Hi all, getting back into camping after motorhoming,
when camping, what do you guys & gals charge up those pesky electronic gadgets with - ipod, ipad, phone etc
We dont really want to add the cost of an EHU to the site fees but we do like to watch films at night on the ipad or play games on it if it ever rains (unlikely in the UK i know)
I was thinking of getting a small leisure battery and using that just to recharge and maybe pump up the air beds.
Is that a reasonable thought or are there better ways these days??
As i said, we have recently returned to camping after some years in a motor home which has now gone due to various reasons, so we are a little out of touch.
I ask the campsite if they are able to recharge my son DS. I have a multi plugs with different size thingymijigs, which go into the mobles, and DS these are charged up by the car battery when we are out and about, or just plug it in for a short time into the car which is suffient to charge them. For the air matteress normally you will get two plugs one for mains and one for cars with the pumps problem solved.
I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving my ipad at the shop for a charge, just me i guess.
The car we have only has a single socket that only works when the engine is running, not too useful as we always try to drive as little as possible when away preferring to walk or use local transport.
I think a small sealed 12v 24Ah battery will work, it should hold more than enough for a couple of weeks 'off the grid' so to speak. They are only small units so wont fill the boot either.
A Power Inverter that plugs into the cigarette lighter in the car and converts the power to a 3 pin socket and, if fitted, a USB port. You can get them with long leads so you can hide anything charging under the seats. Depends on the in car tehnology but ours works fine whether the engine is on or off. Produces a modified sine wave so not brilliant for an appliance that needs a pure sine wave, but works brilliant with our mobiles and camera. Not so brilliant for the electric toothbrush - but that does 2 of us 7 days anyway.
------------- Love our set-up and need no more tents or gear, so trying to stop looking!
Shall I be the first to say we leave the gadgets at home. We charge the camera before we go and that is that.
Sorry, not hlepful at all. The man across from us on our first ever camp had a leisure battery butit was very heavy. He loved it though - more than his wife if you compared the amount of time he spent talking about it!
Shall I be the first to say we leave the gadgets at home. We charge the camera before we go and that is that.
Â
Sorry, not hlepful at all. The man across from us on our first ever camp had a leisure battery butit was very heavy. He loved it though - more than his wife if you compared the amount of time he spent talking about it!
He he, yes you can be the first, i happen to like using my pad for books, games etc :)
we just take our phones , we charge them in the car and the camera which i also have a car charger for , thats about it as far as technology goes i love to leave it all at home :)
I keep one of those jump start battery packs in the car for emergencies and it doubles up for use whilst camping to charge 'phones etc. from the 12 volt plug.
We have a 4 way extension for the cigar lighter socket in the car. Various 12V chargers deal with cameras, ipod, phones, H/H gps, etc etc. The only downside is that the keys need to be in the ignition of the car, and turned one click, to get the juices flowing through the socket. That's OK as long as the car is close to the tent. If you can rig a charging system for your leisure battery that would be an even better solution. We just haven't got the room for an extra battery.
Quote: Originally posted by davek0974 on 27/7/2011
Ok thanks, loads of good ideas there to chew through :)
The portable power pack seems good, I have found one that also has a tyre pump and powerful lamp on it :)
beware of the powerful lamp - when your boot is crammed full of camping kit they can have a nasty habit of switching on, discharging the battery and melting the bulb holder and anything else nearby. I took the bulb out of mine.
Remember you need a proper car charger for an ipod not just a generic one you would use for charging other usb devices. This is because unlike other usb devices the iPad requires 12v through the usb connection not 5v like other devices. When buying a charger make sure it can charge the iPad.
Quote: Originally posted by Matthew Brown on 27/7/2011
Remember you need a proper car charger for an ipod not just a generic one you would use for charging other usb devices. This is because unlike other usb devices the iPad requires 12v through the usb connection not 5v like other devices. When buying a charger make sure it can charge the iPad.
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: Charging stuff up :)
