Base station radio

[WSDE521]

I am looking to purchase a base radio for emergencies and disasters. I live in Conway SC and we dodge a bullet with Hurricane Helen ! We have been lucky for the last several years!!! We are way past due for a cat 5 hurricane we have not had a cat 5 since Hugo !! That was 40 years ago. 
I feel really bad for all the people in NC . They have lost everything they owned.

 I have several handheld GMRS radios that work fine, I have a generator that can run my home. But if we have gas shortages like in NC due too a disaster , I have 45 gallons of gas but that will not last long. 
I would like to have some input on the best radio and the best antenna I will need. I am sure we all realize that it’s a matter of time and Myrtle Beach is going to get destroyed by a hurricane. I have food, medical supplies and plenty of ammunition if it is needed. I am always adding to my supplies for such things!! 
 

please give me some ideas on the best base radio and antenna, also give me a height I will need. I plan to anchor the post into the ground, and tie the coax to the post. I have a lot of trees around my house. I am guessing I will need to put the antenna as high as possible.

thank everyone in advance for any suggestions, I will gratefully appreciate it.

 

 

[Guest]

As for radio…. A 40-50w radio. They all transmit exactly the same so it’s all about cost and features.   For emergencies I like duel band radios.  I can listen and if needed transmit on vhf also.    For gmrs a like old 90/95 Motorola lmr radios.  As for cable lmr400 or better and as for antenna I’ve started using the 16’ comet 9nc.  200miles is nothing for my set up and location.   I was using the 10’ tall comet 712efc and comet 6 but the 9nc is 6ft taller with 12db gain.  It’s really all about height (line of sight), antenna gain and watts.  A 50w radio with 50’ of Lmr400 and 12db gain antenna will radiate  575 watts.     If you can get that above obstructions your golden. 
 

the bigger issue is making sure your tower and antenna make it through a storm to be useful afterwards.  

[WSDE521]

9 minutes ago, WRXP381 said:

As for radio…. A 40-50w radio. They all transmit exactly the same so it’s all about cost and features.   For emergencies I like duel band radios.  I can listen and if needed transmit on vhf also.    For gmrs a like old 90/95 Motorola lmr radios.  As for cable lmr400 or better and as for antenna I’ve started using the 16’ comet 9nc.  200miles is nothing for my set up and location.   I was using the 10’ tall comet 712efc and comet 6 but the 9nc is 6ft taller with 12db gain.  It’s really all about height (line of sight), antenna gain and watts.  A 50w radio with 50’ of Lmr400 and 12db gain antenna will radiate  575 watts.     If you can get that above obstructions your golden. 
 

the bigger issue is making sure your tower and antenna make it through a storm to be useful afterwards.  

Thank you, yeah I realize I need to get above the trees the best I can. And with a hurricane such as a cat 4 or 5 not sure it will hold up to the 150 -200 mph winds but I can hope. I am very close to two repeaters and I think that would be a plus as long as the antenna stays in place. 
I would like to get this done before it gets cold. It doesn’t really get all that cold here but sometimes in the 20-30’ . 
I have been watching videos of the damage in the mountains of North Carolina and it looks like a war zone. I know if Myrtle beach was to get a cat 5 making landfall the damage would be in the upper billions and loss of life would be very high. 
I am just trying to get something together to be prepared for something that bad in advance. I will checkout the antenna you mentioned and the coax size . I will get the radio and coax first. I will have to bury the bottom of the post in the ground with concrete. I have a neighbor who works for a power company, he drives his bucket truck home every day. I can get him to help him with it . He also is what I call a prepper like myself.

But I want to thank you for your support.

my name is Kenny by the way 

 

 

[WRDJ205]

2 hours ago, WSDE521 said:

I am very close to two repeaters

Depending on how close you are to the repeaters, you might be able to use a more portable (re: not permanent) set up.  I have a J-pole antenna on 24’ painters pole that I put up and take down as needed.  
 

I use ratchet straps to stabilize it on a basket ball goal when I put it in use.   Then take it down when it’s not needed or in bad weather.  

[WSDE521]

16 hours ago, WRDJ205 said:

Depending on how close you are to the repeaters, you might be able to use a more portable (re: not permanent) set up.  I have a J-pole antenna on 24’ painters pole that I put up and take down as needed.  
 

I use ratchet straps to stabilize it on a basket ball goal when I put it in use.   Then take it down when it’s not needed or in bad weather.  

Thank you very much 

[GreggInFL]

I'm in the same boat as you, Kenny.  In thinking about an emergency setup for hurricanes I find myself coming to the conclusion that anything I put up is going to get knocked down -- and there's nothing I can do about it.  So I'll probably rig something I can set up after the event. A decent antenna with good cable and a temporary mast plugged into my mobile unit should work fine.

The combo WRXP381 cited is the gold-plated, platinum model, and when I put together a serious base system that's the way I'll go.

[AdmiralCochrane]

I'm less worried about my pole falling over than I am about the wind breaking my antenna.  I may devise some scheme to lower it so I could put it back up after a storm.

[WSDE521]

20 hours ago, WSDE521 said:

Thank you very much 

That sounds like a good idea! I think I will try that ! 

[WSDE521]

18 hours ago, GreggInFL said:

I'm in the same boat as you, Kenny.  In thinking about an emergency setup for hurricanes I find myself coming to the conclusion that anything I put up is going to get knocked down -- and there's nothing I can do about it.  So I'll probably rig something I can set up after the event. A decent antenna with good cable and a temporary mast plugged into my mobile unit should work fine.

The combo WRXP381 cited is the gold-plated, platinum model, and when I put together a serious base system that's the way I'll go.

I didn’t think of that, I will definitely rig up something I can setup after the fact ! That’s a fantastic idea, it won’t get destroyed during the storm and hopefully neither will my home!! I live in an area that is prone to flooding, but luckily my house is located in the higher area of my road !  Both ends of the road however do flood. I have all the trees around my house cut down so that if any of the trees remaining fall they won’t hit my house. 
thank you the info , I would not have never thought about doing it that way!! 

[GreggInFL]

^ A similar approach to a base station is a mobile setup.  The same power radio into a good antenna will get you much more range than a handheld.  Not as much as a base station with a better antenna, but still an impressive improvement.  Here is the Florida suburbs (flat with trees) my HT is maybe two miles, but my cheap 25W mobile into a small mag mount antenna is at least ten miles.

The added benefit is that it's mobile.  Assuming there are not massive trees on the roads post hurricane, I can drive the 4x4 to high ground for good comms.  Can't do that with a base station.  You can always move it inside to use as a base unit.

[WRDJ205]

Here’s a pic of the painters pole and the base mount I use for it.  

[WRDJ205]

The base is custom built but very similar to the flag bases used for tailgating that can be found on Amazon.  You park your vehicle on the flat part.  

[RayDiddio]

1 hour ago, WRDJ205 said:

The base is custom built but very similar to the flag bases used for tailgating that can be found on Amazon.  You park your vehicle on the flat part.  

I used to paint professionally for about 12 years... the most stable extensions I've ever used were Wooster Sherlock GT poles. I swear you could do domestic demolition with them or even defend yourself from velociraptors if it came to it.

But I like the setup. Nice.

[GreggInFL]

Nice.  How tall is the pole?

[WSAA254]

I probably can't add much info regarding radio/coax/antenna.   However regarding a tilting mechanism this has worked out well for me.  There are many other solutions also but all info is good info.  Hindsite I would have put another 5ft of pole up, also used a longer 4x4.   The 4x4 is in concrete about 2ft in the gnd.  I was trying to stay away from to much supporting hardware, so the antenna is only about 10ft in the air.  Higher is better, I went with a physically smaller antenna (its used in mobile applications) since I was concerned about wind loading.   we are in fairly consistant 20-30mph winds with gusts to 70.   this happens about 2-3 months out of the year.  The pole I used is a 1.66 inch galvanized pole, its plenty rigid and I have no other supporting hardware other then the brackets on the 4x4.  Best of luck -- jim

[GreggInFL]

5 hours ago, WSAA254 said:

I probably can't add much info regarding radio/coax/antenna.   However regarding a tilting mechanism this has worked out well for me.  There are many other solutions also but all info is good info.  Hindsite I would have put another 5ft of pole up, also used a longer 4x4.   The 4x4 is in concrete about 2ft in the gnd.  I was trying to stay away from to much supporting hardware, so the antenna is only about 10ft in the air.  Higher is better, I went with a physically smaller antenna (its used in mobile applications) since I was concerned about wind loading.   we are in fairly consistant 20-30mph winds with gusts to 70.   this happens about 2-3 months out of the year.  The pole I used is a 1.66 inch galvanized pole, its plenty rigid and I have no other supporting hardware other then the brackets on the 4x4.  Best of luck -- jim

 

 

Do you have more details on that tilting bracket assembly?  I'm looking at a similar application.

TIA.

[WRYZ926]

9 hours ago, GreggInFL said:

Do you have more details on that tilting bracket assembly?  I'm looking at a similar application.

TIA.

That looks like the tilt base from DX Engineering. They are nice but pricey for what they are. I say that as a retired machinist knowing what goes into producing them.

DX Engineering OMNI-TILT™ Vertical Antenna Tilt Bases DXE-OMNITILT-2P

Yes I have one and they are well built out of 1/8" stainless steel.

[WSAA254]

On 10/7/2024 at 5:04 PM, WRYZ926 said:

That looks like the tilt base from DX Engineering. They are nice but pricey for what they are. I say that as a retired machinist knowing what goes into producing them.

DX Engineering OMNI-TILT™ Vertical Antenna Tilt Bases DXE-OMNITILT-2P

Yes I have one and they are well built out of 1/8" stainless steel.

Sorry for the delay, but you are correct, I did get it from DX engineering.  Hi quality materials, a little costly but worth it.  I have shoulder issues, so an easy way to tilt antenna was important.  I have seen less expensive solutions, but doubt if you can find something with this quality.   best of luck

[WRYZ926]

7 minutes ago, WSAA254 said:

Sorry for the delay, but you are correct, I did get it from DX engineering.  Hi quality materials, a little costly but worth it.  I have shoulder issues, so an easy way to tilt antenna was important.  I have seen less expensive solutions, but doubt if you can find something with this quality.   best of luck

That's okay. We all have other things going on in our lives. And yes you are correct that the DX Engineering tilt over base is well made. I've looked at cheaper alternatives and the quality just wasn't there.

I would make my own if I still had access to a machine shop and a big enough press brake. It takes a good sized press brake to bend 1/8" thick stainless steel. The one plant I worked at had 65 and 80 ton press brakes for bending/forming 1/4" steel.

[piggin]

On 10/3/2024 at 4:51 PM, WSDE521 said:

I am looking to purchase a base radio for emergencies and disasters. I live in Conway SC and we dodge a bullet with Hurricane Helen ! We have been lucky for the last several years!!! We are way past due for a cat 5 hurricane we have not had a cat 5 since Hugo !! That was 40 years ago. 
I feel really bad for all the people in NC . They have lost everything they owned.

 I have several handheld GMRS radios that work fine, I have a generator that can run my home. But if we have gas shortages like in NC due too a disaster , I have 45 gallons of gas but that will not last long. 
I would like to have some input on the best radio and the best antenna I will need. I am sure we all realize that it’s a matter of time and Myrtle Beach is going to get destroyed by a hurricane. I have food, medical supplies and plenty of ammunition if it is needed. I am always adding to my supplies for such things!! 
 

please give me some ideas on the best base radio and antenna, also give me a height I will need. I plan to anchor the post into the ground, and tie the coax to the post. I have a lot of trees around my house. I am guessing I will need to put the antenna as high as possible.

thank everyone in advance for any suggestions, I will gratefully appreciate it.

 

 

 I live in West Asheville. Got internet back some hours ago.

 Things that worked great during the aftermath which featured zero cell phone service, no power, no water, no internet. Power was out 1 week. Water out for 2 weeks.

Wouxun KG-905G with Nagoya 771G or Diamond RH77CA. I bought 3200mah packs for both HT's and they were charged fully as well as the original 2800mah batteries. I never had to charge them during 4 days of no cell service. I never had to swap out batteries either. I used one to scan to listen to work crews with a Laird FG-4503 antenna on the roof. It and the Bolton600 feed line went through the storm no problems at all. Wind rated to 125mph. A few days later I replaced the 4503 with a TE connectivity FG-4607...also 125mph wind rated. Giant improvement for listening close as well as far away! 

I only have the 2 Wouxuns so I gave my daughter a Quansheng K5-(8) Programmed with all gmrs and frs channels. We stayed in the first 7 channels and that radio performed flawlessly with it's stock antenna. It just sipped the battery and still showed full charge after 4 days of being used. Daughter much preferred the smaller "cute" radio. A solar power bank kept the cell phones charged as both ladies ran the batteries in them down as they fruitlessly searched for service.

The electric chainsaw and other Dewalt XR power tools did all I needed and also did not need charging for the week with no power.

  Whatever base radio you get, make sure you can power it. Overkill on the antenna windspeed rating is also recommended! Both GMRS antennas I have used have one piece radomes. And a 5 year warranty.

I bought a Midland MTX-500 because I wanted to test it and figured if it works ok it can be used as a mobile or base. It arrived on the Wednesday before the storm.

On Thursday the antenna arrived...and I took a break from pumping out the basement to unbox it. Friday all services disappeared.

 The midland is extremely easy to program repeaters into without a computer and it has enough power into repeaters to work well. I never needed it during the blackout. The HT's were more than enough. Power output seems fine as it draws very close to 9 amps@13.9 volts into the 4607 on repeater inputs. It has 128 channels too. No tone scan, a major omission. Audio recovery is excellent on weak signals. I was going to buy a part 95 kenwood but it will have to wait for my finances to recover. The Midland is way overpriced...it cost more than my Icom 2730A which is dual band and has crossband repeat built in. And tone scan and so many other features its nuts. But it's legal and works well.  The ANL is obviously a DSP noise reduction scheme that rapidly nukes intelligibility as you go past the lowest setting. The radio gets hot if you transmit a lot on high power. A small nearly noiseless fan I have on hand blowing air under the radio makes it stay nice and cool.

 The Midland never exhibited intermod or signs of overloading here before the storm when used with a high Comet GP-3. After the storm I heard some weird stuff that sounded like intermod but my SDR showed "someone" was using equipment that was a wide pulsed signal that moved around the band occasionally.

 It was heard on the Wouxun on the other antenna at the same time...as well as a Icom 8500. Not intermod. A strange out of place transmission. Only noted during heavy military air traffic. Its gone now...air traffic is much much lower.

The midland is great for scanning as the audio is good and it is much less noisy than the Wouxun. It performs on par with the Icom 2730 as far as sensitivity. It actually has a useful signal meter that only goes all the way up for really close or ultra strong signals. The wouxun pegs its scale so early it is useless for determining when someone is very close. I like the Midland, even though it is overpriced. The Wouxun KG-905G and the Nagoya 771G are both very highly recommended...as is the TE Connectivity FG4607 and the Bolton600 feedline.

 Sorry if this post is a bit chaotic or unclear. I am still a bit disoriented. I used ham radio, GMRS, and the scanners heavily for information. I won't post some of the things I heard. Really horrible stuff. Much worse than the media coverage conveys. I fared very well actually. But others lost everything. Many others.

 

[WRYZ926]

@piggin glad to hear that you and your family are safe.

I had a few issues with the Midland MXT500 . The main issue was the power output was low. The max was about 33-35 watts. The other things are more of a gripe such as having to change everything from narrow band to wide band and also having to update the firmware to get more than 30 something memory slots.

Otherwise the MXT500 worked fine and they are very easy to program. My MXT500 went to our club's ecomm trailer. I agree that the MXT500 is definitely overpriced for what it is. But so is the Wouxun KG-1000G that I am currently using. Especially when you compare both to the Icom IC-2730. 

While I don't have the Wouxun KG-905G, I have been very pleased with the KG-935G and KG-Q10H radios. As you mention, the batteries last a long time if you aren't doing a lot of transmitting/rag chewing. I am going to get some spare batteries for both. 

For those worried about backup power for a base station, a decent 50AH LIPO4 battery and a solar charging setup works well for a single 50 watt radio. Especially if you are running it on low or medium power. I keep a 50AH LIPO4 battery in the shack for when we loose power during storms. That allows me to communicate during Sky Warn nets and with others as needed. So far I have only had to use the battery twice this year.

I have an uncle that lives in the Goldsboro NC area and they faired way better than western NC. He had cell service and internet the entire time. I'll have to ask him if he participated in any of the emergency nets since he has his amateur and GMRS licenses.

[piggin]

4 hours ago, WRYZ926 said:

@piggin glad to hear that you and your family are safe.

I had a few issues with the Midland MXT500 . The main issue was the power output was low. The max was about 33-35 watts. The other things are more of a gripe such as having to change everything from narrow band to wide band and also having to update the firmware to get more than 30 something memory slots.

Otherwise the MXT500 worked fine and they are very easy to program. My MXT500 went to our club's ecomm trailer. I agree that the MXT500 is definitely overpriced for what it is. But so is the Wouxun KG-1000G that I am currently using. Especially when you compare both to the Icom IC-2730. 

While I don't have the Wouxun KG-905G, I have been very pleased with the KG-935G and KG-Q10H radios. As you mention, the batteries last a long time if you aren't doing a lot of transmitting/rag chewing. I am going to get some spare batteries for both. 

For those worried about backup power for a base station, a decent 50AH LIPO4 battery and a solar charging setup works well for a single 50 watt radio. Especially if you are running it on low or medium power. I keep a 50AH LIPO4 battery in the shack for when we loose power during storms. That allows me to communicate during Sky Warn nets and with others as needed. So far I have only had to use the battery twice this year.

I have an uncle that lives in the Goldsboro NC area and they faired way better than western NC. He had cell service and internet the entire time. I'll have to ask him if he participated in any of the emergency nets since he has his amateur and GMRS licenses.

My first priority is getting some large LIP04 batteries, big RF-quiet inverters and charge controllers. And more solar panels and the wiring to make it all work together. Something big enough to run the refrigerator. Gas powered generators are cool but you need a lot of gas on hand. And oil. and maintenance.

My system was designed for winter storm related problems, when you can put food in a cooler and throw it outside to keep it cool. I lost a lot of meat in 7 days of high temperatures. I could not cook it all. We ate very well at first. By the time we understood how bad it was, it was too late. Fail.

 In the first days information was impossible to find about how bad it was. This was not helpful to say the least. The isolation caused by roads closed by trees and the sudden absence of bridges cut people off into small pockets. Most repeaters went down...people who relied on them were out of luck. And it became obvious right away that very few had equipment to talk far away with power backup too. My wire antenna for HF was buried under maple limbs 6 inches thick in the backyard.

 Even the authorities had trouble because the state linked system lost so many links from landslides and river crossings of the fiber backbone. The digital P25 system was so solid with traffic some departments had to use local comms and stay off the main state system. No one planned for complete infrastructure failure.

Plan accordingly.

  A seriously SHTF situation.

[WSFF871]

On 10/5/2024 at 12:47 PM, GreggInFL said:

^ A similar approach to a base station is a mobile setup.  The same power radio into a good antenna will get you much more range than a handheld.  Not as much as a base station with a better antenna, but still an impressive improvement.  Here is the Florida suburbs (flat with trees) my HT is maybe two miles, but my cheap 25W mobile into a small mag mount antenna is at least ten miles.

The added benefit is that it's mobile.  Assuming there are not massive trees on the roads post hurricane, I can drive the 4x4 to high ground for good comms.  Can't do that with a base station.  You can always move it inside to use as a base unit.

Hey Gregg... I am in FL too (Nocatee)... curious what your "cheap 25W mobile" actually is  (Brand/Model)....many thx

Bobby

[WSFF871]

9 hours ago, piggin said:

 I live in West Asheville. Got internet back some hours ago.

 Things that worked great during the aftermath which featured zero cell phone service, no power, no water, no internet. Power was out 1 week. Water out for 2 weeks.

Wouxun KG-905G with Nagoya 771G or Diamond RH77CA. I bought 3200mah packs for both HT's and they were charged fully as well as the original 2800mah batteries. I never had to charge them during 4 days of no cell service. I never had to swap out batteries either. I used one to scan to listen to work crews with a Laird FG-4503 antenna on the roof. It and the Bolton600 feed line went through the storm no problems at all. Wind rated to 125mph. A few days later I replaced the 4503 with a TE connectivity FG-4607...also 125mph wind rated. Giant improvement for listening close as well as far away! 

I only have the 2 Wouxuns so I gave my daughter a Quansheng K5-(8) Programmed with all gmrs and frs channels. We stayed in the first 7 channels and that radio performed flawlessly with it's stock antenna. It just sipped the battery and still showed full charge after 4 days of being used. Daughter much preferred the smaller "cute" radio. A solar power bank kept the cell phones charged as both ladies ran the batteries in them down as they fruitlessly searched for service.

The electric chainsaw and other Dewalt XR power tools did all I needed and also did not need charging for the week with no power.

  Whatever base radio you get, make sure you can power it. Overkill on the antenna windspeed rating is also recommended! Both GMRS antennas I have used have one piece radomes. And a 5 year warranty.

I bought a Midland MTX-500 because I wanted to test it and figured if it works ok it can be used as a mobile or base. It arrived on the Wednesday before the storm.

On Thursday the antenna arrived...and I took a break from pumping out the basement to unbox it. Friday all services disappeared.

 The midland is extremely easy to program repeaters into without a computer and it has enough power into repeaters to work well. I never needed it during the blackout. The HT's were more than enough. Power output seems fine as it draws very close to 9 amps@13.9 volts into the 4607 on repeater inputs. It has 128 channels too. No tone scan, a major omission. Audio recovery is excellent on weak signals. I was going to buy a part 95 kenwood but it will have to wait for my finances to recover. The Midland is way overpriced...it cost more than my Icom 2730A which is dual band and has crossband repeat built in. And tone scan and so many other features its nuts. But it's legal and works well.  The ANL is obviously a DSP noise reduction scheme that rapidly nukes intelligibility as you go past the lowest setting. The radio gets hot if you transmit a lot on high power. A small nearly noiseless fan I have on hand blowing air under the radio makes it stay nice and cool.

 The Midland never exhibited intermod or signs of overloading here before the storm when used with a high Comet GP-3. After the storm I heard some weird stuff that sounded like intermod but my SDR showed "someone" was using equipment that was a wide pulsed signal that moved around the band occasionally.

 It was heard on the Wouxun on the other antenna at the same time...as well as a Icom 8500. Not intermod. A strange out of place transmission. Only noted during heavy military air traffic. Its gone now...air traffic is much much lower.

The midland is great for scanning as the audio is good and it is much less noisy than the Wouxun. It performs on par with the Icom 2730 as far as sensitivity. It actually has a useful signal meter that only goes all the way up for really close or ultra strong signals. The wouxun pegs its scale so early it is useless for determining when someone is very close. I like the Midland, even though it is overpriced. The Wouxun KG-905G and the Nagoya 771G are both very highly recommended...as is the TE Connectivity FG4607 and the Bolton600 feedline.

 Sorry if this post is a bit chaotic or unclear. I am still a bit disoriented. I used ham radio, GMRS, and the scanners heavily for information. I won't post some of the things I heard. Really horrible stuff. Much worse than the media coverage conveys. I fared very well actually. But others lost everything. Many others.

 

Mr. Piggin....worry and pray and hope for all Y'all up there...read and watch alot of videos on your area on "X".... in any event, I have one question...do you think that you could set the Midland up inside the house with an external antenna on a painters pole...and power it with an EchoFlow or Jackery Battery Pack/Solar generator [note all or most of these type things have a 12-13 volt DC cigarette and/or USBC output on them as well as the 110V Ac outputs..fwiw]

In this manner you could set it up at home....and perhaps get some use out of it at a level above any "hand-held"....just a thought, would appreciate your opinon...Many thanks, Bobby (Jax, Florida)

[piggin]

12 hours ago, WSFF871 said:

Mr. Piggin....worry and pray and hope for all Y'all up there...read and watch alot of videos on your area on "X".... in any event, I have one question...do you think that you could set the Midland up inside the house with an external antenna on a painters pole...and power it with an EchoFlow or Jackery Battery Pack/Solar generator [note all or most of these type things have a 12-13 volt DC cigarette and/or USBC output on them as well as the 110V Ac outputs..fwiw]

In this manner you could set it up at home....and perhaps get some use out of it at a level above any "hand-held"....just a thought, would appreciate your opinon...Many thanks, Bobby (Jax, Florida)

Yes! Try to get one with a regulated output to ensure proper performance of the radio. Set it up where you plan to use it and test it. Make sure it performs to your expectations. Do that more than a couple times to get an accurate idea of the performance your getting and to sort out any weak links!

 For my use my good outside antenna is more than enough. I saved the battery power for charging the flashlights and the ladies cell phones. My lights never needed charging! On the last day without power the battery reached full charge so I connected my digital scanners and charged them up and the bank was still 100 percent full. I need a bigger battery and panels to go nuts with much power. My powerbank is small and has a 330 watt ac outlet which easily will run LED lights and small fans as well as ac chargers for all kinds of cells including my power tools. I found 5 watts from the KG-905G very adequate. With my antenna gain and low loss line ERP from the antenna is 20 watts+ with 4.5 watts into the feedline. Plenty enough for what I needed.