Looking into Inverters Options

wa8yxm wrote:
First you need at least 200 amp hours of battery per kilowatt of inverter. So you need 2 pair of GC-2 or better for a 2,000 watt inverter.

I will not recommend a brand.. I use a Xantrex myself (prosine 2.0 no longer made) but I will recommend a type TRUE SINE WAVE.

Why.. I read about many things that work weird on inverter power.. For example. Clocks racing, Microwaves cooking slower. Electric Blanket controllers smoking, NIGHT LIGHT CATCHING FIRE!!!. Radios making a really nasty noise, Sparklies on TV screens and more.

ALL these folks are using an MSW inverter.. Not one of them was using a True Sine Wave.

Here is the list of things that will not work with my Prosine:
Any device needing more than 2,000 watts to start.

I have the same inverter and am very happy with it. Running the microwave it draws 150 amps and more from my 4 GC rated at 484 AH. If 4 12V deep cycle would have fit I'd have gone that route. It didn't really like the 4 group 24s that were in there previously.

Try this specification on for size...

Using 120 volts as the norm and a starting resting battery voltage of 12.7, how many instant amperes does it take to draw down the battery to 12.00 volts? 11.7 volts? 11.5 volts.

A CCA rating for a battery gives an idea of instant potential but remember, the CCA test rating is for 9.6 volts - far below the voltage minimum needed by an inverter.

Can a single battery power a 2,000 watt inverter? Yes. At it's maximum design output potential? No. For a useful length of time? No. A person may argue "But how about at lower power settings?" My answer to that is "Why was a 2,000 watt inverter chosen in the first place?"

Time for fun:

Same set of batteries, measure the kWh extraction out of batteries powering a MSW inverter which powers a microwave oven. Then substitute a pure sine wave inverter and see how much ENERGY is extracted out of the batteries to heat a liter of water to 60C. This is different than the time element, right? The PSW heats the water faster. But how about the amount of battery energy needed to heat the water? Compare the two. Forget about time. Concentrate solely on how many kWh or fractions thereof was needed to do the job. Inductive motors don't utilize modified sine wave energy the same way as they utilize pure sine wave energy. Same goes for transformers.

Artum Snowbird wrote:

smkettner wrote:
Minimum 100 amp hours for every 500w is the rule of thumb that I know.

I am wondering more about the current carrying capacity of the battery itself, not the available amp hours. Can the internals of deep discharge batteries handle high enough current to support the load?

You need 4 minimum of those Group 27/29 batteries to properly run a 2000w inverter in normal use such as 3 to 10 minutes microwave or hair dryer. If you plan to run something for an extended period like over an hour you will need more battery, much more. Those batteries are just over 100 amp hours.

First you need at least 200 amp hours of battery per kilowatt of inverter. So you need 2 pair of GC-2 or better for a 2,000 watt inverter.

I will not recommend a brand.. I use a Xantrex myself (prosine 2.0 no longer made) but I will recommend a type TRUE SINE WAVE.

Why.. I read about many things that work weird on inverter power.. For example. Clocks racing, Microwaves cooking slower. Electric Blanket controllers smoking, NIGHT LIGHT CATCHING FIRE!!!. Radios making a really nasty noise, Sparklies on TV screens and more.

ALL these folks are using an MSW inverter.. Not one of them was using a True Sine Wave.

Here is the list of things that will not work with my Prosine:
Any device needing more than 2,000 watts to start.

smkettner wrote:
Minimum 100 amp hours for every 500w is the rule of thumb that I know.

I am wondering more about the current carrying capacity of the battery itself, not the available amp hours. Can the internals of deep discharge batteries handle high enough current to support the load?

Minimum 100 amp hours for every 500w is the rule of thumb that I know.

Now I understand that the OP wants 2000 watts, and allowing for a bit of a reduction, lets say that is 150 amps at 12 volts to give him 1800 watts.

What is the maximum one can safely extract from 2 Group 27 or 29 12 volt batteries? Would not a battery designed for starting a heavy engine be a better choice than a battery designed for deep discharge but at a slower rate?

And considering that all current comes through both batteries if it is two six volts batteries, what is the maximum current that they can handle safely? Once again, six volt batteries are deep discharge and not designed for high current like starting batteries.

Maybe he is planning on four batteries for a 2000 watt inverter?

Here is a good place to shop.

Richard

Moved from TC Forum.

Wayne
Moderator

Moomba2002 wrote:
Looking for options on a 2000 watt inverter for occasional use. I was wondering what other brands people have installed as I know of Xantrex but not sure I want to spend that much right now. Looking forward to seeing some options. Thanks for the feedback.

Looks like you spent a lot on your truck.

You will need a good size battery bank for such an inverter and a generator or converter too.

Jerry