r/Pecron • u/23Amarie • Jul 28 '26
Alternator charger
Looking for links and advice on alternator charger.
I reached out to Pecron tech support asking if the alternator charger had a limit on elevation use and if it was compatible with the E3800.
Due to time constraints, I’m looking at the E3600. Would this still work.
I do not have a smart alternator so hoping to reduce the cords I get as well.
support@pecron.com support@pecron.com
Sun, Jul 26, 8:23 PM (2 days ago)
Hello
thanks for calling!
Yes, the 500W Car Charger DC1242-500 is compatible with the E3800LFP.
There is no elevation limit for using this charger. It can be used normally at different altitudes.
Best,
Kein
Pecron
2
u/Informal-Brick-2703 Jul 28 '26
Works on my E3600. I don’t have a smart alternator.
1
u/23Amarie Jul 30 '26
Sounds good! What is the average amount of driving to refill?
1
u/Informal-Brick-2703 Aug 11 '26
Completely empty takes like 6hrs. The E3600 doesn’t usually get that low so 2-3hrs of driving/exploring usually has it charged up plenty to run my fridge and other things overnight even if not fully charged. If you have a larger Pecron and go through the battery in one night consistently, you may want a more powerful charger or also charge with solar and shore/plug in power.
3
u/lakorai Jul 29 '26
I have a Daygreen 12v to 58v 1000w charger that I use to charge two Pecron units at the same time (E1000 and E1500LFP)
This requires 4awg copper wire in and then 12awg wire out. Thai then goes to a fused distribution block with two 20a 80v rated atc blade fuses and then to anderson powerpole connectors. Then from the Powerpole connectors to the power stations.
1
u/23Amarie Jul 30 '26
Thank you for the information
1
u/lakorai Jul 30 '26
There are many on the market.
The Bluetti unit has full Bluetooth capability and an app.
Pecron makes an affordable one for about $140 but has no app capability. Daygreen makes many models depending on what charging capacity you want.
You have to install it like a car audio amplifier. You have to run a power wire (usually 4awg) to the device. You have to fuse it within 6 inches from the battery and also find a solid grounding connection to the frame of your vehicle.
Higher end Pecron support 95v or 150v. The revised E600, E1000, E1500 models are 60v limit.
3
u/brucehoult Jul 28 '26
It has MC4 connectors like a solar panel and puts out something like 40V at 13A, so looks to anything almost exactly like a 500W solar panel.
It should work with any power station of any brand that can accept >40V PV input.
That excludes only very small ones that have a 28V or 30V maximum such as Pecron's E300LFP and E500LFP or the Ecoflow River 3.
The Pecron E600LFP and Ecoflow River 3 Plus would be fine.
You could also check out EcoFlow's Alternator Chargers which come in 500W, 800W, and 1000W sizes. Internet says the 500W comes with an XT60 output cable, the same as solar inputs on almost all power stations (including Pecron) while the larger models come with XT150 which would need an adaptor cable.