[Andy A.]

I am curious.

What kind of current load does that put on the 120volt mains supply? In the unlikely event that it were to be charging 5 batteries at full current, it would be outputting 30 amps at 12 volts DC. I don't know what kind of efficiencies are involved with the rectifiers, but I'm guessing that the load on the mains is high.

I'm just always mortified at the thought of blowing a breaker at a regional. It happens here at college from time to time, and the offending residents are usually heckled and picked on for killing power to their circuit. It's like some nerd faux-pas. I have no idea what kind of circuit protection is used at these venues. Which raises another interesting question- just what does a venues electrical bill look like during a competition?

I doubt its a real problem, but I've always been curious about how much load we put on the pit electrical systems. Between the battery chargers, cordless drill batteries, laptops, drill presses and all the other power hungry stuff we use in the pits, its got to add up to something.

-Andy A.