Looking for electrical/inverter guidance

[baker]

So, I have my new '08 and now I need to start to look at getting it work ready. I am customizing the cargo area mainly for storage and a small food prep area. I will have commercial coffee brewer, water pump, micro, panini press, but not all will be active at the same time. Usually I have access to shore power, however, I want to be able to generate my own when needed. A portable or built-on generator is in the future, but for now I was thinking 3000w inverter.

Can someone guide me a bit. I see reference to "house batteries" and the like, but I want to make sure I grasp what I can/cannot do with inverter power.

1) Can I connect the inverter to my car battery or do I need "house" batteries
2) With the inverter, does the van need to stay running? If not, how do I go about calculating use time so I don't drain the batteries
3) Any wiring suggestions for easy transition from inverter-shore-generator supplied power. I would be nice to have my appliances plugged in and just have to "switch" over to whatever my source was.
4) 3000w inverters are in the $350 price range (Vector, Samlex). Is this a good price?

Sorry if some of my questions seem stupid, but I'm not a car guy and I've only used a small cigarette lighter inverter a couple times. I have rewired my kitchen, so I'm confident I'll be okay with some assistance. :)

Thanks.

[sikwan]

Originally Posted by baker

1) Can I connect the inverter to my car battery or do I need "house" batteries

You can, but you run the risk of running it low and you won't be able to start your van. It's also better to use specific types of batteries, like deep cycle, to run inverter jobs.

Originally Posted by baker

2) With the inverter, does the van need to stay running? If not, how do I go about calculating use time so I don't drain the batteries

The van does not need to stay running. It will help if you're running low on power.

Look at the amp-hour rating of a battery. For example, for a 5 amp-hour rated battery, you can run an accessory that sinks 5 amps for 1 hour or an accessory that sinks 1 amp for 5 hours.

Although, you do have to do a conversion from watts to current. It will still be an estimate because of the losses due to the inverter converion of DC to AC.

Originally Posted by baker

3) Any wiring suggestions for easy transition from inverter-shore-generator supplied power. I would be nice to have my appliances plugged in and just have to "switch" over to whatever my source was.

There's no one way of doing it.

There are some devices, probably special inverters with this feature, that when you connect to shore power, it will automatically revert shore power to your appliances and then become battery chargers to charge your house batteries.

Originally Posted by baker

4) 3000w inverters are in the $350 price range (Vector, Samlex). Is this a good price?

It's a fair price, but these inverters are mostly the non-sinusoidal ones that are not found out of your typical household outlet. Your appliances will run and work differently.

[BaywoodBill]

Heck, with getting a high-powered inverter and then dealing with installing batteries and a converter and acharging hookup, why not just bite the bullet and get something like this or this? The second option costs no more than you would spend on batteries, converter, monitor, and inverter.

[baker]

Thanks for the replies. I presently use a Honda 3000 for my traditional outdoor setup, food/coffee tables and 1 prep table. The production companies supply the gen or run me a box from the big generator. Now that I have my van it is not always parked near the tables, Im trying to avoid bringing a 2nd generator.

I'm trying to move my prep area away from the main food tables so I can have some privacy and a cleaner working area. Bring my own generator is not a problem, but I didn't want to loose the cargo area required to bring it. An inverter sounded like a good idea since I only need to run 1 - 2 things for about an hours a couple times a day.

I'm borrowing my buddy's 2000w gen for a job this week. It will work as long as I keep it to one appliance. The Honda 2000 is nice and small, but not ideal for power.

[BaywoodBill]

You can mount your generator outside of your cargo space. Here's one thread about adding a generator.

[rlent]

Originally Posted by sikwan

It's a fair price, but these inverters are mostly the non-sinusoidal ones that are not found out of your typical household outlet. Your appliances will run and work differently.

As an example, microwave ovens run on a stepped or square-wave inverter can take up to 2x or 3x more time than would be required with a pure or true sign-wave inverter - which is why I bought a pure sign-wave one (who wants to wait 30 minutes to heat up your frozen dinner in the micro ..... ?)

As to reasons why might one want a battery/inverter setup as compared to a generator I can think of two real quick:

1. Noise

2. Maintenance

There are other reasons as well (messing with fuel for one .... BTW - did I mention the noise and maintenance ?)

[rlent]

BTW Baker, you might want to consider the perpetual battery for your setup: the Walmart Everstart Maxx

The reason they are a perpetual battery is they carry a 36 month replacement warranty (with 18 month free replacement) - you kill 'em in 18 months or less .... and you get replacements ...... on the house.

[baker]

Thanks. I'm pretty sure I want to go with an inverter system, I'll just need to plan it out and piece it together as $$ are available. Hopefully, I'll have something in place early next year, including a solar panel. All very exciting and very expensive!

[Nate]

Originally Posted by baker

3) Any wiring suggestions for easy transition from inverter-shore-generator supplied power. I would be nice to have my appliances plugged in and just have to "switch" over to whatever my source was.

For an inverter that automatically switches I would go with a Xantrex Prosine 2.0. It will switch over from DC to AC when you are plugged into shore power and it will also charge your batteries at the same time.

If you are using a solar panel then you may be able to use an inverter without a built in charger. I bought a Xantrex 1800 Watt sine wave inverter and it will switch between the batteries or shore power internally and I'll charge with a solar panel.

I hope this helps.
Nate

[Oldfartt]

Hi Baker,

If you wish to be able to select the Mains/ Shore supply when available, or your own generator, then a suitable change over switch is needed. It must have "break before make" and preferably have an "Off" position between the Mains position and the Generator position. This is to remove any possibility of the generator and the mains power being connected to each other. A suitable switch is made by www.krausnaimer.com and can supply a switch with the MAINS/OFF/GEN front cover plate. Part number F444. You would need to engage the services of an Electrician who is knowledgeable in industrial control systems to wire up the van with a Mains input connector on the outside of the van and fit the change over switch. It is not rocket science, just a matter of getting someone competent to do the job.

Cheers

Ross