12v wire thickness
I have a 2kw inverter and will be getting a 100a converter for my 2 100ah lifepo4 batteries. Currently I'm just using whatever ga wires came with everything (a bix of 4/6/8).
I am planning on changing everything to connect through a BUS BAR and upgrade all the cabling to heavier ga. I want to future proof it to handle a 3kw inverter.
It's been REALLY confusing figuring out what wires I need. ALMOST everything online "(forums and articles) tell me I need something like a 4/0 guage, which is HUGE. That makes sense considering 3kw can reach 200-250 amps. Except the fact that no OEM items come with something nearly this thick.
I think the reason all these recommendations may be wrong is they do not account for length of wire being very short in our use cases.
Can anyone confirm?
I've found this site, which DOES take into account length:
http://www.offroaders.com/technical/12-volt-wiring-tech-gauge-to-amps/
It looks like considering everything is definitely under 4ft, I won't need anything over 4ga. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure that ampacity is over max 4ga rating when you look it up.
Using this calculator: https://baymarinesupply.com/calculator I get 2ga for my 2kw and 1/0 minimum for the 3kw. If this is the case I would likely go with 2ga to save money and more importantly because I don't even think the 1/0 would fit in the current inverters lugs.
Can anyone make any recommendations based on actual knowledge and not just heresay or making best guesses?
I am planning on changing everything to connect through a BUS BAR and upgrade all the cabling to heavier ga. I want to future proof it to handle a 3kw inverter.
It's been REALLY confusing figuring out what wires I need. ALMOST everything online "(forums and articles) tell me I need something like a 4/0 guage, which is HUGE. That makes sense considering 3kw can reach 200-250 amps. Except the fact that no OEM items come with something nearly this thick.
I think the reason all these recommendations may be wrong is they do not account for length of wire being very short in our use cases.
Can anyone confirm?
I've found this site, which DOES take into account length:
http://www.offroaders.com/technical/12-volt-wiring-tech-gauge-to-amps/
It looks like considering everything is definitely under 4ft, I won't need anything over 4ga. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure that ampacity is over max 4ga rating when you look it up.
Using this calculator: https://baymarinesupply.com/calculator I get 2ga for my 2kw and 1/0 minimum for the 3kw. If this is the case I would likely go with 2ga to save money and more importantly because I don't even think the 1/0 would fit in the current inverters lugs.
Can anyone make any recommendations based on actual knowledge and not just heresay or making best guesses?
