Who's Installed an inverter?

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Escapepod

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Because we often dry-camp in our travel trailer, we installed a 1,750 watt inverter. It's wired to the 110 v outlets for convenience. Who's got an inverter in their FWC, and what do you use it for? (I should have mentioned: we've ordered a Grandby. Thinking about an inverter for it too.)
 
Me. Had a 300W pure sine wave .... it died (manuf defect) and I am now running a small 75W POC. Use it for charging batteries of various kinds... phones, laptops, cameras
 
Escapepod,
I use a small 150 watt inverter for my DSLR battery charger. It is the only device where I have not found a reliable (& inexpensive) 12v DC charger. Every other electronic device I use can be powered or charged from 12v.

The good thing about getting 12v chargers is that you can charge either in your truck or in the camper where the solar panels do most of the work.

Many newer devices charge from USB. I keep USB chargers in the camper 12v power ports.

Paul
 
I have a 300w in my Grandby. It is split wired to the 120v outlet, the top plug in is still wired to shore power and the bottom plugin is wired to the inverter. Mostly used for laptops and a DVD player. In a front dinette there is room for an inverter under the battery charger.
 
When I built out my grandby shell last year I installed a Xantrex inverter/charger. 1600 watt inverter, 40amp charger.
When the campers in the garage the charger keeps the batteries topped off.
I have a plug for 120 but so far only used it for a friend who needed his bike lock cut off at the beach.
On my boat, I watch t.v., charge drill motors, charge my iPad with a similar inverter.
Thought It would be nice to have the option camping.
All said we’re still newbies but in 2 months we’ll start camping seriously and see what works.
 
We have a large inverter sized for a microwave or hairdryer. But what we use it most for is powering a 12x24" heat pad at night, similar to this one.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sunbeam-Heating-Pad-KING-Size-ULTRA-Heat-Tech-12-x24-732-500-New-In-Box/112780679674?hash=item1a424099fa:g:Y5cAAOSw61habX3R

60w max, with a shutoff timer, used a few times a night, most nights outside of peak summer. For someone who sleeps cold and has chronic back pain it's gold. And the second best thing we've added to the camper.
 
1250 used for the microwave and the odd device that isn't 12v (laptop) or usb. Its wired to a separate outlet.
 
I've run a ProWatt 2000 Xantrex inverter hard wired to an Odyssey PC2150 in my truck for 2 years now with zero issues.

When my Hawk arrives, I will be moving it into my Hawk and running 110 outlets for photo charging gear.
 
I have a 300W inverter that I use for small device charging. It has a built in USB port. Many devices charge off of USB so I mostly use a 12V to USB for charging, it is more efficient I believe. A power off switch on any inverter is a good idea, many have substantial parasitic loss when on but not in use.
Bill
Customized Grandby shell
 
Vic Harder said:
When I can yes... but like PaulT, there isn't a good 12V charger for my camera batteries.
Click to expand...
I have the same issue. I have a 75W inverter just for charging the DSLR battery. It would be nice to have a USB option.

I currently use USB in the camper to charge. iPhone, iPad, Nitecore flashlight, Monster Bluetooth speaker.
 
I've considered installing one so that I can run my laptop while out there. It'd be nice to be able to edit pics and vids, write...or even do work while boondocking.
But which one?!?!
 
hoyden said:
I've considered installing one so that I can run my laptop while out there. It'd be nice to be able to edit pics and vids, write...or even do work while boondocking.
But which one?!?!
Click to expand...
Check the input power numbers on your laptop's power cord/transformer. Likley says something like 120V, 2A. So 240W. You are unlikely to need more than 400W for a laptop. Especially as you can leave it plugged in while using it, and some of the power can come from the laptop's battery, and recharge more when you are done using it.

Here is a nice simple write up - https://learn.compactappliance.com/power-inverters-guide/

A pure sine wave inverter would be best, as it makes less electronic noise, which keeps motors and sensitive electronics happier.
Reviews here - http://waveinverterreviews.com/

Very basic and simple would be something like this: https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-Power-Inverter-Smart-Adapter/dp/B01DP9JE18/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1519160652&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=bestek+pure+sine+wave+inverter&psc=1

I note this one gets good reviews - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001539BCE/?tag=waveinverter-20
but looking at the picture, it has a small green dongle on the back like my Victron did. DID... it broke off. I can't recommend a device that has a tacked on connector like that.
 
hoyden said:
I've considered installing one so that I can run my laptop while out there. It'd be nice to be able to edit pics and vids, write...or even do work while boondocking.
But which one?!?!
Click to expand...
Check to see if you can get a car charger for the lap top.
I got one for my HP.

I wouldn’t carry an inverter if all my camera chargers didn’t need 110vac
 
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