With the rise in the price of electricity, some manufacturers of high-capacity portable batteries (the same ones that are usually used in camper vans or outdoor camping), began to promote their products, especially those equipped with panels solar for charging without the need for a power grid, as an alternative to save on the bill by powering small household appliances and other devices at home.
I must confess that curiosity got the better of me.
Are they really used for this use?
Is it something useful and practical?
Does it really help to save?
Do they work with any device?
With these questions in mind, and taking advantage of the fact that there are already many more hours of daylight and the sun shines practically all day on my terrace, I decided to try a set of this type to see for myself if it was useful for putting a washing machine,
Easy installation
The tests began a month ago, with a 512 Wh battery and a power of 500 W expandable to 1000 W, accompanied by a double-sided solar panel (that is, it also generates energy from its rear) and 220 W of power .
The installation of the devices is done very quickly: in this case, it took me less than 10 minutes to have the battery charging in the sun.
It is the time necessary to remove the two components from their respective boxes and connect them to each other.
The model I have been using (an EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max) is the size of a car battery and has two plugs, as well as USB ports, to connect different devices.
In its central part it has a color screen that shows the state of the charge or the remaining autonomy time at all times depending on what it is being used for;
The EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max model is the size of a car battery and has two plugs, as well as USB ports, to connect different devices.LP
The first time it took about five and a half hours in direct sun to fill up, although not every day was the same: depending on whether there were clouds or not, it even reached 8 hours in the process.
Before using it, I had to analyze the power and consumption figures of home devices with a calculator in hand to see what exactly it could be used for.
For example, the approximate consumption of a dishwasher is between 900 and 2300 W;
that of an oven ranges from 800 to 1200 W;
ceramic hob between 900 and 2100 W;
and the washing machine between 1500 and 2000 W. This means that household appliances whose use has more weight in the electricity bill would not be suitable for this battery.
Yes, it could be used for a refrigerator that consumes –in its most efficient versions– around 600 W per day, or a television, estimating a consumption of between 150 and 400 W.
What happens when one of these devices is connected and the battery is not appropriate?
Shuts down with an 'overload' message.
The first tests were carried out by connecting the desktop computer and the monitor with which I usually work.
The battery was 100% charged and with a consumption that remained stable at approximately 63 W, I managed to work for about 5 hours.
From there, it was necessary to go back to the 'traditional' method.
Later, I used it to dry my hair and iron it, laminate some crafts, heat food in the microwave... And so on every day for a full month, trying different devices.
To give some more details about its autonomy: if the consumption is 140 W, it will last up to 3 hours;
300 W means a little less than an hour and a half of autonomy;
and the total 800 W of the battery, approximately 20 minutes.
In conclusion: it is more than adequate for charging mobile devices, using a computer,
dry your hair or put a few minutes in the microwave.
But it is not suitable for putting a washing machine or a dryer, and it was not very suitable for cooking on a portable ceramic hob either.
Yes or no?
Just a few days ago I received the electricity bill —with a free market rate for which I always pay the same amount, whatever the time and whatever the day— corresponding to the period between February 15 and March 15.
The cost difference with respect to the previous month was approximately 3 euros and 15 KWh less consumption;
figures that do not allow any conclusions to be drawn.
This "saving" did nothing but reaffirm my opinion about using these batteries at home: it is not a practical system.
Although they weigh little, taking them from one place to another and being aware of how much autonomy they have left is uncomfortable.
And also have the solar panels continuously deployed on the terrace, because you have to charge it daily.
As if that were not enough, the outlay necessary to acquire a battery of this type with its solar panel is not amortized in years: the Ecoflow set requires an investment of 1,198 euros (599 euros for the battery and another 599 euros for the panel);
figures similar to the proposals of other manufacturers such as Anker or River.
The only option for which I could consider using one at home is if a fixed installation can be made, that is, there is a possibility that it is connected to the solar panels and the device that you want to be powered at the same time all day.
In a case like that, the firm promises that it can provide up to 1.5 kWh per day, although we have not been able to prove this point.
It is also an interesting device as an uninterruptible power supply system always connected to the electric current: in this way, in the event of a power outage, the computer would not turn off or the filter of an aquarium would always remain working, to cite a couple of examples.
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