Open Air Business April 2017
The UK's outdoor hospitality business magazine for function venues, glampsites, festivals and outdoor events
The UK's outdoor hospitality business magazine for function venues, glampsites, festivals and outdoor events
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GLAMPSITES<br />
LEFT The SolarMate Arena Light from<br />
Solar Technology International can<br />
illuminate an area of up to 200 square<br />
metres<br />
BELOW The NIWA Home 200 X2 from<br />
Portable Power Technology is an all<br />
in one modular solar system<br />
you advice and potential cost solutions<br />
that are both environmentally friendly<br />
and cost-effective. You can, for example,<br />
install a battery pack or generator - not<br />
unlike those you might find in a caravan<br />
or boat. These batteries work in a similar<br />
way to a car battery; you charge them and<br />
power is stored ready for use.<br />
There is a wealth of options to choose<br />
from when deciding how to light your<br />
off-grid accommodation. This is where<br />
you can really indulge in the hiss of a<br />
Tilly lamp. Nowadays, of course, we can<br />
make great use of solar lamps or battery<br />
powered lighting. These are a great option<br />
if you are nervous of a naked flame or you<br />
want to avoid the smell of methylated<br />
spirits. The choice is huge.<br />
Portable Power Technology offers<br />
solutions that harness the sun’s energy to<br />
deliver power without resorting to noisy<br />
and polluting generators, which may<br />
detract from the glamping experience.<br />
“A lightweight, portable system is a great<br />
way to please all customers depending<br />
on their energy and lighting preferences,”<br />
says Whymark. “Portable systems<br />
are also ideal if you have to take your<br />
accommodation down between seasons<br />
and are also maintenance free with no<br />
serviceable elements,” she adds.<br />
THE TECHNOLOGY<br />
Solar Technology International designs,<br />
prototypes, manufactures, markets and<br />
distributes a wide range of brands that are<br />
suitable for powering phones, tablets and<br />
cameras, water pumps and mains quality<br />
lighting for a complete off-grid power<br />
solution.<br />
As Williams explains, “Solar provides<br />
an instant, clean and efficient renewable<br />
power source that can be scaled up or<br />
down accordingly. Small, portable lighting<br />
and power units such as the SolarHub16<br />
ABOVE The Solar Charging Can from Mobile Solar Chargers is a standalone solar/battery set up<br />
which is scalable<br />
provide an instant indoor lighting solution<br />
via bright LED strip lighting or pendant<br />
lighting that allows the fitting of a<br />
lampshade, and can light an area of up to<br />
16 square metres.<br />
“It also provides enough power to<br />
charge a smartphone or tablet and can<br />
power a 12-volt fan. Larger scale outdoor<br />
lighting solutions include the SolarMate<br />
Arena Light that is capable of lighting an<br />
area of up to 200 square metres; the PIR<br />
mode allows motion activated operation<br />
and it is the perfect solution for bringing<br />
light to any large open space,” he adds.<br />
Mobile Solar Chargers is a specialist<br />
retailer of a range of portable solar<br />
chargers, power banks and portable<br />
power solutions. According to Smerdon,<br />
the minimum requirement for safety and<br />
basic needs, assuming your guests are<br />
staying for a summer weekend or a weeklong<br />
break, are power for hot water and<br />
some cooking - although they are likely<br />
to prefer a barbecue or may even choose<br />
a local pub - as well as lighting, phone<br />
charging, Wi-Fi and perhaps an option for<br />
heating or cooling the air.<br />
“For the glamping market, I would<br />
concentrate on the ‘standalone’ options,<br />
i.e. a generator (240-volt AC) or the Can,<br />
a solar/battery set up, which is scalable.<br />
A cross between the two is a hybrid<br />
generator, which has a diesel generator to<br />
back up the solar,” he says.<br />
“Portable Li-Po (lithium polymer<br />
battery) should be charged daily and<br />
is ideal for use in bell tents. To give an<br />
idea of Ah (capacity) a standard phone is<br />
around 2.5Ah, so a 50Ah battery would<br />
give 20 odd charges with no solar help.<br />
You can position solar panels on the roof<br />
of a hut with a bank of 12 volt batteries<br />
on the ground, but if you are considering<br />
power for a non-rigid structure, such as a<br />
yurt that can’t hold solar panels, then our<br />
Solar Charging Can would be an option.”<br />
The portable Solar Charging Can has<br />
been designed to be silent and to replace<br />
generators. It provides automatic lighting,<br />
phone charging, remote CCTV and Wi-Fi,<br />
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