Need Help Wiring Inverter.

Looks like its 6 guage wire to me.

Welcome new member! You are getting a hard time, but don't worry--it is all really simple. You can be your own ATS by just plugging in the shore power cord to either the :

A. Pedestal or stick house
B. Generator, or
C. Inverter

If inverter, turn off or unplug the converter. Put fridge and water heater on gas (not "auto" for the fridge), and forget the air conditioner.

Now all you need to decide is what 120v items you want to run on inverter. You can run the electric toaster and kettle on a 1000w but you need a 2000w to run the microwave (plus lots of battery bank).

You do need your generator and a portable charger or converter switched on to recharge the batteries during "generator hours" or after "quiet time" later on, next day or whenever you get down to 50% battery.

For more on what size inverter to get or whether you need two, see:

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/28673682.cfm

grizzzman wrote:

smkettner wrote:
Go Power has a transfer switch that will isolate the converter.
Might break the bank however.

http://www.boatandrvaccessories.com/gp-power-gp-ts-transfer-switch.html

BTW, where does the utility cord connect?

Most transfer switches can do this. You need to add a fuse to the converter feed and hook them up to the cord side of the transfer switch. In this way when the cord is powered up the converter will be also. Tnen turn off the the timer on the transfer switch. If you are a boondocker then i would suggest you use the relay posts that are normaly closed to the inverter to conserve power.

I think I see what your saying, Unhook the converter from the existing breaker and tie it directly to shore power near / In the ATS with a new breaker or fuse. Essentially eliminating the need for the relay.

Sam Spade wrote:

glamisduner wrote:

Why not? Do you have a better suggestions?

Please share your ideas!

Just for starters, it's expensive, complicated and probably unnecessary....and maybe even dangerous if you make one little mistake.

What EXACTLY are you trying to accomplish ? A LOT of people have been getting along for a LOT of years just with the 12 V accessories and appliances that the RVs come with.

For instance.....I have a 12 V small TV. I run my generator morning and evening to run the micorwave and charge the batteries; I run it more if A/C is required.

What do you hope to accomplish that a generator would not do better ???

(If you already have your mind made up then.......never mind.)

Mostly we don't like having to run the generator to plug in chargers, TV, Laptops etc. Our TV is actually a 12V, but it runs off a 110V power brick. It's installed in the roof with a 110v jack right next to it. The only 12V cigarette jack we have is on the side of the trailer in the middle of the cabinets.

For the first few trips we ran an extension cord from a 110v inverter we set inside the cabinet to the power brick hanging from the ceiling. This means we have to leave a cabinet door open, extension cord on the floor + dangling right in the middle of the trailer up to the ceiling. Laptops can only be used by plugging them into the inverter in the cabinet etc.

It's very unsightly. Ideally we would have a 12v TV and plug next to it in the roof but we do not. (at least the plug next to it would have been nice I would have tried to just cut out the power brick and soldered on a cig light plug instead for optimal efficiency)

--------------------

I don't think the setup is that complicated, Basically I install an ATS, and an inverter.

We don't have an RV we have a toy hauler, the only 12v accessory in it is the lights and fans.

Yes the generator works better except it is loud, wastes fuel, and puts a lot of hours on it for doing simple tasks. I also don't like running it during sand storms which is when I end up inside the trailer watching tv. Lots of reasons to want to avoid using the generator every time I need to chjarge a gopro battery etc.


You guys have convinced me to save the $50 and just get the 600 watt inverter instead of the 1000w. Then I can probably get away with running 4ga wire from the battery with a smaller inline fuse. Or maybe I could just tap into the 4ga wire already near the panel? (Would this be ok to do with a 600 watt?)

glamisduner wrote:

smkettner wrote:
Go Power has a transfer switch that will isolate the converter.
Might break the bank however.

http://www.boatandrvaccessories.com/gp-power-gp-ts-transfer-switch.html

BTW, where does the utility cord connect?

Got a link?

I like that switch, however I'm pretty sure I will be working with romex and solid wires so the plugs won't do me any good. We can either plug in shorepower to the trailers primary cord, or plug the trailer into itself to use the generator. Under the refrigerator the cord is terminated into a junction box, from that junction box some romex is run under the trailer and to the panel.

So I would like to add the ATS near the panel, but I'll have to see if there is enough room, otherwise it will go under the refrigerator and I will run new romex to it. Here's some pictures:

Main Panel, there is a removable panel to the left the size of one of the cabinets, I was planning to put ATS and inverter in there.
Main panel by glamisduner, on Flickr

You can see the existing 4ga cable, The small red wire in the block can be removed, I am wondering if I can just add some 4ga wire from that free terminal to power a 600w inverter, but still would have to figure out what to do for ground (Maybe buy a small distro block can be added behind the panel).

This is the the utility plug termination, it's on the opposite side of the trailer under the refrigerator. if I can't fit the ATS switch and inverter in the cabinet, I will essentially be replacing that junction box with the ATS, but this will require running some fresh romex, (2 cables if I want to wire in the converter as well).
Utility plug termination. by glamisduner, on Flickr

smkettner wrote:
Go Power has a transfer switch that will isolate the converter.
Might break the bank however.

http://www.boatandrvaccessories.com/gp-power-gp-ts-transfer-switch.html

BTW, where does the utility cord connect?

Most transfer switches can do this. You need to add a fuse to the converter feed and hook them up to the cord side of the transfer switch. In this way when the cord is powered up the converter will be also. Tnen turn off the the timer on the transfer switch. If you are a boondocker then i would suggest you use the relay posts that are normaly closed to the inverter to conserve power.

glamisduner wrote:

Why not? Do you have a better suggestions?

Please share your ideas!

Just for starters, it's expensive, complicated and probably unnecessary....and maybe even dangerous if you make one little mistake.

What EXACTLY are you trying to accomplish ? A LOT of people have been getting along for a LOT of years just with the 12 V accessories and appliances that the RVs come with.

For instance.....I have a 12 V small TV. I run my generator morning and evening to run the micorwave and charge the batteries; I run it more if A/C is required.

What do you hope to accomplish that a generator would not do better ???

(If you already have your mind made up then.......never mind.)

you only need to switch the the converter on/off
you do not need to switch the DC circuits on the converter or inverter
and you need to turn the inverter on/off which will have its OWN remote switch

i see very little difference in use between a new switch for the converter and the OEM circuit breaker, unless other items/recepticles are also powered by that circuit breaker

I used a six-pole, three-position, center off rotary switch rated at 60 amps for a manual transfer switch.

The converter was wired to the same CB that powered the non-GFCI circuits so I moved it to its own breaker.

Two poles of the switch direct the hot and neutral of the inverter and shore power to the main breaker. The other four poles interrupt power downstream of CBs for the AC, WH, converter and the outlet for the fridge when the inverter position is selected.

When the switch is in the inverter position the MW circuit, GFCI circuits and non-GFCI circuits are all powered. The converter is automatically turned off and the things I can't or don't wish to power from the inverter can't be accidentally turned on.

The transfer switch is usually left in the inverter position since we rarely use FHU. The only thing we have to remember to do is turn on the inverter remote switch.

So far it has been idiot proof.

I actually installed 2 of the ATS's. The other one is on the on the GFI circuit so she plug in her curling iron in the bathroom without starting the gen.

CJW8 wrote:
I struggled with your dilemma with my first RV. I tried to plug the whole RV onto a 2K inverter and always has to remember to switch off the converter. Wife never remembered. I needed the new RV to be fool proof. I decided all I wanted on my inverter is my outlets. Since the converter is on its own breaker with a dedicated outlet, I left it alone. Then I installed a Xantrex 15Amp transfer switch on the outlets circuit only. It works fine. Sometimes it transferes fast enough that the TV doesn't go off and the sat receiver doesn't reset. Sometimes it doesn't. To fix this, all devices at my entertainment center are now plugged into a UPS. My Xantrex has the remote on/off switch and I would recommend this.

That's what I initially tried with a 150 watt inverter. Blew it up without the ats ...I forgot to turn it off and plugged the trailer into the house lol.

Not all my outlets are on the same breaker though and my refrigerator is on the same circuit as the interior outlets. GFCI outlets are on a separate breaker. But it might be good enough to only power the refrigerator and the interior 3 non GFCI outlets.

I struggled with your dilemma with my first RV. I tried to plug the whole RV onto a 2K inverter and always has to remember to switch off the converter. Wife never remembered. I needed the new RV to be fool proof. I decided all I wanted on my inverter is my outlets. Since the converter is on its own breaker with a dedicated outlet, I left it alone. Then I installed a Xantrex 15Amp transfer switch on the outlets circuit only. It works fine. Sometimes it transferes fast enough that the TV doesn't go off and the sat receiver doesn't reset. Sometimes it doesn't. To fix this, all devices at my entertainment center are now plugged into a UPS. My Xantrex has the remote on/off switch and I would recommend this.