Use ordinary D batteries to power a small DTV converter box connected to a portable DVD player or handheld TV.
Last September, Hurricane Ike swept through town and just about everyone was without power for days, unable to get news or weather updates. Being a computer programmer, I have two backup UPS (Universal Power Supply) battery backups that I charged up in advance so I'd have *some* emergency power during the inevitable blackout.
When the storm hit, I was able to power my portable TV for a mere 3 minutes before my UPS was drained. My sister took shelter at a friends' home, who happened to own one of those tiny 2.5" battery-powered handheld TV's. My sister noted how helpful it was (and would be) to have one for emergencies, but I reminded her that after February 17, (now June 12) 2009, that handheld TV would be nothing more than a paperweight, as TV stations went all Digital.
I then started looking online for a portable digital TV, which I discovered all cost between $150-$350. Ouch. That's when I started thinking about just plugging a small DTV tuner into a handheld TV. It wouldn't be as "portable", but I didn't care about "portability", just something to provide TV reception during a blackout. If the TV was powered by batteries, I only needed to power the tuner, preferably using cheap off-the-shelf batteries that I can stock up on the next time a storm hits. And once the Digital switch-over takes place, those old handheld TV's are going to become super-cheap as people find they can no longer use them.
To save even more money, I ordered two government $40 DTV coupons online and (after much research) used one to purchase a "MicroGEM MG2000" Digital Converter Box (the smallest unit made) for the most compact package. The power requirements of the MG2000 is only 6.5v. Hoping I could power it with only 6v (four 1.5v batteries), I also purchased a 4-D cell plastic battery holder (only to discover later it just wasn't enough power).
Mostly, this "Instructable" is just about building a battery pack for the DTV tuner. Everything else is done for you. If you find/have a DTV receiver whose power requirement is an *exact* multiple of "1.5v" (6v, 7.5v, 9v, 12v), you can do all this without "building" anything!
I apologize for not having taken any photos *during* construction, but I didn't think of turning this into a how-to until after I was done.
Last September, Hurricane Ike swept through town and just about everyone was without power for days, unable to get news or weather updates. Being a computer programmer, I have two backup UPS (Universal Power Supply) battery backups that I charged up in advance so I'd have *some* emergency power during the inevitable blackout.
When the storm hit, I was able to power my portable TV for a mere 3 minutes before my UPS was drained. My sister took shelter at a friends' home, who happened to own one of those tiny 2.5" battery-powered handheld TV's. My sister noted how helpful it was (and would be) to have one for emergencies, but I reminded her that after February 17, (now June 12) 2009, that handheld TV would be nothing more than a paperweight, as TV stations went all Digital.
I then started looking online for a portable digital TV, which I discovered all cost between $150-$350. Ouch. That's when I started thinking about just plugging a small DTV tuner into a handheld TV. It wouldn't be as "portable", but I didn't care about "portability", just something to provide TV reception during a blackout. If the TV was powered by batteries, I only needed to power the tuner, preferably using cheap off-the-shelf batteries that I can stock up on the next time a storm hits. And once the Digital switch-over takes place, those old handheld TV's are going to become super-cheap as people find they can no longer use them.
To save even more money, I ordered two government $40 DTV coupons online and (after much research) used one to purchase a "MicroGEM MG2000" Digital Converter Box (the smallest unit made) for the most compact package. The power requirements of the MG2000 is only 6.5v. Hoping I could power it with only 6v (four 1.5v batteries), I also purchased a 4-D cell plastic battery holder (only to discover later it just wasn't enough power).
Mostly, this "Instructable" is just about building a battery pack for the DTV tuner. Everything else is done for you. If you find/have a DTV receiver whose power requirement is an *exact* multiple of "1.5v" (6v, 7.5v, 9v, 12v), you can do all this without "building" anything!
I apologize for not having taken any photos *during* construction, but I didn't think of turning this into a how-to until after I was done.
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Signing UpStep 1: Materials:
1. Low-power Digital TV Converter Box. If you don't already have a Digital TV Converter Box, I recommend the "MicroGEM MG2000", the smallest unit on the market at 4.5" square. It's also one of the top rated units out there. If you can still order one of the free government $40 "coupons", do so asap. The MG2000 is apx. $55 (before coupon).
2. Portable video player, such as a handheld TV. I purchased a used 8" portable DVD player on eBay just for this project for $40. Your device MUST have external "Video In/Out" and "Audio In/Out" jacks. If you already have a portable DVD player or old portable TV, use that and save yourself some money. I chose to use a DVD Player because most have a "widescreen" display (perfect for DTV) and a 3-hour battery pack.
3. ONE 4 D-cell battery holder with "snap terminal" (aka: 9volt style) connector, and ONE single D-cell battery holder with wires. I found the 4-cell holder on eBay for $6 (after s/h) and the 1-cell holder at Radio Shack for 99cents - or try this. (This is what I needed to power the 6.5v MG2000. If you have/buy a different receiver, be sure to buy the correct number of holders for enough batteries to power your receiver.) Be sure to use D-cell holders for maximum battery life.)
4. One 2.1x5.5mm (tubular power connection) to "9v clip" for conecting the "snap-terminals" of the battery holder to the DTV receiver (+ center, - sleave). I found this at a local electronics supply for $3. ("Electronic Parts Outlet [EPO]" part#: RC-9v-2155).
5. Five D-cell batteries.
6. A small piece of wood to mount the battery holders, 7"x3" (1/4" thin is best).
7. Silicone glue for mounting holders to board.
8. Two small machine screws cut down to apx. 1/4" long, with nuts.
9. One thin metal "plate", 1/2" square, with a hole in the middle for the screw.
10. Depending on your video display device, RCA cables to connect the audio/video output of your Converter box to your display. I used a single RCA-to-2.5mm for video and a dual RCA-to-2.5" cable for audio (both found at Radio Shack). The audio cable is easy to find just about anywhere. The single RCA-to-2.5mm cable can be a bit harder to find (Radio Shack part#: 42-2444A - "Audio and Digital-Camera Cable").
11. Rabbit-ears or other small UHF antenna (or Google DIY HDTV antenna).
I already had most of these items, so my total cost was about $65, the most expensive items being the used DVD Player and new HDTV tuner. If you find a tuner for less than $40, it'll be free with the government coupon. And many people already have an old portable TV that would otherwise become worthless after the national switch to DTV in February, taking your total cost down to just a few bucks for batteries and cables.
2. Portable video player, such as a handheld TV. I purchased a used 8" portable DVD player on eBay just for this project for $40. Your device MUST have external "Video In/Out" and "Audio In/Out" jacks. If you already have a portable DVD player or old portable TV, use that and save yourself some money. I chose to use a DVD Player because most have a "widescreen" display (perfect for DTV) and a 3-hour battery pack.
3. ONE 4 D-cell battery holder with "snap terminal" (aka: 9volt style) connector, and ONE single D-cell battery holder with wires. I found the 4-cell holder on eBay for $6 (after s/h) and the 1-cell holder at Radio Shack for 99cents - or try this. (This is what I needed to power the 6.5v MG2000. If you have/buy a different receiver, be sure to buy the correct number of holders for enough batteries to power your receiver.) Be sure to use D-cell holders for maximum battery life.)
4. One 2.1x5.5mm (tubular power connection) to "9v clip" for conecting the "snap-terminals" of the battery holder to the DTV receiver (+ center, - sleave). I found this at a local electronics supply for $3. ("Electronic Parts Outlet [EPO]" part#: RC-9v-2155).
5. Five D-cell batteries.
6. A small piece of wood to mount the battery holders, 7"x3" (1/4" thin is best).
7. Silicone glue for mounting holders to board.
8. Two small machine screws cut down to apx. 1/4" long, with nuts.
9. One thin metal "plate", 1/2" square, with a hole in the middle for the screw.
10. Depending on your video display device, RCA cables to connect the audio/video output of your Converter box to your display. I used a single RCA-to-2.5mm for video and a dual RCA-to-2.5" cable for audio (both found at Radio Shack). The audio cable is easy to find just about anywhere. The single RCA-to-2.5mm cable can be a bit harder to find (Radio Shack part#: 42-2444A - "Audio and Digital-Camera Cable").
11. Rabbit-ears or other small UHF antenna (or Google DIY HDTV antenna).
I already had most of these items, so my total cost was about $65, the most expensive items being the used DVD Player and new HDTV tuner. If you find a tuner for less than $40, it'll be free with the government coupon. And many people already have an old portable TV that would otherwise become worthless after the national switch to DTV in February, taking your total cost down to just a few bucks for batteries and cables.
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Just trying to help here folks, not criticize...
Good point here- if you are expecting to have bad weather that will isolate you from having modern devices that work, rent that generator or buy one as fast as you can...they go fast, very fast...
Here's another tip- if you have a land line telephone, check to see if you have voltage available on the wires. Remove the telephone jack, check yellow/black, and red/green with a meter to see what you have. Here at my house, I don't have a land line telephone, but I still have juice on the jacks. I have a 5, 6, 9, 12 volt regulators already put together with telephone plugs, so I can just plug into the existing jacks to get the voltage that I need.
If you have land lines, and you use red/green on the jacks- make sure you have a regulator, just in case a ring voltage comes down the lines. It can be a larger voltage, and if you are not aware of it- it will cause damage to devices if not handled right...
I used this 'trick' back in 1969 when hurricane Camilla hit the gulf with 210 mph winds. The telephone lines to my house still had voltage, I used it...
Yes, I'm that old....
nice thing
If you have access to 1.2v cells, I'd recommend three 1.2v batteries plus one 1.5v battery for a total of 5.1v. That's as close as you're going to get.
On the use of rechargeable batteries, as my goal was to have a battery powered digital TV in a weather-related blackout following the February DTV switchover, one would be hard pressed to recharge NiCad's once the power went out... especially since NiCad's last about 1/3 as long per charge as alkaline batteries do.
While NiCad's may *start* with a higher charge, that charge *quickly* dissipates, and the receiver I chose fails to work without at least a steady 6.5v of power.
Thanks for the feedback and kind words.