Solar battery charging the LP-E6 battery in a 5DMKii

pathfinder · April 28, 2011

Any one with significant experience using a 12 volt input battery charger for the battery in a 5DMkii or a 7D? ( LP-E6 )

Canon offers a CBC-E6 battery charger for the lovely price of $270.00 AND says it is only good for the LP-E6 MkII battery - whatever that is - I can find no other reference to the LP-E6 MkII anywhere else on the web, except on the BH site.

I can find the Canon battery charger CBC-E6 offered on B&H for $139.95 and that almost seems reasonable after seeing what Canon wants for it. BUT B&H also cautions it only works for the LP-E6 Mk II again.

A quick google of the LP-E6 led me to this website - http://lacoloronline.com/product/?LCE6-LC-E6-Canon-Compatible-Charger-for-LP-E6-Battery - which offer "decoded" LP-E6 look a likes, that the website alleges will work in a 5DMKii and report the amount of charge left. The website also offers a pair of chargers - both 110 V AC and an included 12 V DC charger for the OEM LP-E6 as well, which it says will not harm them. Hmmm...

My specific interest is using a flexible solar panel to charge the camera batteries in the outback, away from car batteries or wall sockets.

I see that the charger for my 1DMK4 batteries will accept 12-24V DC fro 0.8 to 2.4 amps, so that will work with a 30 watt solar panel.

But I cannot find what size panel the CBC-E6, or the non-OEm charger needs.

Oh, did I mention the non-OEM charger for the LP-E6 is $16.00 If it really works like they say it does, it is a no brainer, but I would love to hear from someone else who has tried either the LA Color online charger, or the Canon CBC charger before I invest.

Anyone else using a solar panel to charge their DSLR batteries?

ziggy53 · April 28, 2011

I'm not a fan of solar charging strategies except when you might be "off the grid" for a couple weeks or more at a time. If you have access to a vehicle that produces 12-24v DC that's usually your best option, along with a suitable charger. Multiple camera batteries are usually cheaper and lighter for up to about 2 weeks camping/remote.

If you have a trip in a "sun belt" and if you can plan for the 6-8 hours that it takes to form a suitable charge, you can try solar charging a 12-14v DC storage battery and then use an inverter hooked up the storage battery to provide power to the camera's battery charger. The advantage to this strategy (solar-storage-inverter) is that it should work with more devices than solar direct, since the storage battery can gradually accumulate during the up-charge, but then rapidly dissipate for the inverter and device chargers.

A Canon 1D MKIV can also be powered directly from a storage battery, eliminating some of the inefficiencies of the inverter-to-charger.

Fuel cell power supplies are good for those times when you can't get enough sun, but it's still an expensive and emerging technology.

Here is an actual case history of solar powered charging for different devices:

http://blog.planet5d.com/2011/02/solar-power-charging-your-photo-gear-out-in-the-wild/

My opinion is that they got lucky in the amount of sunlight they received during the trip.

pathfinder · April 28, 2011

That was one of the videos I had seen, Ziggy.

I agree that if you have access to a car, with an working alternator, or a large, charged lead acid storage battery that would be preferable.

But I am talking about being off grid for 10-14 long days, with lots of shooting, and very limited access to either 12 volt power from a car battery or a wall socket. Since this will be on the plains of Africa, I think sunlight can be counted on to appear fairly reliably every day.

In your link they do mention the Brunton Solaris 26, but I know of folks who are charging large 12 volt AGM batteries for refrigerator use with a 60watt PowerFilm charger device. But that is too large to carry on board an aircraft easily. But 25 -30 watts is doable. That was why I mentioned the Canon charger for the 1DMk4 battery will accept 12-24 volts DC, which is exactly what comes out of most flexible solar panels - typically 15-20 volts in good light. But chargers for the LP-E6 are harder to come by unless they are LP-E6 MKii - which you did not discuss either.

I think I will look around Goal Zero again and see what they offer. It just seems kind of silly to try to convert solar power to 110 volts with an inverter back to 8.4 volts to charge the DSLR battery.

I agree that they were lucky in ALaska to see enough sunlight - they might have been in fog for days, but that is unlikely in Kenya in the fall.

ziggy53 · April 28, 2011

I think that the correct cable application to power a 1D MKIV directly from a 12-14V DC storage battery is:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/747367-REG/Switronix_XP_DSLR_12C_XP_DSLR_Cable_24.html

... plus the cord from the ACK-E4 that you should have gotten with your camera.

I think that a Switronix XP-L90S storage battery should be the best choice and you can probably rent them. (B&H would probably know about compatibility.) A different cable would be required for charging the battery from the solar power source, but probably pretty easy to rig.

Renting a 1Ds MKIII would give you the same power solution as for the 1D MKIV, with basically the same image quality as the 5D MKII. No video of course, but the 1D MKIV has excellent video capabilities.

pathfinder · April 28, 2011

I do have the 12 v cigarette lighter cable from Canon for the charger for the 1DMk4. That should not be an issue with a good 25-30 watt solar panel I think. Or a real vehicle cigarette lighter socket.

It is the 5DMkii or 7D battery, the LP-E6 that is the issue. I may just buy the LA Color charger for $16 bucks and give it a try.

The Brunton battery Eric Dennis used was the Solo 7.5 but that battery is no longer sold, either by Brunton, Amazon or most any one else. There are lots of folks with numerous battery failures from the Solo 7.5 and 15s. The newer versions are not being offered with the small inverter Eric demonstrated either. I think they got a bit lucky.

Maybe I should email Eric about this question.

ziggy53 · April 29, 2011

Again, my recommendation for your trip is to rent a 1Ds MKIII, which will allow you to use the same power solution as your 1D MKIV. Consolidating to a single power type allows intrinsic redundancy and seems appropriate for your trip. The 1Ds MKIII is also more suited to the trip with better weather seals and better general construction.

The storage batteries I am recommending are fairly common to movie production and should be available for rental, avoiding purchase. The primary advantage is direct charging from the solar source and then direct connection to the cameras, albeit using special cables. By bypassing a separate charger you save in power efficiency and overall weight. This gives the best use of the solar power conversion.

pathfinder · April 29, 2011

I have not explained my situation well, Ziggy. I WILL need a charger for the LP-E6 batteries, as they are used in the 7D ( as well as a 5DMKII ) and my wife will have a 7D as will I. I am not planning on taking a full frame camera. But I remain interested in the possibility of off grid charging for the LP-E6 batteries, one way or another.

The method must be simple, reliable, and depend only on sunlight. It also has to pass TSA flight security as well. I have doubts about large storage batteries being allowed in the passenger compartment.

While the 1DSMKiii is a great camera, I plan on using a 1DM4 and a 7D as my only tools at this time.

I found the Switronix XP-L90S battery here - http://store.zacuto.com/switronix-xp-l90s-battery.html - for $359 + $170 for the cord. The battery is not used to charge the LP-E6, but is a corded replacement for the LP-E6 with the larger 90 Watt hour battery . I see that it will be allowed on air flights too. Hmmmm. Not cheap at that,though.

B&H offers the Switronix XPL 90S for $249 here - http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/341314-REG/Switronix_XP_L90S_XPL_90S_V_Type_14_4VDC_Lithium.html

Can the Switronix be charged directly from a solar panel? It would probably need a voltage regulator, charge limiter of some type, as do most larger solar panels used to charge wet cells. Large solar panels throw anywhere from 14volts to 24 volts or so, which is too hot for wet cell charging anyway.

ziggy53 · April 29, 2011

I understand now.

pathfinder · April 29, 2011

As I continue to explore the use of solar panels, I have found two vendors besides Brunton.

One I saw at the Overland Expo in Amado Az, and that is Goal Zero. They have a series of mono-crystalline solar panels with storage batteries and modified sine wave inverters that will work with AC 110 V battery chargers - http://www.goalzero.com/shop/c/1/. I suspect either the Sherpa 50 Adventure kit or the Sherpa 120 Explorer kit will suffice. The larger battery offers more power, but also weighs more, so I need to do a little more thought and calculation on that aspect.

The other vendor is Powerenz - http://www.powerenz.com/store/ - which offers an extensive array of products for off the grid solar power, from a USB charger to serious ( and very expensive ) military type power sources. After spending some time on that link, I think much of their products are custom made for specific customer's needs, and I may have to talk to them at some time. Their systems may be heavier than Goal Zeros, but I get the feeling they are also more robust, in terms of real world durability.

Both vendors are capable of meeting my needs, I suspect, if I am willing to pay the freight for a proper set up.

Having one's own power supply in the bush might be a nice luxury, or maybe unnecessary. Not really sure yet, but I will continue to investigate.

I had hoped to be able to run a DC battery charger directly from a flexible solar panel, but from what I am learning, it seems that it is more reliable to use the solar panel to charge a custom designed battery , and use that battery to run an inverter to power an AC battery charger for a camera battery like the LP-E6 or the LP-E4 ( for the 1DMK4)

Solar battery charging the LP-E6 battery in a 5DMKii

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