Posted: 3/28/2026 9:07:42 AM EDT
[Last Edit: Pav56C][Edited]
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Hey guys, Was debating between here and Survival forum based on nature of the use, but decided tech might be more applicable. I picked up a Starlink Mini and next month it'll be in the $5 plan with significantly throttled back speeds. I'm fine with that as I'm primarily using it for grid down comms. My house has ZERO cell service, and we don't have a land line. If power goes out, I have a UPS running my modem/wifi that generally lasts 5 hours so we can still have phones. After 5 hours I need to break out the Genny to charge her up. Seems to happen pretty frequently where I am. This week I realized the 5 hours of power for phones is great, until you get home from work and the powers already been out for 4 1/2 hours and the battery has been drained for nothing. Also not to mention if the Internet lines get clipped we'd be dead in the water. I purchased a PeakDo integrated power bank for the Starlink mini. Should last 5 hours. I've been researching powering it a bit. My understanding is that the Starlink Mini shouldn't get adequate power supply from a vehicles cigarette outlet. Ive read it WILL power it, but during use it will exceed the power demand of the outlet and crash on you. I'm hoping that with the battery bank, I'll be able to power the unit with the battery bank, while simultaneously charging the battery bank from a vehicle cigarette outlet or USB port. Is anyone able to confirm that this would work the way I envision? I should specify I also plan to use it for comms at a work event. I'll be working an event in the near future where the cellular network will be bogged down by a massive amount of people. Also, long term, I'd like to use the same method of powering with battery and recharging with solar panels, if anyone can confirm that it would work or not. Appreciate any help, tips, or ideas. Update: Continued researching (honestly I consulted AI, which apparently knows a lot about me, but anyway) yes, I can power the Starlink mini with the Peakdo integrated battery and charge it simultaneously. Where I messed up is, I unknowingly bought the Gen 1, the new Gen 2 allows you to bypass the battery if it is full, saving your batteries charge cycles. The method of feeding the Sat with the battery and simultaneously charging also created a lot of heat, so it needs to be well ventilated. The Gen 2 has cooling cuts built into the unit. I will survive though. I have found a solar panel which should be able to charge the battery adequately. https://a.co/d/084NUeLn Reviews say 80W is attainable with decent sun and it has a USB output so I'll be able to connect directly to the Peakdo without an inverter. Most importantly, this panel folds up small enough to fit in the Harbor Freight Apache 3800 case which my Starlink Mini currently resides in. Now I realize if there's no or weak sun I'm SOL. This is just a cog in the PACE formula. Primary power: Wall outlet Alternative: Vehicle adapter Contingency: Battery (5ish hours) followed by solar Emergency: Gas powered Genny |
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Friend of mine bought one for his toy hauler/camping/hunting rig…then realized he could still use it when it was parked at his home so he ditched his regular ISP. Not sure how he powers it. |
I wanted a mission, and for my sins, they gave me one.
No rules today, sport…just orders.
It’s not about how many people you kill, it’s about how many you save.
No rules today, sport…just orders.
It’s not about how many people you kill, it’s about how many you save.
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Everything I’ve read is these things pull less than 50 watts when they are operating at full power. Our internet went out a few month ago for 10 days due to snow and ice. I borrowed my friends mini and connected it directly into my network and it worked great. I’ll probably pick on up myself just to have. |
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They run fine on a 12V outlet. The thing to remember is that some are 5A rated 12V outlets (i.e. 60W) and some have up to 10A ratings (120W). Another thing to keep in mind, the Mini (and full sized units) only pull more than 40W when they are running their heaters to melt snow. I actually just got back from a week long trip across the central US with my Mini on the roof of my pickup with the Mini running as long as the truck was running…all powered from the 12V outlet. |
"Have you heard of the Gospel according to NIMS?" - Some EMC...Probably
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Originally Posted By zapzap: They run fine on a 12V outlet. The thing to remember is that some are 5A rated 12V outlets (i.e. 60W) and some have up to 10A ratings (120W). Another thing to keep in mind, the Mini (and full sized units) only pull more than 40W when they are running their heaters to melt snow. I actually just got back from a week long trip across the central US with my Mini on the roof of my pickup with the Mini running as long as the truck was running…all powered from the 12V outlet. Agree with the above. Mine only pulls 20-30 watts. They only reason I could see that going higher is when the heater is running, which you can disable. I run mine from an Ecoflow Trail 300 (288 Wh), Ecoflow River 2 Pro (800 Wh), cig outlet, or even an Anker 88Wh power brick. I keep a 60W folding solar to keep it running in a pinch.   
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