Inverters

[joetiger]

I know there's been a lot of talk about the merits (or lack thereof) of wiring an inverter into your dual battery setup, but I decided that I might need the AC power at some point during the trip I'm about to take, so I did some checking and found this one at Radio Shack:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2194431

350W, a mere $20 until Saturday.
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Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
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'04 Golf R32

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[jackbombay]

Should work fine, I have a 300 Watt (600 surge, like the one you linked) one that I got for $20 from a truck stop, charges cameras, laptops, etc... And it will run a stick blender too on lower speed settings so we can have blended soup and smoothies at the campground
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[scobax]

Joe,

That looks like a pretty good deal, you can't go too terribly wrong for that price. Wiring the inverter to the aux battery is a good way to go, and fairly straight forward to do.

FWIW, here are some unsolicited notes;

While the output wattage is an important factor, so too is output amperage. If you are intending to run anything that might have a heating element, or draws alot of amps, you may want to check the amp draw for each device to see if the inverter will put out enough amperage. It sounds like you are just thinking about basic 110 devices like laptops etc. so you should have plenty of overhead with that 350w unit.

If you are planning to run just a laptop with the inverter, you may find that a more efficient option with regards to battery consumption would be to get a 12v power cable for your laptop. This way, you will use a lot less current while running your computer since computers run on 12vDC already, and to plug one into an inverter consumes more energy by inverting the current to 110AC, then back again via the small inverter placed inline on laptop power cables. That being said, it may be cheaper/easier to buy this $20 inverter than the 12v cable for your laptop (if you can even find one), plus the inverter gives you a new set of options for running/charging other 110 devices.

I mounted my inverter inside of the cabinet under the sink, and ran the cable to the aux. battery from there. I then took a piece of extension cord and plugged it into one of the inverter ports then ran it back to the 110 outlet on the lower cabinet near the bed. Now, one of the outlet ports is powered from the inverter and the other one is wired to shore power. Works like a charm.
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[fairweather]

I've got that very unit. I rarely use it but when I do for a computer and to charge 18v flashlight batteries it does the job. I just plug it into a 12v jack.

[camundson]

[Ahwahnee]

[smokin_dodge]

Looks to be a good deal

2.9Amps @ 120 volts or
3.18Amps @ 110 volts

volts x amps = watts


should be more than capable to run a laptop and anything smaller - my Beast of a laptop - 2004 toshiba with 2 processors only pulls 1.8amps.

and you can do just about anything technologically with today's laptops

[Volksaholic]

I've got a 300 Watt (not that brand) and a quick connect that I can hook it straight to the battery. That did the job for charging phones, computers, batteries a couple years ago on a trip to CA, but it's not enough for me to run a blender to make margaritas! That's not the end of the world, but it's a fun treat for the kids when camping (non-alcoholic for them, of course).

I'm still in the process of putting my Wolfsburg back on the road, but I grabbed a dead 500 Watt UPS from work and I'm going to wire (or try) its inverter to the car battery. While I'm at it I might see if it's got the oomph to trickle charge the car battery, since it's got the charging circuit for the UPS battery. If I fry it, I'm out nothing. In fact, I've since acquired an 800 Watt with a dead battery... it would be nice to have the reserve power if I need it, but for charging phones and running laptops you don't need much more than 100 Watt.

Paul
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1988 Wolfsburg Edition, 2001 Subaru EJ251