12 volt outlet

[Burgeogull]

Hi everyone, I have a queation that I hope someone can answer for me.

Inside my travel trailer there is a 12 volt outlet that says a maximum of 6 amps.I want to plug an inverter into it to run a 19 inch tv and a reciever for satelitte tv from it.Both these items together is about 75 watts.I have 2 12V rv batteries and a 40 watt solar panel hooked up.What I want to know is can I run the tv and the reciever from that outlet.

[time2roll]

power my tv, dvd, laptop and charge small items with a Go Power 300w sine wave inverter.

I mounted the inverter behind the fuse-breaker panel. 12v connects to the main battery feed to the panel. 120v is wired into the entertainment area circuit with an automatic transfer switch. The wiring is very straight forward if you have done any home wiring before. The Go Power 300w has a provision for a remote power switch so with the touch of a button I have instant power.

GP 300w SW $172

Xantrex 15 amp switch $49

So all in maybe $250-$300 for self install.

[readytow]

An additional consideration might also be how long you can run these items through an inverter, before it takes so much power out of your batteries that other 12v items don't work. Such as heater, fridge circuit board, lights, etc.

[RoyB]

I would stay away from the OTA Antenna Panel 12VDc Socket. The cheap 12VDC sockets you are referring too is prone to melt down rather easy and then you have another panel to worry about replacing being your OTA Antenna Panel. If you blow this wire and circuit you will not have OTA TV power anymore...

The best thing to do is too install your INVERTER direct wired with its own dedicated FUSE circuit as close as you can get it to the battery bank.

Then you can run 120VAC extension cords from this INVERTER to the HDTV Home Entertainment area and also to your Bedroom night table area for a few 120VAC items you might want to have on when camping off the power grid.

Please consider this drawing I made up for some interested folks wanting to to do the same thing...



a 300WATT PSW INVERTER is a good size to run several items you might want to run when camping off the power grid. I used a 300WATT for awhile and finally ended up with a 600WATT PSW INVERTER but I already had a good solid 255AH battery capacity to operate it.

Since you probably want to operate some electronic items like your HDTV and DVD unit I would stick with a PURE SINE WAVE INVERTER. Then you don't ever have to worry about what might get plugged into it and not go up in blue smoke...

Just my thoughts..

Roy Ken

[pianotuna]

Hi,

Put the inverter close to the battery bank and run 120 volt wiring to a plug near your entertainment center.

[Burgeogull]

Thanks guys. According to that table to run about 20 feet and say 10 amps I would need atleat 10 guage wire.

[WrongWayRandall]

That would be a little over 6 amps (75w/12v = 6.25a) draw, which would likely create a heat issue in the wiring. Most wiring for those 12v outlets is not capable of pulling a lot of amps, combine that with the problem of small gauge wires to the outlet, and then consider that the length of the wire covers a good distance and you'll find that the resistance is just too high to not melt/burn when you are pulling a lot of load. Plus, it's not recommended to load any given circuit to it's full rating (%80 is the actual max, for safety) so you're getting way out of spec with both appliances running.

It would be better to run new, heavier gauge wiring to each device. Use a wiring calculator (http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/amps-wire-gauge-d_730.html) to determine the gauge wire recommended for that load and that distance (length of wiring from the battery to the outlet) so that you know you won't have issue.

[pianotuna]

Hi,

75 watts, by the time overhead from the inverter and other losses are included, may be about 7.5 amps of draw on the outlet. Seeing as it is fused at 6 amps the numbers don't work.