I don't know anything about these but I would like to use one hooked to my car battery and then leave the car running for days at a time. Would this cause the car any damage? Will the car overheat since the radiator is air cooled and the car would be sitting still idling. Also could you use it attached to a ridding mower? I'm looking to use it during power outages instead of a generator. I don't know anything about these but I would like to use one hooked to my car battery and then leave the car running for days at a time. Would this cause the car any damage? Will the car... » Read More I don't know anything about these but I would like to use one hooked to my car battery and then leave the car running for days at a time. Would this cause the car any damage? Will the car overheat since the radiator is air cooled and the car would be sitting still idling. Also could you use it attached to a ridding mower? I'm looking to use it during power outages instead of a generator. « Show Less
921722
I don't think your Altenator could handle it. Mine is hooked up in my Semi. I have more than one battery & a bigger alternator. As for your ridding mower I would say no.
921723
Riding lawn more probably not battery not big enough. This unit is probably too big to Ron off of one car battery. I use mine in a semi and I For very large batteries. I would definitely call the manufacturer and ask them those questions. My guess is that your concept is good but I don't think it will suit your needs.
921724
In theory it would work, but there a few issues to note. The inverter is actually running off the alternator, the battery is just conduit. Car batteries aren't made for long period discharges. My solar uses deep cyclebatteries. Alternator only putts out out 1500 watts, which will run a few things, but you can find a 3000 watt generator for just a little more than this inverter
840689
This can help give you some extra power for any car with a 12V battery, but beware that it's really not that big of a battery. Here's an OEM definitions of battery ratings: CCA (Cold cranking amps) = The discharge load measured in amps that a new fully charged battery can deliver at 0 degrees F for 30 seconds and maintain a terminal voltage greater than 7.2 VDC. CAA (Crank assist amps) = The discharge load measured in amps that a new fully charged battery can deliver at 70 degrees F for 5 seconds and maintain a terminal voltage greater than 7.2 VDC. They advertise this jump-start using the CAA system with the "250 cranking amps", but if they tested this using the CCA system it would likely test as under a 40 CCA battery (which I get from taking their 250 number and dividing by 6, the ratio of testing times in each system). Most car batteries start at ratings of 300 CCA and go up from there, so maybe having numbers using the same measuring system gives you a better comparison of how powerful this is. I've hooked up another brands unit like this to my car and disconnected the regular battery to try it out. It started the car (ford festiva 4cyl), but the starter was slow barely going (making me think it wasn't going to make it). This has a 12 amp hour battery, mine was a 18 amp hour for comparison. If I had a fully drained car battery (like from a light left on all night) and left it connected while hooking up one of these, I'm afraid the drained battery would "steal" most of the charge from this battery and probably make both too weak to start the car within under 30 seconds. Adding temps below freezing would reduce the chances even more. So I'm not keeping my hopes too high, especially if talking about a fully drained car battery (whereas if you left lights on while in a movie for 2 hours, it has a good chance of starting it). Feel free to look at reviews (especially ones with some criticism and more comments than just "works great, got me started") and see if others suggest similar things.
2030748
Most vehicles use a negative ground. In general, when servicing a battery, you should always disconnect the ground side first. That way, if your wrench slips and you hit part of the vehicle, you'll just be connecting the ground side of the battery to the ground of the vehicle, which causes no harm. If you slipped when loosening the positive post, and the ground was still connected, you could connect the positive terminal of the battery to the ground, which would cause arcing, or worse. So, because of that safety issue, people always disconnect the ground side first, and switches like this are usually placed on the ground side. Disconnecting either battery terminal will stop the battery from charging, since you no longer have a complete circuit through the battery. If you leave your RV plugged in constantly, and leave the battery connected continuously, be sure that your RV's battery charger is well regulated. (Although, perhaps that's why you wanted this switch in the first place-to prevent your charger from overcharging the RV battery.) Handy Bob's Blog, HandyBobSolar, has a big page of good information about RV battery charging. It's the page entitled "The RV Battery Charging Puzzle". I think I'm not allowed to insert links here, so you'll need to Google for it. Handy Bob says the biggest problem with typical RV converters is that some of them never get the batteries fully charged, even if left plugged in 24 hrs/day. Handy Bob goes on to suggest buying a large automotive battery charger, one that puts out 25 amps, and use that a few hours each day. That sounds like overcharging to me, but he's the authority here. Personally, I use a smart charger to top off my batteries, and I generally disconnect them from the vehicle before charging, and it's a low-amperage charger, as well. Mine's the 7 Amp NOCO Genius charger, and I think it's sufficient, but I'm only charging medium-sized batteries one at a time.
2115397
I won't use with out the car running, because it will drain a battery in a car quickly. Because it works best with a deep cycle battery and what's it's running .
1747454
I don't recommend for any car. The wires were burned after 2 weeks and had to replace with my electrician (of course the car overheated). And the motor of one fan was burned after 4 weeks. I am planning to change to Zerg or Perma cool.
363467
It pulls 50 amps an hour from a battery system. If there's no charge ing of the battery's then yes it would drain the battery. But as long as your alternator is good and it's putting out 50 amps or more then you should be fine to run the heater while the engine is running.
2201686
it gets hot just by running it after a while, thats what the metal heat dispensers are for. But i think if you leave it all day in a car, where temperatures can reach 110 120 degrees, in direct light from the sun, it would do some damage to it, as much as any electronic device for that matter. But if you mean just leaving it in the glove box or another compartment, it should be fine, as long as it isnt getting hit directly by the sun, its pretty small and portable. If you plan to record and leave it there, you can cover it with something if thats the case.
1140534
These connect to the supplied (or a replacement) charge controller which connects thru a fuse to your battery. If your generator also charges the battery then this charge controller simply will be over shadowed by the generators charger (as in at night). I have it connected this way and it works fine. (Both chargers in parallel with no issues.)I'm keeping this charge controller as a spare and have replaced it in my RV with http://www.midnitesolar.com/pdfs/spec_sheet_kid_frontBack.pdf. I ended up getting a total of 4 of these panels for a 400W system. The Kid essentially adds another virtual panel due to it's improved efficiency. These connect to the supplied (or a replacement) charge controller which connects thru a fuse to your battery. If your generator also charges the battery then this charge controller simply will be over shadowed by the generators charger (as in at night). I have it connected this way and it works fine. (Both chargers in parallel with no issues.)I'm keeping this charge controller as a spare and have replaced it in my RV with http://www.midnitesolar.com/pdfs/spec_sheet_kid_frontBack.pdf. I ended up getting a total of 4 of these panels for a 400W system. The Kid essentially... » Read More These connect to the supplied (or a replacement) charge controller which connects thru a fuse to your battery. If your generator also charges the battery then this charge controller simply will be over shadowed by the generators charger (as in at night). I have it connected this way and it works fine. (Both chargers in parallel with no issues.)I'm keeping this charge controller as a spare and have replaced it in my RV with http://www.midnitesolar.com/pdfs/spec_sheet_kid_frontBack.pdf. I ended up getting a total of 4 of these panels for a 400W system. The Kid essentially adds another virtual panel due to it's improved efficiency. « Show Less
1771426
I don't own this product. HOwever, I researched it for you. Given it is for a bathrm use w/out an offering of batteries, you'd need an outlet plug set up in your car. In addition, the car would need to be set to "on" for there to be an opportunity for an electric current. You might want to check if it could damage your car as well. In other words, try to find one that is made just for a car because they do make such heating systems.
1896093
no, the coil probably burned out. It is not designed to be on continually. I use mine for an air horn and it works fine for that but if you are wanting something that stays energized for a long time it would be better to use a higher voltage and less amps
420842
I have had mine for over 8 months now. The only problem I ever have is with it over heating in my parked car. But at my job I'm forced to park in the sun and I live in central Florida. Our heat index yesterday was over 100f. I can only imagine how hot it gets in a parked car with the windows shut from 530am to 300pm. It overwrites files automatically in the order of the oldest to the newest. I leave mine in live recording mode 24/7. I have many emergency lights in my vehicle so I have a deep cycle battery for my accessories. So I never worry about it draining my battery.
18691
OldAmazonian says:~{Gadgets like this can typically be kept topped up with a jumper from the car's lighter socket to the gadget's lighter socket. The better cords for the purpose have fuses in their plugs. The car's own voltage regulator maintains adequate level for intermittently charging the sealed lead acid battery without damage.}~While this more than likely should work, I'd let someone else try it before trying it on my own unit. Unless I tore it appart an investigated how things are wired inside and did some actual electrical measuring, I'd not try it unlesss I was willing to chance that something might get toasted. OldAmazonian says:~{Gadgets like this can typically be kept topped up with a jumper from the car's lighter socket to the gadget's lighter socket. The better cords for the purpose have fuses in their plugs. The car's own voltage regulator maintains adequate level for intermittently charging the sealed lead acid battery without damage.}~While this more than likely should work, I'd let someone else try it before trying it on my own unit. Unless I tore it appart an investigated how things are wired inside and did some actual electrical measuring, I'd not try it unlesss I was... » Read More OldAmazonian says:~{Gadgets like this can typically be kept topped up with a jumper from the car's lighter socket to the gadget's lighter socket. The better cords for the purpose have fuses in their plugs. The car's own voltage regulator maintains adequate level for intermittently charging the sealed lead acid battery without damage.}~While this more than likely should work, I'd let someone else try it before trying it on my own unit. Unless I tore it appart an investigated how things are wired inside and did some actual electrical measuring, I'd not try it unlesss I was willing to chance that something might get toasted. « Show Less
1356011
I've had mine on my car now for over two years, I just leave it on until I use the car. Haven't had any problem with it getting to hot. I don't drive much either, if I don't use my car every few days, my battery goes dead, very frustrating. :( Hope this answers your question.
1665359
I have several models of Koolatrons and the answer is: it depends. I had my Chevy Blazer plugged into a unit once all day while traveling across country and left it on all night while sleeping > only to find my battery (relatively new) drained to the extent of not being able of starting. In contrast I have accidentally left this plugged into other vehicles and not encountered issues. I would suggest not running the cooler more than eight (8) hours in a parked vehicle without restarting your vehicle and letting the alternator recharge the battery. I think this is best because the unit will NOT stay cold for more than a few hours unplugged... it needs to run to maintain lower temps. Hope that helps. I have several models of Koolatrons and the answer is: it depends. I had my Chevy Blazer plugged into a unit once all day while traveling across country and left it on all night while sleeping > only to find my battery (relatively new) drained to the extent of not being able of starting. In contrast I have accidentally left this plugged into other vehicles and not encountered issues. I would suggest not running the cooler more than eight (8) hours in a parked vehicle without restarting your vehicle and letting the alternator recharge the battery. I think this is best because the unit... » Read More I have several models of Koolatrons and the answer is: it depends. I had my Chevy Blazer plugged into a unit once all day while traveling across country and left it on all night while sleeping > only to find my battery (relatively new) drained to the extent of not being able of starting. In contrast I have accidentally left this plugged into other vehicles and not encountered issues. I would suggest not running the cooler more than eight (8) hours in a parked vehicle without restarting your vehicle and letting the alternator recharge the battery. I think this is best because the unit will NOT stay cold for more than a few hours unplugged... it needs to run to maintain lower temps. Hope that helps. « Show Less
1930579
Sure Danny, This thing works great off of the car battery. I have a seperate battery to run stuff in my van and it will keep it cold for three days without recharging. On the van main battery it will stay cold forever and if you run the vehicle for thirty minutes or so it is completely recharged. I have had mine for about a year and I love it.
100892
I should also mention, you can not keep this or any charger connected to the battery when either cranking the starter motor or while the generator is running. While cranking the starter, the amperage required for the starter motor will burn out the charger. Additionally, if you keep the charger connected to the battery while the generator is running, you will burn out the charger and quite possibly, the charging circuit in the generator. While the generator is running, it is also charging the on board battery. The best practice is to unplug the charger connector before starting and re-connect it after you shut down. I should also mention, you can not keep this or any charger connected to the battery when either cranking the starter motor or while the generator is running. While cranking the starter, the amperage required for the starter motor will burn out the charger. Additionally, if you keep the charger connected to the battery while the generator is running, you will burn out the charger and quite possibly, the charging circuit in the generator. While the generator is running, it is also charging the on board battery. The best practice is to unplug the charger connector before starting and... » Read More I should also mention, you can not keep this or any charger connected to the battery when either cranking the starter motor or while the generator is running. While cranking the starter, the amperage required for the starter motor will burn out the charger. Additionally, if you keep the charger connected to the battery while the generator is running, you will burn out the charger and quite possibly, the charging circuit in the generator. While the generator is running, it is also charging the on board battery. The best practice is to unplug the charger connector before starting and re-connect it after you shut down. « Show Less
186552
Its been my experience that leaveing it plugged in after dark the charge likes to feed back through the carge controler and heat up why i dont know but it does i would reccomend unplugging it as soon as it gets daark just to be safe..it does get kinda hot!