renewable energy power hub

[travellingblue]

alright first post here. i will be on often to check back so don't think your answers will be unnoticed .

alright so this wont be for awhile but i am planning on hitchhiking across north america. possible south america and Europe.

what would be the best option for a mini renewable energy power hub.

i wont be making any circuits of my own etc.

i was going to go with wind. but it might be too heavy.

so maybe solar?

what will i need to buy?

list:
1. solar panel what rating and wattage? whats a good brand? and traveling size

2. they sell mini deep cycle battery's now at Canadian tire. don't know if there 6v or 12v but I'm sure it would be 12v. haven't checked the weight of it yet though.

3. i would need an inverter right? something that changes 12v to household plugins. i seen that there was ones there that has straight positive/negative wires instead of just the ciggeret lighter end.

what wattage would be good?

4. power regulator. something that stops the charge when the battery is full so it doesn't get over charged etc. what would be a good brand and something that isn't to big?

------------------------

anything else that I'm missing?

I'm not going to be having a laptop or anything huge. I'm planning on buying a tablet to keep a journal and take pictures. possibly get a good camera.

I'm not a technical wizard and i hope i posted in the right place to the right forum and hopefully get some feed back from you wonderful tech heads!!

I'm still thinking about going with a wind generator. they sell them at Canadian tire as well. I'm out west so having a breeze/wind is no problem. and for the application of what I'm using it for i could just bring the generator itself and leave the stand. holding it to charge the battery.

lots of info would be awesome. on both sides of each energy type(wind/solar) i hope i gave all of you a good enough description on everything. sorry for my laymen terms xD.

 

[davenn]

Wecome to the forums

alright first post here. i will be on often to check back so don't think your answers will be unnoticed .
alright so this wont be for awhile but i am planning on hitchhiking across north america. possible south america and Europe. what would be the best option for a mini renewable energy power hub. i wont be making any circuits of my own etc.
i was going to go with wind. but it might be too heavy.so maybe solar?
what will i need to buy?

list:
1. solar panel what rating and wattage? whats a good brand? and traveling size
.

Throughout all your questions you ask about wattage needed. WE dont know cuz that depends entirely on what YOU are wanting to to power. tell us specifics.
their voltage and current rating

.

2. they sell mini deep cycle battery's now at Canadian tire. don't know if there 6v or 12v but I'm sure it would be 12v. haven't checked the weight of it yet though.
.

find out all you can about them and let us know... specifically voltage and current rating of that battery

.

3. i would need an inverter right? something that changes 12v to household plugins. i seen that there was ones there that has straight positive/negative wires instead of just the ciggeret lighter end. what wattage would be good?
.

inverters are wasteful and extra weight for you to carry. You want to use the items at their lowest voltage. Look on the devices, tablet, camera etc for their DC voltage and current ratings. your tablet may be 12V @ 4A for charging whilst your camera may only be 5V @ 1 A for charging. Then appropriate power supplies can be purchased or built to suit.

.

4. power regulator. something that stops the charge when the battery is full so it doesn't get over charged etc. what would be a good brand and something that isn't to big?
anything else that I'm missing?.
I'm not going to be having a laptop or anything huge. I'm planning on buying a tablet to keep a journal and take pictures. possibly get a good camera.
I'm not a technical wizard and i hope i posted in the right place to the right forum and hopefully get some feed back from you wonderful tech heads!!
I'm still thinking about going with a wind generator. they sell them at Canadian tire as well. I'm out west so having a breeze/wind is no problem. and for the application of what I'm using it for i could just bring the generator itself and leave the stand. holding it to charge the battery.
lots of info would be awesome. on both sides of each energy type(wind/solar) i hope i gave all of you a good enough description on everything. sorry for my laymen terms xD.

we need lots of specific info from you then we can make some educated suggestions to you

cheers
Dave

 

[travellingblue]

i think i have found a solution. a bit pricey but worth the cash if im going to be backpacking for a year 1+.

they are using a lithium iron phosphate battery pack that is coupled with specialized converters and the whole bit. i might go with this option because of the type of battery there going with and how its all neatly in a backpack.

http://www.powerenz.com/store/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=153

 

[davelectronic]

I would want to keep things as lite as possible, and keep electricals to a minimum, tablet yes ok, camera, GPS, lights torch, lantern, led's takes care of low energy light, hiking is hard going, so it all must be lite weight, inverters are not all that lite, and can be bulky.

You only need the battery's in the items you use, deep cycle battery's ! ok if a car or caravan / motor home, on foot it all needs to be practical and lite weight, like Dave said you need the items your taking voltages and power consumption, a lot of stops might offer charging outlets for power replenishment, wind i doubt will be lite, generator ! no.

Solar on a small scale, maybe. Hiking is about enjoying the environment, travel with minimal but necessary kit, not heavy tech you dont need, your be surprised what you can cross of your list.
Dave.
PS, get some voltages, and current power ratings as Dave said, then members out here can better advise you.

 

[travellingblue]

im still looking into it though. seems a bit pricey. but will keep looking around

 

[travellingblue]

its hard to say about the watts. that's why that backpack seems like a good idea.

on the road what i want to do is if in a city or hitching a ride with someone let them charge there phones or tablets for a 3$ fee. most phones now have built in stop charging and are all usb. my phone in particular is usb charging and usb cord comes out of the wall dock.

will still keep looking into though. i have a lot of time anyway. starting my journey spring 2013