Hard wired power inverter

[Bbouch84]

So i tried searching but to no avail did i find anything close to what im looking for...

So here we go.

Has anyone ever figured out a way that you can take say a 5000w or 7500w inverter and wire it into the house power.. IE say you are boon docking and would still like to use your 120v outlets but dont have a generator but you do have the battery capacity in amp hours and a solar system?

With this i am thinking of a way to in to the main power system not have a 1 or 2 outlet thing.

[KRumm]

Just hardwire your inverter to a 30a female plug and then plug your rig into it just like a pedestal with a 30/50 adapter... With the caveat that you must disable your battery charger and not use any high electric use items like electric water heater AC...

https://youtu.be/gm4NeZCQyvY

A truely hardwired method would be to install a transfer switch like this one (note how he links the two hots together)... Again as with the above method you MUST disable your onboard battery charger...

https://youtu.be/zTjOECEhYDM

Curious... What are you wanting to power on such a high wattage (5-7.5kw Inverter - Which is huge to just feed outlets) and how big is your battery bank in amp hours?

[travelin texans]

I'm no expert, but an invertor that large along with the battery bank big enough to run all the 110 outlets will most likely exceed the weight limits on both truck & RV.

[flybouy]

If your'e looking at 7500 watts (30 amps) I'm guessing you want to run an ac unit. The number of batteries required to support that power consumption for more than a few min. would for exceed the weight capacity or the space available in a camper, to say nothing of the expense.

Maybe more detail in what you are wishing to accomplish would be beneficial in someone offering advice.

[Bbouch84]

Not really looking to run the A/C unit. But maybe a fan or tep to circulate air..And on rainy days the television

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by Bbouch84

Not really looking to run the A/C unit. But maybe a fan or tep to circulate air..And on rainy days the television

Than the inverters you quoted are way overkill. Most televisions today require very little power. I'm sure others will chime in that have done this but typically a 1,000 watt inverter is all you need.

[JRTJH]

Rather than tie an inverter into the system, have "live, exposed pins" in your shore power connector and have a "combat situation" between the converter/charger trying to charge the battery bank while the inverter is discharging that same battery bank (vicious circle), you might want to think about an "isolated system with two plugs, one where you anticipate putting the fan and one behind/near the TV. That way you wouldn't need a transfer switch and you wouldn't have to remember to turn off the converter/charger circuit breaker and most important, you won't have LIVE VOLTAGE on exposed pins at the shore power connector.

I agree, all you need for the "couple of fans and an occasional TV" is a 1000 watt inverter, mounted very near the battery bank (to save expense with the large cable from the battery to the inverter) and run 14 ga ROMEX from the inverter to the two plugs.

I installed my inverter in the battery compartment (screwed to the ceiling) and ran the ROMEX from there, across the ceiling of the front storage area, up into the wall under the shower and installed the outlet box beside the existing outlet box (behind the TV). I also ran another ROMEX circuit to the bedroom to power a CPAP device.

I have two "GC2 golf cart batteries" and they provide enough power for "a light day of use". Any more than that will require a generator to recharge the batteries likely every day. Four batteries would be better, but that starts getting into "significantly more weight than desired" in an ultra-lite trailer.

[KRumm]

Look at your rig an decide what is the highest wattage item you would like to run (For me it’s my indispensable Gaggia Classic espresso machine which clocks in at ~1,500 watts) so I chose a 2,000 watt inverter to give me a little headroom... You will have to become accustomed to running only one high wattage item at a time.. So no coffee machine and toaster or microwave ar the same time... And if your wife has a curling iron these can reek havoc... as they are usually forgetfully left on...

In general you do not want to run:
Battery charger
Air Conditioner
Electric water heater
Electric space heater
Electric Fireplace
Or anything high current for extended periods

I would recommend the KISS method Tito showed in the video I posted earlier... Since we determined you are not going to need 7.5kw you could just get a nice 2 or 3,000w inverter that comes with a regular 15a plug them get this adapter to plug your rigs shore cord into... ( mount the inverter near the battery bank as this reduces 12v cable length)...

https://www.amazon.com/Proline-Power...xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

[sonofcy]

Originally Posted by Bbouch84

Not really looking to run the A/C unit. But maybe a fan or tep to circulate air..And on rainy days the television

That's more like 3,000 watts. Have a look at the following for an idea of what is required. https://amsolar.com/trailers. Those are likely installed prices, if you have the tools and the knowhow you can save substantially. IF you are NOT a full timer, get a generator as the cost of a full blown system will never pay back on 2 weeks a year. A single 2k generator plus an easy start for the a/c should do it.

[Rocketsled]

Those of you looking to power a CPAP, look into running it off 12v DC. I have a 220 Wh battery pack and it'll drive the CPAP 4-5 times longer off DC than it will through the inverter. (10 times longer if you leave the humidifier portion off)

FWIW, 2000 watt inverters will run a microwave or coffee maker by itself.

[pitman44]

Originally Posted by Rocketsled

Those of you looking to power a CPAP, look into running it off 12v DC. I have a 220 Wh battery pack and it'll drive the CPAP 4-5 times longer off DC than it will through the inverter. (10 times longer if you leave the humidifier portion off)

My DW uses a CPAP. I'm not sure how you'd run it off 12vdc. Is it one that's designed to use 12vdc out of the box or a modification to a 120vac unit?

[Rocketsled]

Originally Posted by pitman44

My DW uses a CPAP. I'm not sure how you'd run it off 12vdc. Is it one that's designed to use 12vdc out of the box or a modification to a 120vac unit?

Search for the CPAP name and 12v, mine seems to work well with this:
Philips Respironics Shielded DC Cord for DreamStation CPAP https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FT8QUNI..._uKBzEb2C0VETT

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by pitman44

My DW uses a CPAP. I'm not sure how you'd run it off 12vdc. Is it one that's designed to use 12vdc out of the box or a modification to a 120vac unit?

Most (not all) CPAP equipment operates on 14 +/- 2VDC (12-16 volts). Almost all machines plug into 120 VAC outlets, and have a "brick" that converts that 120VAC to 13.8VDC for most machines. Many brands do have a DC/DC converter that will plug into a 12 volt RV or car electrical system and "condition" that voltage to meet the input voltage requirement for that specific brand equipment.

So, while your DW's CPAP plugs into the wall outlet at home, that "brick" converts the wall voltage to a DC voltage that powers her CPAP. If you look at the "brick" it should have a "nominal output voltage" listed on the tag. That would tell you whether you can operate it in your RV with "just a straight power cord" or if you'll need a DC/DC converter to power it from the RV battery.

That said, many (maybe even most) have a small 100 watt inverter that they plug into the RV 12 volt system and just run the CPAP off the 120 volt inverter output, which powers it just like they do at home.

[moparmad]

I would just run two transfer switches. keep one on shore power and possible gen upgrade going to the second one which would have the inverter on it. and keep the converter on the first transfer switch that way it will not be powered up when it switches over to inverter, that way you will not have to worry about turning off or unplugging converter, it will be automatic. or get one that has one built in.

[RET.LEO]

https://battlebornbatteries.com/shop...charger-2000w/

[chuckster57]

I have installed go power inverters with auto pass through. It was on a 50A service trailer.

We simply identified which circuits need to be powered by inverter, kept those on one leg. Then took one leg of the shore power and ran it through the inverter. When plugged into shore power both legs of the breaker panel were powered. Unplugged and inverter “on” powered one side.

[KRumm]

Originally Posted by chuckster57

I have installed go power inverters with auto pass through. It was on a 50A service trailer.

We simply identified which circuits need to be powered by inverter, kept those on one leg. Then took one leg of the shore power and ran it through the inverter. When plugged into shore power both legs of the breaker panel were powered. Unplugged and inverter “on” powered one side.

A nice inverter for this technique is this AIM as it has a built in transfer switch...

https://www.aimscorp.net/2000-pure-s...standards.html

[GHen]

Agree, 2000 watt inverter is what I’m doing, turn off the converter and plug shore power into the inverter.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by GHen

Agree, 2000 watt inverter is what I’m doing, turn off the converter and plug shore power into the inverter.

You also need to put the refrigerator on GAS (lock out ELEC) and make sure the water heater electric element is off.

[Customer1]

I installed a Xantrex pure sine 2,000 watt inverter. I used two Kisae 20a transfer switches in the two circuits I wished to power.

I can operate the microwave, two televisions, DVD player, drip coffee maker, and CPAP. Obviously not all at the same time.