Battery booster pack

SWMO Chris · Nov 29, 2009

I am looking at portable rechargeable battery booster packs as a Christmas present for my Dad. Do you all have any recommendations? I would like to find one that has a 12 volt outlet and possibly a 110 volt outlet also. Please let me know what brands are good and what to stay away from.

Thanks, Chris

locojim · Nov 29, 2009

(quoted from post at 20:00:07 11/29/09) I am looking at portable rechargeable battery booster packs as a Christmas present for my Dad. Do you all have any recommendations? I would like to find one that has a 12 volt outlet and possibly a 110 volt outlet also. Please let me know what brands are good and what to stay away from.

Thanks, Chris

I use this one now which will start almost anything I have.
Good ones won't usually have an inverter also.

http://www.bestcovery.com/jump-n-carry-jnc660-jump-starter?whybest=1&best=46454

Ray Heck · Nov 30, 2009

I purchased a booster pak two years ago that says it puts out 900 amps. It is OK, but I used one that was rated a 1400 amps and it did an much better job.

john *.?-!.* cub owner · Nov 30, 2009

The 110 outlets can be handy, but that is a little more weight to pack around when carrying it. I suggest getting as big a booster as you can comfortably carry and afford, then getting a separate 110volt inverter to plug into it. Then when the booster battery fails in 3 or 4 years you still have a usable inverter. Some companies are selling ones that set in a tray and can be left plugged in full time so that the battery is always hot.

The companies that sell the boosters are pretty creative in the way they rate them, per example a booster pack rated at 500 amps only has a little 40amp hour battery in it.

Mike Aylward · Nov 30, 2009

Chris, get the biggest one you can pack and can afford. And one thing that many manufacturers don't tell you is there are two ways to rate these starter packs. One is the "manufacturer's rating" and the other is the "UL" rating. The UL rating is much more conservative than a manufacturer's rating is. A UL rated pack will often have 1 1/2 to 2 times as many useable amps as a knockoff brand with a manufacturers rating and rated at the same amps. Get a good one and you won't be sorry. Mike

JDemaris · Nov 30, 2009

Duracell Powerpack 600 is the handiest I've ever used. Sportmans Guide has them on sale right now for $99. Duracell bought out one of the biggest HD inverter companies in the world (Trace/Xantrex).

I've had one for three years and it's been much more useful then I'd figured on. Comes with a 28AH battery, 600 watt inverter (1000 watt surge), AM/FM radio, and light. The jumper cables have a quick disconnect to make carrying it easier. I originally bought it for jump starting tractors, but later found out you can plug in a 120 VAC 19" LCD TV and a 120 VAC DVD player, and easily watch two full movies before it gets low.
It recharges by a 12 volt cigarette lighter outlet in a car, or a 120 VAC outlet at home.

If you go shopping around, pay close attention to the actual amp-hour rating of the battery inside and NOT the supposed CA or CCA ratings. Most have small batteries.

I think I paid $150 when I bought mine three years ago, and now I can get one for $89 (as a club member). I may buy another.

Battery booster pack

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Battery booster pack

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