Power Inverters Discussion

[jonny.jpg]

Hey everyone.

It's been a while for a new thread, hasn't it?

I'm looking into power inverters for camping and whatnot. Wanting to plug in a griddle to make breakfast, or a quick lunch to-go.

Not sure how these actually "work", with the exception of plugging them into the Cig Lighter.

Is that the only way of doing so? Any suggestions?


"Adventure is out there."
-Russell, Pixar's Up

 

[ripperj]

By "way of doing so?" do you mean getting power to it?
Griddles are heating elements which are just resistors, so they are pretty big loads. You will need a decent size inverter. Look at the griddle you want to use and find out how many watts it draws.
You will probably find that the input (12v) amps are going to be higher than you want going through the lousy connection of a cigarette lighter plug, plus the plugs are normally fed with small wires that can't take much current.
If you really want to cook off the inverter much, you will want to hard wire the inverter, and probably have a second battery, plus a way to charge it.
Not saying it can't be don't quick and dirty, but you probably won't be happy, and may get stuck with a dead battery if you are not careful

Sent from my Passport

 

[wreckdiver1321]

I have a 12v inverter hard-wired in my cab. It's probably overkill, because I'm only charging a laptop and my camera batteries, so I could have gotten away with just using my cigarette lighter plugs. But I wanted it cleaner and I wanted it mounted out of the way. Plus, I've seen the wires that run to my cig lighter plugs. I'm pretty sure I've seen thicker hairs than those wires.

If you're running an electric griddle or something like that, you need a fairly large inverter, and you'll want it hard-wired, preferably with heavier gauge wire. It can be done though. My only concern is how much power you'd be drawing, so chances are you'd want the truck running unless you had isolated dual batteries.

 

[pugslyyy]

Hey everyone.

It's been a while for a new thread, hasn't it?

I'm looking into power inverters for camping and whatnot. Wanting to plug in a griddle to make breakfast, or a quick lunch to-go.

Not sure how these actually "work", with the exception of plugging them into the Cig Lighter.

Is that the only way of doing so? Any suggestions?


"Adventure is out there."
-Russell, Pixar's Up

The math is not in your favor trying to use a resistive heating device from your car battery.

For instance, that electric griddle probably draws 1500 Watts (12.5A @ 120V). Let's generously assume that your inverter is 95% efficient, so you need to be able to pull 1575 Watts from your batteries, or 131A @ at 12V. Running the griddle for 15 minutes is going to suck 32Amp-hours out of the battery (and the average car battery is around 45Ah total).

 

[SRStaff]

You are better off with the options of portable generators that are "quiet like Generac.
http://www.generac.com/all-products/generators/portable-generators/iq-series/iq2000

Honda and some other manufacturers make some nowadays. The non "quiet" ones are cheaper.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

^ This ^

If you need to run some more powerful appliances, a generator would be the way to go.

Or just use a gas stove

 

[SRStaff]

^ Gas stove with a griddle plate works well. Good idea.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

^ Gas stove with a griddle plate works well. Good idea.

Yep, several manufacturers make them with the griddle built in. I really like Camp Chef and Primus.

 

[XPLORx4]

For camping, it is probably easier to use a propane grill/griddle than an electric one. The expense of installing a costly, large (200W+) inverter for this purpose, along with the other modifications that will be needed to support it (larger main battery, or dual batteries), may outweigh the convenience of an electric appliance.

Get a Coleman stove and griddle. Way easier.
http://www.amazon.com/Coleman-Grill-Stove-Griddle/dp/B00DONEQYG

 

[XPLORx4]

FWIW, I have a small 400W inverter hardwired to my battery (10AWG wiring) for charging camera batteries, laptops, etc.

I didn't want to use the existing factory wiring to the lighter or power sockets, which would have required the ignition to be in ACC, running other accessories that drain the battery further.

I have other aux electrical accessories on a separate circuit from the main battery to a distribution block behind the left rear cargo panel. The circuit uses a fused 8AWG wire for high current loads and reduced voltage drop due to the long wire length. Here's an example of this technique applied in my Toyota Sequoia (sorry, I don't have pics of my Pathfinder):
Fused 8AWG wire near battery in engine bay
Distribution block behind left rear cargo panel