Inverter Location/Installation

now I am not sure about this but I thought a inverter was like a transformer inside , I didnt think the water could have done much damage ,
there you go I have learnt something new , I thought the only problem was when it was connected to the battery and got sibmerged it could electicute you , thats why I sujested the relay , thanks truckster

Not many things electrical like to be submerged..

Matt,

Make sure you use a decent cable rated at least 40amps. A 300 watt inverter can draw in excess of 25 amps when running an appliance at max wattage. Also make sure you fuse as close to the battery as poss to protect if the cable or inverter shorts out. These units can get quite hot when running for a while so consider this if placing it in a confined space.
Cheers

Thanks for that Mark, will do. I may put it in the foot well of the passenger side instead I want to run a laptop from it. i had it in the rear before but now have a cargo barrier there too hard to get to.

cheersKeep It On The Rough Stuff

Matt (W.A.)

Hi Matt,
Yeh, the 300w inverter will draw heaps, full load, so run a hefty cable and a 30A or so circuit breaker.
Re getting wet, a modern inverter looks like the insides of your computer with lots of electronics; they don't like water.
Re running your computer from the inverter, check if your computer uses an external power supply. If so, then it probably runs off about 12-20v dc, with the power supply doing the conversion. If this is the case, you can get a nice computer power converter from the likes of Dick Smith or Jaycar which will do the job (Jaycar cat MP3462, about $90). This will improve the efficiency of the conversion (not double-converting 12-240-15v). Using a large inverter for small current draw usually results in much less than the quoted efficiency, so you lose out there, and may run the battery down quicker.
I carry both; a dc-dc converter for the laptop, which works a treat, and a 380w inverter just for the coffee grinder (beats instant) and occasionally the bamix. Oh, and for recharging camera batteries (I have no way around this one; it's a special charger).
rgds
Gerry

Matt,

you mention you have a cargo barrier. Why not mount the inverter up there? No water hassles, plenty of air flow to keep it cool.

As they radiate heat, your passenger may not like it mounted at their feet, or under their butt come summer. Nice in winter though :~)

SKMost human problems can be solved by an appropriate charge of high
explosive."