Recharging?

For discussions about bikes and equipment.
seanpk
Posts: 38
Joined: 1 Jul 2016, 6:12pm

Recharging?

Post by seanpk »

Off for 3 days, need to follow a route, long enough for devices to discharge, not leaving civilisation, no need for front lights.

After long discussions with the exchequer ended up with a 30k mAh power bank

Pros: decent reviews, can top it up in cafes, less then £30, no heavier than a dyno setup, very transferable, plenty of charges for my phone and gps computer, fast charging option.

Cons: sustainability score very low - original manufacture and disposal - I know it'll go down some time. Just another bit of tech.

Not convinced by the hub dynos - would like to use on 2 bikes, needs the box of tech to use with phones. Would love to go for the PedalCell, ticks every box but over £300 - well outside by cycling budget.

Should I have gone back to paper? maybe, but for this trip, 4 Landrangers, £10 a piece, may never use them again? (do like the digital download though). They're just tech from another era. It was never much fun battling with a map, my simple Bryton bread crumb trail gps backed up by the navigation on my phone has been a revelation.

Back to the point, what's your setup?
User avatar
Paulatic
Posts: 7804
Joined: 2 Feb 2014, 1:03pm
Location: 24 Hours from Lands End

Re: Recharging?

Post by Paulatic »

A GPS with 4 day battery life (Lezyne), a LIDL power bank, and charity if on a site from any Motorhome or Caravan with EHU.
Whatever I am, wherever I am, this is me. This is my life

https://stcleve.wordpress.com/category/lejog/
E2E info
PH
Posts: 13106
Joined: 21 Jan 2007, 12:31am
Location: Derby
Contact:

Re: Recharging?

Post by PH »

I chose two smaller powerbanks rather than one, you can have one in use and the other on charge, or at a cafe stop you can charge two together (With a 4 way plug I can charge both banks, GPS and phone) So if i have all four topped up, I don't need to find somewhere to charge every day.
Also have a dynamo for lights and carry an unfitted Igaro1 charger as a back up, but have never yet needed it,
User avatar
andrew_s
Posts: 5795
Joined: 7 Jan 2007, 9:29pm
Location: Gloucestershire

Re: Recharging?

Post by andrew_s »

eTrex GPS with spare AAs for it.
Phone mostly turned off, with a powerbank in reserve.
Kindle for evening entertainment, so the phone isn't used much.

The bike's got a dynohub on for lighting, and I do have a charger gizmo for it for a longer trip if I figure it's worth taking.
Bmblbzzz
Posts: 6259
Joined: 18 May 2012, 7:56pm
Location: From here to there.

Re: Recharging?

Post by Bmblbzzz »

  • Dyno hub for lighting
  • eTrex with spare AAs (I use rechargeables at home but disposables on tour)
  • Phone on airplane mode while riding, sleeping, etc
  • Book – printed paper type – to read
  • 10,000mAh power bank with plug and a variety of USB cables (but so far never needed to charge it from mains in up to two week tours)
Tangled Metal
Posts: 9505
Joined: 13 Feb 2015, 8:32pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by Tangled Metal »

High capacity banks only take a long time to recharge. Our anker 26k one with a 45 to 60W PD plug and cable to handle it still takes 10 hours to recharge it. Simply put you'll not recharge power banks much on cafe stops unless you're planning on 10 hours of coffee, tea and cakes! Your best bet is overnight campsite stops with spare sockets.

My tip is one on recharge with a second recharging your devices. Then with a good plug and cables, preferably USB C both ends of the cable, you should always be able to top your devices up. No guarantees if you don't use sites with plug sockets free. Most nowadays have a few but they're often heavily used until just before people go to bed or the room gets shut up. I'm that short window get in there and your'swill charge overnight. You'll not get away early though as locked rooms usually open after 8:30 ime.
PH
Posts: 13106
Joined: 21 Jan 2007, 12:31am
Location: Derby
Contact:

Re: Recharging?

Post by PH »

Tangled Metal wrote: 12 Aug 2022, 10:57pm High capacity banks only take a long time to recharge. Our anker 26k one with a 45 to 60W PD plug and cable to handle it still takes 10 hours to recharge it. Simply put you'll not recharge power banks much on cafe stops unless you're planning on 10 hours of coffee, tea and cakes! Your best bet is overnight campsite stops with spare sockets.
They do take a long time, but I still think the half hour top up can be worthwhile. Quite often that's enough to bring all four of my items (2x Anker 5,000, phone, Garmin) back to 100% from a day's use. Of course others usage is likely to be different, more or less.
Also in this equation, we might consider how the efficiency of devices has improved. My latest phone lasts several times longer than it's predecessor and I'm about to replace a broken Garmin that lasted 8 hours at best with one that claims at least double that. My camera is so efficient, 300+ shots per battery and I have two, that I no longer carry a charger for it, though the phone's camera is almost as good should I need it (Though not as nice to use, which is why I carry the camera)
seanpk
Posts: 38
Joined: 1 Jul 2016, 6:12pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by seanpk »

Tangled Metal wrote: 12 Aug 2022, 10:57pm High capacity banks only take a long time to recharge. Our anker 26k one with a 45 to 60W PD plug and cable to handle it still takes 10 hours to recharge it.
You're right about the long charge, the 30k one arrived yesterday with 70% charge, took about 4hrs to get it to 100, but the 70 is a lot of power
User avatar
Mick F
Spambuster
Posts: 56359
Joined: 7 Jan 2007, 11:24am
Location: Tamar Valley, Cornwall

Re: Recharging?

Post by Mick F »

Laptop, Garmin, phone, all get charged at home, or if I go away, then it's the B+B and/or a cafe.
Most trains have charging sockets too.
Mick F. Cornwall
MikeF
Posts: 4339
Joined: 11 Nov 2012, 9:24am
Location: On the borders of the four South East Counties

Re: Recharging?

Post by MikeF »

Mick F wrote: 13 Aug 2022, 10:46am Laptop, Garmin, phone, all get charged at home, or if I go away, then it's the B+B and/or a cafe.
Most trains have charging sockets too.
But don't rely on that. The Avanti West Coast ones I used recently didn't.
"It takes a genius to spot the obvious" - my old physics master.
I don't peddle bikes.
User avatar
geomannie
Posts: 1093
Joined: 13 May 2009, 6:07pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by geomannie »

seanpk wrote: 12 Aug 2022, 6:15pm Back to the point, what's your setup?
Me, I use the good old Etrex 30x which has a battery life of about 22-24 hours, but when flat, pop in a couple of AA replacements. No charging needed which makes for much more relaxed touring. I believe it has now been superseded by the Etrex 32x which looks very similar.
https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/p/669215
geomannie
seanpk
Posts: 38
Joined: 1 Jul 2016, 6:12pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by seanpk »

Interesting people are still using the old Etrex units, that was my previous unit but had to be retired.

Reason I chose the Bryton 420 was it was a close equivalent, breadcrumb interface, fraction of the size, 30hr battery, Bluetooth routes from my phone, only £90...... oh, and it wasn't a (modern) Garmin! Downside is it's USB charging. I'm with the disposal issues, but from a pragmatic point of view double AAs are still the anytime anywhere option.
User avatar
Sweep
Posts: 8443
Joined: 20 Oct 2011, 4:57pm
Location: London

Re: Recharging?

Post by Sweep »

seanpk wrote: 14 Aug 2022, 1:16pm Interesting people are still using the old Etrex units, that was my previous unit but had to be retired.

Reason I chose the Bryton 420 was it was a close equivalent, breadcrumb interface, fraction of the size, 30hr battery, Bluetooth routes from my phone, only £90...... oh, and it wasn't a (modern) Garmin! Downside is it's USB charging. I'm with the disposal issues, but from a pragmatic point of view double AAs are still the anytime anywhere option.
To clarify, you went to the bryton because it was smaller and cheaper?
Declaration -etrex20/30 user and i find its larger size handy as it makes a handy handheld for walking around town or country (i make very minimal use of a smartphone and prefer offline solutions.
Sweep
Biospace
Posts: 2008
Joined: 24 Jun 2019, 12:23pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by Biospace »

seanpk wrote: 12 Aug 2022, 6:15pm Off for 3 days, need to follow a route, long enough for devices to discharge, not leaving civilisation, no need for front lights.

After long discussions with the exchequer ended up with a 30k mAh power bank

Pros: decent reviews, can top it up in cafes, less then £30, no heavier than a dyno setup, very transferable, plenty of charges for my phone and gps computer, fast charging option.

Cons: sustainability score very low - original manufacture and disposal - I know it'll go down some time. Just another bit of tech.

Not convinced by the hub dynos - would like to use on 2 bikes, needs the box of tech to use with phones. Would love to go for the PedalCell, ticks every box but over £300 - well outside by cycling budget.

Should I have gone back to paper? maybe, but for this trip, 4 Landrangers, £10 a piece, may never use them again? (do like the digital download though). They're just tech from another era. It was never much fun battling with a map, my simple Bryton bread crumb trail gps backed up by the navigation on my phone has been a revelation.

Back to the point, what's your setup?

I bought a bank similar to this about five years ago and used the individual, good batteries from failed laptop battery packs I'd held on to down the years to give about 70 Wh of reliable power. Where others I'd tried before had fallen way short of expectations, this exceeded them. I've relied on it for a week with well-used phone and tablet, no problem. I miss the days of Samsung S4s and 5s, it was much lighter to carry spare phone batteries than one large one for inefficient battery to battery energy transfers.

I use phones and computers for mapping plenty, but it's usually secondary to paper maps. There's something magical about what the modern tech will do, but how much of what's now available makes for better route planning and navigation?

Good paper maps work best for me when planning and navigating a route, they lend more awareness of the landscape to be travelled through. No batteries, no anxiety of failure and searching for charging places. Relying on your brain to navigate with spatial awareness is rewarding, accumulates knowledge and likely means you're concentrating on conditions around you rather than a small screen on the handlebars and/or a voice giving you instructions. So potentially safer, also.

OS maps from the 80s and 90s are free or pennies, both Landranger and Routemaster. You can quickly annotate them with comments, drawings, warnings, recommendations and memories, all of which will be there in 5, 10, 20 years - for however long you keep the map, which is more than can be said for electronic files and apps.

Yes, I do always have a phone on me which can bring up maps and routes and navigate me wherever if my brain fails or I lose the map, which is handy. Surely their ability to plot and record realtime progress and take high qulaity pictures and video is more useful than their navigational ability?
Carlton green
Posts: 3645
Joined: 22 Jun 2019, 12:27pm

Re: Recharging?

Post by Carlton green »

Thank you for that Biospace. The option to use compatible old cells in a suitable housing looks like a handy option for many uses, judging by the many eBay results for a ‘Power Bank Box’ the option is very popular.

I guess it’s quite cost effective too. :D
Don’t fret, it’s OK to: ride a simple old bike; ride slowly, walk, rest and admire the view; ride off-road; ride in your raincoat; ride by yourself; ride in the dark; and ride one hundred yards or one hundred miles. Your bike and your choices to suit you.
Post Reply