Portable Battery Station - High Voltage

[Ramius (Bill)]

Hi,
I have bought a cheap battery station. 360 watt/hours and pure sine inverter and have run it a couple of nights but using A/C and power bricks. I have just made some cables and was measuring outputs to check polarity and I am getting 16v on the 12v output. In all other ways it is working great.

Clearly its using Li-ion batteries and at max charge four in series gives around 16v. I was about to plug this into a zwo camera which is spec'd to 15v. I doubt it would have fried it but I am not going to try my luck. The AZ-EQ5 mount is spec'd to 16v so less of a concern but still marginal.

The mount manual states overvoltage could fry it. Anyone know if the ZWO camera is protected?

I could stick with the inefficient and bulky a/c power brick but I am a bit concerned I will be in a hurry one night and connect it to the 12(ie 16)V outlet.

I googled this with little luck and I know just enough to be dangerous so any advice appreciated.


Cheers
Bill

[Leo.G (Leo)]

Bill there are plenty of cheap voltage regulators which work well that you could simply adjust it to the required output voltage and have a regulated output.
They are quite small and cheap.


In saying that is that 16 volts you're reading a no load output?

[Ramius (Bill)]

Leo
Small load does not seem to make any difference. When connected to a 3.5amp load it does drop to around 14.5v on that circuit.



I think you are onto something with the regulator, it would make me a lot more relaxed. I am using a 5v regulator elsewhere to run USB dew straps - just didnt occur to me to use one for this. I will look into it but prefer a fixed regulator to avoid accidental adjustments.
Thanks
Bill

[Leo.G (Leo)]

I spent many years playing with electronics before I became too stupid to remember years of study, back when I could see too.
I've come across too many expensive pieces of equipment blown from over voltage for the lack of a $5 regulator.
Just check the unit can handle the current and you're good to go.
I'm a "rather be safe than sorry" kind of person.
They also come with polarity protection.


Your best option is a high current buck convertor.

[Ramius (Bill)]

"before I became too stupid to remember years of study, back when I could see too" like looking in a mirror LOL (except structural not electronics).


Thanks for the steer, I will get onto it. Finding Temu good for this sort of stuff!

[Leo.G (Leo)]

I haven't tried Temu but must confess to buying a lot of smaller electronic do-da's from Aliexpress with no regrets.
Depending on what's being used and why I often also buy from a reputable source RS components. Not the prices of Temu or Aliexpress but some items we want a known quantity quality wise.


I don't mess with electronics now but my son is amazing, no study, watched me as a kid and designs, builds and fixes AMAZING stuff.
I wish the internet was around when I was doing my diploma in electronics.
In saying that I still have thousands of dollars (new price) of text books (scrap paper now I guess but I refuse to throw them out) I no longer understand and the mathematics seem to be beyond me now, sadly.....


I think with age the eyes are the things that allow or restrict certain interests. Everything electronics has shrunken.
I even struggle to weld (also studied fabrication engineering along with many other things over the years) and I have to build a strong table for a milling machine and cross slide table for my son. I should be out cutting up steel right now if I have it.

[Ramius (Bill)]

I use Aliexpress a fair bit but Temu is quicker and so far products seem ok. I will take a look at RS Components though.

I am gradually reducing my stack of old textbooks - even got my son to take one or two (maths i think) but most are completely useles of course.

My welding is rubbish and i dont machine at all. I work with timber not metal - its more forgiving! The internet is the best thing that ever happened for DIYers. I have done more in six weeks learning astrophotography than i would have managed in a year without it.

[ChrisM]

A method I've used when stuck for an appropriate regulator is to put a couple of silicon diodes in series with the supply. Two of them will drop the voltage by about 1.2 - 1.4 volts. Of course, they need to be rated for the current they'll be passing.

[KG8]

If your cable run out to the gear is long enough it might be an asset. I used to run a HE6, plus heaters of all sorts off a brand new 200Ah semi-deepcycle truck battery in a camper 6 meters away. The voltage drop, just over that distance, was enough to bring the voltage down low enough to cause mount issues. In the end I ran all the heaters off the van and had a little wakeo 45Ah pack under the scope for it alone.


I think lipo is great technology but it sometimes causes more problems than it cures. LiFePO₄ is often a better choice for 12V systems.

[Leo.G (Leo)]

LiFePO₄ is interesting but it's very expensive tech here in Aus.

[Ramius (Bill)]

Thanks all.
In fact once there is a load on the circuit it drops from 16v to 14v which would be perfect. This was with a simple heat pad drawing several amps. But i dont understand well enough what is going on to assume that will be ok with the camera and mount.

[Ramius (Bill)]

Thought I might update this in the interests of completeness.

As above the Battery station only put out 16v until a load was applied. I inadvertently tested this and the ASI camera won't accept this voltage. Fortunately no damage done.

A Jaycar jiffy box and a voltage regulator and volt/amp meter resolved the issue for less than $20 all up

[Leo.G (Leo)]

I'm glad you got it sorted Bill with no flame outs.
Sorry, I think people on forums now refer to it as "magic smoke". There's nothing magic about it when you're frying expensive equipment I can assure you of that.

[Ramius (Bill)]

LOL - 'letting out the blue smoke' where I come from...