I do not think there is anything worse than heading out to your truck, climbing in the seat, and turning the ignition only to hear the soul-sucking sound of a dead battery. The slow groan of the engine followed by the “Click, Click, Click” of the solenoid only confirms the nightmare. Add to this problem the fact that you are boondocking alone deep on BLM land, and yep, you have got a major problem which may be bigger than just a ruined day.
The problem
Automobile batteries possess the unique ability of dying at the worst possible time, being that it is virtually impossible to predict when your battery is going to kick the can. What do you do? Whether it’s truly a bad battery or you just forgot to close your truck door and ran the battery down, you’ve got to follow the Boy Scott motto “Be prepared.”
Jumper cables are of little help if you are alone when your battery decides to die. Have you ever tried to jump yourself off with a pair without the assistance of another car? Even then a small car is not going to jump off my diesel truck. I’ve carried jumper cables for years and all they have ever been good for was obligating me to position my truck in front of another person’s vehicle so that I could jump them off.
The solution
I am a HUGE proponent of self-reliance and recently I was introduced to a product by a close friend that intrigued me: a rechargeable lithium-powered jump box. This is a very small and lightweight box with short cable clamps coming out of it that is capable of jumping off a diesel truck 80 times—on a single charge!
The NOCO GB150—This unassuming little contraption pumps out an amazing 4000 Amps (22500 joules), providing enough power to jumpstart in seconds any engine with a 12-volt ignition system up to 10 liters gas or diesel.
The NOCO GB150 has a built-in flashlight to assist in seeing under the hood at night and a built-in voltmeter which will help in diagnosing if the battery is indeed bad. Unlike jumper cables, the NOCO has built-in spark prevention and reverse polarity protection making it safe and easy for anyone to use.
Using the NOCO Jump Box
Using the NOCO GB150 is super easy. Just hook it up, turn it on, and BOOM, crank the vehicle. With the ability to jump your own vehicle off as well as others, having a jump box is a no-brainer.
An added bonus is that the NOCO system can be used to power any 12-volt device such as a tire inflator or small inverter. It can also charge any USB device like your cell phone or tablet if needed.
Since owning my NOCO GB150 I have had the opportunity to use it a couple of times on other vehicles. Once was a small car and the NOCO cranked it probably better than the new battery would.
The second was a guy in a dump truck. When he saw what I was going to use he laughed and said, “There ain’t NO WAY!” The NOCO made a believer out of him FAST! I hooked it up and when he turned the key that big old diesel engine came to life.
Benefits
One of the great things about using a jump box vs jumper cables other than the NO SPARKS is the fact that you are not tasked with trying to position a vehicle so you’re close enough for the cables to reach. You also are not connecting your vehicle to one that might potentially have electrical problems.
Knowing that I not only have the ability to assist myself but also help someone else makes owning and carrying my NOCO Jump Box worth every penny. I highly recommend that if you are going to travel and camp in areas where you are going to be alone that you carry one of these handy little boxes with you. They are small, lightweight, and easy to store. It could quite possibly get you out of an unforeseen jam.
