Cheryl_B wrote:
PowerTech On Advanced Technology PURE SINE WAVE Inverter 3000W Cont/6000W Peak, 12V DC to 120V AC w/ Black&Red Cables w/Ring Terminals, Remote Switch, Protection System & 4 Output Sockets PS1004
That is what it says on the website I'm buying it off of. (Not sure if the rules here say we can say the name.) How many batteries and what is a good brand and model (excuse my ignorance. I know it needs to be a deep cycle but don't know much more) will I need to keep the inverter humming?
I'm sick of campgrounds draining my funds. I'm ready to do more boondocking and I'm heading out West, where there are more opportunities to do so.
F
If I pay a guy to install these for me (new batteries and inverter), what's a fair price? And how long should the job take? Thanks allot.
At those power levels you should seriuosly consider a 24 volt battery bank, unless you are intentionally buying larger capacity than you need the currents will make the wiring expensive and likely noticeably less efficient with only 12 volts. Using 6 volt batteries that does limit you to 4, unless you want 8 but 8 is getting very heavy, large, and expensive. What is your power usage like?
As discussed elsewhere you need a generator or a lot of solar panels, likely 2kw or more as you are also going to need to install a larger charger to keep that big battery bank charged in a reasonable time. 75 amps is the smallest I'd use on multiple 6 volt batteries.
Note there are all types of batteries within the overall category 'deep cycle', and you'll hear lots of strong personal preferences beyond the technical issues (I expect to be challenged that anything but a 6 volt is 'deep cycle' ;-) ). Selection therefore can be complex depending on your situation but there is not the information here to even try to answer that in a more general fashion. Since it sounds like you are going to do a lot of dry camping 6 volt Trojan 'golf cart' batteries are likely a good start. They do take a bit more tender loving care than say an AGM type, and they are slower and less efficient to charge, but they are very cheap for their capacity (less than half of an AGM) and they store the most energy for their size of anything remotely affordable.
