Just Pre-ordered a Jackery 2000

My plan is also to get a GX CS4 since I was given 2 tanks,

Now the solar generator will make me independent of the grid to use my guns ( as well as having 4 Handpumps )

Also I will be independent to charge my E-bikes, and we lose power a lot here for weather reasons so I will always have back up, no need to store or source gas,......we have plenty sunshine here year round so I'm golden ;)
 
I must have missed the solar part. It looks like a battery pack that needs to be charged. Do you buy a separate panel package to charge it?
Yes, solar panel,
you can attach up to six 200 watts panels and can use the generator while its charging, for people with tanks and compressors this is a way to shoot airguns independent of the power grid.


If for whatever reason there's no more power unless you have Handpumps you cannot shoot your airguns, this is a way to be independend, for me also I will also always have transportation since I can fill my Dirt bike with it.
 
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That's a costly solution if you get the power pack and 6 solar panels. I hadn't heard of this particular offering, but I've known there are 2kW battery packs and higher for a few years now. If you're off grid and solution works for you then there could be value.

My concern with this particular product is regarding the battery type being used. I'd be concerned about longevity with the Jackery website showing Lithium-ion batteries and only 1000 cycles down to 80% capacity. I can't confirm it 100% but it does not appear they are using LiFePO4 chemistry based batteris. LiFePO4 gives you better capacity retention up to 2000+ cycles at the expense of being a bit heavier because the energy density is less that standard (yes I know there are multiple types with the most common being LiCoO2 or LiMn2O4) Lithium-ion. Just saying before you commit to this model I would compare other offerings that utilize LiFePO4. The Anker Powerhouse does and BLUETTI has some options as well.
 
Does the Jackery have the amperage rating to power the GX? I didn't think it had a very high max output, i.e. I'd be concerned it couldn't get the pump started.

I own a Jackery but have not tried hooking it up to my GX pump. I mostly just use the Jackery around the house, when we get power outages (fridge, gas-powered water heater, etc). When remote I hook the GX pump up to my car battery, as it's designed for this kind of application.
 
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Personally, I would want to see a real test of how long it would run your compressor. Myself, I’d go with a Honda generator of the proper wattage to comfortably run your compressor.
You mention your prime power sees frequent outages for weather. In my neck of the woods weather comes from the sky, meaning clouds. Clouds to my knowledge lower the output of solar cells.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the battery packs are cool but gas generators rock, 100% rated output till it runs out of gas.
 
That's a costly solution if you get the power pack and 6 solar panels. I hadn't heard of this particular offering, but I've known there are 2kW battery packs and higher for a few years now. If you're off grid and solution works for you then there could be value.

My concern with this particular product is regarding the battery type being used. I'd be concerned about longevity with the Jackery website showing Lithium-ion batteries and only 1000 cycles down to 80% capacity. I can't confirm it 100% but it does not appear they are using LiFePO4 chemistry based batteris. LiFePO4 gives you better capacity retention up to 2000+ cycles at the expense of being a bit heavier because the energy density is less that standard (yes I know there are multiple types with the most common being LiCoO2 or LiMn2O4) Lithium-ion. Just saying before you commit to this model I would compare other offerings that utilize LiFePO4. The Anker Powerhouse does and BLUETTI has some options as well.
Well, well i do like the portabilty and power ratio, yes other generators have more cycle capability but 1000 cycles, lets say I charge it 3 times a week ( which I do not see happening ) it will still be 10 years and at that point it will still give 80% capacity I sure can live with that, also technology is moving so fast who know what solar and batteries will be in even 5 years from now
 
Personally, I would want to see a real test of how long it would run your compressor. Myself, I’d go with a Honda generator of the proper wattage to comfortably run your compressor.
You mention your prime power sees frequent outages for weather. In my neck of the woods weather comes from the sky, meaning clouds. Clouds to my knowledge lower the output of solar cells.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the battery packs are cool but gas generators rock, 100% rated output till it runs out of gas.
Nawh no more gas engines for me, I have an electric dirt bike and blowing my mind, planning to get a bigger bike soon, Electric and solar is my way forward, if it cannot run the CS4 it's OK I have handpumps ;)

Watch the video, slower but charges plenty good in clouds .
 
Assuming we are talking about the 2000 Pro model which seems to be the only one they are offering now. I have one and it is legit. The GX CS4 specs say 350W. The Jackery 2000 Pro will barely know it's connected and you would get 6hrs of continuous runtime.

The inverter in this unit will usually start my Makita 3.0HP 120v air compressor (which is at the threshold of a household 15A circuit) as long as temps are not too cold (~50deg or warmer). Surge on that start has to be insane. I was looking at building a small battery backup system and you can't build one with the specs of the Jackery 2000 Pro for that price. And if you pieced one together yourself, it would not be in a nice compact footprint.

All integrated into this small unit:
2100Wh Lithium battery
1500W AC charger
1400W DC solar charge controller
2000W continuous/4000W surge pure sine inverter
43lbs

I see the high-wattage charging circuits it includes as a key feature. Having lived through a few power outages in the past, running a generator 24/7 is annoying and unnecessary unless you are truly trying to power up your whole house. Your key needs are to keep the fridge running and charge up a few battery powered devices. This only takes a couple hundred continuous watts at most and is what this size unit is great for (this is NOT a 'power your whole house' size battery). So even if you had a generator, you'd want to run off your batteries and only turn on the generator a couple hours a day to recharge. Same applies if you were in a place with rolling blackouts. Power comes on, you want to be able to charge those batteries as fast as possible. If you are on Solar, you want to charge as fast as possible when the sun is out. The Jackery Solar panels have a nice portable form factor but are super expensive. You can use much cheaper normal solar panels via an adapter. I use two 190W HQST panels in series which plug into one of the two input ports.

Two things I'd recommend to get the best life out of it, are to not store it at full charge since that degrades lithium batteries. Ideal is probably 40-50%, but even 80% is going to help extend the batteries lifespan. Second is to not store it in a hot location. Heat also degrades lithium batteries.
 
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Assuming we are talking about the 2000 Pro model which seems to be the only one they are offering now. I have one and it is legit. The GX CS4 specs say 350W. The Jackery 2000 Pro will barely know it's connected and you would get 6hrs of continuous runtime.

The inverter in this unit will usually start my Makita 3.0HP 120v air compressor (which is at the threshold of a household 15A circuit) as long as temps are not too cold (~50deg or warmer). Surge on that start has to be insane. I was looking at building a small battery backup system and you can't build one with the specs of the Jackery 2000 Pro for that price. And if you pieced one together yourself, it would not be in a nice compact footprint.

All integrated into this small unit:
2100Wh Lithium battery
1500W AC charger
1400W DC solar charge controller
2000W continuous/4000W surge pure sine inverter
43lbs

I see the high-wattage charging circuits it includes as a key feature. Having lived through a few power outages in the past, running a generator 24/7 is annoying and unnecessary unless you are truly trying to power up your whole house. Your key needs are to keep the fridge running and charge up a few battery powered devices. This only takes a couple hundred continuous watts at most and is what this size unit is great for (this is NOT a 'power your whole house' size battery). So even if you had a generator, you'd want to run off your batteries and only turn on the generator a couple hours a day to recharge. Same applies if you were in a place with rolling blackouts. Power comes on, you want to be able to charge those batteries as fast as possible. If you are on Solar, you want to charge as fast as possible when the sun is out. The Jackery Solar panels have a nice portable form factor but are super expensive. You can use much cheaper normal solar panels via an adapter. I use two 190W HQST panels in series which plug into one of the two input ports.

Two things I'd recommend to get the best life out of it, are to not store it at full charge since that degrades lithium batteries. Ideal is probably 40-50%, but even 80% is going to help extend the batteries lifespan. Second is to not store it in a hot location. Heat also degrades lithium batteries.
Great review, thanks a bunch still learning about this stuff but I really like what I see.
 
Hey @TDK, also I'm thinking to get multiple 110 watts panels rather then the 200 Watts,....what do you think ?

Thanks again

Its mostly about what form-factor/packaging works for you. The square inches surface area per Watt is going to be equivalent. A 200W panel is like two 100W panels hooked together internally (sometimes in series, sometimes in parallel). So more panels and more connections with 100W panels, but each panel is smaller. Fewer panels and fewer connections with 200W, but each panel is larger. In my case I wanted a 400W total that was portable, and it is more convenient for me to deal with two larger panels than 4 smaller ones.

For the Jackery 2000, each of the two DC input port has the following limitations:
at 11-17.5V, max current is 8A
at 17.5-60V, max current is 12A

Here's where the series/parallel wiring comes into play. If you hook too many panels in parallel you could exceed the current limit of a single port. If you hook too many in series you could exceed the voltage limit.

For example, here are the specs for my HQST 190W panel: Operating voltage = 20.3V, Operating Current = 9.36A (my panel is like two 100W wired in PARALLEL, more current same voltage)

I can hook two of my panels in series for 40.6V, but if I added another it would be 60.9V which would exceed the voltage of a single input.
If I hooked two panels in parallel, that would give 18.7A which would exceed the current rating of a single input.

So my options are to run the two panels in parallel on one input, or split them and run one to each port. That's one more thing with the jackery. If you use both input ports, you have to maintain symmetry. The manual explains this.

Generally, if you are running longer cables you want to configure for higher voltage since it will result in less loss. If your solar panels are going to be pretty close and the cables shorter it doesn't matter as much.

At the end of the day as long as you are meeting the specs of the Jackery inputs (voltage, current, symmetry between ports) its going to work, so there's a lot of '6 one way, half a dozen the other' in how you can hook panels up.
 
Its mostly about what form-factor/packaging works for you. The square inches surface area per Watt is going to be equivalent. A 200W panel is like two 100W panels hooked together internally (sometimes in series, sometimes in parallel). So more panels and more connections with 100W panels, but each panel is smaller. Fewer panels and fewer connections with 200W, but each panel is larger. In my case I wanted a 400W total that was portable, and it is more convenient for me to deal with two larger panels than 4 smaller ones.

For the Jackery 2000, each of the two DC input port has the following limitations:
at 11-17.5V, max current is 8A
at 17.5-60V, max current is 12A

Here's where the series/parallel wiring comes into play. If you hook too many panels in parallel you could exceed the current limit of a single port. If you hook too many in series you could exceed the voltage limit.

For example, here are the specs for my HQST 190W panel: Operating voltage = 20.3V, Operating Current = 9.36A (my panel is like two 100W wired in PARALLEL, more current same voltage)

I can hook two of my panels in series for 40.6V, but if I added another it would be 60.9V which would exceed the voltage of a single input.
If I hooked two panels in parallel, that would give 18.7A which would exceed the current rating of a single input.

So my options are to run the two panels in parallel on one input, or split them and run one to each port. That's one more thing with the jackery. If you use both input ports, you have to maintain symmetry. The manual explains this.

Generally, if you are running longer cables you want to configure for higher voltage since it will result in less loss. If your solar panels are going to be pretty close and the cables shorter it doesn't matter as much.

At the end of the day as long as you are meeting the specs of the Jackery inputs (voltage, current, symmetry between ports) its going to work, so there's a lot of '6 one way, half a dozen the other' in how you can hook panels up.
Man thanks again for the classroom time, much, much apreciate it
 
Personally, I would want to see a real test of how long it would run your compressor. Myself, I’d go with a Honda generator of the proper wattage to comfortably run your compressor.
You mention your prime power sees frequent outages for weather. In my neck of the woods weather comes from the sky, meaning clouds. Clouds to my knowledge lower the output of solar cells.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the battery packs are cool but gas generators rock, 100% rated output till it runs out of gas.
Well most of the time loss of power here is due to winds, then hearquakes, then people hitting poles, then hurricanes and those pass real quick leaving sunny skys behind them.

Also remember we are an island, if anything mayor happens there's no more supply line,....so yeah I take my solar powered generator over a Gas one anytime,
 
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I went through the mental exercises myself. If there's an extended power outage and your gas generator is running 24/7, people will be 1) knocking on your door, or 2) attempting to steal your generator while you sleep (plenty of hurricane aftermath stories). If there's a short power outage, the generator is not that useful since you will probably hold off on setting it up. Ideally you'd have both a small gas generator (Honda EU2200) and one of these power stations, but of the two the power station ended up being more useful for my situation. 400W+ of solar will keep a fridge and some mobile devices running indefinitely in average sun conditions. A string of severely cloudy days is still going to pose a problem, but solar panels today do still charge some with cloudy skies as long as they aren't too dark. And you can always add more solar to increase your margins.
 
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One more thing to add is that you really need to evaluate what you want to charge or power and make sure it is realistic. A gas generator can run at any output level up to rated max level, as long as it is fueled. A power station can run until the battery capacity in Wh (Watt*Hours) has been depleted. After that point you need sun-time or other external source of AC/DC charging. Lets say you plug in a 500W continuous load to your power station and run it for 1/2 hour. That will take roughly 500W*1/2Hour= 250Wh from your battery. If you want to get extra picky, you can assume the Wh is going to be ~10% higher due to conversion losses between the battery and inverter output. If your load is intermittent like a refrigerator, it becomes more complicated to calculate and you either have to go off of online estimates, or hook yours up to a Kill-A-Watt meter and let it run for a day to get the average.
 
Sur-Ron?

Dirt cheap task lighting to go with your Jackery: A lipstick charger and a Ytee LED stick with a piece of frosted gallon jug plastic secured with a rubber band or zip tie for a diffuser. Recommend the warm white over the bright white, much easier on your eyes. You'll get about eight hours of light at maximum output per charge.
 
Sur-Ron?

Dirt cheap task lighting to go with your Jackery: A lipstick charger and a Ytee LED stick with a piece of frosted gallon jug plastic secured with a rubber band or zip tie for a diffuser. Recommend the warm white over the bright white, much easier on your eyes. You'll get about eight hours of light at maximum output per charge.
Sur-ron is an electric dirt bike.

.....Even the cheap 15 outdoor lights string I have now in the yard that is powered by a cheap 3"x5" tiny solar panel gives light for the entire night even on cloudy days,....cannot even immagine what a quality solar panel and generator are capable of.