Three Ways To Get Electricity While Camping

Camping is a good way to enjoy the woods, mountains and beaches in the nature. You can still enjoy the modern comforts of home on a camping trip, if you can get electricity while camping.

Your mobile phone, camera, laptop and other power devices all have batteries that need to be recharged if you plan to stay for more than one night.

Some of you may want to read or play games with your fellow campers, then lights will also be needed. Therefore, you need to prepare spare light power source.

How to get electricity while camping? Here we listed several ways for your convenience.

Portable generator

Did you bring a mini-fridge during your camping trip? Or do you plan a long time camping trip? Then, a portable generator is necessary. Add up the up the starting watts of everything you want to power, then find a portable generator that produces enough juice to meet your needs.

Some cookstoves with built-in thermoelectric generator can generate electricity and cook your food at the same time. However, the electricity generated is just enough to power small appliances. And it is not good to charge phones near the cooking place.

Lots of campers prepare a portable inverter generator. It offers 12V and 120V charging, and vary in different wattage from 1800W to 12000W. Therefore, it is a good backup to your solar setup.  And it is also very convenient for you to run all your appliances directly from the generator. It make it possible for you to run the items that need more power such as kettles, washing machines, air-conditioners, and blow dryers etc.

With a portable inverter generator, you can light up the camp-site, play music, get your unpowered batteries charged when your vehicle is running, and even experience luxurious camping.

Solar power

Solar power is a good solution for the question of how to get electricity while camping. It’s clean and quiet energy. And once you’ve purchased a solar setup, it’s free. Therefore, a lot of campers bring portable solar panels. The solar panels can be set up in the sunniest area of your campsite to make the most use of the available sunlight.

However, the solar power relys on sunny days for electricity. That’s why you need battery storage as part of your solar electricity camping kit. I’ve ever seen a camper used a solar panel together with the XTAR VC2S. As the VC2S is a battery charger with power bank function, it can charge the batteries for camping flashlights, and also power your phone, GPS, small microwave etc. Due to the power-path management function, the VC2S can charge rechargeable li-ion batteries and your power devices at the same time.

If you plan a hiking during camping trip, bringing a solar panel and battery storage kit will be more lightweight and convenient.

Portable power bank

Bring a compact portable power bank is a modern solution for having electricity at your campsite. Rather than a heavy battery backup, you can carry this lightweight portable power bank in your backpack.

The power bank usually has a capacity around 10,000mAh, which is enough to keep your phones, cameras and flashlights running for a few days.

Most flashlights on the market still use external rechargeable batteries instead of directly recharging, so a basic model of power bank may be not available. Then, the XTAR PB2S is a perfect solution. PB2S is a Li-ion battery charger with power bank function. As a charger, it can charge 18650 and 21700 batteries, which is the popular battery size of flashlights. As a power bank, depending on the battery capacity, it can reach 4000mAh to 10,000mAh, so it will provide enough juice to charge your phones and cameras for days. If you are a backpacking lover or a camper who usually carry a few small electronics, take this portable power bank.

Spare batteries

For some campers, they don’t think the computer and iPad are necessary when trying to appreciate the outdoors.   

Whether you carry a portable generator or a power bank, it’s necessary to take some spare batteries. You cannot predict what will happen during the trip, so you need to keep enough juice for your phone, flashlight and GPS device in case of emergencies. Spare batteries will help you. Of cause, you should use high quality batteries.

There are many ways to provide electricity in your camping trip. Just take all the factors into consideration when deciding which one is best for you. Take a portable inverter generator for RV camping, solar panels and power banks for lightweight hiking or backpacking.