Freeplay Weza Portable Energy Source
Freeplay Weza Portable Energy Source
Find out about this human powered backup power device
storage | general | shoppingThere are now many portable
solar chargers available for recharging batteries, media players, and mobile phones etc. (for example
Freeloader,
Solio,
PowerMonkey Explorer, and even the handheld
Hymini wind powered charger.
While fantastic at what they do, they are obviously limited in terms of the power output and voltage they can generate. They cannot be used to recharge the
12 Volt lead acid batteries used to start vehicles and power many devices, and which in turn can be used (with an
inverter) to power larger 240 Volt AC mains-powered appliances.
The
Freeplay FreeCharge Weza portable energy source (pictured above) is a product designed to fill that gap in the market. As with other
Freeplay products, the Weza (Swahili for
Power) uses human power to generate electricity - in this case using a foot treadle to put
25 to 40 Watts into an integrated
7Ah sealed lead acid battery (SLA).
The
Weza can also be recharged from mains electricity (110 to 240 VAC) via an 18 Volt 1.5 Amp AC/DC adapter (included) in under
8 hours. Alternatively any DC power source from 13 to 21 Volts can be used - for example a 30+ Watt
PV solar panel, or vehicle alternator - to recharge the internal battery.
Despite the relatively low capacity of the Weza's battery, it can be used to
jump start vehicle engines with up to
400 Amps of output current possible for short bursts via the included heavy-duty
jumper cables. Low currents can also be supplied via a standard 12 Volt DC
cigarette lighter socket to power electronic devices,
low voltage lighting and so on when camping out etc.
A five minute
step charge (50-60 steps per minute for 30 Watt power) is sufficient for a 2 second
crank cycle to start a typical 4-cylinder vehicle engine or 85 Hp outboard motor, or to power a
mobile phone for over 2 hours, a 12 Volt GPS system for 22 minutes, or a 65W laptop computer for 2.5 minutes.
An LED display bar is provided to indicate the current
level of charge in the battery, while a second display bar indicates the
input effort level - i.e. the amount of power being generated by the foot treadle user.
The Weza battery has a low
self-discharge rate of around 5% per month at 20 degrees Celcius increasing in hotter and colder environments. Since it is a lead acid battery it is essential to store it well charged if it is not to suffer a serious reduction in usable lifetime. Replacement batteries are available.
Weza has been built to last and to be user maintainable in an emergency. A
service tool kit is provided together with a rugged nylon carry bag with waterproof base which has space to house all the accessories and tools. The foot treadle charging mechanism has been tested to 500,000 input cycles, but a
two-year warranty and excellent dedicated
product support from Freeplay are available in the event of any problems.
Buy Freeplay FreeCharge Weza
The
Weza is available in the UK from many suppliers for around
£210-£300.
NEW Click here to
buy Weza now for just
£169.99 from
Ethical Superstore.
More Information and Useful Links
Click here to visit the official
Freeplay Energy PLC website. The
Weza information is available by clicking here.
Article Last Modified: 10:53, 17th Oct 2007Comment on this Article
If you have any comments on this article, please email them to
neil@reuk.co.uk.
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