HELP! Which Pure Sinewave Inverter?

[Skeggysue]

Good morning. We are looking to buy a Pure Sinewave 2000W inverter but would appreciate advice on which one please? I know you get what you pay for but I don’t want to spend an absolute fortune on a top of the range one but I do want to buy one that is reliable with good reviews.

Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated.

Sue

 

[Bill_OR]

This doesn't answer your question but why do you need one? What is it that you need to power?

 

[peterc10]

This doesn't answer your question but why do you need one? What is it that you need to power?

Good question.

Nearly everything that does not involve heating things up can now work off 12v direct via a transformer if need be. And any thing that heats up things, with the exception of hair drying, can be run quicker and better with gas. We have a an inverter for my wife's hairdryer, but it is just a cheap modified sine wave and it works fine.

 

[Skeggysue]

It’s for use when we are off grid with a solar panel. I have to charge up a mobility scooter plus it’s for things like a hairdryer and coffee machine.

 

[funflair]

Some people want an inverter for whatever reason and there are loads to be fair, yes you need sufficient battery capacity and solar to back it up. I can't imagine having a motorhome without an inverter to be honest.

We had a Merlin 2kw pure sine wave from Road Pro but it wasn't the cheapest by a long shot, I see that they don't sell these anymore so I would be inclined to ask what the recommend but whatever you get make sure it has remote start/stop and if properly fitted both on the 12v side and of course the 240v side.

If you haven't got the van yet it might be worth looking at getting a combi unit charger/inverter/mains back up if they are an available option on your chosen van.

Martin

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[Terry]

I bought a German mid price pure sin wave because I didn't trust Chinese ones .....when it arrived it was made in China....Had no problems with it and used a lot .
I would simply buy a cheap one from China and cut the German middle man out

 

[Skeggysue]

Some people want an inverter for whatever reason and there are loads to be fair, yes you need sufficient battery capacity and solar to back it up. I can't imagine having a motorhome without an inverter to be honest.

We had a Merlin 2kw pure sine wave from Road Pro but it wasn't the cheapest by a long shot, I see that they don't sell these anymore so I would be inclined to ask what the recommend but whatever you get make sure it has remote start/stop and if properly fitted both on the 12v side and of course the 240v side.

If you haven't got the van yet it might be worth looking at getting a combi unit charger/inverter/mains back up if they are an available option on your chosen van.

Martin

Thanks Martin,

When you say a remote start/stop can you explain what that is exactly please? I notice you can buy a wired remote for some inverters - is that what you are referring to?

Sue

 

[JJ]

I bought mine from China...

Well built and works flawlessly.

5000 watt, pure sine wave, and pumps water up from my bore hole perfectly...

Just waiting for some nice Funster who is getting Lithium batteries to give me a price on their old ones...


JJ

 

[funflair]

Thanks Martin,

When you say a remote start/stop can you explain what that is exactly please? I notice you can buy a wired remote for some inverters - is that what you are referring to?

Sue

Hi Sue

Yes just a wired remote inside the van so that you can switch it on/off without going grovelling in the garage or wherever it is fitted and also see that it is on to remind you to switch it off when not in use.

 

[Lenny HB]

For your use one of the cheaper ones will be OK, the cheap ones although they say Pure Sine they are not brilliant but a lot better than a modified sine wave one.
For 2000 watt inverter you are going to need at least a 500a/h battery bank (about 5 normal batteries) if you want your batteries to last.

Edit:
I see you have a Chic so you will have 80a/h Gel batteries ideally you don't want to draw more than 20 amps out of gels but normally ok at 30 amps.
If running the inverter flat out and allowing for the efficiency you will be drawing around 190 amps. So that means 6 x 80a/h Gel batteries.

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[Skeggysue]

For your use one of the cheaper ones will be OK, the cheap ones although they say Pure Sine they are not brilliant but a lot better than a modified sine wave one.
For 2000 watt inverter you are going to need at least a 500a/h battery bank (about 5 normal batteries) if you want your batteries to last.

Edit:
I see you have a Chic so you will have 80a/h Gel batteries ideally you don't want to draw more than 20 amps out of gels but normally ok at 30 amps.
If running the inverter flat out and allowing for the efficiency you will be drawing around 190 amps. So that means 6 x 80a/h Gel batteries.

Hi Lenny,

We did have a chic but we recently had to sell our motorhome due to my husbands stroke and him losing his C1 licence. We have now bought a caravan (sadly we are no longer motorhomers!)

What is the lowest power pure Sinewave inverter I would need in order to charge up a mobilty scooter battery and use a hair drier?

 

[Revolvor]

For 2000 watt inverter you are going to need at least a 500a/h battery bank (about 5 normal batteries) if you want your batteries to last.

Sorry to say it, but I think this is going to be your biggest problem.

 

[peterc10]

Hi Lenny,

We did have a chic but we recently had to sell our motorhome due to my husbands stroke and him losing his C1 licence. We have now bought a caravan (sadly we are no longer motorhomers!)

What is the lowest power pure Sinewave inverter I would need in order to charge up a mobilty scooter battery and use a hair drier?

My guess is that the higher one will be the hair dryer. My wife's is a travel one from Argos and it takes about 1250W from memory. So that would need a 1500W continuous (3000W peak) inverter. The larger ones will need a larger inverter.

 

[Skeggysue]

Sorry to say it, but I think this is going to be your biggest problem.

In our Carthago motorhome we had an 1800W Waeco Pure Sinewave inverter factory fitted, plus 3 x 80Ah gel batteries along with a 120 watt solar panel. All the main sockets were wired up to the inverter so that when not on EHU every socket worked when the inverter was switched on. We never encountered any problems with the batteries or the inverter over the 4 years we had the motorhome and we never left the inverter on for long just long enough for whatever task we required main power for.

The leisure battery in our new Hobby caravan I believe is a 110Ah battery but we were going to change it for a dual battery that is twice the power but half the size or something like that!

Must say being a non expert mere female I’m now feeling a bit shell shocked after being told we’d need at least 6 x 80Ah batteries!! YIKES!!!

 

[funflair]

In our Carthago motorhome we had an 1800W Waeco Pure Sinewave inverter factory fitted, plus 3 x 80Ah gel batteries along with a 120 watt solar panel. All the main sockets were wired up to the inverter so that when not on EHU every socket worked when the inverter was switched on. We never encountered any problems with the batteries or the inverter over the 4 years we had the motorhome and we never left the inverter on for long just long enough for whatever task we required main power for.

The leisure battery in our new Hobby caravan I believe is a 110Ah battery but we were going to change it for a dual battery that is twice the power but half the size or something like that!

Must say being a non expert mere female I’m now feeling a bit shell shocked after being told we’d need at least 6 x 80Ah batteries!! YIKES!!!

Twice the power and half the size is either Lithium or sales talk, your experience with 3x80ah Gel is spot on and gives you a big clue as to what you really need, more solar would be good if you can fit it in. As others have said the hair dryer is going to be the biggest draw so that will dictate the inverter size but as it won't run for long it won't use much capacity, the Scooter charging may well take the most capacity so that is going to dictate battery capacity and solar size.

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[peterc10]

In our Carthago motorhome we had an 1800W Waeco Pure Sinewave inverter factory fitted, plus 3 x 80Ah gel batteries along with a 120 watt solar panel. All the main sockets were wired up to the inverter so that when not on EHU every socket worked when the inverter was switched on. We never encountered any problems with the batteries or the inverter over the 4 years we had the motorhome and we never left the inverter on for long just long enough for whatever task we required main power for.

The leisure battery in our new Hobby caravan I believe is a 110Ah battery but we were going to change it for a dual battery that is twice the power but half the size or something like that!

Must say being a non expert mere female I’m now feeling a bit shell shocked after being told we’d need at least 6 x 80Ah batteries!! YIKES!!!

I am afraid that you will find that a caravan is not as well suited for going off grid than a motorhome. We had one many years ago and could not survive more than one night away from EHU.

 

[funflair]

I am afraid that you will find that a caravan is not as well suited for going off grid than a motorhome. We had one many years ago and could not survive more than one night away from EHU.

A motorhome is just a van with a caravan on the back no reason why a craven can't have all the solar and be self sufficient.

Martin

 

[two]

It's a while since I used a caravan but I'd expect there to be EHU wherever I stopped, these days.
In simple terms the capacity of your van battery bank should be greater (2X or more) than that of your scooter. It may be more practical to seek a way of charging from your car. You have to put back all that you take out of the system, and should never drain it. What you put in with solar is only a trickle compare to what you can remove with a hairdryer, so I'd try to find a mains connection for doing that (EHU or toilet block).

 

[eddie]

I bought mine from China...

Well built and works flawlessly.

5000 watt, pure sine wave, and pumps water up from my bore hole perfectly...

Just waiting for some nice Funster who is getting Lithium batteries to give me a price on their old ones...


JJ

They normally dump them with me and we skip 'em!

 

[peterc10]

A motorhome is just a van with a caravan on the back no reason why a craven can't have all the solar and be self sufficient.

Martin

Caravans usually have much lower payloads than motorhomes, with most less that 200kg. That limits the number of batteries and solar panels that can be used as well as the amount of fresh water that can be carried. And the thinner and longer wire connections between the car alternator and caravan batteries limit the amount of engine charging that can be done on the move.

Nowadays they are designed to be used on sites with at least EHU and fresh water.

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[funflair]

Caravans usually have much lower payloads than motorhomes, with most less that 200kg. That limits the number of batteries and solar panels that can be used as well as the amount of fresh water that can be carried. And the thinner and longer wire connections between the car alternator and caravan batteries limit the amount of engine charging that can be done on the move.

Nowadays they are designed to be used on sites with at least EHU and fresh water.

You could have a 160ah LiFePO4 for the same weight as a single 110ah lead acid but you would have 3 times the capacity and absolutely no problem with peak load for inverters, plenty of roof space for solar but agree that B2B wouldn't work the same but not all motorhomes have B2B boost chargers. All the heavy stuff could go in the tow vehicle if you were worried about the caravan payload.

 

[Lenny HB]

If you plan to be using the caravan off grid or without EHU Martin's suggestion of fitting a LiFePO4 battery would be the best option but expensive. As Peter says caravans don't have much payload and a B2B not going to work.

Without known the spec on your mobility scooter can't say for certain but a 500 watt inverter will probably be OK. For hair drying you could use a Bablyiss or Braun gas hair styler

 

[eddie]

Why would’t a B2B work? We use them on dismountables

 

[funflair]

Why would’t a B2B work? We use them on dismountables

I don't think it would work very well with a standard trailer socket but some heavy cables and a separate plug and you are right "why not"

 

[peterc10]

You could have a 160ah LiFePO4 for the same weight as a single 110ah lead acid but you would have 3 times the capacity and absolutely no problem with peak load for inverters, plenty of roof space for solar but agree that B2B wouldn't work the same but not all motorhomes have B2B boost chargers. All the heavy stuff could go in the tow vehicle if you were worried about the caravan payload.

You could go for LiFePO4, but there was no suggestion that the OP has got that or would want to pay the price to have it. And, as you know, the recommendation with those is that you should put a B2B in as well because of the larger capacity you are having to refill. Solar panels still add weight. And carrying water is still a problem. The ubiquitous aquaroll won't last long even if it is stuffed, along with everything else, in the tow car.

As you said previously the main problem as far as capacity is concerned will be the draw to charge the scooter. But the short high current drain from the hairdryer (over 100amps) can cause problems to some smaller battery banks. What draw rate can a LiFePo battery take without it causing problems?

I stand by my comment that (most) modern caravans are not as well suited for going off grid as (most) modern motorhomes. You may be able to make them better with a lot of money, but it will still be a compromise. And most modern caravans are a lot smaller than your new palace.

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[funflair]

You could go for LiFePO4, but there was no suggestion that the OP has got that or would want to pay the price to have it. And, as you know, the recommendation with those is that you should put a B2B in as well because of the larger capacity you are having to refill. Solar panels still add weight. And carrying water is still a problem. The ubiquitous aquaroll won't last long even if it is stuffed, along with everything else, in the tow car.

As you said previously the main problem as far as capacity is concerned will be the draw to charge the scooter. But the short high current drain from the hairdryer (over 100amps) can cause problems to some smaller battery banks. What draw rate can a LiFePo battery take without it causing problems?

I stand by my comment that (most) modern caravans are not as well suited for going off grid as (most) modern motorhomes. You may be able to make them better with a lot of money, but it will still be a compromise. And most modern caravans are a lot smaller than your new palace.

And a lot cheaper

limited to 480 amps on one 160ah I believe