So I am about to purchase a beat up old Econoline-type van which I will use to haul props, furniture, lumber and construction equipment to my studio when building sets. I also want to use it on outdoor shoots, not just to carry stuff but to use as a power generator for lighting. I figure it has a large battery and an alternator so why not? Now, how would I go about doing this? I need someplace I can plug my 120v lights into....An inverter of some sort? Or just a portable generator?
Cyrus,
RV stores have inverters that plug into a cigar lighter socket. Them come in various wattages (the inverters not the cigars!).
Or you could buy a portable generator, then you wouldn't be tethered to the van. Honda makes great ones of various sizes. The Honda generators aren't too heavy and are reasonably quiet when running.
Don't under calculate your power needs, hot lights can suck up power pretty quickly.
JD
Be careful if you are going to use strobe lights, they need a pure sine inverters. If you are looking into portable power I would check out the Vagabond II by Alien Bee I have one and it works great. You could hook it up to a larger battery for longer run time. The Vagabond is good for 1000w strobe and under. For constant lights a generator might be best. Strobes are more light output with less voltage required.
Get a couple of Group 27 deep cycle batteries, put them in the back somewhere BOLTED DOWN. Use a battery isolator to connect these to the van's electrical system, so you don't kill your starting battery getting that last extra shot. Group 27s are about 100 AH each, so when you de-rate the batteries for longevity's sake you'll have about 100 AH to play with before you have to charge them.
A generator to back up the system isn't a bad idea, or you could save a lot by just getting a (quiet!) generator in the first place. The 2Kw Honda comes to mind.
get a 2kw honda, they're worth their weight in GOLD(or silver, since we're talking photography related)
they come up on C-List here in the LA area from time to time, and sell VERY quickly. I'd imagine there's a reseller in your area, wherever you are in God's great earth.
-Dan
Strobes don't need a pure sine wave inverter, modified square wave will fine. It will take an inverter with a continuous output Watt rating about equal to the total Watt/Second rating of the strobes connected. If the strobes have a slow recycle mode, use that. Large power packs, like a 2000 WS Norman can draw nearly 100 Amps in a surge at the start of recycle. A 100 Amp draw on the 120V output side, means a draw of 1000 Amps on the 12V side. Large vehicle batteries, heavy duty alternators and heavy cables are a must if you intend to run big power packs.
In the 1990s, photographer David Mendelsohn and I developed a power management unit called the Magic Bus, which could be used to power four large packs off a single 120V 20 Amp source. It ran four 4800 W/S Speedotron packs, which come up in two stages, off a single 2400 Watt Vanner inverter easily. System recycle time was of course about four times that of a single pack. All were sold and Saunders chose not to do another production run. Today they sell, if you can find one for several times the new price of $400. I have one left and it is not for sale, but the patent is now in the public domain and you can make your own if you want. Se Free Patents On-line Patent Number 5,461,288
I sort of do stuff like this for a living. PM me and we can design you a system.
david
Neal, this sounds terrific, could you post a picture of one of these if you have the time?Originally Posted by Neal Chaves
thanks
-Dan
We have vans for work (unrelated to photography) and have installed inverters between the seats or on the cage between the front and back. We run heavy duty wire straight from the battery, as the cig lighter isn't a powerful source. Have a pro do this if wiring isn't your forte. We use the inverters for power tools, work lights, and charging laptops and battery powered tools.
Leave the van running if you want lots of power. If fuel consumption/noise is a problem, do the separate group27 thing as mentioned and just charge it up when you are done.
We also have a honda 2000eu generator which people are raving about. It's been super reliable and is super quiet and is really good on gas. It can go >12h on a small load between refills. It's also a good deal lighter than traditional generators because of it's more efficient design.
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