A Portable Solar Power System

One of the more interesting magazines to me is The Backwoodsman. Its emphasis is on topics concerned with primitive or rustic living, but also includes many handy "how-to" or DIY articles on various topics. The most recent issue (Sept/Oct. 2015) contains an article entitled: "Small Solar System: Cheap, Portable, and Readily Available" by Dave Storm. The author sets out his idea for putting together an inexpensive, portable solar charging system intended to recharge small electric devices, such as a cell phone or tablet computer, batteries, and so on. The primary components are the Brief Case Solar Charger (Harbor Freight parts no. 68750) and 3-in-1 Jump Starter and Power Supply (Harbor Freight parts no. 38391). Storm's recommendation is to use the solar charger to charge the battery in the power supply, which then can be used to recharge or operate other devices.

Storm also recommends a couple other devices to go with it that would be useful, such as as a rechargeable flashlight designed to charge from a car cigarette lighter, and a small inverter. He mentions specific models in his article, so give it a read if you track down a copy of the magazine.

Or, for about twice the price of the 3-in-1 Charger that Storm mentions, Harbor Freight also has a 5-in-1 Charger that includes the power inverter, with two 120 V A/C outlets and a USB port.