Mobile Charging Station Build

[FunN4lo]

I have a mobile charging station that I have used for a few years. It hasn't changed drastically, but has morphed from the 3s/4s lipos of my home-built rigs to the proprietary batts of the P3. (soon to P4 ) It is designed with ammo cans, a multicharger, and an inverter.

I have ran the 3 batt multi-charger through the inverter off of the cigarette lighter/power port. This is a VERY bad idea, and I would not suggest trying to charge 3 batts at once through a cig/lighter power port.

I have not had any major mishaps, but you have to hold your tongue just right and connect batts very gingerly, and it is still a VERY bad idea.

So I am in the process of building a better, safer mobile solution. I have my inverter hard wired to my truck batt and mounted in my cab. Just the hard wiring alone has made a huge difference. The 8awg wire carries the current much better than the 20 or 24 or what ever the cig lighter/charger uses. No more need to hold my tongue just right

I have some unique plans for this set up. I can post pics as it goes. But first I have some wiring safety questions. The inverter is fused. I guess that should pop on overload. But that is at the end of 8ft of 8awg wire in my cab. That load caring ability can go south really quickly inside my cab. I want to install a fuse/circuit breaker at the batt under the hood much like a car amp uses.

So car stereo enthusiasts, you may be able to help me most with this. I have a 410w inverter. At 12v that is:
410w/12v = about 35 amps

Peak load is rated at 820w so that math is 810w/12v = about 70amps

My charger is rated at 300w (3x100w) so I don't think I will ever get to peak load, but I "think" I should fuse to the peak load number.

I like the idea of a circuit breaker as opposed to a fuse. I also want to only switch the power on to this system, when needed. A circuit breaker would negate the need for an extra switch as I could leave it tripped when not in use. I was thinking of something like this, https://www.amazon.com/KUMEED-Inlin...tion/dp/B01H3DKGFK/ref=wl_mb_wl_huc_mrai_2_dp

But I know nothing of branding in this arena. I am looking for suggestions in branding and correct amperage.

 

[FunN4lo]

BTW, if you have a mobile charging station set up, I would love to see pics and some specs. Here is my current, soon to be old set up

 

[BroKyle]

Here's mine. Haha

 

[FunN4lo]

Here's mine. Haha

Beast power

 

[BroKyle]

Beast power

If only I was as smart as you.

 

[bru2al1ty]

On brands I can't help, but about amperage for the fuse you go by what the wire is rated to carry for the length of run you have to the furthest point. So if you have 8 guage at 1 foot the can carry significantly more than if you had 20 foot run. Hope this helps

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk

 

[BigAl07]

Great thread. I'd like to improve my mobile charging station to make it more integrated. Right now I do it all from a small portable generator but would love the convenience of an in inverter when the opportunity arises.

 

[FunN4lo]

I made a little progress on my charging station today. I bought a little pile of things that you can find at your local big box box home improvement or hardware store, and a couple of things came in from Amazon.

So far its working better than imagined, but it is still just a crude mock up. I stopped by a stereo install shop, he thinks I am on the right track with the circuit breaker above, but all of his were designed for stereo amps and were too high amperage ratings. So I need to place an order for one above. I still need to hunt down one more main piece. Then on to the refinement stage.

If you have a mobile charging station, post some pics. My pics will go up when complete... or should I do some WIP (work in progress) pics