EcoFlow Charging

[KLWinton]

Looking to charge my EcoFlow Delta 2 when driving. I looked at the Alternator Charger and apart from the price it is a bit o Emily for what I really want and limited to just that. I was thinking of buying a small inverter that plugs into the cigarette lighter socket to convert to 230v and plug the Exoflow into that so it’s charging from mains voltage. Anyone done this and if so what size of inverter did you use. TIA.

 

[Cush]

Sorry, trying to figure out what the predictive text turned in to “it is a bit o Emily”. The ciggy lighter inverters, although advertised at 300+ watts will really only get 10 amps from the socket due to its rating. The ecoflow alternator charger is down at half price at the minute.

 

[autorouter]

According to the spec, the Ecoflow Delta 2 will charge at 1200W from AC, 1100W from a DC charger, and 8A from a 12V car socket (8 x 12 = 96W)

The 1100W DC charger will take about 80A from a '12V' supply with a charging voltage of about 14V (alternator or 12V battery).

If you want to use the mains charger that comes with it, that takes 1200W. From a 12V battery it would require 1200 / 12 = 100A, and a bit less from an alternator at 14V (1200 / 14 = 86A). If you want to use an inverter to power it from the alternator at 14V, that will require about 10% more, ie 95A, because of inverter losses.

Once you know that, it is obvious that you can't run the 1200W charger from a car socket, which has a max amps of about 10A. That's the reason the 'car charger' option is limited to 8A.

However you could wire a high-power Anderson socket from the alternator/starter battery, that would power a 1500W inverter.That would no doubt run the mains charger while driving. It would be a bit less efficient than wiring in the Ecoflow DC charger, but as you say would have other uses. But I think that is not what you wanted to hear.

 

[BikerGraham]

Looking to charge my EcoFlow Delta 2 when driving. I looked at the Alternator Charger and apart from the price it is a bit o Emily for what I really want and limited to just that. I was thinking of buying a small inverter that plugs into the cigarette lighter socket to convert to 230v and plug the Exoflow into that so it’s charging from mains voltage. Anyone done this and if so what size of inverter did you use. TIA.

Mine came with a cigarette socket lead which just plugs in when driving.

 

[PlacidoD]

Mine is kicking out 100 watts on the 8 amp setting on the car 12V socket. So simple maths mean 10 hours to charge from empty. There will not be many days when I do that much driving but equally it will not be often that I am charging from zero. Four to six hours is far more common.

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[Fatboy]

Might not be the answer you are looking for but the Delta charges pretty quick, I usually call into a pub or cafe while we are eating and ask kindly of we can plug it in, a tip or a couple of quid in the charity box and ive never been turned down.

 

[KLWinton]

My thinking was if it charges in an 90minutes off of the mains then maybe a 300w inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter socket them plug the EcoFlow into that then a couple of hours driving and it’s full charge again.

 

[autorouter]

My thinking was if it charges in an 90minutes off of the mains then maybe a 300w inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter socket them plug the EcoFlow into that then a couple of hours driving and it’s full charge again.

If you have a 300W charger then a 300W inverter would power it OK. However it is too big to run from an ordinary cigarette-lighter socket. No problem if you wire in an Anderson socket though. The question is, can you get a 300W charger suitable for the Ecoflow power bank? I think the one that comes with it is 1200W.

If it takes 90 minutes with the 1200W charger then it will take 4 x 90 = 360 minutes with a 300W charger. So 6 hours from flat to full, or 3 hours from 50% to full.

 

[DavidG58]

My thinking was if it charges in an 90minutes off of the mains then maybe a 300w inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter socket them plug the EcoFlow into that then a couple of hours driving and it’s full charge again.

We have this power unit, I haven’t been brave enough to plug it into the 12V sockets we have, being convinced the fuse will blow

We alternate between off grid and on site and Bev can get enough cups of coffee to last 4 days without a charge

As mentioned above you need an inverter at least 1500W to charge

My engineer SIL took a look at an app that’s free to download, on that you can reduce the Amps taken via a 12V socket, he plugged into his MH and it worked fine, I think he reduced it to 4A

Might be a simpler option for you I like simple

 

[Billmyl]

Mistake.

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[L' Hobo]

According to the spec, the Ecoflow Delta 2 will charge at 1200W from AC, 1100W from a DC charger, and 8A from a 12V car socket (8 x 12 = 96W)

The 1100W DC charger will take about 80A from a '12V' supply with a charging voltage of about 14V (alternator or 12V battery).

If you want to use the mains charger that comes with it, that takes 1200W. From a 12V battery it would require 1200 / 12 = 100A, and a bit less from an alternator at 14V (1200 / 14 = 86A). If you want to use an inverter to power it from the alternator at 14V, that will require about 10% more, ie 95A, because of inverter losses.

Once you know that, it is obvious that you can't run the 1200W charger from a car socket, which has a max amps of about 10A. That's the reason the 'car charger' option is limited to 8A.

However you could wire a high-power Anderson socket from the alternator/starter battery, that would power a 1500W inverter.That would no doubt run the mains charger while driving. It would be a bit less efficient than wiring in the Ecoflow DC charger, but as you say would have other uses. But I think that is not what you wanted to hear.

I usually charge mine (which is similar to the Ecoflow) from the mains but I've often wondered IF I could use my cigarette lighter plug to cigarette lighter plug Slave Cable for starting another car, to charge my 1000w Power Station or do I have to buy one from the Power Station?
I know little about electrics and, so far, I have been afraid to try it so any advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Reallyretired]

I have set my ecoflow to 4 A charge on 12v and connected it to a socket powered by the leisure battery. Thus charges on alternator if driving and solar if not. It would take ages to charge from flat but then it normally isn't.

 

[eddie]

Why not buy a generator and charge from that?

 

[autorouter]

Might not be the answer you are looking for but the Delta charges pretty quick, I usually call into a pub or cafe while we are eating and ask kindly of we can plug it in, a tip or a couple of quid in the charity box and ive never been turned down.

An alternative is to charge the Ecoflow from one of the thousands of EV charge points. Standard 230V mains is available from most of them. If it charges from flat in 48 minutes then it sounds like a good option to me.

You can get a cable that plugs into a common 'Type 2' socket, which will have a standard round blue CEE connector at the other end, to plug into your motorhome mains inlet. The Ecoflow power bank can be charged from one of the motorhome mains sockets.

Since it only takes 1200W to charge the power bank, there is plenty of power spare to run a kettle, microwave, air fryer etc while you are waiting for the power bank to charge. A Type 2 EV point can supply up to 7kW of single phase mains power, that's 32A, which is twice the power of a standard 16A mains hookup.

You pay for the power with an app, so you end up with several apps on your phone. They charge about 40p to 80p per kilowatt-hour, so to fill a 1600Wh power bank from empty would cost from 64p to £1.28p. Plus any power for your kettle, air fryer etc.

 

[CAB96]

My thinking was if it charges in an 90minutes off of the mains then maybe a 300w inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter socket them plug the EcoFlow into that then a couple of hours driving and it’s full charge again.

You can't take more power than the cig lighter socket will give.

Normally the 12 Volt vehicle sockets are limited to maximum 10 Amps. The design of the connector is not very good for high power applications.

10 Amps x 12 Volts = 120 Watts.

So even a 300W inverter won't be fully utilised, you won't get the full capacity from it.

If your EcoFlow is approx 1000 Wh (Watt hours) you are looking at 9-10 hours for a full charge from flat, using a vehicle's 12V socket.

Mains (AC) charging is 1200 Watts, so basically 10 times the power (and 10 times faster charging) than you can get from the 12V socket.

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[PlacidoD]

EcoFlow do an 800 watt B2B charger for installation in vans etc:

Amazon.co.uk

£549.99. Hmnn! By the time someone fitted that for me total cost to me would be circa £700.00!!

 

[Cush]

EcoFlow do an 800 watt B2B charger for installation in vans etc:

Amazon.co.uk

£549.99. Hmnn! By the time someone fitted that for me total cost to me would be circa £700.00!!

329 atm

EcoFlow 800W Alternator Charger - EcoFlow UK

- Charge while you drive, and stay powered up on the road.- 800W turbo alternator, 8× faster than traditional in-vehicle auxiliary power outlets. Top up 1kWh in only 1.3 hours. - A 3-in-1 fast charger, maintainer, and jump starter keeps your battery in mint condition.- Easy installation-...

uk.ecoflow.com

 

[DavidG58]

Here is our back up plan, maybe cheaper than an inverter £250black Friday deal, probably cheaper today

 

[Landy Andy]

I’m keeping my eyes open for a similar deal