# using power from car batteries



## snor (May 13, 2009)

We've been living in a a squat now for 2 months without water and power. All the wiring and plumbing has been destroyed at there sources by hurricane katrina..... the plumbing is fixable, but for the electricity there's no hope. When i was in south america villagers were running there island power using car batteries. now i'm aware that we need to convert from dc to ac, but is there anyway without having to get a converter and just hard wire it? anybody know how long and powerful this would be? 120v? thanks!

schwing!


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## veggieguy12 (May 13, 2009)

check on an inverter
could be stolen, perhaps
just come up with a decent fake story and ask some salesman for info about if it would work for your "powering lights (or tools) in my shed" or something
should be able to tell you what you need to do
report back here on monday, 1100 hours
dismissed


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## dirtyfacedan (May 13, 2009)

Batteries are fine, but you need a way to charge them between uses.


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## dime (May 13, 2009)

find someone with a car. then you could use the car to charge the battery if it has a good alternator


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## snor (May 13, 2009)

Sweet! thanks guys. i'll be on the prowl for the gear soon, and will let ya know how it works out


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## L.C. (May 14, 2009)

you can buy alot of 12v products even hair dryers. if you'r rich there are all kinds of systems that can be purchased.if your handy you can make a 12v generator from an alternator and a weedwhacker engine. not too tough of a build.


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## Matt Derrick (May 14, 2009)

speaking as someone that's considered this before, basically what i've figured out is that it's not realistic unless you have a good way to recharge the batteries. unfortunately a vehicle is not good enough. it would take hours to recharge one battery, which would be expensive fuel wise. also, each battery is only going to power so much stuff for a short amount of time. example: small LED lights, probably about 24 hours on one battery with a full charge. a hairdryer (as mentioned above) may only be 12volts, but pulls a HELL of a lot of current through that 12v pipe, so you'd be lucky to get 15 minutes on a full car battery. so you can forget pretty much anything but lights. and certainly nothing like televisions, space heaters, etc.

your only real option here is to get a gas generator, which can run about 300-1000 bucks. then the gas cost isnt so bad, but the cheaper the generator, the LOUDER it's going to be.

if i were you (and this is coming from someone that squatted for quite a while in nola) i would just get a lot of candles and do your best not to burn the house down. also, get a coleman campstove with the two burners powered on propane. makes it really easy to cook a lot, and the little propane tanks will last at least 2-3 hours of cooking time.

also, l.c.'s idea about building your own generator isn't too hard depending on your circumstances... just be careful!


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## snor (May 16, 2009)

Thanks Matt I appreciate the ideas. I actually hadn't given thought to a generator. We have a front door squat so I think our neighbors would be OK with occasional use of it. Candles are doin fine for now, but with the onset of the Nola heat rollin in a fan or charged phone would be nice. I guess you can't always have posh standards while squatting though, haha. We just got a grill so that makes cooking much better now.... Thanks y'all, i'll let ya know how it goes.


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## mkirby (May 16, 2009)

Gas generators are EXPENSIVE and running shit off your car battery will fuck up your battery.

You want a battery pack like this:
Amazon.com: Duracell DPP-600HD Powerpack 600 Jump Starter & Emergency Power Source with Radio: Automotive

Plug it in somewhere where there is power and bring it back to your squat. Plug shit in, it'll run for a couple days if you aren't huge electricity users.

Some models even come with built in solar panels, or optional hand crank attachments so you can generate your own power, off the grid style.


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## snor (May 18, 2009)

sweet!


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## Ravie (May 18, 2009)

ive seen people use car batteries though. he used it on a tv. they last a while if conserved. that thing abover this post is pretty neat too though. but the car battery thing, you just need a converter.


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## mkirby (May 20, 2009)

True, but it does take a toll on your battery. And it sucks to be stuck with a dead one. If you're really set on doing that, I'd at least install a deep cycle one.


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## Arapala (Jun 2, 2009)

i agree with mkirby


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## DownByTheLevee (Apr 27, 2010)

look into getting a deep cycle marine battery


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## ProfessorX (May 17, 2010)

The Battery Pack would probably work. What you might want though is a portable solar panel that you can charge your car battery. I think Colman sells them. They are sort of expensive though. You also need an inverter and some cables.


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## ProfessorX (May 17, 2010)

I thought of another idea that might be cheaper. Building a Wooden wind generator. It would probably be the cheapest way to go. I even found a how to online. The addy is Wooden wind generator

You use this into a car battery and you should be good to go. You may still need an inverter but I think you can get one for like $40. I'm going to repost this in a new thread.


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