[Vwdiesel] portable power

[Sandy Cameron]

At 03:57 PM 2/15/03 -0500, you wrote:
>
>Has anyone here ever used one of those portable battery jump starter
>products to plug a block heater in??  I saw one for sale and it has a power
>outlet (12v) and i wondered if I could use this battery to heat up the block
>for a hour or so before I start the car on these cold 5 degree days.
>

The block heater is about 300 watts (2.7 amps at 115 volts)

A large healthy class 24 battery, of 80 to 100 ampere-hours holds about 1
killowatt of electricity, of which you might use about .75 if you are lucky.

This trick has been proven by me, and a friend who lives on a little island
a few hundred yards from his dock and parking space. He has power at home
but not at the dock (yet!).

We both have a walmart 300 watt inverter, which will run for a while with
the block heater plugged into it. It also has a low voltage sensor that
shuts it off at (I think, )10.5 or 11 volts.

I did this only as an experiment to be used at my camp, if necessary, and
has not been run to logical conclusion yet.

Friend has used it several times and it works. His spare battery spends the
night at home where it's warm, and there is power to top it up on a charger
over night.

Draws the battery to the landing in a small sled and powers up the heater
with the inverter. Goes back to the house for coffee.

Comes back in 3/4 hour and starts the car. Battery goes in trunk where clips
await to charge it from the alternator on his trip, about an hour each way.

At night , if the trips were short, the battery goes back to the house for
further charging.

It can be done.

Sandy