have a small el cheapo solar panel from k mart and a cheap but pretty quiet genny to top up the battery. Feel free with the advice/criticism as I am in no way technically inclined. cheers pete
jimricho said
05:14 PM Jan 6, 2011
Seems like you've got it pretty well sussed out.
I don't have hands on experience with gennys but it's my understanding that the best way to charge a battery from a genny is from the genny's 240v ac via a battery charger rather than directly off the genny's 12v output. It may be that your genny doesn't have a 12v output anyway.
By the way, just as a matter of interest, do you know what the wattage of the solar panel is?
petengail said
05:38 PM Jan 6, 2011
jimricho wrote:
Seems like you've got it pretty well sussed out.
I don't have hands on experience with gennys but it's my understanding that the best way to charge a battery from a genny is from the genny's 240v ac via a battery charger rather than directly off the genny's 12v output. It may be that your genny doesn't have a 12v output anyway.
By the way, just as a matter of interest, do you know what the wattage of the solar panel is?
you just sent me out in the pouring rain to get the specs out of the van lol...
the solar panel specs say..
max input voltage 22V max array current 7A
over discharge protgection 10.5V (+0.5V)
overcharge protection 14V (+0.5V)
(I really dont understand what all this means but assume it is a pretty small capacity solar panel,) though it has done the job for two years. I have only used 12V power so far for lighting
The genny is 720 watts and I charge the battery through a battery charger. Genny only has 240V output no 12V
bill12 said
06:26 PM Jan 6, 2011
240 volts at 1 amp is 240 watts, so if the fan draws 45watts then its using (aprox)20% of one ampat 240 v. But45w at 12v is nearly 4 amps.If you don,t use the fan for too long, you should be right. You should be able to run the fan for 12 hours without damaging the battery.But try to keep it charged, they last longer.
petengail said
07:02 PM Jan 6, 2011
bill12 wrote:
240 volts at 1 amp is 240 watts, so if the fan draws 45watts then its using (aprox)20% of one ampat 240 v. But45w at 12v is nearly 4 amps.If you don,t use the fan for too long, you should be right. You should be able to run the fan for 12 hours without damaging the battery.But try to keep it charged, they last longer.
Thanks for that Bill, as the fan has a timer I guess I can put it on for say two hours by which time I should be in a home brew induced slumber. Can recharge next day and repeat the process as required. I keep the battery on the bench in the garage when not in use and charge it often. Gotta love the info you can access on here... thanks... pete
Happywanderer said
07:27 PM Jan 6, 2011
Leading on from that above, Can you buy a battery operated fan??
petengail said
07:55 PM Jan 6, 2011
Happywanderer wrote:
Leading on from that above, Can you buy a battery operated fan??
how about this... a mate actually had one and used to wear it when we played golf.. i think he did it to get on my goat lol
Its solar powered too, what an invention. Something a bit bigger would be good. About desktop size.
jimricho said
07:22 AM Jan 7, 2011
Those specs you quote would be for the regulator, roughly what physical size is the panel (length x width)?
petengail said
09:35 AM Jan 7, 2011
jimricho wrote:
Those specs you quote would be for the regulator, roughly what physical size is the panel (length x width)?
Well the kit is a briefcase type and each panel is approx 35 X 50 cm
jimricho said
04:57 PM Jan 7, 2011
Thanks Pete,
looks like it's a 40 watt job. Reason I ask is I'm thinking of getting something similar. It would probably nearly keep up with most of the fan's drawdown on the battery.
Jim
petengail said
05:04 PM Jan 7, 2011
jimricho wrote:
Thanks Pete,
looks like it's a 40 watt job. Reason I ask is I'm thinking of getting something similar. It would probably nearly keep up with most of the fan's drawdown on the battery.
Jim
Thanks for your replies jim. I think I have found the data you need
under technical data it says
peak power output 13 Watt/17.50V (TPS-936A) - I think TPS-936 is the model number
jimricho said
05:10 PM Jan 7, 2011
oops, much smaller than I guessed!
jimricho said
05:13 PM Jan 7, 2011
petengail wrote:
Happywanderer wrote:
Leading on from that above, Can you buy a battery operated fan??
how about this... a mate actually had one and used to wear it when we played golf.. i think he did it to get on my goat lol
With all due respect to your mate why didn't he just have "Wanker" painted on his hat instead!
Again with all due respect - because he was my mate... he brought the hat just to get a rise out of me... and he succeeded. Not having a shot at you Jim but he was no wanker. A 30 year veteran of the RAAF, a Indonesian Linguist and the best mate I ever had. Dropped dead of a heartie about 15 years ago and I still miss him. Cheers.. Pete
jimricho said
06:38 AM Jan 8, 2011
Sorry Pete, didn't mean to be personal, it was intended as only a light hearted comment. I've sent you a PM
Jim
-- Edited by jimricho on Saturday 8th of January 2011 06:48:27 AM
petengail said
10:50 AM Jan 8, 2011
jimricho wrote:
Sorry Pete, didn't mean to be personal, it was intended as only a light hearted comment. I've sent you a PM
Jim
-- Edited by jimricho on Saturday 8th of January 2011 06:48:27 AM
no offence taken at all Jim, comment taken as you intended, light hearted... cheers
I have a marine grade deep cycle battery marked 12V/80AH (20 HR)/140 min (RC).
a 300 watt inverter -
a small $18 box fan from K mart marked 30 cm box 240V 50 HZ 45W
I charged up the battery hooked up the inverter then a extension lead from the inverter to the box fan and turned the inverter on then the box fan. Seems to run nicely and quietly. I only ran it for about half a hour. Would this be an ok solution to run for an hour or so of an evening to get the hot air out of a small van while trying to get to sleep? As there are no kids I intend taking the grille off the front to facilitate air flow, especially at the lower speeds which I intend to use to conserve battery life. I have a small el cheapo solar panel from k mart and a cheap but pretty quiet genny to top up the battery. Feel free with the advice/criticism as I am in no way technically inclined. cheers pete
Thanks for that Bill, as the fan has a timer I guess I can put it on for say two hours by which time I should be in a home brew induced slumber. Can recharge next day and repeat the process as required. I keep the battery on the bench in the garage when not in use and charge it often. Gotta love the info you can access on here... thanks... pete
http://www.amazon.com/Sun-Mate-692-Solar-Safari-Cool/dp/B0002SNPDO
Well the kit is a briefcase type and each panel is approx 35 X 50 cm
looks like it's a 40 watt job. Reason I ask is I'm thinking of getting something similar. It would probably nearly keep up with most of the fan's drawdown on the battery.
Jim
Jim
-- Edited by jimricho on Saturday 8th of January 2011 06:48:27 AM