Laptops and power inverters

All true.... in addition I have a 75 watt that plugs in to lighter and has a USB port on it as well. So cheep I don't remember the cost. Works will even for laser jet printer

 

i have a cobra cpi480 (400w continuous, 800w peak). works great for laptop, cell phone charger, cordless toothbrush, my female electric shaving razor.

charge everything while I drive. unplug it at night unless i am idling.

 

same here,

everyone says i'm using more watts the it's capable of running. yet i've had no problems with everything i run. and nothing has been modified. not even the truck source fuse

 

I love how this thread jumped from 2007 to 3 hours ago....but anything electrical you can buy at a TS I can buy on amazon.com for half as much.

 

we can all BUY from amazon.com. and then wait around till it arrives at our house, AND we get home to collect.
EXCEPT, that we have no idea when we're going to need a replacement. and you actually have to SPEND MONEY.

the beauty of buying from the TS. is that it's there, right on the spot. we can walk right out the door with our product. IMMEDIATELY.
and if your smart. you use points. therefore, costing you NO MONEY out of your own pocket. it's totally FREE.

so why your buying yours from amazon.com for 1/2 price. and waiting for it. we're driving down the road with our replacement. and didn't even pay your 1/2 price for the item.

 

I got mine at Northern Tools and bought the #2 battery cables from Autozone.

What I do goes beyond what you get from a TS. They don't see full syn converters which is what you really need for things like computer, Xbox and TV. Fridge, fans microwave don't seem to be that sensitive.

Paid $850 for a full synwave 3000 watt inverter. I have it hooked to 2 deep cycle marine batteries which are charged separately from the truck batteries, but are also wired through a battery shut off switch like you find in a race car (came from my X275 Mustang) and while idling I run them concurrent. When engine is off, I then just let the 2 batteries run the fridge over night. I had issues before where this would drain all my batteries. That's why it's separate now.

I tried to run it with the regular cables you would find at truck stops. The cable would get hot and my inverter would go into protect mode screaming at me. Scared the pants off me in the middle of the night once.


I run a hotel sized fridge with freezer that I bought at Walmart for $169. Then I have my laptop, xbox 360. Actually was my son's but he plays the PS4 now so I confiscated it so I could play my Forza games. I have a cheap 1000 watt microwave, coffee maker, HP Printer/fax/scanner, dirt devil vacuum and 2 10" fans. I think that's it. No problems running any of these things. Oh.. and I have a hot plate that I've never used. LOL

Hurst

 

I have gone a step further in all of this. I use Xantrex inverter/chargers. I don't need a lot of power, as most my stuff is low wattage electronics and a few smaller items. But I like charger features. I can hook into shore power or a portable generator and give batteries a full, complete charge while sitting and using the other stuff that needs AC or DC power. A little pricier than just an inverter, but a lot of features for the buck. Great for making batteries last a lot longer as they are not having to cycle as much. My Yamaha EF2000is will run for almost a complete 10 hr break on 1 gallon of gas and take care of electrical needs and battery charging, along with running a oil pan heater that makes cold starting a lot nicer.

One does not necessarily need a true sine wave inverter to run all the sensitive electronics. There are things called line conditioners that will take a modified sine wave output and provide very smooth sine wave for plugging in sensitive stuff. Doing it that way may or may not be a more cost effective solution, depending on power needs and inverter costs.

And there are great places online to get the correct cables and inline fuses you need for a reliable, safe setup. I prefer to buy online and have it shipped for a lot lower price. I go home every weekend, so I am not that desperate to fulfill some instantaneous gratification thing by spending more at a truck stop.