charge king 2500w pure sine wave inverter

But it's a bargain, how could you not buy one.

Wait until he see's the price of the battery setup he's going to have to use.

IMO anything over 1000w is generator territory.

Hi Jo-Anne, I dont blame you for being a bit miffed over some of the responses received. I dont know the inverter you refer to, but if you envisaged running a freezer
or washing machine from one while camped your battery storage wont last very long
unless being continually recharged. Perhaps a suitably sized generator would be more
simple, but folks can get a bit tetchy over generators, & inverters for that matter. But if you have other uses for a larger capacity inverter, go for it. You should have read the tirade I copped for running my 3way on 240 via a 2400/1200 inverter while
travelling. They calmed down a bit after the safety precautions were explained. By
the way, that inverter cost less than $150 on Ebay, runs the fridge & doesnt even
get warm or start the fan...all off the starter battery. Dont give up on us EO lot
yet...maybe need to explain the intended use etc a little more fully.
cheers......oldbaz.

Hi Jo-Anne,

I can understand why you might not have been too pleased with certain responses, but I really think you're reading too much into those responses.

Most of us don't pay a great deal of attention to the gender of the person asking the question. Its usually the question itself we're responding to. Whether that's the case here or not is for those who posted to answer for.

I have to say I was quite surprised at your own reaction to those questions, but can appreciate that if you've been subject to frequent put-downs throughout your researching, that might have coloured your view.

Most of the people who frequent this forum are genuinely trying to help. If they only get part of the story, they can easily come back with comments that the original poster, with his/her more complete knowledge of what he/she is trying to achieve, finds offensive, but that often comes from a lack of communication on both sides.

I seriously doubt that anyone was trying to put you down - they most probably had little understanding of what you were hoping to achieve - but they may have had serious reservations regarding the battery capacity you wanted to operate on, what appliances you wanted to drive and in what circumstances you might have been intending to operate them.

Perhaps if we all relaxed a bit, this forum would be better able to provide the service for which it was created. :-)

Regards,


Charlie

Thank you oldbaz and Charlie - I don't mean to be overly sensative and despite your assursions to the contary, lets face it the girls are very largely out-number when it comes to those "knowing" anything about camping/4wd etc.
Despite this, I have found that all too often the experts (often self proclaimed) are only interested in anything that involves big $$$$'s with fancy flashy bells and whistles.
My original question related to something that seemed too good to be true - and it probably is, but still no one else has apparently come across it, seems a bit strange to me, but maybe that means it really is junk.
I am still a bit miffed about the reservations expressed about battery size - my understanding is that an inverter converts from 12v to 240v - bottom line if you run out of battery power the inverter has nothing to convert.
Currently we successfully run the 180Lt (new style) household fridge/freezer plus basic lights etc on the battery-500w pure sine wave inverter for 3 days without the need to start the vehicle (F250) or start the small generater (used to re-charge the battery).
Given that we are not grey nomads and only have the standard 4 weeks annual leave, this is normally quite adequate for our needs. Our thoughts about upgrading to a bigger inverter are only related to the reality that we really are pushing the current inverter to its upper limits when the fridge/feezer kicks in.
I must admit that I had no idea that there could be an inverter that was too big.
So to answer everyone's questions - yes we have a small generator - 1 KVA (but not a Honda); the AGM battery is one of the biggest that we could afford, lift and fit into the available space; no, we don't have sola panels - they were simply too expensive back in 2006 and we have limited room; and we drive, bush camp either overnight or for a few days; drive again and if and when necessary we stop at a caravan park.
Just to add a little extra - we usually tow a 9 mt boat, which makes us nearly 19 mts in length - not necessarily an easy rig to bush camp with - certainly not in the eastern states - and in 2007 we spent 22 weeks on the road, and survived - we are not novices - and yes the we means there is a man involved (my husband).
I thank everyone for their imput - I will take the advice and continue my research.
Jo-Anne

Jo-anne, you can get a 2400/1200w modified sine wave job off Ebay for $170 or a
4800/2400w for around $200. Either will do the job you require of it. Mine is Chinese
but works fine as said. I would go for the bigger one, & provided you dont increase
the load it should still give you 3 days from your battery setup. No inverter is "too big",
larger ones will generate less heat & less fan run time & so actually draw less from
your battery.........oldbaz.

I bought a Powertech 1500W PSW Inverter on Ebay for a once in a blue moon application on a Pontoon boat, it was cheap around $209, is certified and comes with a Aussie Plug. I want to run a wet/dry 1400W vacuum cleaner and a 700W Microwave occassionally.

Hi Oldbaz,

Umm... the bigger inverter you buy the higher the ineffciency - you can buy an inverter too big for your needs.

Every inverter has a "standby" power draw plus an efficiency factor. So if one was to buy say a 2400W inverter, yet only use 600W power, the larger one would be drawing several amps more for the same 600W load.

While the efficiency factor is close enough to be the same for most inverters, the "standby" power draw is proportional to the size of the inverter, hence why it is best to buy an inverter just big enough for your largest load.

Cheers

Captain

G'day Captain, while I dont dispute your theory, I'm a little unclear on the detail.
You're saying my 1200w job is drawing several more amps than a 400w one does to
deliver say 200w to run my fridge, because of "standby" draw. Is this difference
negated by the fact the 1200 produces no heat & the fan never runs, whereas I expect the 400 would produce sufficient heat to run the fan continually. How many
amps am I drawing when the thermo has the fridge off ?. I run the fridge (& inverter)
for as many hours as we drive, off the single starting battery, & up to an hour
with the engine off. No starting issues but not game to exceed that hour. I know
the fridge is a small load, but I have used it to run a drill (700W) & angle
grinder (900w), when it was easier to do that to repair a fellow travellers trailer, than
to unpack the Honda 20i. For those reasons I find little downside to running a higher
capacity unit, as one never knows when one may need it. Cost of such a unit is very
small compared to smaller capacity jobs, longevity ? who knows..done 14 weeks
touring so far..cheers......oldbaz.

At the end of the day as long as you have the battery capacity to run the inverter in question then the draw isn't critical. I try and use 12v for everything, I have even sourced some high power LED floodlights to replace my 240V (marine applications here) , I only use the inverter to run a microwave and 1 or 2 other things on an adhoc basis. In emergencies I would be happy to run the engine to charge the battery to power the inverter if I had to.

Hi Jo anne
Just a few points
A modified sine wave inverter can give problems with many devises,
particullarly MOTORS
Some users may have found them ok
Many others have had problems
I would suggest you stick with PURE sine wave
A much larger than necessary inverter's standby current will nearly always be higher than a smaller one
THIS can be overcome by switching "off " the 12v supply when not using
Be aware that plugging such devises into the van wiring , is the first step to possible dangerous faults which can lead to elecric shock .
The standard recommendation is to only connect ONE devise [one that requires an earth connection ,has a 3pin plug] AT ANY TIME
YOUR van if connected becomes that FIRST [one] devise
Every additional 3pin devise encreases the potential for a dangerous fault to develop
Finally do not believe that any RCD ,either plug in or the one in the van is operational
It will not be ,unless the inverter is correctly ,& permanently connected into the van's 240v wiring
Note the same applies to generators
ALL inverters & generators should be used with great care
Peter

Sorry Peter I am a little confused by your post -
firstly, I am, and only ever have contemplated a pure sine wave inverter - my first post stated that the unit was pure sine wave - so I have now issues with Motors.
higher current (?) and switching off the 12v supply - the unit we are currently using draws for a 12v AGM battery - turn it off and we don't have power - that simply "doesn't work" if we are trying to run a fridge/freezer 100% or the time (which we do).
Why would converting 12v via a inverter to 240v and then using this power in the same way (van 240v wiring) be more dangerous than plugging into a standard 240v power source (fist step to possible dangerous faults - electric shocks)?
One device at a time (?) not terribly practical.
RDC not operational - our inverted power souce feeds into normal van wiring in the same way as outsourced (Caravan Park/home) 240v does. - The 2 power sources can NEVER be suppling at the same time - we have an absolute fail-same device to ensure that. Why then wouldn't our RDC be working - if it works with standard 240v supply?
As I have explained previously - we only use a generated to charge the battery, via a battery charger - it does not supply power to the van.
Have I missed something in your post - I am still confused.

Hi Jo-Anne
Sorry I did not mean to confuse

Re;:"I am, and only ever have contemplated a pure sine wave inverter - my first post stated that the unit was pure sine wave - so I have now issues with Motors""

Yes that is how I read it,& as long as you stay with PSW you will be ok but another poster suggested that MSW would be OK
I was purely warning THAT MSW inverters do not treat motors kindly

RE:"higher current (?) and switching off the 12v supply - the unit we are currently using draws for a 12v AGM battery - turn it off and we don't have power - that simply "doesn't work" if we are trying to run a fridge/freezer 100% or the time (which we do"""

If you are doing that you have no option but to leave it on full time
IS the fridge only 240v ???


RE:"Why would converting 12v via a inverter to 240v and then using this power in the same way (van 240v wiring) be more dangerous than plugging into a standard 240v power source (fist step to possible dangerous faults - electric shocks)?
One device at a time (?) not terribly practical.
RDC not operational - our inverted power souce feeds into normal van wiring in the same way as outsourced (Caravan Park/home) 240v does. - The 2 power sources can NEVER be suppling at the same time - we have an absolute fail-same device to ensure that. Why then wouldn't our RDC be working - if it works with standard 240v supply?
As I have explained previously - we only use a generated to charge the battery, via a battery charger - it does not supply power to the van. """ The 2 power sources can NEVER be suppling at the same time - we have an absolute fail-same device to ensure that. Why then wouldn't our RDC be working - if it


The whole point is it is not the same & your van RCD is not operational with a generator or inverter but is operational when on mains supply
This is due to different wiring /earthing methods, You will just have to trust that as an electrician I KNOW what I am talking about
Using only one 3pin devise IS the standard recommendation for safety, Unless the generator or inverter is PERMANENTLY FITTED & CORRECTLY wired with a RCD
Yes ,inconvienent I agree ,but that is the safest way
The other solution is to have the inveter PERMANENTLY fixed& wired CORRECTLY into the van's wiring
NOT PLUGGED IN
The test button on the RCD tripping the RCD does not show anything other than the mechanism is working ,
IT does not test the circuit for correct wiring for it's operation


RE :"The 2 power sources can NEVER be suppling at the same time - we have an absolute fail-same device to ensure that""

That is obvious with only one power inlet , but is not the problem

THE problem lies with the use of multiple 3pin devises , the encreased risks of dangerous faults developing & a non operational RCD

Peter

Hi Jo-anne,

This power thing just gets more complicated doesn't it!

Peter is spot-on about the RCD issue. Unless you want a long explanation about MEN systems, floating earths and neutrals, just trust the advice Peter gave and NEVER connect more than 1 three prong plug into a generator or inverter 240V power supply. While the risk is very small, it is real and likely fatal if it does occur. But if running off mains 240V, then not an issue.

As for running a larger inverter to supply your fridge AND washing machine, as both of these have 3 prong plugs it is unadvisable to run BOTH of these at the same time. Far better to unplug one and then use the other when running off generator or inverter power.

However, to answer the previous question about inverter size and is bigger better, think of a small and large inverter as a 4 cylinder and V8 engine. At small loads, the 4 cylinder will get better economy than the V8. But when you apply a bigger load, the 4 cylinder won't cope while the V8 will be able to do so easily.

If you don't mind "paying" for the extra consumption of the V8 when running small loads, then go for it. But if you want to maximise your economy (battery amp hours), don't get a V8 if a 4 cylinder will do.

Cheers

Captain

Peter is spot on. Also worth noting his comments about the fridge, Joanne, it should be 12v / 240v. I presume you are talking about a caravan.? If your fridge is only 240v then get the dual voltage and run it off 12v. As for a washing machines there are manual ones you can get. Please excuse me if this is not the case, just trying to throw up some suggestions.

Thanks everyone for your help - believe it or not we are not totally new-kids-on-the block. Some of the things, some of you have said have been helpful - some, well....
We have operated this system very effectively (with the smaller inverter) for a considerably lengthy period - it works, and it has been inspected and it is safe. We will continue to use "our" system.

Over and Out