EcoFlow Delta 2 for Overlanders | So Close to Perfect!

a few years ago lithium power stations changed the game for overlanders it unlocks running a fridge for a lot more people because you no longer need to hardwire a dual battery setup since then power stations have gotten better but for most 4x4 enthusiasts we are still just using them for running a fridge or charging Electronics the newer models do have better specs but they don't really unlock anything new for camping but a new ecoflow Delta 2 you could find a closed competitor on every spec on paper but it has a very unique combination of specs which I think might just be the next game changer specifically for 4x4 overlanders like me I was very lucky to have Eco flow semia unit to test out it delivered everything I hope for and actually began removing my hardwired dual battery setup except it fell short in one unexpected way which kind of broke the deal from it was so close to being perfect so in this video I will show you why Delta 2 is so unique for over Landing what game changing thing it can do and at least what made it fell short to replace my dual battery setup this review is focused on car camping and over Landing specifically so I am not interested in doing a full spectrum or testing out every possible functions we will keep it relevant and practical alright let's get started hi welcome to Tinker Adventure I'm Kai the most popular capacity among overlanders is probably 500 or 700 watt hours so the 1000 watt hour Delta 2 is on the bigger side however the Delta 2 is actually easier to pack in your car than most smaller units this is because it has a narrow and Tall form factor with ports located front and back most other power stations have a more squatty aspect ratio with ports located on the white side from my experience Delta 2's form factor is far more efficient to fit into a 4x4 and still have access to all the ports for example this was actually the only Power Station that fit into this tiny space where I used to mount my secondary battery I can't even do that with this tiny 300 watt hour unit the other critical spec is power output there are plenty of more powerful units out there but the Delta 2 is unique for its power to capacity ratio let me explain in almost all power stations you'll find 1 000 watt hour capacity get you around 1000 watt of Maximum output so a power to capacity ratio of one this also applies to most Standalone 12 volt lithium batteries however the 1000 watt hour Delta 2 can output 1 800 watt continuous power to get this much power from other brands you need to go bigger like the jackery 1500 or the Blue Yeti ac200p a bigger capacity means a bigger physical volume you probably don't care if you have RV or a van but for a 4x4 space is always a premium paired with The Squatty form factor those units are often just too bulky to fit into a 4x4 so being able to pull 1800 watts from such a compact form factor is very special an 1800 watt is a magic number if you look for appliances that will be useful for camping there are many below 1000 watt but you'll find a whole bunch of them right around 1500 watt Delta 2's 1800 watt unlocks a lot of possibilities and builds enough margin on top we'll test out some examples in the next sections so make sure you stick around technically most of these benefits could be achieved with the Delta 1 released a couple years ago but the Delta II now uses lithium iron phosphate chemistry which has about six times the life cycle than the lithium ion predecessor with lfp practically speaking for people like you and me we don't need to worry about battery life span anymore and this makes it much easier to justify the investment the Delta 2 is capable of expanding to 2000 Watt hours with its smart extra battery which is 200 cheaper than the main unit you can stack it on top so this retains the narrow and Tall form factor the rubber feet lightly interlock with the main unit and you can easily tie down the combo by the handles the only gripe I have is the connecting cable sticking out way too much which kind of defeats the narrow and Tall form factor I hope ecoflow will make a shorter cable with 90 degree ends specifically for the stack configuration just a straight shot from top to bottom now we know why the Delta 2 is special for over Landing let's see some practical tests and how it can actually change the way we can I am not a hardcore camper and I am not good with code yeah I can for relaxation and not man versus wild challenge the most popular 10 heater in the Overland world is probably the propane Mr Heater most people don't run it overnight but just for a few minutes to get in and out of the sleeping bag but I have two main problems with this heater first is condensation I already have a ton of condensation overnight and I hate to pack my tent with even more water and second it takes a long time for the heat to spread out to make it warm enough to get out with Delta 2's 1800 watt inverters I can now run this electric space heater I tested on a co-morning where it was 27 degrees inside the tent I left the Delta 2 in my FJ and ran an extension cord into the tent soon after turning it on I can immediately feel the heat wave because the built-in fan I could get a comfortably right away and no need to wait like with the propane heater and more importantly this is all dry heat after sitting in direct full glass for two minutes I was already too warm so I've dialed it down during this test I took my time with filming and measurements so I had it on for about 17 minutes and that used about 30 percent of capacity but for a normal morning routine still not rushing I use about 15 to 20 percent of capacity by the way the Eco full app is really handy the connection is always quick and reliable I can monitor power and battery level from anywhere and even if I forgot to turn on my AC ports the night before I can do so through the app in my sleeping bag but back to the space heater it is a lot more effective than a good old propane heater it is also smaller lighter safer and more reliable now a heat exchanger style diesel heater also have the fast and dry heat you can also run it all night long so the entire tent is warm that is hard to beat however it does come with the trade-off of handling diesel fuel ducting placing It Outdoors and after all it still needs electric power to run while the electric space heater is far simpler for overnight heating I use a 110 volt electric blanket inside my zero degree sleeping bag I will turn it on a few minutes before bed so it was very welcoming when I crawl in I use a 110 volt AC blanket because it has finer and more precise temperature control just like your fridge they don't run constantly they just kick on here and there to maintain the set temperature the sleeping bag has good insulation so it don't take much energy to stay warm after 8 hours of sleep at 27 degrees with a zero degree sleeping bag it use about 30 percent of charge I could definitely survive the night with just a zero degree bag but it wouldn't be pleasant at all with a blanket I didn't even wear socks and my feet were perfectly warm overall this full electric 10 heating setup was game changing for me but wait there's more hot water is such an essential part of camping after trying many different setups a jetboil flash to me is the fastest and most convenient way to boil water now we have the Delta II how about using this 1500 watt electric kettle both units has one liter capacity but the jet oil has 2600 watt rated power on paper the kettle is no match but let's test this side by side just like all camping gear the jetboil takes some procedure to set up but let's ignore that according to my Kettle our cold water started at 37 degrees so it will take extra long to boil oh no my old jab oil has a bad start with its piezoelectric starter these things never last but let's ignore that too despite a big difference in rated Power phone setup come to a full boil around the same time well yeah you just need to make sure you shut off the jetboil in time on the other hand not only does the electric kettle shut off automatically this unit can also shut off at various lower temperature settings very fancy boiling 26 ounce water in this test used about 12 percent of capacity but remember we started from ice cold with no gas or flame this electric kettle is safer especially around kids heck you can even do it inside the car if you want I know using an electric kettle at Camp just kind of feels wrong it makes an Overlander joke but if you forget about mainstream labeling this to me is another game changer and you know what despite all the fancy functions this Kettle is only one-third the cost of my Jet Oil and that's not counting all the fuel canister I have empty similarly the space heater and the electric blanket we used earlier were all inexpensive compared to Dedicated camping and Overland gear but they are more effective in what they do by simply tapping into the 110 volt Market we just open up a whole new world and the past ability definitely doesn't stop there for example I can now use a 1500 watt induction cooktop it is fairly compact super fast very easy to clean and totally windproof my wife can now bring her 1600 watt hair dryer so she won't have a headache after showering at camp and not saying I will but I can bring a freaking microwave I'm sure I'll get laughed at on the trail but I bet you're gonna come ask me to heat up your cold ass sandwiches yes all these appliances consume a lot of power but just like the space heater they are so fast you don't need to run them for long to get the job done so the energy consumption which is power multiplied by time is still practical the Delta 2 is a one thousand dollar investment but most of those gears you probably already have at home and use them every day even for the power station itself when you are not camping is an excellent home power backup so with this setup you don't really need to buy a separate set of Gears exclusively for camping if you think of it this way it might make a lot more sense financially now if this is so good why on Earth people are still spending so much money and effort building hardwired dual battery setup let's take a look in my opinion the biggest drawback of all plug-and-play power station is the lack of fast DC to DC car charging my hardwired red Arc charger charges my secondary battery at 375 watt this is fast enough so that the driving next day can always replenish what I used last night but all power station can only charge up to 100 watt from the car this is limited by the cigarette lighter Outlets themselves depending on how much you use and how long you drive it is a lot harder to keep a power station topped off if we do it for days we will eventually run out of juice yes the Delta II does have a respectful 500 watt solar charging capability but not everyone has solar and you cannot always bet on good weather most dual battery setup also have solar capability but when the condition isn't good they can steal 100 rely on the car alternator but wait most 4x4s nowadays come with a 400 watt AC inverter right from the factory 400 watt is more powerful than my red Arc can we use that to charge the power station the first issue is most power station this size have two high AC charging power they will just trip the factory inverter but for the Delta II you can actually dial down the AC charging power through the app so this solved that problem the second issue for me was the Toyota inverter will automatically go into 115 watt mode when I shift out of park but I could easily bypass that with a DIY 400 watt anytime mod thanks Tacoma world with all Roblox removed I was so stoked about this with 400 watt car charging capability this is now a true Plug and Play dual battery setup but when I plug it in wait what's going on it is not charging the Toyota inverter was not tripping and I also tried even lower setting on the Delta 2. it charges from the wall just fine but nothing from the Toyota inverter so my best guess is the Toyota inverter has modified sine wave and the Delta 2 didn't like it damn it it is so close to being perfect I really hope ecoflow can work around this via a firmware update it if that ever happens I will for sure pin it in the description below yeah you could definitely hardwire a pure sine wave inverter just to charge the Delta II honestly it is not a bad idea but for most people that defeats the Plug and Play clean installation but if we take a step back if we're just doing a day trip or a weekend trip a single charge plus whatever you get from 100 watt car charging might be plenty enough for most people not everyone does week-long Pro level true Expedition Overland and that is okay for example when I go snowboarding I need to heat up my food inside my car or when I just camp on Friday night after work then go willing for just a day something like that is probably way more common for most of us and the Delta 2 is perfect for that so the lack of fast car charging may not be a deal breaker for most heck here's a crazy idea if I was truly in a pinch I'll plug it into the wall at a gas station with extremely impressive 1200 watt AC charging I'll get 25 charged by the time I finish a number two probably more if I play with my phone it's almost like a Tesla stopping at a supercharger this is Elon Musk nevertheless for hardcore overlanders would do longer trips in more remote areas I don't think Delta 2 can replace a true dual battery setup yet Eco flow if you are watching you better do that firmware update now if you are intrigued by the Delta 2 I have a discount code in the description below that can be applied on top of whatever cells it has going on using my code and Affiliates link will get you the best deal and support my Channel at the same time thank you for watching I'll see you in the next one

Channel: Tinkerer's Adventure

Views: 124,993

Keywords: ecoflow delta 2, ecoflow, power station, solar generator, solar generator portable, overlanding, overland, car camping, car camping setup

Id: OHL9gbwNV-k

Length: 16min 53sec (1013 seconds)

Published: Mon Dec 26 2022