LPG battery charger (1 Viewer)

[Robert Clark]

I'm not a fan of generators, however I spotted this petrol / lpg battery charger on EBay.

It's basically an engine strapped to an alternator, which delivers 95ah

Thought it might be good in an emergency.

Opinions please ?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/201953013612

 

[phil1946]

A FUNster (Chris?) started making something very similar a while ago. It did not take off because, I believe, it is only 12 volt when an engine, alternator and an inverter (called a generator) usually cost less. Certainly for the cost of this I would rather run my engine and get heating or cooling, dependent on the season, at the same time as charging my battery. If you are worried about a flat engine battery a starter pack is probably lighter, does not need fuel and is more use.

 

[Coastal Cruiser.]

I use to use a lot of the little petrol engines on various small plant when I had my firm, they do make a lot of noise.

I know it's expensive but Is e-foy not an option?

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[Lenny HB]

Looking at the contruction at a guess I would say very noisy, I hate generators I think Honda ones are noisy. Expensive for what it is, I would have thought if you must have one a standard suitcase mains unit would be easier to use and transport.

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Hmmmm. I'll be watching with interest.

Recent developments mean that I'll probably soon be looking for a backup means of charging that isn't a conventional generator or a campsite hookup. Something that runs on LPG would be perfect.

I vote @Robert Clark should get one, test it and report back

 

[Robert Clark]

I use to use a lot of the little petrol engines on various small plant when I had my firm, they do make a lot of noise.

I know it's expensive but Is e-foy not an option?

EFOY is about £5k
A lot of money for a back up power supply

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[Taran_Las]

A FUNster (Chris?) started making something very similar a while ago. It did not take off because, I believe, it is only 12 volt when an engine, alternator and an inverter (called a generator) usually cost less. Certainly for the cost of this I would rather run my engine and get heating or cooling, dependent on the season, at the same time as charging my battery. If you are worried about a flat engine battery a starter pack is probably lighter, does not need fuel and is more use.

Chris Green.​

 

[Robert Clark]

Looking at the contruction at a guess I would say very noisy, I hate generators I think Honda ones are noisy. Expensive for what it is, I would have thought if you must have one a standard suitcase mains unit would be easier to use and transport.

Suitcase generators output 8 Amps
This one does 95

 

[Robert Clark]

I vote @Robert Clark should get one, test it and report back

Good job I don't believe in democracy

At £700 that's about the same as you spend on a bottle of Malbec

You first please Nick

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[Minxy]

I've actually seen these in the flesh at a couple of shows ... we did investigate but decided we didn't need a generator etc anyway. I wasn't convinced about some of the claims made for it though.

 

[Robert Clark]

I've actually seen these in the flesh at a couple of shows ... we did investigate but decided we didn't need a generator etc anyway. I wasn't convinced about some of the claims made for it though.

Which claims Mel?

Surely an alternator is just that

 

[Minxy]

Which claims Mel?

Surely an alternator is just that

Can't remember now as it was a year or so ago when I last saw it but we did interrogate the seller and some of the stuff we were told seemed a bit optimistic ... I'll have to ask hubby if he can remember.

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[Deleted member 29692]

Good job I don't believe in democracy

At £700 that's about the same as you spend on a bottle of Malbec

You first please Nick

One has to drink decent wine old boy

I might well go first. Once we get to the stage of needing a backup power source I might not have much choice. It's going to beat a generator hands down: If the specs are correct it's 10% quieter than a Honda EU20i, and the 8A v 95A is a no brainer. It also saves the aggravation of carrying petrol around.

 

[Robert Clark]

One has to drink decent wine old boy

I might well go first. Once we get to the stage of needing a backup power source I might not have much choice. It's going to beat a generator hands down: If the specs are correct it's 10% quieter than a Honda EU20i, and the 8A v 95A is a no brainer. It also saves the aggravation of carrying petrol around.

My thoughts exactly
Maybe good in an emergency

 

[Robert Clark]

Apparently is consumes 330g of lpg / hour

That's less than 1ltr by my reckoning

Or did I miscalculate?

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[Minxy]

They do a smaller one too:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SALE-LPG-...hash=item2cc0e0b93c:m:mVENlsLf1IDp4WWH7-5aRhw

 

[Minxy]

Apparently is consumes 330g of lpg / hour

That's less than 1ltr by my reckoning

Or did I miscalculate?

2 litres roughly equates to 1 kg, so about .7 of a litre

 

[andy63]

I'm unclear about the method it uses to regulate the charge... but only had a quick look..
At the end of the day it's a 95 amp alternator which by today's standard isnt large... the transits have 150 amp units as standard ,and most still use a good mains multistage charger to bring batteries up to fully charge .. or use battery to battery or alternator to battery devices...
So it really depends on the charge control set up it uses...
It's a little misleading to say it's better than a Honda Gennys for eg... sure it has a 12v dedicated charging system that may be limited to 8 amps but if it supplies a decent mains charger it's capable of more than you will ever need to charge batteries..
The lpg capability might appeal to some but most generators can be adapted and imo are far more flexible and useful..
That's my initial thoughts...
Andy.

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[Gromett]

I never liked the look of these things. Do they have a proper 4 stage charger in them? Also they only do 12V not 240V so no use for anything else.

I prefer a proper generator for this and use the 60Amp charger built into my van.

This is on my list of things to buy. It is a 2KW generator that runs on LPG/Petrol. It has an electric start. It will charge your battery and can be used at home as a backup in case of a power cut etc.. Not much more expensive and a lot more practical and useful I think?

You could get a much cheaper one if you don't need the electric start or the 2Kw power.

 

[Gromett]

This one is cheaper but also runs on LPG.


If you are investing this much money then going for an upgraded charger for you van makes much more sense. It means you can charge your battery bank much quicker from hookup or generator.

 

[Robert Clark]

I never liked the look of these things. Do they have a proper 4 stage charger in them?

It's a basic alternator so not a 4 stage charger.

An alternative to running your engine when the leisure batteries are a bit flat.

If you've got an inverter on board there's no need for an inverter generator.

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[Astro]

I think a generator is more versatile too. Having both a 12Vdc output and 240Vac is a useful bit of kit around the house too as well as with the MH.
A high current 12vdc alternator system doesn't seem that useful to me.

 

[Camping Gaza]

Too pricey for what it does. at least with a proper genny you can power your house stuff, tools etc etc as well. ( and a lot quieter probably)

 

[Robert Clark]

Too pricey for what it does. at least with a proper genny you can power your house stuff, tools etc etc as well. ( and a lot quieter probably)

It's just a battery charger

Is there a cheaper way of getting 95 amps into your batteries using lpg?

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[DavidG58]

I have been told I am wrong before, but here goes again, when we start our engine the controller says it is giving the habitation batteries 60A initially, seems a much simpler way to put some life into the hab batts, I have done when away in Scotland over winter with great success, 20 mins engine running gives me a good few hours more life in my hab batts, even running a small inverter to charge lap top, something else I keep getting told I am wrong for

as will be the 360 camera I have just ordered but keeping that one quiet for now

I see no point in it Robert, other than charging the cab battery if I forget to unplug my inverter from the cab battery when parked (again) but that is the opinion of a technical idiot, who would pay the £5K for the efoy, because all things cost £5K (except the new camera )

 

[DavidG58]

edit to above, I guessed at the 60A, no idea really but do recall it being quite a big number

 

[tonyidle]

Suitcase generators output 8 Amps
This one does 95

No it doesn't - creative advertising. The alternator will output whatever the battery demands & with a fatally flat battery you might see a few 10s of amps for a few seconds. A normally discharged battery might demand 10 - 20 amps for the first few seconds but that will drop to under 10 amps very quickly. For most of the charge cycle you'll see 5 - 8 amps. A vehicle alternator is sized to suit the vehicle services load. An alternator capable of less than 10A would easily maintain a vehicle battery in good health.

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[Robert Clark]

No it doesn't - creative advertising. The alternator will output whatever the battery demands & with a fatally flat battery you might see a few 10s of amps for a few seconds. A normally discharged battery might demand 10 - 20 amps for the first few seconds but that will drop to under 10 amps very quickly. For most of the charge cycle you'll see 5 - 8 amps. A vehicle alternator is sized to suit the vehicle services load. An alternator capable of less than 10A would easily maintain a vehicle battery in good health.

I'm looking to charge 6 batteries in an emergency, when solar is insufficient

 

[Robert Clark]

edit to above, I guessed at the 60A, no idea really but do recall it being quite a big number

Shall we play Guess The Amps?

Jacobs turn me thinks

 

[Imbiber]

I must confess that I went down this LPG 12v battery charger route: ; Mick at SAP fitted it for me, though I'm not sure he enjoyed the experience!

Fitted rear mounted centrally underfloor the external noise is negligible and nothing like the Honda EU 2.0i generator we have.

It's a 25amp charger and in my view offers us a better option than the Efoy which was also in consideration.

It's an expensive piece of kit but fantastic to have when off-grid especially when we're charging the e-bike batteries up, or using the full gamut of household electrical items we seem to carry!

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