Two 6 volt vs two 12 volt run time
I was just informed that two 6 volt batteries would run the residential refrigerator many times longer than two 12 volt batteries. I wonder if this is just hype?
Forum Discussion
tinner12002, etc
Most simple drip coffee makers draw around 900 to 950 watts so a 1500 watt inverter will do the job fine but you must have enough battery amperage available and large enough connecting wires. On the bottom usually of all AC or DC current items it will tell the amps or watts max the item will take. Very important! Never have an electrical circuit that can handle less that what your draw will be and I prefer a 10%-15% safety margin so fuses are not likely to blow if the voltage drops as with lower voltage the amps draw will increase. 117v AC is the normal recommended and 110v when item running is a min to me for longer item life. Others may think a little lower voltage is ok but that is up to them. Lower voltage makes motors run hotter and burn out faster and heater circuits will have less output.
Keep 12V DC wires as short as possible like 4 feet or less to the inverter and go to the next larger wire for up to 10 feet. 12v DC has a lot of line loss resistance with long leads. That means mount the inverter as close to the batteries as possible for best results. I'd recommend a min of 200AH of battery/batteries min for a 1500 watt inverter. 300 for a 2000 watt and 400 for a 2500 watt as a min. Only you knows what you may use the inverter for so you make the call.
Once thru the inverter and changed to 110v AC, with 50 foot length there's very little voltage loss.
If you have a basement area under your inside floor, it's quite easy to fish a wire thru and come up under where you want the outlet like next to a lower cabinet door etc so you can mount things. In 2 of our RV's in the past, I simply ran a #14 ga 3 wire outdoor rated extension cord and left the female end inside the cabinet and just opened the door and plugged in what I wanted to and closed the door as much as possible without pinching the cord. Hey, it's a temporary hookup and then unplug and close the door.
I don't have any idea how you lower area is constructed or where your batteries are in relation to your kitchen so you must figure out what will be the easiest way. It only takes about an hour to install a circuit like mentioned. If you have to drill or cut a hole for the new wire or cord, be sure to reseal around the wire to prevent air leaks, mice holes, or the new wire from rubbing and chaffing on the cot or drilled hole edges. If you purchase an inverter with a remote on/off switch or can plug in a remote switch, the inverter can be in a storage compartment and you operate it from inside the RV.
On a side note:
A poster said the fumes from the batteries is lighter than air and goes up. Not to argue with him but I have put a very heavy load on my batteries thru the inverter for about 20 minutes until the batteries got warm to the touch and got under the vent tube under the trailer and smelled the off gassing coming from the tube. then opened the compartment and there was NO smell in there so I know the gasses went out the vent tube. Did the same smell test again after recharging the battery bank until full charge and had the very same results. My off gassing only goes out the bottom 1/2" dia plastic water pipe elbow to under the trailers!
Added to this is elbow on the bottom threaded end of the elbow on the outside under the trailer, I screwed on another elbow to it and pointed the open end toward the rear of the RV so it acts like a venturi suction tube like in a carburetor and thus when driving or a wind blowing sucks the air thru the compartment OEM vents and thru the battery box and pulls any fumes out. Never had any fumes in the compartment or and corrosion of any kind in there. The RV 65 amp converter, the 2500 watt inverter, the OEM 12 volt system fuses, and the 5 big lead acid deep cycle batteries are in that compartment plus our PP grill and some other smaller things. Using common sense, and it's a big help, for doing things right!
Most simple drip coffee makers draw around 900 to 950 watts so a 1500 watt inverter will do the job fine but you must have enough battery amperage available and large enough connecting wires. On the bottom usually of all AC or DC current items it will tell the amps or watts max the item will take. Very important! Never have an electrical circuit that can handle less that what your draw will be and I prefer a 10%-15% safety margin so fuses are not likely to blow if the voltage drops as with lower voltage the amps draw will increase. 117v AC is the normal recommended and 110v when item running is a min to me for longer item life. Others may think a little lower voltage is ok but that is up to them. Lower voltage makes motors run hotter and burn out faster and heater circuits will have less output.
Keep 12V DC wires as short as possible like 4 feet or less to the inverter and go to the next larger wire for up to 10 feet. 12v DC has a lot of line loss resistance with long leads. That means mount the inverter as close to the batteries as possible for best results. I'd recommend a min of 200AH of battery/batteries min for a 1500 watt inverter. 300 for a 2000 watt and 400 for a 2500 watt as a min. Only you knows what you may use the inverter for so you make the call.
Once thru the inverter and changed to 110v AC, with 50 foot length there's very little voltage loss.
If you have a basement area under your inside floor, it's quite easy to fish a wire thru and come up under where you want the outlet like next to a lower cabinet door etc so you can mount things. In 2 of our RV's in the past, I simply ran a #14 ga 3 wire outdoor rated extension cord and left the female end inside the cabinet and just opened the door and plugged in what I wanted to and closed the door as much as possible without pinching the cord. Hey, it's a temporary hookup and then unplug and close the door.
I don't have any idea how you lower area is constructed or where your batteries are in relation to your kitchen so you must figure out what will be the easiest way. It only takes about an hour to install a circuit like mentioned. If you have to drill or cut a hole for the new wire or cord, be sure to reseal around the wire to prevent air leaks, mice holes, or the new wire from rubbing and chaffing on the cot or drilled hole edges. If you purchase an inverter with a remote on/off switch or can plug in a remote switch, the inverter can be in a storage compartment and you operate it from inside the RV.
On a side note:
A poster said the fumes from the batteries is lighter than air and goes up. Not to argue with him but I have put a very heavy load on my batteries thru the inverter for about 20 minutes until the batteries got warm to the touch and got under the vent tube under the trailer and smelled the off gassing coming from the tube. then opened the compartment and there was NO smell in there so I know the gasses went out the vent tube. Did the same smell test again after recharging the battery bank until full charge and had the very same results. My off gassing only goes out the bottom 1/2" dia plastic water pipe elbow to under the trailers!
Added to this is elbow on the bottom threaded end of the elbow on the outside under the trailer, I screwed on another elbow to it and pointed the open end toward the rear of the RV so it acts like a venturi suction tube like in a carburetor and thus when driving or a wind blowing sucks the air thru the compartment OEM vents and thru the battery box and pulls any fumes out. Never had any fumes in the compartment or and corrosion of any kind in there. The RV 65 amp converter, the 2500 watt inverter, the OEM 12 volt system fuses, and the 5 big lead acid deep cycle batteries are in that compartment plus our PP grill and some other smaller things. Using common sense, and it's a big help, for doing things right!
