Running the printer from a battery?

[friesian]

I take my printer with me to events, and sometimes my vendor space
does not include power. I have had to take my printer over to an
outlet to print anything.

I was wondering if there might be a battery pack I could buy that
would run my printer on these occasions. My old cash register had a
battery pack that ran on 8 d size batteries. Would there be something
like that that I could plug my printer into?

I have found some larger inverter type things, but they are really
expensive. I'm hoping for something smaller.

 

[Bob Headrick]

I take my printer with me to events, and sometimes my vendor space
does not include power. I have had to take my printer over to an
outlet to print anything.

I was wondering if there might be a battery pack I could buy that
would run my printer on these occasions. My old cash register had a
battery pack that ran on 8 d size batteries. Would there be something
like that that I could plug my printer into?

I have found some larger inverter type things, but they are really
expensive. I'm hoping for something smaller.

What model printer? Some will run from 12V and you could use something
like:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=38391.

If not you may be able to take the above and use a small cheap inverter such
as this:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=91813

If you are printing photo's you might look for a photo printer that will run
from batteries. I got a good deal (<$50 shipped) on eBay for a Photosmart
475 which will print up to 5"x7" photo's and has an optional battery supply.
See:
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s...mart+475v&landing=&family_name=#defaultAnchor
or
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s...w=1&a1=Format&v1=Portable&catLevel=2#bcAnchor
for current models.

Regards,
Bob Headrick, MS MVP Printing/Imaging

 

[Martha Adams]

Well, it depends upon what the printer needs. This isn't
the place for a laser printer. Look in Radio Shack stores
for an inverter -- a device that takes battery DC in and
puts (very approximately) house style 120V AC out.
Get an inverter rated for continuous service at your
printer load plus 50%.

You don't want a car battery for this: you want a *deep
discharge* battery, i.e., a battery which is designed to be
discharged far down. Car batteries are made for the load
cycle of starting a car: hundreds of amps for a few
seconds, they won't last long in deep-discharge service.

Anyhow, borrow stuff if you can to try it out; then you
can buy hardware that will do the trick. Do test your
setup to see if it stays alive as long as you need.

Cheers -- Martha Adams [comp.p.p 2007 Nov 2]

 

[Meghan Noecker]

Well, it depends upon what the printer needs. This isn't
the place for a laser printer. Look in Radio Shack stores
for an inverter -- a device that takes battery DC in and
puts (very approximately) house style 120V AC out.
Get an inverter rated for continuous service at your
printer load plus 50%.

You don't want a car battery for this: you want a *deep
discharge* battery, i.e., a battery which is designed to be
discharged far down. Car batteries are made for the load
cycle of starting a car: hundreds of amps for a few
seconds, they won't last long in deep-discharge service.

Anyhow, borrow stuff if you can to try it out; then you
can buy hardware that will do the trick. Do test your
setup to see if it stays alive as long as you need.

I'm actually planning to buy a 1500 watt battery/inverter pack, but it
will cost $250 and will only run my photography setup. It will not be
enough to run my printer and external hard drive. So, I need to come
up with a second battery setup. Preferably not one that costs another
$200.

I had a cash register that ran with a battery pack that held 6 size D
batteries. And I think something like that would be great for the
printer and external hard drive, which I don't need to run all that
much. Then I could use rechargable batteries in it.

Most shows, I get power. But some shows charge for power, and I don't
like the idea of paying $80 for 3 partial days of electricty. I have
at least 3 shows a year at that location, so I have to maket my setup
completely self sufficient before the next show there in January.

 

[Bill]

I'm actually planning to buy a 1500 watt battery/inverter pack, but it
will cost $250 and will only run my photography setup. It will not be
enough to run my printer and external hard drive. So, I need to come
up with a second battery setup. Preferably not one that costs another
$200.

I had a cash register that ran with a battery pack that held 6 size D
batteries. And I think something like that would be great for the
printer and external hard drive, which I don't need to run all that
much. Then I could use rechargable batteries in it.

Most shows, I get power. But some shows charge for power, and I don't
like the idea of paying $80 for 3 partial days of electricty. I have
at least 3 shows a year at that location, so I have to maket my setup
completely self sufficient before the next show there in January.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02871488000P?
vName=Automotive&keyword=portable+power

http://tinyurl.com/2n8sby

Bill

 

[Martha Adams]

I notice "Bill"s useless posting there: Bill, if you have
something to say, try saying it.

Anyhow, the printer requirements I see here are
contradictory. It can't be so that you are thinking of a
printer that runs off 6 D cells and a 1500-watts inverter
and batteries won't do the job.

My feeling is, find an old inkjet somewhere that will do
the work you need, and look at its label. Somewhere on
its back or bottom there will be an indication like "120V
0.5A" which amounts to 60 watts. 150% of 60 watts is
90 watts. 90 watts from 12 volts wants 7.5 amps. (I
think this is high for a little inkjet.) 7.5 amps for 10 hrs
amounts to 75 ampere-hours. Thus for this particular
printer (a Canon BJ200ex) you want to have a (deep-
discharge) battery rated 12 volts 75 ampere hours
(or more, which gives both more immediate capacity
and more spare for battery aging degradation with use).
You probably want a battery that can recharge over
the night (8 hrs) which may call for a quick-charge
specification.

I don't know if this approach is better than buying a
special D-cells operated portable printer. But if you
work out the numbers, you can figure that. If you
cannot yourself do that, a little engineering, then find
someone who can.

Remember that when you get a good answer, it will
all add up. When you can see that, then you probably
have got it right.

If you have that 1500-watts thing in hand, how about
that? ??

Cheers -- Martha Adams [comp.p.p 2007 Nov 3]

 

[Bob Headrick]

I notice "Bill"s useless posting there: Bill, if you have
something to say, try saying it.

Actually Bill's post provided a good solution, an all-in-one version of my
suggestion.

Anyhow, the printer requirements I see here are
contradictory. It can't be so that you are thinking of a
printer that runs off 6 D cells and a 1500-watts inverter
and batteries won't do the job.

To be helpful we really need to understand what kind of printer the OP has
and the printing requirements. If they are doing photographs at shows I
would expect they already have a photo printer. Unless it is a laser
printer it is hard to imaging that a 1500W system would not be able to
handle the additional minimal load of a color printer.

Regards,
Bob Headrick, MS MVP Printing/Imaging

 

[Bill]

I notice "Bill"s useless posting there: Bill, if you have
something to say, try saying it.

<snip>

The OP said:
So what part of my post failed to meet those requirements?

No hurry, don't rush. No need to overload that neuron your using.

Bill

 

[Martha Adams]

<snip>

The OP said:

So what part of my post failed to meet those requirements?

No hurry, don't rush. No need to overload that neuron your using.

Bill

You should have a spell checker in your machine and you're not
using it. -- mha

 

[Bill]

You should have a spell checker in your machine and you're not
using it. -- mha

Hmmm, no answer to my question and a spelling lame.

Yawn. Buh Bye,

Bill

 

[Meghan Noecker]

Actually Bill's post provided a good solution, an all-in-one version of my
suggestion.


To be helpful we really need to understand what kind of printer the OP has
and the printing requirements. If they are doing photographs at shows I
would expect they already have a photo printer. Unless it is a laser
printer it is hard to imaging that a 1500W system would not be able to
handle the additional minimal load of a color printer.

Sorry, I should have clarified.

I have a few different Canon printers, the i series and s series. I
don't do a lot of printing at the shows, but I would like to be able
to print a few pages here and there during the day.

I also need to run an external hard drive, and that needs to run more
steadily.

I am concerned that the 1500w system won't be enough because I have to
run 2 fans from 9am to 4pm, and I need to run 4 lights for a good
portion of that time. I do turn them off when i am not photographing
anybody. But I need to be prepared to run them all day, if I happen to
be busy all day. My lights take a lot of power.

And while I have a battery for my laptop, it will not run all day, so
if I had enough power, I would run the laptop on it part of the time
as well.

I cannot afford two of these larger battery packs, and I would be
pushing it storage wise as well. The 1500w battery is 67 pounds and
will take some space in my already packed van.

I suppose I am probably asking too much to get a printer to run on a
smaller battery pack. I was just hopeful that I could get a battery
pack for my printer and one for my external hard drive. And then I
could reserve the larger battery for the photo sessions only.

 

[Meghan Noecker]

http://tinyurl.com/2n8sby

I couldn't find anything about amp hours. The specifications page did
not come up. It says up to 50 hours, but it doesn't specify at what
level.

I've looked at several that are intended to start cars, and they seem
to be better designed for short term high power rather than longterm
usage over a period of hours.

 

[Guest]

On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 01:15:04 -0700, Meghan Noecker

-- cut---

Sorry, I should have clarified.

I have a few different Canon printers, the i series and s series. I
don't do a lot of printing at the shows, but I would like to be able
to print a few pages here and there during the day.

I also need to run an external hard drive, and that needs to run more
steadily.

I am concerned that the 1500w system won't be enough because I have to
run 2 fans from 9am to 4pm, and I need to run 4 lights for a good
portion of that time. I do turn them off when i am not photographing
anybody. But I need to be prepared to run them all day, if I happen to
be busy all day. My lights take a lot of power.

If your lights are power thirsty then you should have plenty of
capacity for printer and drive if you switch them off for the duration
of drive operation and printing?

 

[NotMe]

| On Sat, 03 Nov 2007 03:23:59 GMT, "Martha Adams" <mhada@verizon.net>
| wrote:
|
| >Well, it depends upon what the printer needs. This isn't
| >the place for a laser printer. Look in Radio Shack stores
| >for an inverter -- a device that takes battery DC in and
| >puts (very approximately) house style 120V AC out.
| >Get an inverter rated for continuous service at your
| >printer load plus 50%.
| >
| >You don't want a car battery for this: you want a *deep
| >discharge* battery, i.e., a battery which is designed to be
| >discharged far down. Car batteries are made for the load
| >cycle of starting a car: hundreds of amps for a few
| >seconds, they won't last long in deep-discharge service.
| >
| >Anyhow, borrow stuff if you can to try it out; then you
| >can buy hardware that will do the trick. Do test your
| >setup to see if it stays alive as long as you need.
|
| I'm actually planning to buy a 1500 watt battery/inverter pack, but it
| will cost $250 and will only run my photography setup. It will not be
| enough to run my printer and external hard drive. So, I need to come
| up with a second battery setup. Preferably not one that costs another
| $200.
|
| I had a cash register that ran with a battery pack that held 6 size D
| batteries. And I think something like that would be great for the
| printer and external hard drive, which I don't need to run all that
| much. Then I could use rechargable batteries in it.
|
| Most shows, I get power. But some shows charge for power, and I don't
| like the idea of paying $80 for 3 partial days of electricty. I have
| at least 3 shows a year at that location, so I have to maket my setup
| completely self sufficient before the next show there in January.

If the show charges for power watch out that they don't have some regulation
preventing you from using batteries. Might nail you for lead acid battery
but let you in with gelcell (then again they may not). We had a h*ll of a
time with a trade show where we had mock up batteries. Just plastic cases
with dead weight inside. The show HAMAT office about died when I smashed one
with a big hammer.

Try not to oversize the inverter as stand by/idel current is a function of
the total capacity. This is best accomplished by figuring out you max load
and duty cycle. FWIW most battery inverter systems are way over designed
for the job but often shorted on the battery capacity.

Also you may have to go to a modified sine wave with less than 5% distortion
of the electronics of your equipment may not work.

We have a hot full time system in our studio using golf cart 6 volt deep
cycle batteries in series. Our system is recarged by a small roof top
photovolt system.

I can use it to drive the gas central heat fan for 3-4 days. Less if it's
really cold out or the sun don't shine.

 

[NotMe]

| On Sat, 3 Nov 2007 03:08:28 -0700, Bill
|
| > http://tinyurl.com/2n8sby
|
|
| I couldn't find anything about amp hours. The specifications page did
| not come up. It says up to 50 hours, but it doesn't specify at what
| level.
|
| I've looked at several that are intended to start cars, and they seem
| to be better designed for short term high power rather than longterm
| usage over a period of hours.

Most deep cycle batteries are rated at C/20 which is total amp/hours
divided by 20 so if the bat has a ratting of 200 AH then in theory it will
deliver 10 amps for 20 hours. The fly in this is that running any battery,
deep cycle or not, to the ground will quickly kill the battery. If you use
the 10 amps for a 200 AH best figure you'll get 5 hours at the 10 amp rate
before the load is in the danger of damaging the battery.

If you need 1500 watts thats 125 amps (100% efficency) and at the best of
performance you'll be lucky to get 1/2 hour out of a 200 AH battery.

 

[NotMe]

Responding to my own post:

| || On Sat, 3 Nov 2007 03:08:28 -0700, Bill
||
|| > http://tinyurl.com/2n8sby
||
||
|| I couldn't find anything about amp hours. The specifications page did
|| not come up. It says up to 50 hours, but it doesn't specify at what
|| level.
||
|| I've looked at several that are intended to start cars, and they seem
|| to be better designed for short term high power rather than longterm
|| usage over a period of hours.
|
| Most deep cycle batteries are rated at C/20 which is total amp/hours
| divided by 20 so if the bat has a ratting of 200 AH then in theory it will
| deliver 10 amps for 20 hours. The fly in this is that running any
battery,
| deep cycle or not, to the ground will quickly kill the battery. If you
use
| the 10 amps for a 200 AH best figure you'll get 5 hours at the 10 amp rate
| before the load is in the danger of damaging the battery.
|
| If you need 1500 watts thats 125 amps (100% efficency) and at the best of
| performance you'll be lucky to get 1/2 hour out of a 200 AH battery.

An additional consideration the color temp of your lights will vary based on
the load and the charge status of your battery.

 

[Mickey]

Sorry, I should have clarified.

I have a few different Canon printers, the i series and s series. I
don't do a lot of printing at the shows, but I would like to be able
to print a few pages here and there during the day.

I also need to run an external hard drive, and that needs to run more
steadily.

I am concerned that the 1500w system won't be enough because I have to
run 2 fans from 9am to 4pm, and I need to run 4 lights for a good
portion of that time. I do turn them off when i am not photographing
anybody. But I need to be prepared to run them all day, if I happen to
be busy all day. My lights take a lot of power.

And while I have a battery for my laptop, it will not run all day, so
if I had enough power, I would run the laptop on it part of the time
as well.

I cannot afford two of these larger battery packs, and I would be
pushing it storage wise as well. The 1500w battery is 67 pounds and
will take some space in my already packed van.

I suppose I am probably asking too much to get a printer to run on a
smaller battery pack. I was just hopeful that I could get a battery
pack for my printer and one for my external hard drive. And then I
could reserve the larger battery for the photo sessions only.

Couple comments. Your I series printer uses very little power. My i860
uses 15w running and 1w standby. Don't have an external HD but looking
at a spare int drive I have I suspect you won't need more than about 10w
of power for it.

The killer is the flood lights, lots of power and as NOT ME said, color
of light will vary with voltage. Also like NOT ME said, you don't want
to discharge LA batteries more than about 50% if you want any decent
life from them. You also want deep discharge batteries.

What you are needing to run the setup you are talking about is a small
inverter type generator, about $700. Lighter weight than a deep cycle
battery can supply close to 1kW. The down side is if you can't afford 2
deep cycle batteries, you can't afford to run your setup off line for
any period of time.

You really need to become more knowledgeable about your power needs to
help you know how much peak and total power you need between charge
cycles. All the items you are running should have a tag stating power
requirement.

Mickey

 

[NotMe]

"Mickey"

| What you are needing to run the setup you are talking about is a small
| inverter type generator, about $700. Lighter weight than a deep cycle
| battery can supply close to 1kW. The down side is if you can't afford 2
| deep cycle batteries, you can't afford to run your setup off line for
| any period of time.

It's unlikely either the building owner, building insurance or the fire
marshal will countance a gen set.

$80 bucks per show, 3 shows a year aside from the previous comments if you
can't cary the $80 you'd be better served to pass on the event.

 

[Meghan Noecker]

"Mickey"

| What you are needing to run the setup you are talking about is a small
| inverter type generator, about $700. Lighter weight than a deep cycle
| battery can supply close to 1kW. The down side is if you can't afford 2
| deep cycle batteries, you can't afford to run your setup off line for
| any period of time.

It's unlikely either the building owner, building insurance or the fire
marshal will countance a gen set.

$80 bucks per show, 3 shows a year aside from the previous comments if you
can't cary the $80 you'd be better served to pass on the event.

The problem is I have to pay $80 for the electricty (which is clearly
a ripoff) in addition to the $150 vendor fee and $200 for the hotel.
In order to pay that extra $80, I need to photograph 3 additional
cats. Why should I have to work that much harder so that the facility
can get some free money?

I wouldn't mind if the price was fair. But $80 for a 2 day event that
is only 9am to 4pm. Geez. What a ripoff.

Most shows do not charge for electricity. Some charge $10-25.
Irritating, but I pay it. But this is absurd. And I can get the
battery pack for the price of those 3 shows. And it should last me for
years as well as serve as backup power during a power outage.

 

[Meghan Noecker]

| On Sat, 3 Nov 2007 03:08:28 -0700, Bill
|
| > http://tinyurl.com/2n8sby
|
|
| I couldn't find anything about amp hours. The specifications page did
| not come up. It says up to 50 hours, but it doesn't specify at what
| level.
|
| I've looked at several that are intended to start cars, and they seem
| to be better designed for short term high power rather than longterm
| usage over a period of hours.

Most deep cycle batteries are rated at C/20 which is total amp/hours
divided by 20 so if the bat has a ratting of 200 AH then in theory it will
deliver 10 amps for 20 hours. The fly in this is that running any battery,
deep cycle or not, to the ground will quickly kill the battery. If you use
the 10 amps for a 200 AH best figure you'll get 5 hours at the 10 amp rate
before the load is in the danger of damaging the battery.

If you need 1500 watts thats 125 amps (100% efficency) and at the best of
performance you'll be lucky to get 1/2 hour out of a 200 AH battery.

I have 4 lights that are officially 23 watts. I've been told to plan
for 26. They are daylight balanced, but the color temp is not a huge
deal as they are intended to keep the canopy well lit for easy
focusing and bright cat eyes. The flash is much stronger and
overpowers the lights. I was forced to use a cream colored filter over
the lights once, and the only photos with the color cast were when the
flash wasn't used. And it was still easy to correct with the white
balance setting.

My goal is to run the 4 lights for as much as needed during an 7 hour
stretch. Fans would be nice too, though I do have batteries for those,
and they are only needed in warmer months. And I would like to run the
external hard drive most of the 7 hours and the printer for probably
less than one hour per day.

The battery pack that I am considering is this one:


Xantrex XPOWER 1500 Watt Portable PowerPack
http://cgi.ebay.com/Xantrex-XPOWER-...ryZ41980QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

THere's another seller on ebay who has them for $210 + $40 shipping.



XANTREX XPOWER POWERPACK 600HD 600 WATTS Battery Pack
http://cgi.ebay.com/XANTREX-XPOWER-...ryZ79817QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

This one looks like it might be good for the hard drive and printer.