Inverter 1500Watts

[testraub]

Okay. . I want to mount a new 1500W Inverter under the drivers seat. The problem is distance, and running 2AWG wires there. Any good DC Electric guys out there? I'm a AC Electrician, but this DC stuff can be confusing. The Inverter I bought says no more the 6 foot from BAT to INV. Others say 10-15 FT or more HELP!

 

[jelag]

Using ohm's law... and dividing 1500 by 15 volts means that under full load this thing is going to need 100 amps of service... . that's why the short length of cable. . Inverters are almost 100% efficient... . like a transformer on AC... . so ohm's law works fine... .



This large of load will over power the electrical system under full load and might drain your batteries over a long period... plus this thing is going to heat up..... I'd mount it under the hood with some spacers so that air can flow all the way around it... .



I have one in my trailer... I have 3 large batteries... and only use it this thing when I want to use the microwave when we don't have shore power... . other wise my laptop and other stuff never goes over about 300 watts... ...



I had my local guy build me special battery cables to run this in the trailer... . and than ran a simple 110V line out from the inverter...



Hope this is what your looking for...

 

[klenger]

DC electrical laws are the same as AC (mostly), except that with the inverter you are working with a reasonably high power device that operates on low voltage. You can locate the inverter at a greater distance from the battery than recommended, but you need to size the wire accordingly. Using larger wires poses two main problems: 1) higher cost, and 2) the larger wire becomes so bulky that it is hard to work with.



See http://www.thelearningpit.com/elec/tools/tables/Wire_table.htm for a wire guage table.



Assuming that the inverter needed 2 AWG wire for a run up to 6', then you could use 0 AWG up to 10', 00 AWG up to 12', and 0000 AWG up to 20' for the same one-way resistance (~. 001 ohm).



See http://store.solar-electric.com/hardware---wire.html for very flexable welding cable. They also sell ring-terminals for them, or you mght be able to buy some pre-made cables from them. Good folks.



BTW, most inverter mfg's do not recommend mounting the inverters in an engine compartment as they are not built for that environment (heat and moisture).



Good luck

 

[KBennett]

I would agree with Klenger and jlag, a bigger wire is what you need. The ambulance people put their inverters in the back and that's a lot longer than 6 feet. I remember seeing one using the same size wire as the starter cable(big). I could not see the size and I don't know wire gauge that big by looking at it.



Remember to put a big fuse at the power source in case something shorts and run a negative lead from the power source(battery). Don't ground it to the frame.

 

[The patriot]

I have an inverter that was in an ambulance. It has VERY HEAVY cables on it.

Eric

 

[2Gen3Gen]

I bought a rather cheap "Coleman" inverter that is 1500 watts ($30), Mainly to power my satellite dish and TV in the trailer when at campsites with no hook ups. I guess Im luck not to have a melt down on my cig lighter plug as I didn't modify my DC wire from stock. I just hope that the RV has the correct wire to the plug.

 

[KBennett]

I bought a rather cheap "Coleman" inverter that is 1500 watts ($30), Mainly to power my satellite dish and TV in the trailer when at campsites with no hook ups. I guess Im luck not to have a melt down on my cig lighter plug as I didn't modify my DC wire from stock. I just hope that the RV has the correct wire to the plug.

You are not having any problems because you are not drawing 1500 Watts. You are probably only drawing 2-300 watts(10-25 Amps on the 12V side) between the satellite dish and the TV. Plug a microwave or power tool in and you'll see issues.