Power Inverters and Solar Blog for OutsideSupply.com

Using a power inverter to run Freezer.

Here is a power inverter questions sent to OutsideSupply.com:

Q: I need to understand what kind of power inverter to use to power a freezer to transfer ice cream from one location to another. I read something that I may also need another battery.

A: We get a lot of customers who want run freezers on power inverters for a variety of reasons. There are several inverters that will run freezers. True sine wave inverters are the best, but modified sine inverters can run many freezers on the market.

With True sine wave you can get a GFCI outlet and know that the power will be clean and reliable to your freezer. Here would be a sample Freezer Power inverter setup on a true sine wave inverter.

	Item
		3000 Watt Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12 Volt Item Number: GPSW-3000-12
		Power Inverter Install Kit 5 Item Number: GP-DC-KIT5

Here would be an example of a freezer power inverter setup using a heavy duty modified sine inverter:

		Power Inverter Install Kit 5 Item Number: GP-DC-KIT5
		Go Power 3000 HD Power Inverter Item Number: GP-3000

Either setup would be fine to run a freezer, but I would recommend the True Sine Wave Hands down. It is better for the equipment and the GFCI outlet adds an extra layer of safety.

Why power inverter cable size is important!

I had a non customer/ potential customer of Outside Supply call today. He had bought a power inverter at a big box. It was a 2500 watt off brand power inverter. He said it was working, but had some additional questions. We started talking about cable sizing and fuses for this power inverter.

via blog.outsidesupply.com

Just a note that we carry a wide range of power inverter install kits and power inverter fuses. I wanted to provide links to these items that will help you use the right size cable and proper fuses.

Power Inverter Install Kit 2 Inverter Install Kit 2 : For 12 Volt 600 to 1000 Watt inverters and 24 Volt 600 to 1800 Watt Inverters

Power Inverter Install Kit 3 Go Power Install Kit for Inverters in 12 Volt 1100 to 1800 WATT and 24 Volt 2000 to 3000 WATT

Power Inverter Install Kit 4 12 volt 2000-2500 Watts Power Inverter Install Kit.

Power Inverter Install Kit 5 Go Power Install kit for Large Inverters

Also a selection of power inverter fuses:

110 Amp Fuse for Inverters 110 Amp Fuse Class T

Go Power 110 Amp Slow Blow Fuse Class T 100 Amp Slow Blow Fuse

200 Amp Class T Fuse and Fuse Block Class T Fuse - 200 Amp and Fuse Block

200 Amp Class T Fuse 200 Amp Replacement Class T Fuse

300 Amp Fuse Class T With Block 300 Amp Fuse and Block for Inverter Install

Go Power 300 Amp Slow Blow Fuse Class T 300 Amp Slow Blow Fuse

Go Power 400 Amp Fuse Clast T With Block 400 Amp Class T Fuse and Fuse Block for Power Inverter Installation

400 Amp Slow Blow Fuse Class T Class T: Slow Blow Fuse - 400 Amp

Camping Power Inverter

Today we had a customer call at Outside Supply about using a Power Inverter for their Boy Scout Troop's camping. He needed a power inverter he could install in their equipment trailer that could provide him the ability to run a blender and food processor. They plan on making omelette's and Milk Shakes. He already had a battery bank in the trailer. He wanted to make sure it would have GFCI for saftey since they would be cooking.

He also was interested in the the correct install kit for the power inverter. Here is what I recommended for the camping trailer.

1750 Watt Modified Sine Wave Power Inverter

This power inverter has plenty of power to allow for running a blender or a food processor. He also can run a variety of other devices in the trailer. He even talked about using a 1000 watt electric chainsaw on fire wood some times.

The proper install kit for his application is the matched Go Power Inverter Installation Kit.

Power Inverter Installation Kit Wire and Fuse

Power Inverters

Power Inverters

Power inverters are great devices that  can really make a lot of applications easy and quiet for the RVer. A lot of time when an Rver wants to run his or her  microwave when drycamping, they need to power up their generator. This is both noisy and requires fuel. Once an RVer installs a power inverter in their unit, they can just go ahead and run that microwave off their RV's batteries. Outside Supply carries a full line of power inverters and accessories to get the job done right with strong reliable equipment.

A power inverter is a device that converters DC power to AC power, or in simple terms, Battery Power to Household Electricity. A good clean power inverter will allow you to run a variety of electronics ranging from laptops, TVs, Microwaves, Coffee Pots and more off your batteries.

12v Sine Wave Power Inverter for Car Laptop

A customer asked a question about powering a few devices in their car using a 12v power inverter. Most of the devices like camera charger and cell phone charger would have been great on a modified sine 12v power inverter. Then they added a laptop to the list of devices and my recommendation for 12v power inverter changed.

At this point I recommended a True Sine Wave 12v Power Inverter.

This is because laptops are sensitive electronics and modifed sine inverters do not produce high quality electricity. If you are running your really exspensive laptop on a cheap modified sine inverter stop and watch our true sine wave 12v power inverter video below.

12v Car Power Inverter

A customer wanted to know about buying a 12v Car Power Inverter from Outside Supply.



The specific questions about the 12v Car Power Inverter were:

Question: What is the best 12v power inverter to run a cell phone charger and possibly a camera charger in my car?

Choosing Proper Power Inverter

I get a lot of questions about Power Inverters at Outside Supply. Many of these relate to choosing the proper power inverter. I have created this short video to cover a few of the topics often touched on by our customer including how different power inverter brands market their inverters differtently and how to choose an inverter based on your load.

Laptop Pure Sine Wave Power Inverter

Outside Supply gets plenty of customers looking to purchase pure sine wave inverters to run their laptop to use while parked in their RV or car. Pure sine wave inverters produce a much cleaner and a smoother type of power than modified sine wave inverters. This makes our small pure sine wave inverters perfect for creating that mobile office using your laptop.

A laptop is an expensive piece of electronics. It deserves the clean and regular voltage provided by a sine wave inverter. At one time a laptop pure sine wave power inverter would have cost over $400.00. Today this high quality inverter runs around $160.00. This is a great price to keep your mobile office running.

Many individuals have found the power and flexibility a mobile office can provide. Take a look at our Pure Sine wave power inverter selection, we carry a wide range of voltages and wattage.

A laptop will usually run on a 300 watt sine wave power inverter with no problems. We also carry a smaller 150 watt sine wave power inverter as well. This unit has a cigarette lighter socket connection.

Here is a short video on the 150 Sine Wave Power Inverter listed above.

Car Power Inverters Cigarette Plug

Here is a question I am often asked at OutsideSupply.com

Can I run a 1000 watt inverter from my Car Power Inverters Cigarette Plug?

The answer is pretty simple, NO. This is because the loads required to run a 1000 watt power inverter would quickly blow fuses in car cigarette lighter plug circuit. The DC load can reach almost 100 AMPS on a 12 volt DC inverter rated at 1000 watts. Of course and inverter only draws power based on the actual load, a large load will cause problems.

Here is a great inverter that works well with Car Cigarette Lighter Plug connectors.

Ice Cream Truck Power Inverter

I recently had a customer call in to OutsideSupply.com inquiring about a power inverter setup for her Ice Cream Truck business. She decided to start an Ice Cream Truck / Ice Cream Van business. She has gotten an Ice Cream Distributor and has purchased a freezer. So she wanted an Inverter to power the freezer while on the road. She also needed a charger to recharge the battery at night. Here is what she got for her Ice Cream Truck.

2500 Watt Power Inverter

Power Inverter Install Kit 4

45 Amp Battery Charger

4 Stage Charge Controller

This setup works well for Ice Cream Trucks. The power inverter has plenty of power to handle the freezer and the charger can provide about 450 amp/hours in only a 10 hour charge.