Power usage question

[bartman72]

So I have a desktop PC that I built and want to run when I do eventually start van dwelling. I was wondering how many watts it would typically use.
The power supply in it is rated for 550W but I believe that's peak since most hardware in it probably doesn't use that full amount.

Anyone have any idea how many watts it would actually use? Would like to know so I can factor that in when i build the solar system at some point.

P.S. I will also buy a laptop at some point so I can go online and do things without using too much power, but there will be times I'll want to use the desktop for hours.

 

[highdesertranger]

Get yourself a Kill-a-watt and check it,

https://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Ele...eywords=killawatt+meter&qid=1623947984&sr=8-5

these meters are great for checking all your 120v stuff. also remember to add 10-30% more for inverter loses.

Highdesertranger

 

[Uncle Todo]

There's also PC system building tools for calculating what sized PSU you'll need.
This may give you an idea of what's being used, otherwise there's entirely too many variables to give you an answer.

The suggestion above is a good one, you can also use it for other devices you plan on running for consumption.

 

[bartman72]

well the pc has been built already and have been using it for months, just wanted to know how many watts it would actually use since it has a 550W power supply in it


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[bartman72]

Get yourself a Kill-a-watt and check it,

https://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Ele...eywords=killawatt+meter&qid=1623947984&sr=8-5

these meters are great for checking all your 120v stuff. also remember to add 10-30% more for inverter loses.

Highdesertranger

thx for the info, i will have to look into that


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[ldsreliance]

Most of the info that you can find on ATX PSU's and the PC Builder calculators all calculate at max power draw. So those won't be helpful. Like highdesertranger said, the only way to know for sure is to measure it yourself. I use my Kill A Watt meter all the time so that is a great investment. It will open your eyes.

But in my experience as I have measured numerous desktops, laptops, and servers... the average desktop PC will use about 100-150W continuously unless you are playing games or rendering graphics in some other way.

 

[bartman72]

ok great info…but yea most times when i would use my desktop on the road would probably be to play games or vr


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[ldsreliance]

Then you will probably end up in the 300-400W range somewhere.

 

[wayne49]

You may have already considered swapping in a DC-DC power supply. Cutting the inverter loss out of the total PC power draw on the bank.

Monitors have commonly available 12V DC adapters. Unless you have some extreme, radical monitor.

I looked into doing the DC-DC swap with my tower, but I vaguely remember that I found that DC-DC power supplies, not being mass consumer items, are more expensive upfront.

 

[ldsreliance]

You may be referring to the picoPSU.  I love those.  I have a server running on one of them going on 4-5 years now.  For gaming, though, they don't have the power as they top out around 200W and don't have the connectors for high end graphics cards. 

There is also a brand called Powerstream but I haven't tried them because, as you said, they are prohibitively expensive.  A gaming-level PSU looks to be in the $580-750 range.  It would take an awfully long time to break even on that investment.

It is on my bucket list of things to bring to market someday with my new company.  There are a lot of people that are interested in an off grid lifestyle and running crypto rigs off solar, even though crypto mining with GPU's won't last much longer.

 

[Uncle Todo]

You figure it out yet?
I got one of these when I started figuring out my needs:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VPTN8FZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Although once I decided I wanted to give it a go I sold my desktop and bought a gaming laptop. With the hybrid graphics it sips power browsing etc, and only uses GPU for games.

 

[wayne49]

Hopefully, they already have the blockchain downloaded, because a cellular connection won't cut it.