These two forms of power are just not compatible.  In order to be able to power your laptop and charge it from your car battery, you need to use a simple device called a power inverter. Power inverters come in all shapes and sizes and range in price from $20.00 to $20,000.

The power inverters used for powering laptop computers are very inexpensive and can be purchased online or in your local automotive store.  You’ll probably find a much better selection and get a much better price if you purchase your power inverter online.  For a simple job of powering a laptop with your car battery, you can get by with a very small power inverter that simply plugs into your car’s cigarette lighter outlet.

If you want to be able to power larger electrical loads with your car, you’ll probably want to purchase a power inverter that is much larger.  Although the size of them is actually bigger, when I say larger what I’m referring to is the amount of wattage that the power inverter puts out.  For laptops you can probably get by with a simple 50 watt power inverter but if you would like to run power tools from your work truck with the power inverter, you would be wise to purchase a three or 4000 watt power inverter.

It’s not a good idea to try to run these large power inverters from your cigarette lighter outlet.  These outlets simply don’t have large enough fuses and you would constantly be blowing the fuse if you wired these larger power inverters up to plug into your car’s 12 volt power outlet.  For these larger models, you will want to hard wire them into your car’s electrical system with heavy gauge wiring.

• You can drink a ton of caffeine, or pop a couple No-Doze.  Only problem (other than heart irregularities) is that caffeine is a diuretic, and you’ll be stopping to pee at every mile marker.  That’s no way to travel.

• You could roll your windows down and let the cool air blow your eyes open.  But what about during bad weather?  Not to mention, the drag of open windows isn’t great for gas mileage.

• Blast some tunes at full volume.  We’re getting warmer, but that’s a good way to sign up for long term hearing damage.  And as a more immediate concern, you likely won’t be as focused on the relevant road noises around you.

All of the aforementioned techniques are alright in small doses, but for folks driving their families on long trips, and the trucker crew making late night hauls, you need something subtle, that only chimes in when you need it most.  Enter the driver alarm.  A driver alarm is a device to help stay awake while driving.

Most of them look very similar to bluetooth headsets, and you wear them in the same comfortable fashion.  They’re filled with a mercury leveler so when your head starts to tilt down from road fatigue, it recognizes the angle, and a sounds a quick alarm.  Most can be found for under $10 – not really a bad investment for something that could potentially save your life.

Of course, a driver alarm is only a last ditch supplementary tool.  There truly isn’t any substitute for a good night sleep.  If you’re to a point where you’re struggling to stay awake, there’s no shame in having your lazy spouse take over for a while.  Better yet, just pull over in a rest area and take a refreshing snooze.  Tell the lot lizards I said hello!  But if you just don’t have time to stop, you better put a driver alert device in your ear, partner.