Emergency preparedness with Jackery Explorer 1000.
Oregon | Portland
Emergency preparedness and safety are important, wherever you may call home. As you know, Dandy has been parked since March and I moved into a Portland apartment last month. In the coming months, I will add new entries related to safety gear I use both on the road and at home.
Up first, the Jackery Explorer 1000 Portable Power Station. This portable power station has the ability to keep you and your home up and running during an unexpected and prolonged power outage.
As you may recall, two months ago Oregon experienced an unprecedented number of wildfires simultaneously, due to a once in a century weather event. High wind, high heat, and low humidity caused existing and new wildfires to grow exponentially. Tens of thousands of homes were without power for days and thousands more homes were in the dark for weeks. Having a portable, solar powered power station on hand is immensely helpful when you and your neighbors lose power.
Oregon | Portland
Output
The Jackery Explorer 1000 is the largest Jackery power station. Let’s take a quick look at the robust power output specifications.
1,000-watt inverter (2,000-watt surge)
1002Wh(46.4Ah) lithium battery
3 standard PURE SINE WAVE AC outlets
2 USB-C ports
2 USB-A ports
1 12V car outlet
Estimated 500 full charge life cycles
Now specs for the Jackery SolarSaga 100W Solar Panel, for green power generation.
Monocrystalline Solar Panel
High conversion efficiency up to 23%
1 USB-C port
1 USB-A port
Oregon | Portland
Charging
When the power station arrived, I used a wall socket for six hours, bringing the charge to 100%. Trying to mimic a typical day of power usage, exactly 30 hours passed from fully charged to absolutely no power output.
During those 30 hours, the Jackery Explorer 1000 powered a modem and router continuously, three separate phone and laptop charges, one tablet charge, three electric tea kettle boils, eight hours of television (don’t judge me!) and five depleted camera battery charges. I was thoroughly impressed. Even though I have a YETI to store food during outages, plugging a refrigerator into this power station is also an option.
Once the battery was completely drained, I used two Jackery SolarSaga 100 solar panels for the recharge. Unfortunately, I did not come away with the usual speedy eight hour recharge, for several reasons. The most obvious being my lack of easy access to direct outdoor sunlight. My apartment has a small shared patio with limited hours each day to grab sunlight. I mostly pulled sunlight through my living room window when the patio hours expired. It’s also late fall. Peak daylight hours have dwindled significantly and rain clouds abound. All in, the full recharge took just over 12 hours averaging around 45W per panel per hour.
In a non-testing environment, I would continually charge the power station when sunlight is available. Instead of letting the battery completely expire. Additional charging options include a vehicle’s 12V output (14 hours) and electric generator (7.5 hours).
Oregon | Portland
Portability
The Jackery Explorer 1000 weighs 22 lbs and has a carry handle. It may easily be moved throughout your home and outdoors, for your power and charging needs.
The Jackery SolarSaga 100 solar panel weighs 9.1 lbs and folds thinly in half, requiring minimal storage space. The kickstands Velcro into place on the back of each panel (below the zipper pouch for all wires), and has an easy carry handle.
Pricing
Jackery is currently running a sitewide 15% off sale, November 16-18, 2020 for their 8th anniversary! Regular pricing for each item in my entire kit is outlined below.
SolarSaga 100W Solar Panel: $299.99 (each)
Jackery offers a two-year warranty, 30-day money back guarantee and free shipping.
Final Thoughts
There’s great comfort knowing the power element of my emergency preparedness plan is reliable and readily available. The solar panels are currently tucked away in my closet and the power station is charging via wall socket in case another power outage occurs. When I get back on the road next year, this outdoor power generator kit will also be perfect for tent camping with friends and family. And may even serve as a back-up solution if any issues arise with Dandy’s built in power supply.
**This journal entry includes affiliate links.**