Perpetual Motion: Batteries, Inverters, Chargers

So, you want to plug a battery charger, into a power inverter, to charge the batteries that the power inverter is running off of?

You think that because your inverter is producing more power than the battery charger uses, that you'll be able to pump more power into the batteries than the inverter is using off of the batteries?

You think you have it all figured out, huh?

Think again.

You can't. What you're talking about is perpetual motion. You can't create energy from absolutely nothing. Something is always using energy.

Graphic explaining common misconception of perpetual motion for off grid electrical systems. You use energy to convert, transport and invert electricity due to line resistance, heat and the transfer process.

I created this handy little graphic to help you realize why this doesn't work.

I talk to a ton of you geniuses every day about this. Some of you even suggested I sign an NDA before you went any further to explain your grand idea.

Doesn't work.

The math doesn't lie. Inversion process is about 85-95% efficient depending on load. So you've got between a 5 and 15% Efficiency loss for your system just in the inverter process.

Battery chargers are anywhere between 60 and 90% efficient. So you've got 10-30% efficiency loss in that component.

Batteries have voltage/amperage loss over time and through temperature, voltage normalization across the cells and just in general DC resistances (much higher at lower voltages).

So for a 40A charger, to charge a 12V battery bank at 40A every hour, you're drawing off of the battery bank around 48-52Amps. While yes, you're putting about 40A back into the bank, your batteries are 8-14 amps lower than when you first started the process an hour before.

This doesn't include the amperage your power inverter is putting out for other electronics either.

So, if you think you've got this ingenious idea, where you can create FREE POWER! Then I suggest you re-evaluate yourself and learn a little math and a little physics.

How to Survive a Hurricane Power Outage with your Car

Remember Hurricane Sandy? Remember Hurricane Irene? I'm going to show you how to survive and thrive in these power outages. Those of you in the North East can't seem to remember the total bull you had to go through when you couldn't charge your iProducts. You were willing to stand in line for hours and hours just for a few dribbles of gasoline for your car [translation English to New Yalkanese: Kah (n); A means of conveyance]. But what have you done to prepare? Absolutely nothing for the vast majority of you. Time to get your heads out of your butts and get ready to survive and thrive in a power outage!

Those of you who were smart enough to fill up before the storm hit; there's hope for you when the power drops out. You won't have to worry about not being able to charge your phone, turn on a couple lights or charge your laptop. You can use any car as a generator as long as it meets these requirements:

1. Has an engine (This is the most important part)
2. Has a good battery (or an old one that still works)
3. Has at least a few gallons of gas (without this, you know, your car won't run)
4. Has a working cigarette lighter port (check your fuses if it doesn't work)

If you want to run anything more than 200 watts of power, the last one doesn't matter, as we will be hooking directly up to the battery.

So lets start with the simple, low wattage solution.

This is the AIMS 180 Watt Pure Sine Wave Inverter. You need this if you intend on using a smart phone, tablet or touch pad laptop. Don't go with a cheap Modified Sine Wave inverter as it's not guaranteed to work. This inverter mimics the type of power you get from the power company, which is a good thing. This little inverter is barely bigger than your iPhone. It comes with a USB cable as well as a 120 Volt Wall-style plug-in. What this will do is allow you to charge your phone, and run one other appliance like a laptop charger or a lamp with a CFL Bulb.

Low Wattage Consumption CFL Bulb

Simple Directions

• Turn your vehicle all the way on. Meaning starting your car so the engine is running. If you don't do this, then you'll kill your batteries faster than if you had left your headlights on. 
• Plug this little inverter in to the cigarette lighter adapter, flip the switch and wait for the green light to turn on.
• The fan on the inverter will be blowing to keep the internal components cool. This is normal.
• Plug in your phone via USB cable to the USB adapter on the inverter. BAM! Your phone is charging.

• Plug in whatever 100 watt appliance (Laptop, Lamp, Sub 32 inch Flat Screen TV, Etc) you want to run into the plug in.
• You can use an extension cable if you don't want to sit in your car the whole time and risk getting Carbon Monoxide Poisoning.
• DO NOT RUN your car in a closed garage. Open that garage door and park with your exhaust pipe out of the garage. If you don't follow this direction; I won't feel bad if you die from asphyxiation. Darwinism at it's finest.
• If you try and go over the 180 watts this inverter can handle the inverter will shut down, or you will blow a fuse in your car. Again, not my fault if you screw that up. To be sure, look on the back of your appliance or on the power brick. It should tell you how many watts you're running.

And now you've got your essentials going. You've got light, entertainment and communication. What more can you ask for?

I know, I know. There are a lot more things in your house that you wish you could power. There are those of you who can't live without your coffee. Then there are those of you who want to run your refrigerators, 80 inch plasma TV and thousand watt 7.1 Surround Sound system. Or space heaters if the temperature drops below a comfortable 70ºF (an alternative would to be to wear more clothes). My Next Article will help with these solutions.

Feel free to ask any questions below, I'll get to them as soon as possible.

-Joe