BougeRV Flash 300 Power Station

Words and photos by Perry Mack

It arrived on a cold, grey, damp day in early February. We watched the FedEx truck bump up our frozen farm driveway. This occurrence is often the highlight of our day (or week) since we haven’t been able to escape the Canadian winter this year. What does one do to beat the winter blues? Shop online for RV ‘necessories’ while looking forward to warm, sunny, spring days RVing!

FedEx delivered our new Flash 300 Power Station from BougeRV. It’s a small, lightweight power station that can deliver portable electricity while camping, boating and other outdoor adventures.

What is a power station? At its heart it’s usually a Lithium ion battery, which the electronics of the power station allow it to be charged using either AC or DC power. A power station doesn’t generate electricity; it is an energy storage device. Its ‘superpower’ is that the stored energy can be used to charge or run almost every electrical device from smart phones to lights, to laptops and TV’s. And best of all, it can be charged with solar power, making it the perfect complement to outdoor activities.

The Flash 300 is one of the smaller power stations available storing 286 watt-hours (Wh) of energy. Determining how many Wh’s of energy you need is easier than it seems. If your laptop is rated at 50 watts (W), it means that it needs 50 W to run for an hour. If you look at the number of watts each of your devices need, and how long you need to use them, you can determine how large a power station you need. 

Two items of interest to keep in mind while calculating your needs is that during daylight hours, a power station can be charged using solar power and then charge or power your devices throughout the day and be fully charged when evening falls. Check our guide to choosing a solar system in Snowbirds and RV Traveler Volume 20 Issue 1 for a detailed explanation. Secondly, those devices with batteries (phones, tablets, laptops, cameras, Bluetooth speakers) could be fully charged when night falls, which means you have the battery life within your devices plus the energy storaged within the power station. The key is to have the right number and size of solar panel(s). 

The Flash 300

This power station has several features that make it stand out from the other choices. Recharging to 90% of capacity in 30 minutes is very, very fast - just plug it into your shore power (electric grid) or using the built-in MPPT controller connect up to 600W in solar panels. It comes with the cables required for charging using grid, solar and vehicle power.

We drained the power station to 0% and plugged it in to time the charge rate. The charging was instantaneous. Within seconds it had climbed to 5%. The display shows the input Watts (in our case 550W to start), the current charge level, and the time left to charge. In 15 minutes, it had reached 50% and reached 90% in 28.5 minutes – slightly faster than advertised. It was another 8 minutes for the battery to reach 99%. This is typical for lithium ion batteries. When the State of Charge (SOC) reaches more than 90%, the internal resistance of the battery rises, making the charge rate slow down. This is the reason why battery electric vehicle (BEV) manufacturers advertise the charge speed ‘up to 80%’. 80% sounds good and the final 20% takes a lot longer.

Other features we like are the built-in lights, wireless charging for our phones, wrap around handle, 8 charge ports and an AC charging cable, which doesn’t require a bulky adapter (like our Dometic PLB1000). There’s also a 100W USB-C Power Delivery (PD) (IN/OUT) outlet which gives you 10x faster charging speed for capable devices – pretty much all current phones and tablets.

The size is also appealing, at just 6.6kg (14.6 lb) and 69x48x46 cm (27x18x19 in) makes it perfect for camping RVing, boating, picnics, trail days and tailgating. Heck, you could drop it in a backpack if you’re feeling energetic.

One thing we didn’t like is that although the Flash 300 supports pass-through charging (charging the power station while running devices), doing so reduces the battery life, so it is not recommended. This is typical of most power stations – they support the feature, but don’t recommend it. Another FAQ, it won’t start your truck, it doesn’t have the cranking amps required, although with the right cables or smart battery maintainer it could certainly charge your vehicles battery.

In an age of single purpose appliances, the well-engineered, multi-purpose devices shine brightest. They need to be versatile, reliable, rugged and ready for a multitude of activities.

For a full list of the specifications including the User Manual visit:

https://ca.bougerv.com/products/286wh-flashcharge-power-station

Lithium iron phosphate（LiFePO4）vs lithium nickel cobalt manganese - Li (NiCoMn) O2 batteries.

There are several types of Lithium ion batteries, but the two main contenders are compared here. Each has its own pros and cons.

Li (NiCoMn) O2 batteries function better in colder environments (Flash 300 down to -10°C), they have a higher energy density (240Wh/kg) providing 1.7 times more power, and they can charge faster. The list of cons includes a lower safe operating temperature (under 45°C), and the additional materials used (nickel, cobalt, manganese) make them more expensive to build.

LiFePO4 batteries have a relatively stable composition allowing them to cycle (charge/discharge) up to three times more than Li (NiCoMn) O2, which translates into a greater battery usage life. The other benefit is that the more stable composition provides a higher safe operating temperature.