Power Inverters

That reminds me, I had some problems in my last truck with plugging into the cig lighter. Whether it was the plug worn out or the socket or probably a combination, it wasn't making good enough contact to work properly. So the mechanic replaced it with one of those cheap cig lighters you can get from the auto parts store. Don't use one of those, it almost melted down. Those are only rated for about 5amps and the wiring/fuse in the truck can take 25amp so it'll just sit there and cook.

I solved that by picking up some 12g wire and male terminal ends that would plug into the factory wiring directly. I unplugged the cheap cig lighter and plugged the inverter in directly. It's never worked better in the entire time I've had it. Wires don't even get warm no matter how much of a load I put on it.

Worked with the 400 and the 800. Do not plug a 2500 in this way and expect to not be on fire when you wake up in the morning.

 

If you hook up the black on red and red on black...sure. But an improper fuse would fall under what and not how. But yeah, there are ways to improperly install an inverter. Wasn't the point I was trying to make. In my case, it's an average joe that doesn't know anything about jury rigging, and just prefers plug and play.

 

If you run 18 AWG wire to a 2500W inverter, you're going to have a fire. An improperly sized fuse that won't blow when the power lead is shorted, improperly swaged terminals, not using wire loom or a bulkhead insulator - are all things that will cause a fire.

My background is electrical engineering, and I'm here to tell you if you just slap dash an inverter into a truck with all the vibration and shock that is inherent in operating one, you're looking for trouble.

 

Leading causes of fires are from the floor hole penetration are not properly protected and not fused. Rule of thumb is the cables should be the same size as the mount holes on the inverter. No smaller! Length of cable run should be 4 feet and under preferably and extend the inverters use with short 6'-10' extension cords if necessary.

I don't think they make an inverter that runs a true 60 Hz. Plug a digital clock in and see how accurate it is. If it only loses a couple minutes an hour you have a good one. I've always been pleased with the Cobra brand as they serve a truckers needs and are a modified sinewave and won't hurt your electronics. You'll find the best Cobra prices on Amazon. SunForce, Meind and Xantrex makes a pure sinewave but you'll pay for it.

 

I've seen what happens when someone runs 12ga wire through the firewall without fusing and wire protection. I'd hate to see what can happen when 3/0 shorts out. Exploding battery, perhaps? In any case, I wouldn't want to be in the truck when it happens.

 

Might have been 10g, I don't have it here. It was the thickest that Petro had in the electrical section and thicker than the wire the inverters came with. I wired up a dual power outlet with it while I was at it. Only $6.50 for that and well worth it.

 

Power Inverter/Microwave Problem.

I have a 2000w power inverter wired into my truck. But when I use my 700w microwave to heat up something it takes about 20 minutes to get it there with the truck running. I took the microwave home and tested it on house current and it worked fine. Do I have a inverter problem? How do I test the inverter? Thank you.

 

Two possibilities come to mind:

1. Your inverter is not giving its rated output. Check the voltage when the microwave is running; an easy way is to plug in an incandescent light bulb and see if it stays bright. (The one built into your oven will work, provided it has one.)

2. Your microwave may not like the "modified sine wave" output of your inverter. There's not much you can do about that, other than replace one or the other.

 

I strongly suspect it is #2. You may also have an in-line fuse out. A 2000 watt inverter will often have 2 positive supply cables coming off the batteries. If one fuse is blown the inverter will still work with less power output. This happened to me once.

 

Thank you both. I will check it out and let you know what I find.