What generator to power out of the way obsy?

[Swoop1]

If I were to build an obsy in an out of the way location with limited/ no access to mains at a reasonable cost, what sort of output should I be looking for if going down the generator route?

I guess i would be running a mount, camera, computer and lighting off the rig. I suspect there are other devices I need to factor in on the power draw list as well.

Thanks

Matt

[steppenwolf]

I’d go 12v and solar panels and I really am not an eco-warrior by any stretch of the imagination but this is a relatively easy (and quiet) route as everything you need is 12v apart from the laptop PC and that could be powered by an up converter to the nominal 18v that these often require.

No mess, no regular fuel transport and silence ?

[vlaiv]

+1 go green

If you are going to use your obsy on daily basis, it is safe to say that there is enough sunshine to charge back up during the day. In any other case, you will have multiple days to recharge.

When I did my calculations of power needs, I ended up with around 80Ah battery for everything - Laptop, mount, two cooled cameras, USB3.0 5V hub, possibly low power LED lighting to get me thru the night. That equates to roughly 1KW energy. Solar irradiance is about 1KW per meter squared when directly overhead, so you need to scale that to panel angle (no point in tracking panels, just set panels to winter angle - you need the most efficient setup in winter when day is shortest), and account for 10% efficiency, but I think that 2-3 m2 of panels and 100Ah battery bank would be ball park (but do your calculations to verify this).

[kendg]

On this side of the pond we use a 3100 watt generator to power our travel trailer.

It has enough power to run everything including the A/C and microwave at the same time.

I've used it to power my AZEQ6, computer and cameras every once in a while and also the essentials in our home when the power goes out.

The downside is the fuel tank on it lasts only 6-8 hours.

As Steve says, solar is good too.

[SnakeyJ]

solar and batteries looks good unless you wanted to run anything heavy like a dehumidifier - and even the no damp/bucket route looks quite useful.

[Swoop1]

I knew there was a reason I came here to ask- Solar - doh! hadn't even considerd that.