Looking for a rapid battery charger for the car

[cyber3d]

Are car/auto chargers all the same? We have a couple of Canon 60D cameras and I've been looking for a rapid charger for the car.

Any experiences? Any brand recommendations? Any warnings?

[Tzetsin]

I would just get an DC/AC inverter. Plug it into your power point, and use normal ac chargers.

[litenphrame]

Are you just using these chargers for the cameras? It looks like you have a lot of gear that you use on the go.

My recommendation is that you determine the total load at one time and then figure out the charging capacity needed. Once that is determined then figure out the best way to get that load, but remember not all cars are the same and the load for a power point or cigarette lighter is not very heavy, so you may burn out the fuse. Remember the fuse is there for a reason. Overload the circuit the fuse burns OR you might end up with a fire (not fun!). The fuse capacity is determined by engineers that want to keep liability to a minimum. DO NOT INSTALL A LARGER FUSE.


Also, If you are determined to tap into a larger power source, the capacity of the battery and the alternator needs to be defined. If you overload either they will fail. Neither failure is safe or smoke free. A compact, sub-compact, gas miser will have small capacity. A large suv or pickup truck with a towing package will have a larger capacity. You need to know the electrical system of the vehicle. An emergency vehicle has a very large electrical capacity for all the lights, etc. and many have two large capacity alternators.

Oh, another thing to understand, cheap in electronic devices means cheap electronics. The good electronics costs because of time and materials. Cheap stuff is easy to sell but sometimes is hazardous. When you talk about electricity, which is what we really are talking about, hazardous is scary.

[cyber3d]

OMG I have a headache!

Just kidding. I agree with you about overloading the system (I have a tiny clown car). So, that's why I'm limiting my charging to a maximum of two 60D batteries (I always carry extra fully charged spares) and only while the car is running.

Can those $8.00 chargers be safe? Hense the original question.