@mark Ok, right, so all things considered the most direct, cheap and easy way to power the Sholckwood in an off-grid situation is simply by using an inverter.
So now what am I looking at? As Jim pointed out:
"The incoming regulated 18VDC has to be isolated and floating.
The good news is that the SW205 draws less than 100mA from the 18V supply, or less than 2 watts. "
Alright, the processor draws less than 2w in operation. But how do I figure how many watts it takes to power the inverter to deliver the required AC current? I've been presuming the inverter is not going to introduce a significant additional draw -- but I have only a rudimentary idea of what I'm doing.
The whole idea is for the entire station to be self contained, -and forget that I'm on a boat, imagine this transmitter is mounted on a wooden post planted on a hill overlooking the nearby main street.
The whole idea is the entire station is self contained in that - with it's own dedicated battery and it's own solar panel, powering and to keep powered 24/7, a laptop (rated 10w), Schlockwood processor (less than 2w), and the transmitter itself (Rangemaster) not sure what watt draw it takes to produce .01 watt, and not sure how much the inverter will introduce.. but at present it looks like it's around... let's call it a total 15 watts per hour to keep the entire station running, and we want that 24/7.
So that totals 360w the station needs per day (24hrs).
A standard 50ah (600wh) battery could power the station for up to 40 hours unassisted. But might as well go 100ah (1200wh) battery because they're about the same price, so 80 hours.
The solar charging is dependent of course on how much good sun you get each day, but right now I'm guestimating a good 50w solar panel might be enough leeway to ensure the battery stays topped off.
But I've really wandered off from where I started haven't I? Probably better copy this into a new topic, ... as I just did.
You have to figure 4 to 5 watts and up depending on the power station's inverter and the capacity of the inverter. A power station inverter with a max of 300 like mine watts will use less power than an inverter with a max of 1000 watts and up in the higher end power. stations. I don't know what power station you have or it's capacity(you said 1200wh) but here's some info and you can figure it from there. What you have operating will add it's power consumption to the power needed for the inverter converting DC to 120volts AC.
The computer will use more power if it's charging but when fully charged will be much less especially if you set the screen to go off after 5 minutes as the screen doesn't have to be on while running Salamandra automated.
My station, small laptop 10" a processor like the Schlockwood or Sean Cuthbert, and the Procaster(including studio interface) or Decade MS-100(both transmitters use the same 100mW roughly) adds up to 12 watts or so at 120 VAC.
You should be able to run a station non stop as the large solar panels that come with power stations can even generate enough input power even if it's a cloudy day to keep the power station topped up as it is being used. If the nighttime is 10 to 12 hours and close to 100% when the sun sets you should be good. You should be able to run the station off the grid with solar panel day and night and a light and a small TV too. I don't know anything about the boat you are on but how do you run a refrigerator for example. I assume you have to keep food cold. You need light too.
My little Bluetti with 230wh capacity can run my station for 10 hours+ from 100%. That's using the AC. Heck, it can run the 26 inch TV for the afternoon and more using 25 watts or so.
But you should try to power as much as you can from the DC port. It is usually a car type jack to a DC male plug adaptor so you can power 12 volt things. You can power 2 or more things from one 12 volt jack if you get what is called a daisy chain of jacks like guitar players use to power many pedals from one adaptor. Like this.
The more stuff you can power from the 12 volt DC outlet the better. But unfortunately the Schlockwood can't work on DC. So you will have to figure the power consumption of the inverter.
You have to figure 4 to 5 watts and up depending on the power station's inverter and the capacity of the inverter.
I wasn't planning to use a power station, just a battery, more bang for the buck.. and then adding a small inverter for the Schlockwood.. You see that kind of complicates things, but I'm probably making too big a deal of it
. What you have operating will add it's power consumption to the power needed for the inverter converting DC to 120volts AC.
Yeah ... I keep reconsidering...
My station, small laptop 10" a processor like the Schlockwood or Sean Cuthbert, and the Procaster(including studio interface) or Decade MS-100(both transmitters use the same 100mW roughly) adds up to 12 watts or so at 120 VAC.
You should be able to run a station non stop as the large solar panels that come with power stations can even generate enough input power even if it's a cloudy day to keep the power station topped up as it is being used. If the nighttime is 10 to 12 hours and close to 100% when the sun sets you should be good.
I'm right with you on all that, however, to be clear; I neither want to, nor is it necessary to power my station with a solar generator. Nor do I want it connected to my current solar system in any way. Like I said, forget that I'm on a boat with power sources already on hand.
I'm installing the transmitter out in the middle of corn field...
The objective is a stand alone, totally independent part 15 AM station. A solar panel/controller + a battery that powers a laptop, processor and transmitter.