Inverter question

Thanx for the info. Only bought the inverter coz it was *cheap* to run the hair clippers (like to have a clean shaved head...can't stand hair) and mobile charger etc, thought it was a bonus it *would* run straighteners too....obviously not!! It's not a drama, would have been nice for the missus but not to be - don't think we will upgrade just to have nice hair!

KSV, Your inverter IS a switch mode power supply !

Country of origin has nothing to do with the quality of the product ! There is plenty of crap comming from other countries.

Many electrical products draw more current when first turned on then when they are running. The inverter may see this 'start-up' current as excessive and shut down. In otherwords it is doing what it was designed to do. It's a little like vehicle engines - there is no substitute for cubic capacity.

==>KSV, Your inverter IS a switch mode power supply !
Thanks, I know this :-) . Problem is some switchmode powersupplys (SMPS) relay on fact that incoming AC strictly sine, and thus if it is not they can do very funny things.

==>Country of origin has nothing to do with the quality of the product !
Sorry, mate, have not seen any usable drill bit or socket or spanner from China. All electrical stuff (i.e. drills) from them also mainly cr@p regardless of brand. Shoes useless also. Etc. Nowadays it is almost impossible to get computer or mobile phone made somewhere else and do not tell me that they became better in last years. Now I am scared to the death that I cannot buy spare parts for my car made not in China. And it is coming – heaps of oil/air filters now sourcing from them. I always check country of origin and never buy certain stuff from China regardless of price and brand.

==>There is plenty of crap comming from other countries.
However this is true.

I would be surprised if a heating element would only be 140w.

The things I do in the name of science!

Site Link

They do frequently come in around 140W but I suspect that when the element is cold it's resistance is lower and it will draw a high startup current causing your inverter to go into shutdown before the element has a chance to warm up and it's current requirement fall - exactly what the inverter is intended to do under overload.

150W is a bit on the low side for an inverter for anything more than battery charging, 300W is a better general purpose small inverter size. MSW is fine for the vast majority of applications. So either downgrade the hair thingie or upgrade the inverter?

Mike Harding

I stand corrected!
Although, I only said that I would be surprised, which I am, especially as your link shows some are only 80w.

Shaker! How could you think the delicacy and fineness of female hair would require more than the merest touch of heat to straighten it to perfection? (That should be worth a few brownie points I reckon :)

Mike Harding

KSV, You obviously have no idea about what machinery comes out of China. A large proportion of the worlds airliners have significant % manufactured in China and almost all the car companies have a large % of their vehicle parts made in China. If you have a problem with this then you had better get over it as that's just the way it is. Also, get used to the following term "BRIC', it stands for Brazil, Russia, India & China as that's where most of the worlds consumer and manufacturing economies are / will be located now or in the near future.

There is also a very big misunderstanding about the effects of modified sine wave and pure sine wave switchmode power supplies. Don't worry about MSW they will work with almost everything that you are likely to plug into them with no ill effects. It's just has a larger then normal ripple and will have absolutely no adverse effect on any simple heating device.

==>KSV, You obviously have no idea about what machinery comes out of China.
Actually and unfortunately I do.

==>A large proportion of the worlds airliners have significant % manufactured in ==>China and almost all the car companies have a large % of their vehicle parts ==>made in China.
Shame, but true. If it is came to the point when I can not source my spares anywhere except of china, then I will be only getting Toyota parts. Even I will know they from China, I would relay on Toyota reputation (sad, bit no choice)

==>If you have a problem with this
Yes, I do

==>then you had better get over it
No I will not

==>as that's just the way it is.
Unfortunately it is true.

==>Also, get used to the following term "BRIC', it stands for Brazil, Russia, India & ==>China as that's where most of the worlds consumer and manufacturing ==>economies are / will be located now or in the near future.
I get. Still not helps.

==>There is also a very big misunderstanding about the effects of modified sine ==>wave and pure sine wave switchmode power supplies. Don't worry about ==>MSW they will work with almost everything that you are likely to plug into ==>them with no ill effects. It's just has a larger then normal ripple and will have ==>absolutely no adverse effect on any simple heating device.
Key word here is “almost”. Yea, you right, almost. Except of made in China. Those seldom. And yes, absolutelly no effect on heating device or tungsten lights whatsoever.

Cheers.

quote/ Key word here is “almost”. Yea, you right, almost. Except of made in China. Those seldom. And yes, absolutelly no effect on heating device or tungsten lights whatsoever. /quote

Presumably MSW inverters made in China are somehow a different design to those made in Japan and they won't work using MSW where-as those from Japan will??? I think not.

A huge proportion of companies manufacture in low cost countries using contract manufacturers to the companies' spec. If you buy a product from a well know brand, manufactured in China and it's no good then you have no-one to blame but the company for failing to ensure the manufacturer met it's spec.

I've seen plenty of product come from western manufacturing locations that failed because of internal company quality control. Pick your manufacturer not your country of origin.

Andrew

==> Pick your manufacturer not your country of origin.
Unfortunately I have opposite believing. One day I was trying to install SCO UNIX. I have kill whole day for nothing – it was coming to the same point and then stuck, so I have to start from very beginning. It was incredibly frustrating exercise. Finally I make an idea that it is CD ROM playing funny. So I have replaced it with *EXACTELLY* the same unit – same brand (Sony, BTW) and even the same model number. Difference was one made in Chine and another in Singapore. Guess what? Everything went flawlessly. Bad luck? Possibly. But somehow more bad lucks happen with stuff made in China, as least it is my observation. Regarding to MSW invertors made in China v somewhere else. If it is the same brand, then we usually only dealing with QA issues. But if it is Ku King Poo Production Limited (i.e. cheap no-brand sh1t), then usually they incredibly overstate power – either by using some theoretical peak power number or simply lying. Have you seen computer speakers of cigarette pack size rated at 100W? Talk to any audiophile about this.
Cheers.

No - everything else works - she will have just to do her hair some other way - cheaper.

PeterD