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Education
BATTERIES 101:
GOAL ZERO utilizes the latest and greatest in battery technology to
accompany you on all life’s adventures. From the versatile and lightweight Lithuim Ion, to
the robust and powerful Lead Acid, we’ve compiled some helpful tips to keep your GOAL
ZERO batteries working their best.
i. Batteries need exercise.
The best thing for any battery is to use it. Don’t leave the battery sitting without being
charged for extended periods of time. If you will be storing the Goal Zero Yeti without a
charger, make sure it’s fully charged before you put it away.
ii. The “Battery Memory” myth.
Thanks to old Nickel-Cadmium (NiCd) batteries, there’s a myth running around that you
should completely drain your batteries before plugging them in for a recharge, called “deep
cycling”. Although true with NiCd batteries, the typical batteries you’ll find in most of your
gear today, including the advanced lithium and lead-acid batteries used in your GOAL ZERO
rechargers, require no such draining. In fact, you should avoid deep cycling your batteries – it
does more harm than good in most cases.
iii. The “Stadium Effect”.
The stadium effect occurs when recharging your batteries. You’ll notice your battery quickly
filling up in the beginning, then slowing down noticeably when trying to charge up the last
several percentages. Think of how quickly a stadium fills up when the doors first open – there
are hundreds of open seats so it’s easy to find the one you want. Eventually there are only
a few open seats here and there and people have to maneuver around to find the spot they
want and filling those seats takes longer. The same theory applies to recharging batteries.
It’s easy for energy to flow in and take up empty space in the beginning, and as time goes on
and there is less space available, it takes longer for the energy to fill in the holes.
iv. Read the manual.
Yeah, it might be a long read, but the manual is the best place to find the dos and don’ts for
the battery in your specific device. Reading your manual will ensure you’re taking steps to
keep your batteries happy and healthy.
SOLAR 101:
GOAL ZERO makes it easy to recharge your gear from the sun – we didn’t
invent solar power, we perfected it. Some things to keep in mind when recharging your
gear with solar power:
i. Solar panels don’t store power from the sun, they collect it.
We teach you to COLLECT – STORE – USE, which is the best way to utilize solar power to
recharge your gear. COLLECT the sun’s energy with a solar panel. STORE the power in a
recharger. USE the recharger to power your gear, day or night. If you’re really a diehard, you
can plug your gear directly into the junction box located on the back of our NOMAD Solar
Panels to recharge from the sun.
ii. Not all solar charge times are created equal.
Most solar panel manufacturers calculate their recharge times with the following equation:
Device Watt Hours/Solar Panel Watts = Solar Recharge Times. So theoretically, a 13 watt
solar panel would recharge a 50 watt-hour recharger in 3.84 hours (50/13 = 3.84) – and
this is the number you could find in marketing material for a solar panel. However, in order
to standardize results across all manufacturers, these tests are completed in laboratory
settings. The truth is, on a good, sunny day, you’ll receive about 50-75% of your solar panel’s
rated wattage, and this is how the engineers at GOAL ZERO calculate the solar recharge
times you see on our packaging.
iii. Solar works, even in overcast conditions.
Solar panels utilize IR, UV, and visible rays from the sun that can penetrate through clouds.
Although the efficiency of the solar panel will decrease in cloudy conditions, you’ll still be
collecting valuable power from the sun.
iv. Keep away from shade and windows.
Although you should seek out the shade on sunny days, your solar panels will collect
more power when fully exposed to the sunlight. Windows also have a habit of decreasing
efficiency. So keep those panels outside and in the bright sunlight.
v. Proper alignment works wonders.
Keeping your solar panel angled toward the sun can dramatically increase solar efficiency.
Set it up and let Mother Nature do the rest.
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