Your Quartsite Questions

[WheelEstate USA]

We are in Q-zite, so I thought I'd start this thread for those of you that have questions about what's here, shopping options, eats places, etc.

There's lots of 14 day free BLM land for camping...also Long Term BLM $180 for season.
http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/recreation/camping/LTVA/laposa.html

Gas is $3.25 For regular at either Loves or Pilot.
Propane is about $2.60.
A haircut is $11.
There's plenty of used bikes for under $50.

What would you like to know??

 

[wagoneer]

Are you gonna hang out until Jan.??

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Yup, our host job runs till April 15.

Hope to see you here.

 

[wagoneer]

Been to Quartsite a number of times and we will meet up. Looking forward to it in fact. I am still housebound but getting the ride in shape. casey (AkA Mr. Gadget) and I will be Wagon training it up first week. soon as we get the training wheels off the back tires.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Looking forward to your arrival.

Feel free to share any hints on this thread. I hope it will help some of the first timers and those like myself who haven't been here in a long time.

Things are kinda slow here right now, but as the days go by there are more people of all walks coming in. New vendors are setting up constantly. Its going to be interesting to watch the transformation from a sleepy village to a traffic jammed flea market. The shows in January draw vendors, gems, and RVs from the far reaches of the world. If you're into beads this is your haven.
Rock-hounding is is popular, as is metal detecting and other methods of hobby mining.

I suggest having a bike to get around town. (wait till you see the "book man" on his bike....wears sneakers, a hat, and a "G" string....For real).

I'll get info on Pizza and beer soon as I can look 'round some more.

 

[caseyc]

Thanks for your helpful input. Double thanks for the heads-up warning on the G man! I think I may have seen that guy on a previous YouTube video on Quartszite.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

We'll try to add interesting tid bits and useful info.

There's free wifi at the laundry next to Horizon bank on hwy 95 three blocks north of Main.

We're on duty thru Friday, so we'll get out after that and find out about places and things.

 

[Lostinspace]

The "G" string man sounds like the one here in Tallahassee. And he is not a good speciman to be wearing only a "G" string. :s

 

[blueberry]

I may be coming without electricity in the van. Are there places to charge up?

 

[wagoneer]

Gonna be with a lot of people that will have, this is a great time for you to get with the house battery thing. Soo many here to help butt simple let me know perhaps i can pick up a cheap battery for you. (extra 50 pounds won't kill me.)

 

[blueberry]

That's very kind, wagoneer. I'm hoping to save enough by Jan. to get what I want... but maybe I should settle for what I need. I could come to Quartzsite now if I just had a power setup. The more I read about it, the more confused I get. But that's for a different thread.

---

I guess I should ask another question: given that I don't have power yet, should I come to Q now, or wait until I have power (for a fan and my laptop/phone/gadgets)? I like the idea of being there before the crowds arrive but I won't have extra money for a battery and such until January.

 

[caseyc]

Just get a decent size AGM type auxillary battery, plus a pure sine inverter (say 1,000 watts or more), and throw in some good size solar panels on the roof top...and poof! You're done! I'd also add an LCD/LED digital readout voltage meter, which would be useful. It would also be nice to add several 12 volt adapter outlets too. If you are to err, err on the side of larger versus smaller. Can't go wrong with extra power. You can go wrong though with under-power. Just as long as everything fits, of course.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

I'm sure you can find a deal here on a panel or 2 that will satisfy basic elect needs in a van.
A good house battery is important. Wanna save your starting battery for its purpose.

When do you plan to arrive??

---

Blueberry, see your PM

 

[blueberry]

Sooner rather than later, bindi&us. It just depends on whether I can get by without a power setup at first. Right now, I'm dependent on family for charging up all the gadgets every day. Gotta have my gadgets!

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Thanks, caseyc, I plan on that but the budget is super tight at the moment. I have enough for gas to Quartzsite, and food, until January. Trying to decide whether to come now or wait.

Just get a decent size AGM type auxillary battery, plus a pure sine inverter (say 1,000 watts or more), and throw in some good size solar panels on the roof top...and poof! You're done! I'd also add an LCD/LED digital readout voltage meter, which would be useful. It would also be nice to add several 12 volt adapter outlets too. If you are to err, err on the side of larger versus smaller. Can't go wrong with extra power. You can go wrong though with under-power. Just as long as everything fits, of course.

 

[wagoneer]

Does not take a lot of loot. In "Q" the people will supply you. Here in SF I can score a AGM for 50 bucks at the re-cycler. (if they have them). I would not recommend you to go if your not ready to deal with trading with all sorts of people. Been doing that for the last 45 years

 

[caseyc]

What gadgets do you need to power? Large stuff or small stuff? What's the largest gadget that needs power?

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The largest gadget that I need powered (that is still portable) is a laptop. I recently bought from Amazon a 12 volt adapter that powers my Sony laptop like a charm! Best $20 adapter I've bought in awhile. Simply plug the sucker into my vehicle's cigarette outlet. You can also get various 12volt/USB adapter chargers for your smartphone and tablets too. Just keep in mind that tablets require more voltage (between 2.1 to 3.1 amps) and Amazon sells these special adapters for around $12...again, cheap. Smartphones typically only require 1.0 amp to charge. You can also buy those very portable 12volt/inverters from Best Buy for around $50 which will charge various hand-held electronics. Heck, I even have a portable car jumper battery that has a hand-crank charger for an emergency! Nothing like human power to charge up a battery.

 

[blueberry]

What gadgets do you need to power? Large stuff or small stuff? What's the largest gadget that needs power?

Small stuff - a laptop is the biggest... though I'd love to bring my blender too for smoothies.

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Does not take a lot of loot. In "Q" the people will supply you. Here in SF I can score a AGM for 50 bucks at the re-cycler. (if they have them). I would not recommend you to go if your not ready to deal with trading with all sorts of people. Been doing that for the last 45 years

I'd love to score an AGM for 50 bucks, but can't spare them at the moment. I have no problem with "all sorts of people" but I don't know what you mean by "trading" -- do you mean haggling?

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I recently bought from Amazon a 12 volt adapter that powers my Sony laptop like a charm! Best $20 adapter I've bought in awhile. Simply plug the sucker into my vehicle's cigarette outlet. You can also get various 12volt/USB adapter chargers for your smartphone and tablets too.

Forgot to say that I do have a USB adapter for the smaller gadgets but not a 12 volt adapter for my laptop.

 

[caseyc]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002VNMVEW/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I got this 12 volt power cord from Amazon for cheap to power my Sony laptop. You can find one for your particular make and model laptop.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005MIZYOW/ref=oh_details_o05_s01_i02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I got several of these TomTom 12 volt adapters that can charge a tablet and smartphone, plus has another outlet for plugging in another piece of electronic.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0088U4YAG/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have a bunch of these PowerGen 12 volt adapters that can also power both a tablet and smartphone.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001PRR366/ref=oh_details_o05_s01_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I also use this 4 outlet 12 volt adapter to plug in my 12 volt fans, and other small items.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003YKX6WC/ref=oh_details_o05_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
You cannot have enough USB power cords! This particular cord is a "right angle" cord at the end to save space. I also have a "left angle" cord too. This is for charging my Android smartphone, which is Micro USB.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0085OB0IE/ref=oh_details_o08_s00_i02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Also have a few of these 12,000 mAh portable rechargeable batteries to power both a smartphone and tablet. This very compact battery spits out 12,000 mAh!!

http://www.amazon.com/Powertravelle...80&sr=8-2&keywords=solar+monkey+solar+charger
I also have this SolarMonkey portable solar panel charger

http://www.amazon.com/Solar-Joos-Or...940&sr=8-1&keywords=orange+joos+solar+charger
Also have this Orange Joos portable solar charger

http://www.amazon.com/Auto-Power-Station-Pull-Crank/dp/B004I5OEOG
This is the portable car jumper battery that includes a HAND CRANK for recharging. Plus it has multiple outlets for powering small electronics.

http://www.sears.com/diehard-platinum-portable-power-1150-with-jumpstarter-air/p-02871988000P
Also have this large Sears Diehard 1150 car jumper battery with numerous outlets for charging devices, plus an air inflator too.

http://www.amazon.com/Wagan-2221-6-Smart-150-Inverter/dp/B002SSJYJK
Also have a bunch of these very small 12 volt inverters you plug into the ciggy outlet. Depending on the wattage output, you probably can charge a laptop.

I have even more batteries than the ones I've listed above, but these are the ones I can think of at the moment.

As I may have said earlier...I have a sickness!

 

[blueberry]

Wow, thank you!

 

[caseyc]

You're welcome. You're not going to be able to power your blender using any of the portable batteries I mentioned earlier. A blender requires too much power.