Anyone converted electrical plug to battery power? Need advice for outdoor shoot!

blake2404

blake2404

Well-known member
Hey guys,

I have a shoot deep in the woods and would like to find a way to adapt my CFL based clamp on lights to battery power.........anyone had success?.....what adapter to use?

I've seen adapters from plug to cig lighter plug, but sadly i wont even have that option, would need battery power.

Thanks
 
Ouch!....lol......was thinking something in the $50 range....lol. If that is the price range, i might as well just get a couple small led's. Should mention this would basically be a "project specific" purchase.
 
for $60, go to amazon.com and look up "car" generators, like the ones for jumpstarting your car. those should work too.
 
What you want is a power inverter hooked up to a battery bank. The inverter will provide you with standard AC plugs. Get some kind of deep cycle battery that can handle a long term load, then get another one. Or a generator and a bunch of extension wire. If you're shooting with any reasonable number of lights for a large amount of time the generator is going to be more cost effective and will require a lot less work.
 
By a "battery bank" are you referring to a car battery?.......or something else.

I only need this for one shot.......its in the woods in a cave like space so i don't need a long battery use, plus getting a generator into our location will be a *****.

The light (s) will be 26 watt cfl. (100 watt equiv)
 
blake2404 said:
By a "battery bank" are you referring to a car battery?.......or something else.

I only need this for one shot.......its in the woods in a cave like space so i don't need a long battery use, plus getting a generator into our location will be a *****.

The light (s) will be 26 watt cfl. (100 watt equiv)
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You need to know how many, what is their current draw, and that will indicate how many 'amp-hours' worth of battery you need.
 
Car battery or multiple car batteries, hooked up in series or just swapped out. I've done both, but you probably shouldn't if you aren't familiar with it. The jump starter linked to above would be a good choice (it's basically the same thing) if it covers your needs, but you have to calculate that out first.
 
I am really happy with Paul Buff Vagabond Mini Lithium power units, designed for remote still photography power, but should work here too.
 
David W. Jones said:
I have used this to power LED lights in the field. http://www.amazon.com/Duracell-DPP-600HD-Powerpack-Starter-Emergency/dp/B000TKHMWK

You might also consider renting a quiet Honda generator.
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I would stick with a Honda Generator. Though they are noisier than a battery pack, it is less likely that they will kill you. Battery/Inverter packs like this Durcell are dangerous because they use a Floating Neutral. Which means that they offer less protection against electrical faults and GFCIs won't work reliably on them. No joking, these things can kill you.

Josh "want to live to shoot another day" White
 
White Hot Josh said:
I would stick with a Honda Generator. Though they are noisier than a battery pack, it is less likely that they will kill you. Battery/Inverter packs like this Durcell are dangerous because they use a Floating Neutral. Which means that they offer less protection against electrical faults and GFCIs won't work reliably on them. No joking, these things can kill you.

Josh "want to live to shoot another day" White
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Yes a generator would be the right call here.

As a side note, Using the Duracell Powerpack 600 via 12v cig out to 12v cig tree, then cig plugs to 4pin into my LED lights works like a champ.

Josh, do you have any actual info or links to someone being killed while using the Duracell DPP-600HD Powerpack 600???
 
David W. Jones said:
Josh, do you have any actual info or links to someone being killed while using the Duracell DPP-600HD Powerpack 600???
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No, I do not have links to someone being killed while using the Duracell DPP-600HD Powerpack 600, but there are links in this forum in a post by Peter Berg (see http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?244000-HMI-how-not-to-die/page2) to websites that discuss the dangers in using floating neutral systems and why they are not permitted by the National Electrical Code and OSHA. The Duracell DPP-600HD Powerpack 600 is dangerous because it gives the appearance of a safely grounded system when, in fact, it is not. Their receptacles accept a plug with a grounding pin, but in the receptacle the grounding pin is connected to nothing. They do not offer an equipment grounding system and GFCIs will not operate effectively on them, so they offer no protection from Ground Faults. So, yes they can kill you.

Josh "want to live to shoot another day" White
 
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