Power Supplies

[Crater101]

Good morning all;


I'm chasing after some thoughts on power supplies. As someone who is starting out into astrophotography after years as a visual observer, I'm looking for recommendations as to the best power supply for a HEQ5 pro mount.


It's got to be reasonably portable - I have a good (Bortle 4) site a short drive away with no obstructions, so something I can pack into a car and then carry a short distance would be fantastic.


I've been looking at the BLUETTI stuff, but don't know too much about it, i.e., will it provide the right power for the mount.


Certainly no genius at this, so any advice will be welcomed.


Cheers!

[AdamJL]

Bluetti :)
I have one and it’s perfect

[AstroViking]

There was a fairly long thread on portable power supplies recently, but I am having trouble finding it at the moment.


Can anyone else remember it?

[iborg]

One of these maybe thread you are thinking of


https://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=190472&highlight=Bluetti&page=2


https://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=196168&highlight=Bluetti


https://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=188570&highlight=Bluetti


Philip

[Crater101]

I was in the same quandary, hence the question...


Thanks for the responses folks. The Bluetti gear is looking strong, I just want to check all of the possible options before I make the leap.



Another thought - as I type, it's about 2 degrees outside. How resilient are the Bluetti units in the cold?

[AdamJL]

I've run mine in the cold no issues.

[Crater101]

Cheers! :thumbsup:

[Crater101]

And yes, you're right. Greatly appreciated! :thanx:

[AstroViking]

I've just been pointed to these guys in another forum I hang out in. They look to be a bit on the pricey side, but the larger units boast some serious battery capacity.


https://gosun.co/collections/solar-chargers


Cheers,
V

[gb44]

Heres one of the good discussions.

https://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=188570&highlight=battery+power+supply

G

[Crater101]

Thank you indeed!









Much appreciated. (Wanders off to look...)

[iborg]

Hi


Just wandered off to look myself. I like the look of the table as well. Seems like a good idea.


Philip

[AstroViking]

For what it's worth, Bluetti are having a sale at the moment.

[Crater101]

Yep. I've taken advantage of that...


Folks, my thanks for the advice. I've ordered one of the smaller Bluetti units, although I have to admit I do like the look of the Gosun units that were suggested as well.


Cheers for all of the advice, it's much appreciated.

[AstroViking]

Cool! When you do have a chance to put it through it's paces, do you mind doing a review of it?

[Crater101]

I could probably be talked into that. When it arrives, I'll charge it up, and see what it can do before I put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard...)

[AdamJL]

Which one did you get?

[Crater101]

This one, the EB55
https://www.bluettipower.com.au/products/bluetti-eb55-portable-power-station

[AdamJL]

Nice. I'm sure you'll love it. I got the EB70, and it's great.

[AdamJL]

The Gosun (I think) use Lithium cobalt. Not all lithiums are the same. They're not LiFePO4 though, and that's what matters.
LiFePO4 is safer, has more charge/discharge support, and keeps voltage basically until emtpy.
That's why the Bluetti's are great.

[Crater101]

Took delivery of it on Friday, and am currently (no pun intended...) charging it up. Then it will be the wait for some clear skies to see how it goes with the HEQ5. Been a bit overcast here of late.


Cheers!

[iborg]

Hi All


Just in case anyone of contemplating one of these, they are currently on sale.


Philip

[AstroViking]

Not a Bluetti or Jackery, however Jaycar are having a sale of their 'house-brand' portable power boxes.

https://www.jaycar.com.au/portable-505wh-power-station-with-500w-inverter/p/MB3768

505Wh model is down to $699 from $849.

Cheers,
V

[geoffl]

Itech world currently have their battery packs on Sale.

https://itechworld.com.au/collections/lithium-power-stations/products/lithium-portable-power-station-25ah-300w-itech300p

[AstroViking]

Hi all,

I just picked up one of these - a 280Wh portable power station from Jaycar. On sale at the moment for $550, down from $700.

https://www.jaycar.com.au/portable-280wh-power-station-with-300w-inverter/p/MB3767

I tested the rig with it and when slewing the HEQ5 at full speed on both axes with the camera cooler running at about 60%, the power draw was 40W. When looping the camera (1 second exposures, continually) and tracking, it was drawing below 20W.

Even allowing a hefty safety margin, that's a pretty solid 10 to 12 hours battery life.

The only issue i have is that when slewing on both axes at full speed, the voltage appears to drop significantly and the HEQ5's power LED starts blinking. It doesn't appear to affect the slewing speed, but I'll keep my eye on it when I am out in the field next.

Cheers,
V

[raymo]

Is your mount driven via the cigarette lighter socket on the power supply, which has a 120w [10amp] max output, or the 5.5mm socket, which has a
max of only 60w [5amps]? How long is the cable from the battery to the mount. If it is significantly longer than it needs to be, shorten it; that will reduce the voltage drop. If it is necessary for some reason to use a long cable, use a heavier one.
raymo

[AstroViking]

The cable that I'm running from the power station is the cigarette-socket thing that came with the HEQ5. It's probably as short as it'll ever get, unless I found a way of mounting the power station on the tripod somehow.

I chopped the 2.1mm/5.5mm plug off to fit an inline fuse and a new plug that fits my home-made power distribution box. (The fuse is probably redundant, but I'd prefer not to fry all my gear if something does go wrong.)

One thing I did notice about the power station is that it only puts out ~10.5 volts when there's no load on the 12v socket. I was preparing to take it back as faulty but everything seemed to come out ok in the end.

Cheers,
V

[raymo]

A 12v battery should put out around 12.6v-12.8v with no load on it, so that 10.5v needs looking into. If you haven't already, check that the reading is correct with a multimeter. The mount's low voltage light starts flashing at around 11v, which would suggest that the reading is correct. Was the reading at the battery socket, or at the mount end of the cable? If at the 12v socket
I would take it back to the vendor.
raymo

[AstroViking]

I was using a multimeter, and measured the voltage at the end of the cable. I'll have another look at it today, and measure what voltage I'm getting in the 12v socket.

If it's not the expected 12v then I'll take it back and see what Jaycar has to say.

I did re-check the specifications for the power station and it says that the on-board Lithium Ion battery is 10.8v

Cheers,
V

[raymo]

10.8v is no use to you, that means that it is either a 9v unit, or it is faulty. I imagine that Jaycar will help you out.
raymo

[AstroViking]

Thanks raymo.

Looks like it's a quick check with the multimeter and then a trip back to Jaycar, then. :mad2:

Hopefully they have a replacement in stock that does put out a proper 12v.

UPDATE: Tested the unit with a multimeter and getting a solid 12.3v out all the 12v outlets. So it's the SkyWatcher power cable that's resulting in a ~1.8v drop. Next step is to replace it with something a bit beefier and see how that goes.

[raymo]

That is strange, I have been around various skywatcher mounts over the years, and never had a significant voltage drop with any of their cables.
The 40W draw that you mentioned is only 3.3amps, which is well inside the max draw for the cable, so it will be interesting to see how this turns out.
raymo

[AstroViking]

The current cable is a pretty small diameter, sort of like heavy-gauge speaker cable. I also discovered that the front of the cigarette plug unscrews to reveal an inline fuse. It came standard with a 5A fuse, so my added inline fuse is redundant...

I'll replace the cable with something like 15A DC power cable and see how it goes.

[raymo]

15Amp cable is huge overkill, even 10 is way over what you will ever need.
The max you are ever going to encounter powering the mount is about 4
or 5.
raymo

[AstroViking]

Yeah, I know it's overkill for handling 12v/5A, max. It's the voltage drop along the cable I'm wanting to reduce / remove. Maybe a 7.5A cable, then...

[raymo]

I'm not familiar with the late model mounts, are you powering your camera cooling, and maybe other accessories, from a power outlet on the mount, so that more current is flowing through the power cable to the mount, or is the cooler powered separately.
raymo

[AstroViking]

Well, that was interesting.

I picked up more cable from Jaycar, some 15A stuff this time (as it was all they had) and rebuilt the power lead. There is zero voltage drop between the power station and the end of the cable now. It's a conservative 2m long, which should be more than long enough to get from the ground up to the distribution box I made.

The stock SkyWatcher cable had a small LED in the cigarette plug, connected (with a resistor in series) across the positive and negative terminals. I did not put this LED back into the new cable.

My electrical knowledge is a bit sketchy these days, but that LED should not create the voltage drop I was seeing, right?

Raymo - I have a home-made power distribution box mounted on the scope's dovetail. From there I have shorter cables running to the mount, camera cooler and the powered USB hub.

Cheers,
V

[raymo]

No, the LED would not cause voltage drop. So I assume that you have a
cable from the power station to the distribution box, and the SW cable from the box to the mount. If that is the case I don't understand the large voltage drop you had at the mount. Was there any significant drop measured at the
outlet terminal on the box used by the SW cable? In other words was the SW cable the sole source of the drop, or was there already some drop at the outlet from the distribution box ?
Raymo

[AstroViking]

Thanks for confirming my suspicions about the LED. Glad to know my brain is still mostly working...

Hmmm. I might not have been sufficiently clear in my description of the power cable setup. :(

The cigarette-plug cable runs from the power station to the distribution box, then I use 2.1mm DC power sockets/plugs on short cables (no more than 75cm long) to power the equipment.

I was measuring the output voltage at the end of the SW cable, before it went into the distribution box, so it was the sole cause of the drop.

It's all academic now, as the new cable has zero voltage drop when measured at the same point.

Cheers,
V

[AstroViking]

UPDATE:

Don't buy the Jaycar power supply that I did. It gives a solid 12v when it's fully charged, but that drops to under 10.5 (or whenever the HEQ5's LED starts flashing) at 75% full.

It's going back for a refund later this week, as it's unfit for the purpose I bought it for. Thankfully I kept all the packaging and what-not.

Cheers,
V

[Didge]

Hi,
I know I'm a bit late to this thread, but thought my 2¢ worth might be helpful...

I experimented with a couple of PowerMate supplies - they held their voltage very well, but just didn't have the capacity I needed to run my setup all night.

After a lot of research, I got a Bluetti EB70 - 720WH - it is fantastic and runs my setup all night with 50% to spare.

It was so good I got a second one to use with my smaller rig, and as a backup for my larger one. They are not inexpensive - but hold up at 13v until they are almost completely flat.

Now I use my Powermate as a torch - a purpose it serves very well :)

[Swagman105]

Asking the question as to whether anyone has had experience using the type of lithium battery as shown in the attached image.
I like to go away caravanning and camping while prospecting for gold. Not only do I need power for camping but also to run a small water pump for my gold sluice. I would love to take my astro gear as well and looking at a versatile and easy to carry battery found these hard case style batteries on Ali Express.
I do have a battery in a battery box in my caravan but it is not practical to remove it to power the gold sluice and I would need to run a long extension lead from the caravan to the telescope site as we generally park under shade. Having a rugged (looking) waterproof battery with a solid carry handle and featuring a number of different outlets cigarette lighter, USB, Anderson etc seems like a much better idea.
Having said that it seems like a good idea does not mean of course that they equate to a good product, so asking around for anyone who may have used one.
They are described on AliExpress as trolling batteries but I have not found any local suppliers for them.

[Leo.G]

Sorry Geoff I have no experience with that battery but experience with AliExpress and every time I've wanted to purchase LiFePo 4 batteries in individual units they stated shipping to Australia wasn't possible.
Perhaps check with the supplier before committing to the buy?


Other items with removable batteries (laser level) couldn't be shipped either but they would ship a unit with internal, non replaceable battery.

[Swagman105]

Yes, I get the feeling that may be the case.
I actually emailed one of our well known Australian battery suppliers to ask if they had considered producing lithium batteries in such a format but received no response.
Some of the aliexpress sites offering them for sale say they have depots in the US and European countries from where they ship to customers within those zones but not Australia. Probably bulk shipped to those countries to avoid the international air and sea lithium battery shipping issues.
I do intend to follow up with further enquiries and maybe that might stimulate their thinking to establish a depot here. I know some aliexpress sites have done that with other products to help improve their competitiveness.

[OzEclipse]

Hi Geoff,

I have a power system I installed myself in the back of my Isuzu ute under a canopy back.

I purchased all the components from the 4wd super centre (Kings).

The battery is a 120AH LiPO4, currently on special for ~$350.

https://tinyurl.com/4ny6vu93

You can also install these batteries into a battery box:- https://www.4wdsupacentre.com.au/batteries/85w-usb-car-charger-maxi-battery-box.html

Mine's held down in a battery tray with a quick release tension strap. It has two screw terminals that I have bolted an Anderson plug to. That battery is easily removed to power other things portably(15kg). The battery and a 160W solar panel are both connected to a solar charge controller. The output from the charge controller goes to a distribution panel that sends power to a 40L car fridge, a 6m 50A lead with a cigarette lighter plug on the end. The distribution panel has extra cigarette lighter sockets, Anderson connectors, and a couple of USB A sockets. I have a 300W inverter to generate 240V AC if required.

It's not all in one neat little package like the unit you are asking about but it has plenty of power to cover all my camping and astronomy needs including fridge, plus charging of all cameras, laptop and devices. I used it on a 6 week trip last year and it never drained below about 70%. If I needed to recharge the laptop, I did that during the day if I could with excess current from the solar panel not going into the battery and fridge. In hot weather, the fridge running at 4C drains about 10-15% from the battery overnight. The battery recovers next day even on a cloudy day.

[gaseous]

I too have the 120AH battery/box system from Kings that Joe mentions, and if you've got a few solar panels and maybe an inverter, it'll keep a lot of things running for a long time. It's a good unit.

[Swagman105]

Thanks Guys for your remarks
Perhaps I should have explained better that what I was interested in was not only something for general camping and astronomy but something highly portable and waterproof that one can carry in one hand down to a creek or dam for my gold sluice as well.
Maybe a case of me getting myself involved in too many hobbies for my own good.
I know it would be asking a lot for a battery but the aliexpress trolling hard case style would seem to tick all the boxes.
Closest I've seen would be a Bluetti or similar which seem to be very portable but very expensive for similar capacities and I would worry about their ruggedness and waterproofing.

[gaseous]

Well, the battery box that the 120AH Kings battery comes in is fairly robust and would take a decent splash, but the lid is only held down with a couple of buckle straps and is not a particularly tight fit, so "waterproof" is probably out of the question. Having said that, you'd really need to give it a proper dunk to get the actual battery inside soaked. If I was you, I'd be tempted to get into Kings and check them out to see if they're fit for purpose - a lot easier to decide rather than trying your luck on Aliexpress. Good luck!

[Leo.G]

The advantage of buying from an Australian supplier (Such as Kings) is it comes with standard warranty as applies within Australia.
The reason I mention this is I've noticed numerous times in AliExpress feedback where items such as batteries and ultra/super-capacitors supplied frequently exhibit signs of being second hand, sold as new and often not fit for the purpose.


I buy a lot from AliExpress, a lot of varying stuff from electronics to photography to heaven knows what my son and I don't play with but I would be very particular of spending big money on batteries and such and would pay close attention to any previous feedback (were shipping to be allowed which some suppliers will organise it).
You pay a little more in Australia but the warranty for an expensive battery (for a cheap mongrel such as myself) is definitely worth it.

[Swagman105]

Agreed
Purchasing equivalent products from Australian suppliers even if a bit more expensive is preferable.
The problem is that there is no Australian made or supplied equivalent (I asked and didn't get a response), so I have no alternative to pursue enquires to Aliexpress.
I may seem picky but I am. I just don't like being offered less than ideal designs for products when better designs are available overseas.
That is a different issue to performance and in an instance like this I would consider buying a product, even if it performed slightly less than advertised, so long as its design fully fulfilled practical needs.

[Crater101]

Back in the beginning of this thread I was chasing around with enquiries about the Bluetti units, and ended up buying one - an EB55
https://www.bluettipower.com.au/products/bluetti-eb55-portable-power-station
I've found it very good overall. Powers the laptop, Skywatcher HEQ5 (or) iOptron CEM26, charges the mobile, and does other bits 'n' pieces here 'n' there, such as boiling a 12v kettle on cool evenings. Works well on low temperatures, on warm nights, and when covered with a light dew (although I haven't gotten it really wet for obvious reasons) and while it takes a bit to charge up when it's almost flat, it hold that charge for a long time.

[doppler]

My portable battery pack is a "Kings 24Ah Lithium Portable Power Pack". It has no trouble running my HEQ5 mount and cooled astro cam all night. The case it is housed in is solid and has a robust carry handle. They come on sale regularly at $200

[Sunix]

Hi guys,


I'm jumping on this thread looking for guidance as I am now also on the market for one those and really have no idea what to look for.


I need to power 2 scopes, a 14"Dob and an EQ5 + photo rig.


The idea is to get enough charge for 2-3 nights and was hoping to stay within the $300.


Any recommendation at this price range?
Or should I consider getting the same as you Warren at over double the price...?


Thanks

[Crater101]

I was lucky, as the Bluetti units were on sale when I grabbed the EB55. They are a bit of an investment, but it's never missed a beat.

[Sunix]

It looks like it is still on sale :
https://www.bluettipower.com.au/products/bluetti-eb55-portable-power-station


Would you be able to give me an approx expectation on how many hours I'd be able to power a couple of scopes?

[Crater101]

I couldn't give you an estime for two rigs, I've only ever run one mount from it at a time - most recently an iOptron CEM40. However at the same time I've powered my laptop, dew band, Zwo camera, etc., while also charging my mobile and in the cool of the late night, boiled a 12v kettle from it. After about a four to five hour run with all of that (obviously the kettle isn't going all the time) it had lost between 20% and 40% of it's total charge.


Depending on the rigs and the accessories, I would think that you should be able to get at least six hours out of an evening with two setups without any difficulty.


One minor warning - when the unit arrives from the factory, it's partly charged, and those 240v outlets can give you a 240v zap if you aren't careful! :scared2:

[Leo.G]

While I don't yet have one I plan to eventually but the Bluetti EB70 has higher capacity (and likely more weight, I didn't check) for the same price as the EB55 at the moment.


https://www.bluettipower.com.au/products/bluetti-eb70-portable-power-station


OK, an extra 2.2Kg for the extra capacity and at times weight can be a very important factor if going portable.


EDIT: Sorry, the EB70 has been discontinued, the last time I saw them Hardly-Normal had them on special but Bluetti had them cheaper. I had no idea they'd been discontinued, I'd hoped to eventually get myself the 1,000 watt unit.

[DarkArts]

Yes, but there are still some available if that's what you really want ($699):
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/126880515769?_skw=bluetti+EB70

The Bluetti AC70 (successor to the EB70) is also on sale ($799):
https://www.bluettipower.com.au/products/ac70-portable-power-station

Or, EcoFlow's River 2 Pro is even cheaper ($649):
https://au.ecoflow.com/products/river-2-pro-700-portable-power-station

[Leo.G]

Thank you!

[Sunix]

Thanks for the warning and thanks for the info, it helps :thumbsup:


I've been investingating further and I found this info from a Bluetti admin staff : EP generally represents large/home energy storage models, AC is the portable flagship model of BLUETTI, EB is the second-line model, and no products named with the EB will be released in the future. B is the prefix for battery packs.


Probably a good time to get a deal on an EB model.
AC models are rated with an extra 500 charging cycle, yet the inner batteries are made of same LiFePO4.


As it is a substantial increase from my initial budget, I'll give myself few more days before pulling the trigger. What you get for $300 aren't worth it, realistically you get better value from at least $500.