Do I need an inverter?

[colyboy]

New van expected soon , do I need an inverter? We have no electric kettle, coffee machine, no hair dryers, etc etc

litter picker Colyboy

 

[WESTY66]

Yes you do, the biggest one your battery will power, just in case you ever need to use one
Old electricians saying “bet to look at it, than for it”.

 

[Kannon Fodda]

When you are out and about, do you ever want or even wish that you could do something that needs a mains powered socket. If not then you don't need an inverter.

 

[Googlebot]

Yes.

It’s a new van, treat yourself.

 

[MattR]

What would you use it for colyboy ?

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[Lenny HB]

The sensible answer is No.

 

[colyboy]

What would I use it for ? I don’t know.

what do others use it for

Litter picker Colyboy

 

[Lenny HB]

what do others use it for

Charging the e-bikes, & have a brew on the Tunnel or at the docks when the gas is turned off.
I could live without it but would have to find an EHU to charge the bikes & we don't like sites.

 

[138go]

We use ours for electric toothbrushes, electric blanket, electric mini food processor and I’m informed I could run the Remoska off it, provided it’s not on for hours. Oh and electric bikes, when necessary.

We have gas for kettle, toaster, sandwich maker etc., and a Cadac for cooking.

 

[Googlebot]

I had to buy stuff to justify the cost.

If the cables weren’t already run, I wouldn’t have got one.

We use ours for fans in the summer and charging the kids electronic stuff. I got a toaster and hot plate to try and justify the cost of the inverter and lithium.

I know I said it’s a new van and treat yourself, but if you have no use for it, treat yourself to an internet setup or something you will use.

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[colyboy]

Thanks everyone for your replies .
OK I am convinced that I need one.
What size should I buy?
I also understand I need a A pure sine type?

 

[Lenny HB]

Thanks everyone for your replies .
OK I am convinced that I need one.
What size should I buy?
I also understand I need a A pure sine type?

Depends on what you are likely to run from it, yes pure sine are a lot better.

 

[Googlebot]

Thanks everyone for your replies .
OK I am convinced that I need one.
What size should I buy?
I also understand I need a A pure sine type?

Take the biggest item you want to plug in and go a bit more. Think of any future use as well, once it’s installed it’s a pain to change.

I went for a 1200watt Victron.

Thread in my signature about changing it and why I went for Victron. It can run at full
power happily all day whilst the cheapo one melted the cables.

Others have had success with much cheaper ones, I wouldn’t risk it though having been bitten once.

 

[Kannon Fodda]

If you are usually on EHU when out and about you don't need an inverter.

If you don't get to use EHU much, then an inverter may be of use. That opens up a new series of questions as to what you are likely to want to power and thus the rating of the inverter and whether your batteries are able to cope.

My PVC was fitted with a microwave. Waste of space and I accept it's a bread bin when I'm out and about. I'd probably need to substantially rewire with at least a 1000W, probably 1500W inverter (given initial peak start loads). Not going to happen.

Most of the stuff I do need to use can all run off 12V. TV, USB devices to recharge phones, tablets, even the electric toothbrush. Haven't found an adaptor yet for the electric shaver. Even standard laptops can be powered from 12V.

I'll boil a kettle from the gas hob. Small van, an electric kettle, and it's leads would be a pain anyway as limited counter space. Similarly no space for coffee machines or whatever - I use an aeropress thing.

So far, in 18 months or so the only things I would use mains power for when out is to recharge an e-bike battery, or to run my powerful laptop (too big a draw for the 12V type socket). But both then cause me to wonder about the 12V battery capacity if I'm going to be parked up for a few days reliant only on feeble 100W solar to recharge unless I go for a drive. I am fitting a 350W Victron inverter so I can recharge the e-bike battery but that would probably best be used when driving as it could take some 40Ah from the 12V system. And recharging from 12V is inefficient if uprating to 230V via inverter to then down rate to 36V from the ebike charger, but there aren't any 12v bike chargers available (Bosch tried and withdrew it). If I do try and use the laptop off the inverter I'll have to watch the 12V battery to see I don't take out too much. That will be an experimentation. Pure sine wave is essential for these type of uses.

If you are going to want to use hairdryers or similar high wattage, you'll need a big rated inverter to match that wattage, and know the batteries can output that current. Most batteries have a C rating to show the charge / discharge rate. Exceed that and your battery won't thank you.

 

[Lenny HB]

I went for a 1200watt Victron.

It's actually 1200VA they rate it at 1000 watts but VA to Watts depends on the power factor all rather confusing really.

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[Stealaway]

Thanks everyone for your replies .
OK I am convinced that I need one.
What size should I buy?
I also understand I need a A pure sine type?

Basically I only use mine for the TV and sound bar, 230v versions are so much cheaper. My 28" Full HD Samsung Smart TV was £199.
Add the price of an inverter and you are still quids in.

I've never had / needed a pure sine wave inverter in over 20 years.

My inverter is similar to this one - I've had it in three vans and over 10years

<Broken link removed>

 

[autorouter]

Maybe you don't need an inverter. Perhaps it's better to have a few more 12V sockets fitted. These are OK for low-power devices, 100W or less, like TV, laptop, iPad charger, phone charger, satnav charger etc. You could also have USB sockets fitted, but personally I prefer 12V USB adapters because they are easier to keep up with the latest version of USB.

Inverters are necessary for high-power appliances, so if you don't use them and use gas appliances instead, that's one less problem. When you install an inverter you have to think about the batteries it's running from, and how you are going to recharge the batteries. You'll probably end up adding extra batteries and a B2B or extra solar to charge them. If you don't have a clear need for an inverter, best not to go down that rabbit-hole.

 

[autorouter]

I bought an LG TV from Argos. It has a separate power brick, the label says 19.5V. I bought a 'universal' car laptop adapter, which comes with a dozen different plugs for different laptops. I found one that fits, a Sony laptop plug I think, and checked the voltage was OK. The TV now works fine from a 12V socket.

The Firestick needs another 12V socket for the USB adapter, so fit plenty of 12V sockets.

 

[Spriddler]

Simplistically, if to date you haven't needed one you don't need one.

There's a 1200W pure sine wave one here in a Sale event for £179 which they say should be £299. I know zilch about inverters so it may be rubbish.

Pure Sine Wave Inverters 12V - Sunshine Solar - Sunshine Solar Limited

Pure Sine Wave (also known as True Sine Wave) inverters generate an output voltage wave form that has a very low harmonic distortion like utility-supplied electricity. This means they are more suited for sensitive electronic equipment, allowing motors to run faster, quieter and cooler...

www.sunshinesolar.co.uk

 

[Langtoftlad]

I had a small 150w one to run off dash socket (180w), never used it, sold it.
Got a 1000w one at the last PBoro show... never used it.

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[Cliffdale]

My main use for inverter is charging lappy and using the microwave when off grid. When using the inverter, I can isolate the second battery and suck the juice out of that only.

 

[Langtoftlad]

My main use for inverter is charging lappy and using the microwave when off grid. When using the inverter, I can isolate the second battery and suck the juice out of that only.

Why do that?
Thought it was best practice to keep everything balanced.
Won't the depleted one drag down the isolated one when reconnected.

Not a criticism, just curious as to your theory.

 

[Lenny HB]

When using the inverter, I can isolate the second battery and suck the juice out of that only.

A good way of knackering the battery, for long battery life you should try to keep the load down to 20 amps per battery.

 

[Clive Mott]

You can live without one. You can have a lot more fun with one. That is unless you only visit camp sites with a hookup. If thats you then dont bother. But if you are a showgoer and wild camper then consider this sample list.
Microwave oven
Charging Ebikes
Chatging Laptops, phones, leccy toothbrushes etc.( often 12v xhargers available)
Hair dryer
Coffee machine

And so on. For us the first three.
A 1800 watt pure sine wave job and wired in to power all the 13A sockets.
Battery is a chunky 150AH Lithium job.

Its only money and covid could have you any time. Go forth and enjoy.

 

[uzsnowdrop]

Simplistically, if to date you haven't needed one you don't need one

Its definitely about your use of the van. We were lucky enough to buy an all singing and dancing van first then realised we never needed the shower, oven, tv , front lounge ( used the swivels) microwave( breadbin) and even sinks/ basin didnt get any real use as we use site facilities or boiled water. I loved cooking on gas outdoor under awning, changed to a small vw because of that and then found the bed situation was rubbish. Now in a nice converted PVC that is halfway but as we are happy to be on site /EHU people we could get away with a basic van, a bed , and a powerbank easily.
its handy having 240 sockets and 12v for CPAP sleep apnoea machine so they are a good investment. If you have the cash the inverter could be good when resale comes round.
It sounds like you know what type of use you have already so spriddlers comment is spot on. Isn’t it great that we are all so different the way we use our vans, an old couple parked next to us for a week and never left their classic moho , except to empty loo, they had a great time !

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[royw]

The sensible answer is No.

Already lost sense buying a motorhome, why stop there..

 

[Claire Ambler]

I have had one for two years now, actually I’ve had two but the first only charged USB (didn’t work on mains) the new one is still n the box!!!!!

 

[minesapint]

Charging the e-bikes, & have a brew on the Tunnel or at the docks when the gas is turned off.
I could live without it but would have to find an EHU to charge the bikes & we don't like sites.

Never found the need for an inverter. We use cl sites mainly and most have hook ups, plus we have two leisure batteries and solar charging. There are still a lot of sensible priced cl's about.

 

[uzsnowdrop]

I have had one for two years now, actually I’ve had two but the first only charged USB (didn’t work on mains) the new one is still n the box!!!!!

 

[Lenny HB]

Never found the need for an inverter. We use cl sites mainly and most have hook ups, plus we have two leisure batteries and solar charging. There are still a lot of sensible priced cl's about.

Rarely use the van in the UK, prefer to drive 20 miles to a channel port.

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