Adventure Bike Rider Forum

I'm looking for advice on a set up for powering / charging various gadgets on a trip. I have a f800gs which has one DIN power socket on the 'tank' which isn't sufficient for my needs. I might be carrying as much as:
[ul]
[li]Sat Nav - this has a powered cradle that needs wiring in[/li]
[li]Spot GPS receiver - this has a usb charging cable. It could run on AAA batteries as well[/li]
[li]iPod & iPhone - these could be kept in my pocket, or in a bag on the handle bars. They might last all day or might need to be charged whilst moving.[/li]
[li]Bike video camera - could be mounted on the crash bars or helmet, or swapped between.[/li]
[li]DSLR camera - kept in a top box. Can be charged either via a plug and charger (from a hotel room), or via a USB cable[/li]
[li]small digital camera - kept in my pocket. As above, can be charged either via a plug and charger (from a hotel room), or via a USB cable[/li]
[li]iPad - kept in a top box. As above, can be charged either via a plug and charger (from a hotel room), or via a USB cable[/li]
[/ul]

So, range of gadgets, range of charging options, range of locations on the bike. I can’t imagine they will all need charging at once (cameras should last several days on a charge, iPad charges in a few hours and lasts a couple of days etc). I'm not an electrician, I’d like to think I'm not a numpty either, but talk of ohms, amps and drain makes my eyes glaze over, I've no idea if a bike could charge all these things at once or not, whether they would charge or whether they would drain the battery.

I think I need an extra fuse box and can hard wire the video camera and satnav to the fuse box. I've seen webpages showing how to set up a second DIN socket on the tank - presumably I could swap the DIN for a USB port or two, or buy a usb plug to go into the DIN sockets - these could charge the Spot and Ipod / iPhone. And I've seen that Powerlet make a connector to charge things inside a pannier.

So, some ideas, but not a great deal of confidence.

What does the collective ABR wisdom say? What have you done to your bikes to charge multiple gadgets? What products have you used that stood the test of a long trip (I'm planning a two month, 7000 mile trip to India not a weekend in Wales or 12 month rtw)? What would you recommend?

Dave

Give a thought to a powerbank for the times you cant get to charge everything. A decent one will give you multiple phone/iPad/iPod/camera charges, useful if plans change or you get power issues such as power out or only one socket in your room. I got one and can charge phone for a week before a recharge is needed. I also have a small LED light on a USB that plugs into it.

I figure hard wire SatNav, also wire some extra USB outlets, less weight and space needed as the leads plug into the plug type transformers. Some in top box make a lot of sense for charging items in there. Charging stuff on the bike or using a good size powerbank means you aren't hanging around waiting for something to recharge and also less theft risks.

I'd hazard a guess that charging most of those at the same time will run your battery flat.

Have you seen these



I've just ordered one from the States through eBay.

Peter78 wrote:Have you seen these



I've just ordered one from the States through eBay.

or try ONE OF THESE guy at work has one and has started two cars so far, one with lights left on all day and battery totally flat and still charge left in it (thumbs)

I have one of these I even use it in my van when I am working away, you can charge it during the day of the bike then on a night you can charge your phone iPad what ever you want no problem

I've got a 12V socket that I wired into my top box that plugs into a powerlet accessory socket on the rear of my bike. I use this to charge portable gadjets like macbook, tablet, cameras etc. Its only live when bike running so no danger of draining battery and power draw of USB charging is so low a 125cc could charge loads at once without noticing, way less than headlight! For bike cam I have 3 batteries and a charger so rotate them throughout the day, makes it easier to move cam around different view points.
A FuzeBlock wiring hub is a good, neat way to connect accessories and sockets onto bikes battery.

+1 on the fuzeblock, I use one on my f800. Got charging plugs,spotlights, heated jacket and gps all wired to it with no problems. Got a designated plug to wire in to the gps plug on top of the battery for the switched live. Then direct to the battery

Peter78 wrote:Have you seen these



I've just ordered one from the States through eBay.

Thanks - but much cheaper via Zen Overland http://www.zenoverland.com/electrical/a ... -xp-1.html There was a thread about them a few weeks ago, I thought they were just jump starters rather than gadget chargers. KTM Chris was raving about them as well, so will look into it.

Dave

KTMBLAG wrote:+1 on the fuzeblock, I use one on my f800. Got charging plugs,spotlights, heated jacket and gps all wired to it with no problems. Got a designated plug to wire in to the gps plug on top of the battery for the switched live. Then direct to the battery

yep fuzeblock all the way (thumbs)