I recently bought a pop-up booth for doing outdoor craft shows. The inner walls of the booth are a silver/gray color, which makes for a somewhat dim appearance. I have a light setup for indoor shows, so I'm considering using it inside the booth. I would have to power the lights with a portable generator with a rechargeable battery (gas generators can't be used). My question is...has anyone used this type of generator? If so, how useful/effective are they? What are the specs that I would need for the generator to supply power all day (about 8 hrs)? My light setup has 8 lights which draw 10 watts each. TIA.
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Portable Generator with Rechargeable Battery
- Thread starter Ed Weingarden
- Start date
Mark Hepburn
Artist & Chef
You might consider a battery power pack.
I don’t do fairs anymore but I did and used one for a fan. Lasted all day. Here’s a link;
I don’t do fairs anymore but I did and used one for a fan. Lasted all day. Here’s a link;
@Mark Hepburn - thanks for the link. It looks like it would provide what I need, although it's a bit pricey.
It’s a simple energy balance. I don’t agree with them being referred to to as generators.
Curious what your budget for this projects is/was ?
The unit Mark linked is $410 and has enough capacity to meet your 700 watt hours of need. It has relatively fast recharging capability and solar panel input. What kind of decent gas powered generator can you get for that sum? Not a quiet one for sure.
You could get a cheaper ($200-$300) battery power station , but you will sacrifice run time and quick charging capability and often the ability to charge via solar panels. That may or may not concern you , but it’s a handy option for many people /uses.
In answer to your orig. question - these battery power stations are very effective and most importantly - silent & no fumes. So, same power as a gas genny without the smell. The drawback is that they have a finite run time before you experience significant downtime for recharging.
With gas , you just keep filling the tank with fuel that can be quickly replaced.
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If light is all you want, why not just buy some rechargeable light fixtures? Cheap and last 10 hours. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQP53VJ...9wX3NlYXJjaF9wZXJjb2xhdGVfaW5saW5lX2J0Zg&th=1
@Dave Sabo - thank you for your insights; very helpful. It's not so much that I have a fixed budget, it's a matter of investment vs usage. I do 3-4 weekend/outdoor shows per year. Thus, I would be using it 6-8 days/year; the rest of the time it will sit idle. But in the end analysis, I may need to invest $400 to have something that will fit my needs.
@Richard Coers - I already have a track light setup, which I mount onto an adjustable backdrop stand. I'm not sure that I would achieve the brightness that I want with your suggestion. Thanks for your input.
@Richard Coers - I already have a track light setup, which I mount onto an adjustable backdrop stand. I'm not sure that I would achieve the brightness that I want with your suggestion. Thanks for your input.
Pardon my ignorance, I don't do craft shows and know nothing about the needs. If that booth is dim inside, perhaps there's a chance of selling it and getting a different one that's brighter inside.
Ed - I’m not sure how you’d ever square the return on investment in one of these for 6-8 days a year use . I seriously doubt that increased sales from the brighter lighting / more appealing booth would be enough to justify the capital expenditure. Perhaps though. Like John, I’m ignorant to the show circuit economics and I don’t know what your margins or expenses are.
I have spent more than a few days in booths at trade shows , charity fairs, and flea markets and I can say that my experience has been more pleasurable at ones that are better laid out , operate efficiently , and offer more comfort. Selfish , I know. What I’m getting at is that the expense doesn’t necessarily have to return on the outlay if you place a premium on your employee working conditions over easily measurable R.O.I. Happy employees earn more for a company in the end , though it’s very difficult (impossible) to measure the cost of getting there.
I suspect (don’t know and hate to assume) that your endeavor isn’t all that profitable at the end of the day. So, what’s another couple of hundred bucks in the red when weighed against your increased enjoyment of the process.
I have spent more than a few days in booths at trade shows , charity fairs, and flea markets and I can say that my experience has been more pleasurable at ones that are better laid out , operate efficiently , and offer more comfort. Selfish , I know. What I’m getting at is that the expense doesn’t necessarily have to return on the outlay if you place a premium on your employee working conditions over easily measurable R.O.I. Happy employees earn more for a company in the end , though it’s very difficult (impossible) to measure the cost of getting there.
I suspect (don’t know and hate to assume) that your endeavor isn’t all that profitable at the end of the day. So, what’s another couple of hundred bucks in the red when weighed against your increased enjoyment of the process.
@John K Jordan - I recently purchased the booth to replace one that had a bent leg. The new one is a more robust booth with sturdier legs, and a roof which is slightly convex on the outside. The roof design should prevent water build-up, and potential collapse of the booth, in the event of rain. In addition, the design is such that it is an easy setup to do myself. When I ordered it, I didn't realize the interior is a silver/gray, but the design and structure of it makes me want to keep it. Since I already have a lighting setup for the indoor shows that I do, I thought that using the lights in the booth would be an easy fix; I just didn't realize that a portable power station to meet my needs is not inexpensive. With all that said, I just found a power station that's on sale. The price seems pretty good for the capacity of the unit, so I've ordered it. Once it arrives, I'll setup me lights, fully charge the power station, and give it a trial run to see how long it keeps the lights on for. Based upon the watt-hrs rating of the unit, and the wattage of my lights, I should be able get a run time of at least 8 hrs; that will fulfill my needs.
@Dave Sabo - thank you for your input. As you can see from my response to JKJ, I went ahead an ordered the one I found on sale. Many of my turnings are hollow forms, some of which I do some kind of color embellishments on the surface. I know that when using the lights for my indoor shows, the pieces with color are more vibrant and eye catching. Does that lead to more sales, I have no way of knowing. And the nature of the beast (doing shows), in my experience, is a crap-shoot. Some days people are spending money, and other days not. The bottom line is, I'll be happier with my booth lit up, and the unit I found is not outrageously expensive.
@Dave Sabo - thank you for your input. As you can see from my response to JKJ, I went ahead an ordered the one I found on sale. Many of my turnings are hollow forms, some of which I do some kind of color embellishments on the surface. I know that when using the lights for my indoor shows, the pieces with color are more vibrant and eye catching. Does that lead to more sales, I have no way of knowing. And the nature of the beast (doing shows), in my experience, is a crap-shoot. Some days people are spending money, and other days not. The bottom line is, I'll be happier with my booth lit up, and the unit I found is not outrageously expensive.
Just so you know, the majority of art fairs, and probably even most of the craft fairs, will not allow you to use a gas generator.
Dave, concerning the return on investment question--I do about 15 shows a year and having the lights on all the time does make a difference in terms of what people are able to see and helps make the booth more inviting. In addition several shows go into the evening/night and without lights, you might as well shut the tent up, because people aren't able to see your work.
Dave, concerning the return on investment question--I do about 15 shows a year and having the lights on all the time does make a difference in terms of what people are able to see and helps make the booth more inviting. In addition several shows go into the evening/night and without lights, you might as well shut the tent up, because people aren't able to see your work.
I can certainly see the advantages. My comments were speculation about quantifying the return on investment in Ed’s particular situation. Which seems to be less involved than yours.
Between the lines , I was really trying to say “just get it” for comfort / enjoyment because he’d likely never get to a point in which the capital expense will justify itself to the bean counters. And that’s if it can be easily measured , which I think would be difficult in his situation. That’s purely speculative on my part though.
If the outdoor event is such that you can park your vehicle behind the booth/tent, you might be able to tale a charged deep cycle 12v battery to power bright 12v lights. If parking elsewhere, maybe a charged battery on a dolly wheeled to your booth. I've got such a battery on my dump trailer that holds enough energy to run a hydraulic pump to dump 6 tons of gravel, dirt, or logs - would probably run a booth full of lights for days on one charge.
There are zillions of 12v LED options for bulbs, strips, strings, spots, lamps, etc.
There are zillions of 12v LED options for bulbs, strips, strings, spots, lamps, etc.
isn't everything these days?
