Console gaming with an inverter and auto shutof off truck

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by Slashermas, Dec 1, 2016.

  1. DustMyBroom

    DustMyBroom Light Load Member

    161
    182
    Oct 11, 2016
    0
    Is it purely an automatic shutoff, or is it part of an optimum idle system?

    Others have covered most of your options above. The only one I'd add is that you can wire an inverter directly to the battery. Find someone who knows how to do it, and make sure the company shop is okay with it.

    As long as you idle the truck every 3-4 hours, you should not have battery issues.
     
    Dominick253 and x1Heavy Thank this.
  2. Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

  3. x1Heavy

    x1Heavy Road Train Member

    34,017
    42,132
    Mar 5, 2016
    White County, Arkansas
    0
    None taken.

    Those things are capable of taking a great deal of money in a hurry. Im sure some of the older ones here recall the 70's and 80's coin op arcades (I was a part of that...) When the gambling devices came out it really got bad as far as people losing money on those things.

    I made a reference to going inside and gaming with the others inside the truckstop. We did not have consoles in the sleepers in our time but we did spend a x amount of dollars per week I think it was 10 total... if that in quarters... and most of the time as a team with wife we relied on VCR movies for entertainment. The laptop did provide for gaming in my later years.
     
  4. Slashermas

    Slashermas Bobtail Member

    5
    4
    Dec 1, 2016
    0
    My company states it's a no go on connecting inverters to the battery, but they said they are adding apu's to the trucks soon. So maybe I have to just be patient and wait, huh?
     
    x1Heavy Thanks this.
  5. x1Heavy

    x1Heavy Road Train Member

    34,017
    42,132
    Mar 5, 2016
    White County, Arkansas
    0
    Check with the Purchasing Manager inside your Company and see if they are fixing to buy the Tripac that Chinaman talked about. A APU in my opinion should offer some 120 volt house power to the cab somewhere because not everything is 12 volt.

    An alternative is to run a 6 gauge feed cable, something for starter motors into the cab with a huge heavy duty 12 volt supply on one end where you can tie a inverter in that feeds directly to the APU when it's running. But something to take off and stow when driving and visiting company shop. Might be something to think about for your 34 hour resets.

    Ive been thinking over coffee this morning how gaming has gotten from the old mechanicals and pool halls to the 70's then the late 2001's gambling plus incessant demands for dollar bills in the modern gaming machines and ultimately the demise of DVD/CD based retail gaming for computer work into online gaming that has also itself evolved into a smart phone or even tabliet type situation where it's free to pay but whip out the credit card to buy the light sword or some such silly virtual products to master it.

    Trucking to me is a duty for a long time, If I was looking at downtime it was either in the truckstop or certain establishments around the USA which were pretty classy but not the sort of thing for marrieds etc. I don't talk about that too much because there have been a few friends that I probably would have married and had a dozen children by now if life went a certain way.

    Today's young people should not be dependant on gaming too long each day because the technology such as a LCD display literally resets the body clock and erases it to where you CANNOT sleep properly for your 8 hours or whatever in that sleeper berth. It might be viewed not only as a finanical drain but perhaps a dangerous liability against your duty to be rested with a clear head each driving period behind that 40 ton vehicle.

    I know I said earlier I was not going to say anything. But as it evolves I think perhaps people should consider where we are going now and in the near future. What's next chips in our brains?
     
  6. Salad

    Salad Medium Load Member

    343
    428
    Mar 1, 2015
    0
    Idk if Heavy is trolling or not.

    Two small lighter plug inverters will let you game fine. You won't be gaming in giant stretches anyways (unless you're sitting a LOT).

    I was able to get my xbox one and a small tv to work on a single inverter.

    Don't let anyone belittle your hobby, I game every day. It doesn't hurt my ability to sleep; and most of these crusty old cuss' couldn't turn a ps4 on.
     
    Boattlebot and Dominick253 Thank this.
  7. Slashermas

    Slashermas Bobtail Member

    5
    4
    Dec 1, 2016
    0
    So your two inverters plugged into different sockets will do the trick? And don't worry, I don't take the "you should do be doing XD instead of Y" arguments seriously because people relax through different means anyway. Some people
    prefer to read, some prefer socializing instead :)
     
    Dominick253 Thanks this.
  8. x1Heavy

    x1Heavy Road Train Member

    34,017
    42,132
    Mar 5, 2016
    White County, Arkansas
    0
    Im no troll. Im a PC gamer who builds multi thousand dollar rigs at home to suit every few years. Leave it at that.

    I do share thoughts, facts, opinions and sometimes lunch counter material. But a troll? Not so. If you want me to troll you, you will have a monster on your hands and you and I will go bye bye when the mods get through with us ...

    Peace mister, offer what you know and I will maybe learn from you. Who knows. Everyone has a fair shot at saying what has to be said, Trolls are easily disposed of.
     
  9. Salad

    Salad Medium Load Member

    343
    428
    Mar 1, 2015
    0
    Yeah it will work, as long as your TV draws under 150w. Once the batteries get low the accessory power will probably auto kickoff, but you should get several hours of play before that happens. Though if it's important to you (it was for me, part of the reason I picked my current company) an inverter is such a blessing. I was able to put my gaming laptop in the truck, not to mention all the other conveniences like my griddle and microwave.
     
    Dominick253 Thanks this.
  10. Slashermas

    Slashermas Bobtail Member

    5
    4
    Dec 1, 2016
    0
    Trolling is a lost art anyway
     
    x1Heavy Thanks this.
  11. bluerider

    bluerider Light Load Member

    246
    208
    May 16, 2012
    Washington, DC
    0
    Read books instead.
     
    x1Heavy Thanks this.
  • Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.