Question about solar generators.

[Lif3l3ssgaming]

So I am currently in the research phase of this all. And honestly the most daunting thing to me of this all is the electrical work and I have recently come across these solar generators like anker, Bluetti, Etc. But seems hard to find info for my question of of non sponsored videos and I also just come across these forums recently as well so I figured id ask.

I am a pc gamer and when I get on the road (eventually) its not something I want to leave behind I would have a much more power efficient machine when I make this change of course… If I were to rely on electricity for everything including heat and ac etc. because something about having propane or any other fuel on board in a very small space seems to be the most sketchiest thing in the world lol.

But anyways minimal lighting 12v appliances for the most part. Would one of these generators be typically enough to replace a typical van builds power system. I see bluetti even has battery extenders or what not which id be willing to pay extra for. Just looks so much simpler of a system then the diy stuff Id probably blow myself up haha. And willing to pay the extra cost if it simply would do exactly what someone would build in their van would do.

Sorry I hope anything I said makes sense I am a very scatter brained person and its typically hard for me to put what I am trying to ask into text. Also I know there are other brands out there just didn't want to list them all.

 

[bullfrog !]

The biggest problem is still you need enough solar energy to run or charge the units without grid power, generator or other auxiliary power source. Heating and AC as well as gaming can be done usually one at a time for short periods of time but doing everything for hours at a time maybe beyond their capacity. We used an Ecoflow Delta ll to supplement our battery bank and it worked quite well. They now have a system that uses a generator as well that is pretty much plug and play you might look at.

 

[Lif3l3ssgaming]

The biggest problem is still you need enough solar energy to run or charge the units without grid power, generator or other auxiliary power source. Heating and AC as well as gaming can be done usually one at a time for short periods of time but doing everything for hours at a time maybe beyond their capacity. We used an Ecoflow Delta ll to supplement our battery bank and it worked quite well. They now have a system that uses a generator as well that is pretty much plug and play you might look at.

Yeah the bluetti ac200max and anker products i was looking at were also the plug n play pricey idk how much more pricery exactly then a diy setup to do the same thing. But if that means I can elminiate that task for the most part in a easier way im all for it lol. ty for your input.

Just trying to figure out if its a reliable alternative.

 

[Happy Camper]

First, these things aren't generators. Get that out of your head and vocabulary when thinking and talking about them. It'll help you immensely.

They are charge controller, battery, and inverter in a handy package. They are improving and coming down in price.

Most of what you'll have to figure out is how you're going to generate the power to fill them up with energy, so to speak.

Solar panels - your vehicle choice and where you'll be spending time will determine how much energy you can generate with solar. Weather is also a large consideration.

Generator - storage for gas and generator. Plus where you will be able to run it safely is important.

Vehicle alternator - works well if you're driving a decent amount daily. Otherwise very inefficient. A solid backup for the other options though.

Plugging in at a business or RV park - probably not practical for most. But might as well include it.

Once you figure out how much power you can generate daily, you can figure out how much power storage you'll need.

Find the right balance of those and be willing to compromise, and you'll be good to go.

 

[Lif3l3ssgaming]

First, these things aren't generators. Get that out of your head and vocabulary when thinking and talking about them. It'll help you immensely.

They are charge controller, battery, and inverter in a handy package. They are improving and coming down in price.

Most of what you'll have to figure out is how you're going to generate the power to fill them up with energy, so to speak.

Solar panels - your vehicle choice and where you'll be spending time will determine how much energy you can generate with solar. Weather is also a large consideration.

Generator - storage for gas and generator. Plus where you will be able to run it safely is important.

Vehicle alternator - works well if you're driving a decent amount daily. Otherwise very inefficient. A solid backup for the other options though.

Plugging in at a business or RV park - probably not practical for most. But might as well include it.

Once you figure out how much power you can generate daily, you can figure out how much power storage you'll need.

Find the right balance of those and be willing to compromise, and you'll be good to go.

Sorry for the miss lable I personally didnt put a whole lot of thought in calling it a generator so my apologies.

I guess in a more complex confusing way of asking my question if these were a good reliable option or alternative of being a full time power source?
I honestly am just trying to eliminate as much user error as possible when it comes to the electrical stuff in the the van.

I appreciate your response.

 

[RvNaut]

Step One.. determine your energy usage, then double it for cushion.
Step Two.. how long do you want to run things when it rains for 5 days straight and you can't charge.
Step Three .. determine how much battery you need to fill the above.
Step Four .. determine how much solar you need to charge the above batteries.
.
I live in my class A RV and have a desktop computer and Starlink, and while I suck about 350wts continuous except when sleeping, and that will only go up in the future. IMO the solar generators are not well suited for heavy usage or even moderate. Once you get beyond casual use it quickly becomes more cost effective to build your own on some level. I did more tha two years of digging into it all and ended up building my own battery, buying an AIO (all-in-one) and mounting 6 used panels up top.
.
The total cost was $5k... $3k for the battery, $1300k for the AIO and mounting hardware/fuses/breakers, and about $700 to buy and mount the panels. This could all be scaled back to a smaller system, but it gives you and idea of what is possible.
.
It is in your best interest to dive in and understand your solar system, and once you have gone that far, building your own is nt that difficult. Will Prowse has a YouTube channel with everything you need to know.

 

[jonyjoe303]

The bluetti ac200max seems pretty good with 2000 watthours of lifepo4. I like that it can handle up to 900 watts of solar. Reading the reviews one thing that concern me was the loud noise from the inverter fans. That would be a dealbreaker for me. Unless you put the unit in another area while it was in use, the noise can be aggravating.
I have a small 200 watt inverter which I replace the original fan because it was too loud and added a speed controller so the fan ran at a lower speed. The noise from the small fan on the tiny 200 watt inverter got to me, the bluetti has a 2200 watt monster inverter meaning much larger noisier fans.
By PCgamer you mean a desktop PC or a gaming laptop? even the largest lithium generators won't run a desktop PC for very long but they will have no problem handling a power efficient gaming laptop. Also for heat and AC, the bluetti will only run them for 1 or 2 hours so its not recommended for those uses.
On a van you have downsize all your devices to run on batteries. I heavily insulated my van so I don't need a heater or an AC, I use a small 2 amp swampcooler to keep cool. You will need something similar due to the heat produce by the gaming computer, if the computer uses 200 watts, thats 200 watts of heat going into your van, it will heat up quickly in summer.
Also your solar system has to be sufficient to keep the unit charged up. I have a 365 watt panel to charge my 500ah (about 5000 watthours) of lithium. A 365 watt panel maxes out at about 27 amps of charge power when the sun is overhead. In a good day in summer it can put back about 140 amps into my system. Before I used a 120 watt and also 240 watt solar panels and both are too weak to charge large batteries.

 

[justanothermaroon]

The bluetti ac200max seems pretty good with 2000 watthours of lifepo4. I like that it can handle up to 900 watts of solar. Reading the reviews one thing that concern me was the loud noise from the inverter fans. That would be a dealbreaker for me. Unless you put the unit in another area while it was in use, the noise can be aggravating.

I've had the original AC200 since it came out (Fall '19) and have never had a noise issue. It sits under my dinette table.

 

[Happy Camper]

Many people here have portable power stations for the same reasons you mention. From all indications they are getting better and less expensive.

Maybe your first stop should to buy a kill o watt meter so you can determine your usage. Strongly consider a good gaming laptop vs a decent desktop for the power usage and heat mentioned above.

A van has limited space on top for solar. Keep that in consideration when coming up with your energy storage solutions.

 

[user 29855]

Many people here have portable power stations for the same reasons you mention. From all indications they are getting better and less expensive.

Maybe your first stop should to buy a kill o watt meter so you can determine your usage. Strongly consider a good gaming laptop vs a decent desktop for the power usage and heat mentioned above.

A van has limited space on top for solar. Keep that in consideration when coming up with your energy storage solutions.

 

[user 29855]

For what it's worth, I have a Renogy 200 watt panel on the roof of my van, and it's mounted width-ways, which leaves room for two more if I decide I need them. All it takes is a roof rack. The panel is only 65 inches long. If I ever decided on the third panel, it would extend past the roof over the windshield. (built-in sunshade....) That would still allow room for my roof fan.

 

[user 29855]

So I am currently in the research phase of this all. And honestly the most daunting thing to me of this all is the electrical work and I have recently come across these solar generators like anker, Bluetti, Etc. But seems hard to find info for my question of of non sponsored videos and I also just come across these forums recently as well so I figured id ask.

I am a pc gamer and when I get on the road (eventually) its not something I want to leave behind I would have a much more power efficient machine when I make this change of course… If I were to rely on electricity for everything including heat and ac etc. because something about having propane or any other fuel on board in a very small space seems to be the most sketchiest thing in the world lol.

But anyways minimal lighting 12v appliances for the most part. Would one of these generators be typically enough to replace a typical van builds power system. I see bluetti even has battery extenders or what not which id be willing to pay extra for. Just looks so much simpler of a system then the diy stuff Id probably blow myself up haha. And willing to pay the extra cost if it simply would do exactly what someone would build in their van would do.

Sorry I hope anything I said makes sense I am a very scatter brained person and its typically hard for me to put what I am trying to ask into text. Also I know there are other brands out there just didn't want to list them all.

 

[user 29855]

One thought that I have is your monitor. Depending on what your requirements are, such as resolution, response time and refresh rates, you might find what you need in a 12 volt powered monitor. I have a 24" 12 volt monitor from SuperSonic and I'm really happy with it. However, the resolution and response time may disappoint you. Another thought is that your gaming PC produces a lot of heat, and that may be problematical in a small enclosed area.

 

[maki2]

Basically you are going to crash right into barriers of not enough space and also likely not enough money to pull off a lot of hours of gaming if you try to run everything off of solar power while living in as you say a small space. That means making compromises such as using propane to power some things. You can learn to safely do so, millions of people do that everyday.

 

[Overland One]

I have a 2000 watt gas generator to use with my AC200P to back up the solar if cloudy for a few days. It will really allow me a lot of flexibility but I was dreading having to buy a larger gas can than my 2.5 gallon one I already own. I also did not like the idea of having all that extra gas inside the van. Well, I was gassing the van up the other day and I realized something, this van has a 35 gallon tank, so , I can use my small gas can to fill the generator when needed, then use a simple handpump siphon to refill my gas can from the van's tank. I was like Duh, why did I not think of this before? So, I do not have to buy a larger can and, I also do not have to worry about having to go somewhere to fill up my small gas can when it is empty. The point here is, using a small inverter gas generator will allow someone to run any pc system he wants with the only limitations being fuel supply. Running the generator to refill the Bluetti while gaming would mean the generator would not need to run that often as the solar would be taking part of that load unless gaming at night. Internet connectivity, or lack thereof, will be another issue to deal with depending on what you have like Starlink, or Cell LTE, etc. I am not a gamer but I assume most people play games against others online right?

 

[Lif3l3ssgaming]

Basically you are going to crash right into barriers of not enough space and also likely not enough money to pull off a lot of hours of gaming if you try to run everything off of solar power while living in as you say a small space. That means making compromises such as using propane to power some things. You can learn to safely do so, millions of people do that everyday.

Yeah i wasnt planning on running everything all the time all at once and i understand people use propane wasnt the point just a mental thing for me and ive seen full electric builds im not expecting the 4 seasons on wheels. outside of a pc but even then I would be downsizing to a laptop or a more effecient pc(most likely will just go with a laptop) i already basically live very minimally as is which is kinda why van life was intriging to me.
Like I said I was just trying to elminate as much user error as possible and was wondering if these power stations were an actual good alternative as the full time power source.
Also like I previously stated Ive just been trying to do my research on every before I all in and mess everything up lol.

 

[Happy Camper]

They are generally reliable, and should be even better by the time you're ready to go.

Buy a cheap kill o watt meter and connect it to your computer and other things so you can size appropriately.

After that. It's more a matter of generating the power to replenish it.

 

[user 22017]

So I am currently in the research phase of this all. And honestly the most daunting thing to me of this all is the electrical work and I have recently come across these solar generators like anker, Bluetti, Etc. But seems hard to find info for my question of of non sponsored videos and I also just come across these forums recently as well so I figured id ask.

Have you seen this guy's videos?



He does his gaming in a van using almost exclusively solar. 600 watts on the roof.

 

[Happy Camper]

Remember, you can start with a power station and use it full time. If you outgrow it, you can sell and replace it with something bigger.

Or later when you've seen other setups in person, you might be ok with installing a full battery system with help. There are a lot that here that can help you at that point.

Bottom line. It'll work for you. Just size it right (or close), and have a way to charge it.

 

[user 22017]

So I am currently in the research phase of this all. ...

One more (if you want to see how he fits it in his van)...

Gaming set up (with Xbox). Starts at 8:00:



I skimmed his videos for his power set up, but nothing stood out.

Here he is using the Xbox outside powered by a Bluetti:



Hop to 6:45

I did a search on YT for "nomad van gaming". Try different keywords to find more videos.