By Eric Jackson

It occurred to me that there are always epic stories here on the Solarlife blog that occur in some of the most remote places in the world. While those are the ones I enjoy writing and reading typically; our everyday lives is an adventure in of itself. Our everyday lives can benefit from the same kind of tools that the most epic adventure requires. Here are a few ways I employ some of the Goal Zero solar and portable power products in my daily life.

First, my daily life typically includes activities, such as whitewater kayaking, fishing, RV travel, camping, and work on my computer, or phone, as President of Jackson Kayak and Orion Coolers.

The following Goal Zero tools are in my arsenal.

Solar Panels:

• Nomad 7, Nomad 20, and Nomad 100 Solar panels. I am spoiled and have all three.
• The single one to have is the 20 as it is extremely powerful, but also very portable.
• The 7 is for when I have light power needs, and need high portability.
• The 100 is for in my RV and for keeping up with my large power needs in the RV or charging lots of stuff at once.

Portable Power:

Again, I am spoiled and have a good variety of power options.

From small to large:

Flip 10 for my pocket- for my phone, or GoPro. Super lightweight, holds 1 charge of a phone, or 2 for GoPro. This is the most convenient small charger on the market and a great thing to have in your overnight bag for travel, kayaking, camping, etc..

Venture 30 for my fishing needs and my workhorse portable power supply for phones, GoPro cameras, lighting power, etc.. You will see how I use it below.

Sherpa 100- This tool changed my life. It has enough power to charge an Apple laptop, and keep my phone, GoPros, and other small devices charged, while also adding light to dark places.

Yeti 1250- the Big boy on the block- My RV has not been the same since I added this massive power storage unit. You can live with just this unit, using all normal devices that require AC power (except air conditioning and microwaves or other super high power devices). Combined with the Nomad 100, it eliminates the need for a gas generator in most circumstances.

Honorable mention- Lighthouse 400- this is my lantern, but it has a USB outlet and is a one stop shop for if you only need to charge one device at a time and need light.

Lighting:

Lighthouse 400: as mentioned above, this is my workhorse lantern, putting out a ton of light that will keep any room in the house lit up nicely, the RV, a tent, campsite, and my kayak or bass boat when rigging up before sunrise, or unloading after dark.

Light a life mini quad USB light set: Another option that is fun to use and you can direct the light or just light up the entire room. This plugs into any of the power supply units via USB.

“Spot” USB flashlight- this extremely bright spot light is crazy lightweight and puts out 150 lumens. Recharges with USB and lasts 3 hours. The only flashlight you will need.

Venture 30, Sherpa 100 have built in LED lights. Venture 30 has a group of them and acts as a flashlight as well.

OK- that is a lot of product. Remember that you only need 1 solar panel, 1 storage unit, and 1 light to achieve independence from the grid. Below I will share one combo that I feel everyone should consider having:

MY “GO TO” COMBO: NOMAD 20/SHERPA 100 COMBO:

I keep my Sherpa 100 Storage unit and Nomad 20 with me in the Car, in my computer bag at all times. They also go with me on all international travel. (no more hassles with finding adapters to charge computers, sitting next to a power outlet at the airport, etc.)

When I use my laptop and need to charge it back up- I turn on the inverter on the Sherpa 100 and plug it in and it is good for more than a full charge. I also use it at the River to recharge phones, cameras, etc. when I am hanging out at a park and play spot, an event, or during shuttle runs.

The Nomad 20 solar panels typically gets plugged into my Sherpa 100 to charge it up via the sun on the dash of my car or RV, or outside at camp, at the river, etc.. A full day of sun will completely charge the Venture 100, which means you can get a full computer charge, plus lots of small devices with only the sun using the Nomad 20/Venture 100 combo. I wrote two books on an off the grid island of the Nile River using this combo and never ran out of juice for my laptop or Cameras for photos.