Inverter recommendations please - UK

[Synchronicity]

Hi all

As the nights get longer I'm looking forward to driving to some nice dark locations with my toys.  I'll only be at locations where I can set up beside the car and I've bought a small 12v regulating supply to drive my mount.  My laptop is likely to last only 3 hours if I'm careful so I want to run it off the car too.  The PSU is rated 65 W so I'm looking to get a small 200 - 400 W inverter.  Amazon has a fair selection but none made by names I recognise so does anyone here have such a device that they would recommend?

Thanks in advance

Michael

[andyboy1970]

If it's anything like my car it will chop power after 30 minutes.

Why bother with an inverter?  It is an inefficient way to power things-

a) The mount is most likely rated for 11-15volts DC.

b) The laptop likely requires 12 to 19volts depending on model/make.

c) Inverters incur losses with heat etc.

I use one of these for my laptop - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lavolta-Panasonic-Cf-aa1653a-Cf-aa1653am-Cfaa1653am/dp/B00H3ROTV4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1535412763&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=12v+laptop+car+charger&psc=1

And power my mount from a 12volt battery through a fused cable.

[Gfamily]

Agreed, it's really inefficient to go from 12V DC to 220V AC only to then go back to 19V DC, so you'll be far better off looking for a 12V to (16-21V) converter - whatever your laptop prefers. 

 

[kendg]

Or a small generator. 

We have a generator we use for camping that I've used when out in the boonies. Works a charm and fairly quiet.

[cletrac1922]

41 minutes ago, Synchronicity said:

Hi all

As the nights get longer I'm looking forward to driving to some nice dark locations with my toys.  I'll only be at locations where I can set up beside the car and I've bought a small 12v regulating supply to drive my mount.  My laptop is likely to last only 3 hours if I'm careful so I want to run it off the car too.  The PSU is rated 65 W so I'm looking to get a small 200 - 400 W inverter.  Amazon has a fair selection but none made by names I recognise so does anyone here have such a device that they would recommend?

Thanks in advance

Michael

I use jump start battery pack

Have run my eq5 mount for several days with no issues

Problem is using car battery, when time to pack up and go home, car will not start as battery level too low

John

 

[Synchronicity]

Thanks John

I have a plugin hybrid car so flattening the battery isn't a worry for me, what I need is a 230v supply for the laptop psu.

All the best

Michael

[michael8554]

12 hours ago, Synchronicity said:

I have a plugin hybrid car so flattening the battery isn't a worry for me

???? If you flatten the battery the IC engine won't start, and you'll have no juice for the electric motors either !

 

[Synchronicity]

Sorry, I meant that it has a huge capacity in relation to the load I'd be putting on it.

[michael8554]

Okay, are we talking about an 11 mile range Prius, or something with a lot more range?

[Synchronicity]

Its a Mitsubishi Outlander, 30 miles on battery but that's not really important. Using any car as a power source is perfectly safe as long as you know how long you can go before having to start the engine to recharge the battery.

Michael

[Synchronicity]

23 hours ago, Gfamily said:

Agreed, it's really inefficient to go from 12V DC to 220V AC only to then go back to 19V DC, so you'll be far better off looking for a 12V to (16-21V) converter - whatever your laptop prefers. 

 

I hadn't considered a 12v charger for the laptop and to be honest I'm a bit wary. My last laptop died with failure of the motherboard power circuits - 2 years old and not worth repairing ??

I'll have a look around and see what's available. I'll need to check if the power cuts off after a time - I think one of the ports stays on permanently but I'm not certain...

Michael

 

[michael8554]

22 hours ago, Synchronicity said:

Its a Mitsubishi Outlander

The PHEV is brilliant, my next car to replace my diesel Merc ML.

[Synchronicity]

2 hours ago, michael8554 said:

The PHEV is brilliant, my next car to replace my diesel Merc ML.

I have to say that it is the smoooothest car I've ever driven.  It goes from rest to motorway speed with none of the 'steps' that are common in automatics.  Mine is 4 years old, and I doubt I could afford to replace it with a new one, especially as I'm trying to persuade my 'head of finance' that we should get a motorhome so that we can do some touring (and I can get a heat and a cup of tea in remote places while the scope gathers photons for me to play with) ? ??

Michael