Portable power for un powered hangar

S

Scott MacKie

Pre-Flight
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Woodstock, GA
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sbmackie
Home Airfield
KCZL Calhoun, GA
In a hangar with no power. Not a mechanic, due minor mx with un powered hand tools. Occasionally will need light, run a small compressor, etc.

Anybody use something like this? Portable battery power, rechargeable with a solar panel, car, etc.

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I have a Jackery 240 for camping. Just purchased it recently. Works great to blow up air mattresses and recharge my ipad and iphone. It is limited, however, in how much power it can provide. Won't operate a higer power device. We tested my wife's hair dryer, and it didn't power that. Check the current consumption of what you want to power.


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None other then I'm trying to avoid storing any kind of fuel in the hangar, and would like to avoid hauling something back and forth. Convenience, lazy, cheap. My watchwords. There's a power outlet on a nearby trailer I can use to charge the above or similar. Would hook up a power strip, and run a 'puter, a light maybe if doors can't be open due weather, maybe a small heater for a couple hours while I'm there, etc.
 
jimhorner said:
I have a Jackery 240 for camping. Just purchased it recently. Works great to blow up air mattresses and recharge my ipad and iphone. It is limited, however, in how much power it can provide. Won't operate a higer power device. We tested my wife's hair dryer, and it didn't power that. Check the current consumption of what you want to power.


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The hair dryer wouldn't work??? Oh, the humanity! Seriously, good inject. Probably not enough power to run a compressor to fill tires, and power a light at the same time.
 
I used a small Honda generator when I flew out of KOAK and was in a Port-A-Port T-hangar without power. I sold it to the new hangar renter when I moved my plane to a hangar with power.
 
Scott MacKie said:
None other then I'm trying to avoid storing any kind of fuel in the hangar, and would like to avoid hauling something back and forth. Convenience, lazy, cheap. My watchwords. There's a power outlet on a nearby trailer I can use to charge the above or similar. Would hook up a power strip, and run a 'puter, a light maybe if doors can't be open due weather, maybe a small heater for a couple hours while I'm there, etc.
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A heater will exhaust the battery charge in short order. What is the amp-hour rating on the Explorer 240 internal battery?

EDIT - Looked it up: 240 watt-hour (16.8Ah, 14.4V)
 
Why not install a small invertor and power things off of your car?
 
A decent deep cycle would probably do the job for occasional use of a 12v compressor and an LED work light. If you want heat, get a propane heater.
 
kyleb said:
Why not install a small invertor and power things off of your car?
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That sounds awful technical to me. Anytime I see the word "install", my mind is driven to multiple trips to the interwebs and Home Depot or Radio Shack.
 
Scott MacKie said:
What, praytell, is a "deep cycle"?
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Commonly used in boats or rvs. They are better suited to powering loads for an extended period, versus a typical "starting" battery that is designed more for pushing high amperage for a short period of time. Fishermen use them to run a trolling motor and various electronics for hours each day and charge them back up with on-board battery chargers when they return to port.

RVs can use banks of deep cycle batteries to run lights, a/c, tv, fridge etc when a power receptacle isn't available.

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GeorgeC said:
A decent deep cycle would probably do the job for occasional use of a 12v compressor and an LED work light. If you want heat, get a propane heater.
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I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps a couple of golf cart batteries and a few solar panels ...
 
Scott MacKie said:
None other then I'm trying to avoid storing any kind of fuel in the hangar, and would like to avoid hauling something back and forth.
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A Honda 2200i has less than a gallon of gas in its tank and runs about 'forever' on that amount. Also, the way the little tank is set up, it really doesn't leak. Your plane has what, 48 gallons of gas in it ?
 
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kyleb said:
Why not install a small invertor and power things off of your car?
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That could work. At one time I had a open front T-hangar and it had no lights or power. I bought an inexpensive set of auto flood lights and mounted them up high. When I came in and it was dark I used a cable and a 12V plug into the power outlet in my truck to power the lights to be able to push the plane in or out and secure it. Worked well.
 
Scott MacKie said:
That sounds awful technical to me. Anytime I see the word "install", my mind is driven to multiple trips to the interwebs and Home Depot or Radio Shack.
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It requires you to hook a wire to the negative terminal of your battery and another wire to the positive terminal. Ain't hard.
 
weilke said:
A Honda 2200i has less than a gallon of gas in its tank and runs about 'forever' on that amount. Also, the way the little tank is set up, it really doesn't leak. Your plane has what, 48 gallons of gas in it ?
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Not to mention that he could probably keep the tank fueled with just the fuel from sumping the gas each time he flies.

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weilke said:
A Honda 2200i has less than a gallon of gas in its tank and runs about 'forever' on that amount. Also, the way the little tank is set up, it really doesn't leak. Your plane has what, 48 gallons of gas in it ?
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If I was on a construction site, I'd get a Honda. For occasional use, there are a dozen knock-offs that will work just as well. The thing Honda has going for it above the knock-off's is durability, lasting last years in daily service.

I have one of the knock-off 2200W generators. Cost me ~$300 at Aldi, of all places. A buddy of mine used it to power his 'fridge and freezer last fall when there was a power outage. He used it for two days straight.

Since then, I changed the oil, ran out the fuel, and put it back in storage for the next time. Fill it with gas, pull the cord, and it'll go.
 
200W will not run an air compressor or a heater (they're up around 1500W). It will run some lights or perhaps power your laptop.
 
flyingron said:
200W will not run an air compressor or a heater (they're up around 1500W). It will run some lights or perhaps power your laptop.
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This, that battery will run small lights, that's about it. Buy a generator if you want more.
 
Depending on the use of the compressor, I have an 18V Ryobi inflator at the hangar, in addition to their 18V work light, 18V blower, and an 18V drill, each of which comes in handy.
 
Will second the Ryobi system. Don’t bother with the cheap work light, get the one that also works on AC power as that sucker is bright. Their compressor is fine for most GA aircraft, just takes longer than an AC compressor. Or use whatever cordless tool system you already use.
 
flyer770 said:
Will second the Ryobi system. Don’t bother with the cheap work light, get the one that also works on AC power as that sucker is bright. Their compressor is fine for most GA aircraft, just takes longer than an AC compressor. Or use whatever cordless tool system you already use.
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Yeah, the light sucks. But it has a rechargeable battery and never leaves the hangar, so I can always put my hands on it.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Commonly used in boats or rvs. They are better suited to powering loads for an extended period, versus a typical "starting" battery that is designed more for pushing high amperage for a short period of time.
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Smaller travel trailers like ours can benefit from two 6v deep cycle golf cart batteries in series. It’s what I installed on the rear of ours:

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I also kept the original 12v in the front, selectable with a switch.

A similar setup could provide gobs of 12v and USB power in a hangar. It would be easy to hook up a 120v inverter, though a heavy load could drain them pretty fast.
 
1) Where is your hanger located?

2)
Scott MacKie said:
None other then I'm trying to avoid storing any kind of fuel in the hangar, and would like to avoid hauling something back and forth.
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And yet you store your plane in the hanger with fuel in it?

Get a nice sized Honda generator from Home Depot. Run / wire in / hang some LED shop lighting in your hanger. A Honda generator that you can get at Home Depot should be big enough to run an air compressor. Agree with previous post of using an electric fanned propane heater for heat.
 
FastEddieB said:
Smaller travel trailers like ours can benefit from two 6v deep cycle golf cart batteries in series. It’s what I installed on the rear of ours:

33648493690_0e7c821111.jpg


I also kept the original 12v in the front, selectable with a switch.

A similar setup could provide gobs of 12v and USB power in a hangar. It would be easy to hook up a 120v inverter, though a heavy load could drain them pretty fast.
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Right, but for the cost of a few 6V batteries (or 12V), inverter, plus the solar charging stuff, he could go to Harbor Freight or similar and pick up a generator to be done with it. I mean, we're talking spending $400 on batteries or $500 for a generator that provides essentially unlimited power with no need to worry about replacement or how much juice is left. I just don't really see the point of devising a bunch of work arounds for a really simple solution. Not to mention that the generator could be easily transported elsewhere if the occasion called for it.

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kyleb said:
If I was on a construction site, I'd get a Honda. For occasional use, there are a dozen knock-offs that will work just as well. The thing Honda has going for it above the knock-off's is durability, lasting last years in daily service.

I have one of the knock-off 2200W generators. Cost me ~$300 at Aldi, of all places. A buddy of mine used it to power his 'fridge and freezer last fall when there was a power outage. He used it for two days straight.

Since then, I changed the oil, ran out the fuel, and put it back in storage for the next time. Fill it with gas, pull the cord, and it'll go.
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The risk of buying one of those knock-offs is parts availability. But then, I have a 3500W 'Champion' brand chinese knock-off that is now going on 20 years. I want to say it was $250 at the car-parts store at the time. A few years ago, it would bog down under load and I figured the carb had gummed up. So I wanted to rebuild the carb and called the 1-800 support number provided on the unit itself. After giving the operator the serial number, he told me that they dont make a rebuild kit, but that the entire carb and gasket was $21 plus maybe $3 for postage. It has been running fine ever since. I drag it out every couple of weeks, run it for an hour with 3kW worth of space heaters attached. If it seized up tomorrow, it would still be a good buy. I see those yellow generators on the back of service trucks, they seem to last long enough relative to the price.

The reason I suggested the Honda 2000i (or equivalent) is that they are really quiet and that the power is clean enough to run electronics with it. My car-parts special doesn't provide the cleanest power and is not all that quiet.

I just checked, the 1850W suitcase style 'Champion' inverter unit that would be the equivalent of a 2000i retails for $499. Based on my good experience with the company, I would consider that as an in-between the Honda and a no-name knock-off.
 
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How quiet it is may or may not be a concern for you. For me it would be.
 
Comments regarding storing 36 gallons of fuel in the wings...well taken. I'm not a smart man. Got Ryobi 18v lawn gear and chargers allready, good ideas. I think I can handle hooking up two wires to my car battery. I think.
kyleb said:
If I was on a construction site, I'd get a Honda. For occasional use, there are a dozen knock-offs that will work just as well. The thing Honda has going for it above the knock-off's is durability, lasting last years in daily service.

I have one of the knock-off 2200W generators. Cost me ~$300 at Aldi, of all places. A buddy of mine used it to power his 'fridge and freezer last fall when there was a power outage. He used it for two days straight.

Since then, I changed the oil, ran out the fuel, and put it back in storage for the next time. Fill it with gas, pull the cord, and it'll go.
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Which generator is this? For $300 bucks, sounds like a deal.
Scott
 
If noise is not much of a concern and you dont need the features of a inverter generator (clean sine power and the ability to reduce RPM for extended run-time), Champion (and a few other chinese mfgrs) makes 'dual fuel' generators that run on a regular 20lb propane bottle. You can leave the gasoline tank empty and not worry about fuel going bad. There may be a prohibition against keeping a propane bottle in your hangar, if there is none, you are going to burn so little fuel that propane would make up for its increased cost in the reduced hassle.
 
Scott MacKie said:
Which generator is this? For $300 bucks, sounds like a deal.
Scott
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It was a one time deal at Aldi that had been written down a time or two. I jumped on it when I saw the price. It looked exactly like several of the units on amazon that retail for ~$450. It is quiet, starts easily, and I'm happy with it.

As another poster mentioned, parts availability *could* be an issue one day, but by running it completely out of gas every time I use it, I'm (hopefully) taking the carb out of the equation.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Right, but for the cost of a few 6V batteries (or 12V), inverter, plus the solar charging stuff, he could go to Harbor Freight or similar and pick up a generator to be done with it.
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I agree. If storing gas in the hangar is a concern, just carry the gas you need when you need it. These little generators typically run for hours on just their own tanks. They also have dual-fuel models that can also run on propane, if you think propane storage is safer.
 
I can't imagine not having a portable generator. I have two rack-mounted and 4 portable generators. Portable electric power is super safe. And super handy!

My hanger houses two airplanes, two cars, three generators, a riding mower, and a couple of other gas-powered tools. I keep a 5-gallon racing jug with car gas to keep them running. No fumes, no mess, no problem.
 
Scott MacKie said:
The hair dryer wouldn't work??? Oh, the humanity! Seriously, good inject. Probably not enough power to run a compressor to fill tires, and power a light at the same time.
Click to expand...

For filling tires, I’ve found the 18V inflators sold by the various cordless drill makers (Ryobi, Milwaukee, etc.) great options, accurate on the psi and fast.
 
The predator generators harbor freight sells have come a long way. Parts are readily available and they run just as well as the hondas. We have a 9000w one for the house and it fires up on the first or second pull every time. You probably dont need one that big for a hanger but the 4500 watt one is only $450 and regularly goes on sale for $379.
 
kmacht said:
The predator generators harbor freight sells have come a long way. Parts are readily available and they run just as well as the hondas. We have a 9000w one for the house and it fires up on the first or second pull every time. You probably dont need one that big for a hanger but the 4500 watt one is only $450 and regularly goes on sale for $379.
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I've used one of the HF Predator engines on my pressure washer and we replaced an edger engine of my father's with one as well. $100 for an engine that starts up by the 2nd pull after sitting for months is pretty amazing. Their generators may be a decibel or two louder than the Honda, or not be quite as clean, but it's hard to beat for half the price.
 
Harbor freight has a little two cycle generator for $125... at that cost who cares about parts... use it a few years when it goes get a new one, especially if you are in a t hangar, bicycle lock it but if it walks away your day isnt ruined...
 
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