Inverters

[heliman01]

Hi, I recently had a new 1000w eza466387 installed. When I plug into external 220v my electrical sockets are dead I have to turn the inverter on for them to work, but, they are then limited to just 1000w. Surely if I am plugged in and the inverter is off the sockets should be live. With my old inverter this was the case.

 

[Lenny HB]

I think your inverter has an auto switchover to switch between incoming mains and the inverter. Either it has not been wired correctly or it's faulty.
You also need to check when the inverter is on that the fridge & battery charger are not running from it. Not all installers isolate them from the inverter so you need to turn them off manually.

 

[heliman01]

I think your inverter has an auto switchover to switch between incoming mains and the inverter. Either it has not been wired correctly or it's faulty.
You also need to check when the inverter is on that the fridge & battery charger are not running from it. Not all installers isolate them from the inverter so you need to turn them off manually.

Hi, yes it does have an auto switch over, but, the supply is still limited to just 1000w.

 

[tonka]

Hi, I recently had a new 1000w eza466387 installed.

Have you not answered your own question. ? You fitted a 1000w inverter..

 

[Richard n Ann]

Hi, yes it does have an auto switch over, but, the supply is still limited to just 1000w.

Auto switch over isn't switching back to hook up then.

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[heliman01]

Have you not answered your own question. ? You fitted a 1000w inverter..

Er, no. When the inverter is off, but, the vehicle is plugged in then the bypass should should divert the mains to the sockets and not be limited to 1000w

 

[VXman]

Have you not answered your own question. ? You fitted a 1000w inverter..

No he hasn't. When he is plugged into the mains power he should be using mains power and not the inverter anymore.

I would suggest the inverter is installed wrongly or you are not doing something you should be. Difficult to say without knowing how it's set up.

 

[Lenny HB]

Hi, yes it does have an auto switch over, but, the supply is still limited to just 1000w.

I wouldn't expect it to do that but if it is a relay switching the mains there shouldn't be anything that can limit the current so I think as I said it's not switching over so either faulty or installed incorrectly.

 

[Lenny HB]

Er, no. When the inverter is off, but, the vehicle is plugged in then the bypass should should divert the mains to the sockets and not be limited to 1000w

I think the inverter probably needs to be switched on for the switch over to work.

 

[funflair]

If you look at the inverter front panel it has a main 230v in as well as out so I am guessing that rightly or wrongly all the mains power is all going through the inverter before the sockets so it has been downgraded to the capacity of the inverter, it will need to be switched on to work properly.

Our inverter which incidentally cost 10x the price of the EZA switches itself on when the hook up lead is plugged in so that it can back up any mains power deficiencies and auto start up if the mains power drops out completely, not all of the sockets are supplied and backed up via the inverter but the ones that are will be subject to the limit of the inverter which in our case is 3kw.

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[Raul]

Hi, I recently had a new 1000w eza466387 installed. When I plug into external 220v my electrical sockets are dead I have to turn the inverter on for them to work, but, they are then limited to just 1000w. Surely if I am plugged in and the inverter is off the sockets should be live. With my old inverter this was the case.

Not familiar with your inverter, but, for any inverter that has the AC in capability, in order to use the grid power, it has to pass trough the inverter. The pas trough it’s only possible when inverter is on and activates a relay as it detects the grid. The pass trough has a rating usually much higher than the inverting limit. For example, A multiplus 3kva inverts 2,4kw from battery, plus 16A AC, (3.6kw) or 50A for other model. The point is, if you have wired all the AC to come in via inverter pass trough, you have to turn the inverter on to allow the relay to close, so it can supply the grid AC. That will be limited not by the inverter output, but the relay rating. I find it very hard to believe to be limited to only 1000w. Relays are rated in A so I would guess a 1000w inverter will have at least a 10A pass trough relay. The small victron compact multiplus all have 16A pass trough relays.

Are you sure it’s limited to 1000w? And how did you established this?

 

[heliman01]

Not familiar with your inverter, but, for any inverter that has the AC in capability, in order to use the grid power, it has to pass trough the inverter. The pas trough it’s only possible when inverter is on and activates a relay as it detects the grid. The pass trough has a rating usually much higher than the inverting limit. For example, A multiplus 3kva inverts 2,4kw from battery, plus 16A AC, (3.6kw) or 50A for other model. The point is, if you have wired all the AC to come in via inverter pass trough, you have to turn the inverter on to allow the relay to close, so it can supply the grid AC. That will be limited not by the inverter output, but the relay rating. I find it very hard to believe to be limited to only 1000w. Relays are rated in A so I would guess a 1000w inverter will have at least a 10A pass trough relay. The small victron compact multiplus all have 16A pass trough relays.

Are you sure it’s limited to 1000w? And how did you established this?

Hi, thanks for your comments, very helpful. I am definately not good on electrics. The only way I verified the output was to plug in a 1000w appliance and the inverter shut down almost instantly.

 

[Raul]

Hi, thanks for your comments, very helpful. I am definately not good on electrics. The only way I verified the output was to plug in a 1000w appliance and the inverter shut down almost instantly.

That means, something is a mis with wiring of AC in. If AC was available, the inverter should pass that to the load.

 

[Lenny HB]

Hi, thanks for your comments, very helpful. I am definately not good on electrics. The only way I verified the output was to plug in a 1000w appliance and the inverter shut down almost instantly.

In that case the inverter is switched on & working by the changeover is not, check the mains into the inverter is plugged in properly.
You could unplug the mains to the inverter and check there is power on the cable by plugging into something that has an IEC input e.g. kettle.

 

[heliman01]

In that case the inverter is switched on & working by the changeover is not, check the mains into the inverter is plugged in properly.
You could unplug the mains to the inverter and check there is power on the cable by plugging into something that has an IEC input e.g. kettle.

Thanks.

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[Hoovie]

sounds very odd.

Something I would also just double-check .... is the mains Battery Charger working without the hookup? obviously it should only work when plugged into mains, but if the inverter has been wired up in an unusual way, even the battery charger might be running on it! this would not be good and a great way to drain the batteries to no purpose.

 

[autorouter]

Do you have any way to see the amps into and out of the batteries? Or a way of seeing the voltage of the batteries?

If so,you could plug into the mains, plug in a reasonable load of say 500W, and see what happens to the batteries. There should be no amps draw from the batteries, in fact if anything there should be amps going into the batteries from the mains charger.

Or if you're looking at the voltage, it shouldn't drop like it does with no hookup connected, in fact it should rise as the mains charger gets its act together.

That at least will tell you if the mains switchover is working at all.