Shore Power/Inverter Shuffle--One Solution

[BFL13]

Others have done something similar, but this might help anyone doing RV renovations, and looking at a nightmare of transfer switches, converter switches, sub panels, and all that. 😞

This is what I have done in the 1981 Truck Camper to solve the usual problems with going "whole house" on inverter. All this is now inside the camper in a cupboard easily accessible from inside to make the change overs.

First, I removed the big ugly shore power cable and put a new short cable with a 15a plug out from the 120V breaker panel, since all we ever do is 15a stuff with "power management." You can do yours higher amp as required.

Second, got this as the new shore power cord

http://www.princessauto.com/en/detail/15-m-12-3-triple-end-contractor-grade-extension-cord/A-p803568...

(I got it half price on sale--that $64 is way too much for an extension cord!)

The cord is mostly in the outside cable compartment for pulling out from its cable hatch to a pedestal, same as the old one was, with the triple end inside, in the "power cupboard."

The converter (Magnetek 7445 deck mount from a recent garage sale) and the microwave (Sharp 1000w) are on 15a extension cords going into the "power cupboard" instead of to their usual camper receptacles.

The inverter is in the power cupboard too.

OK, when shore power is available, the triple end of that cord above takes:

1. The short cord from the 120v breaker box
2. The converter
3. The microwave

Optional--on 15a shore power, leave the converter only in the triple end and put the short cord and microwave cords into the inverter with inverter on. Any time shore power is lost (tree falls on power line, say) you don't have to do anything right away.

When off-grid, the short cord and the microwave are plugged into inverters and the converter just stays as is with no power.

( The microwave has its own cord for an optional split bank thing we do when carrying extra batteries and a second inverter)

[jharrell]

pianotuna wrote:
The magnum inverter has a pass through transfer switch (I'd rather it did not) and, of course, my favorite feature, load support.

Yep I like the load support, especially nice to see it go Load Support VDC because of excess solar.

Since my coach is 30 amp I have the Magnum run the whole thing, no sub panel. Two transfer switches, one for gen/shore, gen dominant, second is the inverter itself.

I usually just leave the inverter on all the time and everything just works, its like a giant UPS.

[BFL13]

Somebody is impersonating somebody!

Meanwhile, forgot to mention the OP idea depends on a converter that plugs in. With a "hardwire" like the Parallax 7355 you need to use a switch on the converter's 120v input if its circuit breaker is shared (as it often is with a 7300).

[time2roll]

I like my nightmare of three transfer switches. Plug in, you have power. Unplugged, touch the inverter remote and you have power. Only shuffle is to put fridge on propane. No converter issues, no subpanel, no extension cord swap.

(and yes a name change to fly under the radar)

[BFL13]

The main idea here is to have the converter separate from the inverter without having a "converter switch" and to make it easy to operate with only the converter on shore power while the rest is on inverter.

Yes PT and ISTR Mena do something like that, which is where I got to thinking....

In the TC, the kettle, toaster, etc can still run from inverter when the "short cord" (that does the camper receptacles) is plugged into an inverter that has enough battery bank to run them. Only reason the microwave is on its own is so it can go in the second inverter when we do it that way.

In the 5er, there is one big battery bank and one big inverter to go whole house. A converter switch keeps that from running off the inverter.

I didn't want to get distracted into the convoluted shmozzle of how our truck camper is set-up for different scenarios, which nobody else is likely to ever do. Factors include the small electric- only fridge and the single AGM which I don't bank with the Flooded batts.

[brulaz]

Nice and simple, if all you want to do is run the microwave.

We don't use our microwave but do like the transfer switch so we can use all the outlets for charging computers and phones, grinding coffee, running the blender and hair dryer, ...

Just running those extension cords might be more trouble than putting in a transfer switch and using the existing wiring in longer trailers.

[pianotuna]

Hi BFL13,

Nice fix!

I do something similar--but since the breaker panel has access from under the bed I added female plugs. My options are more varied as I have 3 shore power cords. The OEM 30, a 20, and a 15 amp.

I added plugs to the water heater. My default for the converter is unplugged.

The magnum inverter has a pass through transfer switch (I'd rather it did not) and, of course, my favorite feature, load support.

[ktmrfs]

my solution was a transfer switch along with a subpanel wired so that on the inverter the AC, HWH chargerrs and fridge are not on the circuit, when transfer switch is in shore power all is powered.

Transfer switch mounted on the back of the WFCO charger panel

solves the same problem, make sure the inverter only powers what I want, and don't need to worry about the other stuff.

BTW in my case microwave is on the inverter since the panasonic true inverter 1500W microwave runs just fine at 50 percent power on the 1000VA sine wave inverter.