Inverter.

[ccscott49]

More advice please.
I would like a full sine wave inverter, 230v @ 3kw x 24v. Any reccomendations? A 2.5kw would do, as long as it would be max 3 or 3.5 for a minute or two to start loads. Have looked at a few, but boy are they expensive, maybe thats what I have to pay though. Thanks for any advice.

 

[mocruising]

Still in Barca eh. You just missed one on ebay. Mine is a Mastervolt its been on the boat 10 years now and still going strong. They are expensive but buying cheap does not always make good economic sense.

 

[dickh]

There's a Mastervolt 4kw one on ebay at the moment, only a year old, Buy It Now has now gone(£550) but currently at £320, says he will include extras if it reaches BIN price. Sounds a good buy' See:-
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mastervolt-Mass-Si...1QQcmdZViewItem
Good Luck

 

[dickh]

Another 2.5kw Vectron on ebay - search under vectron as inverter has been spelt wrong.

 

[pvb]

Spelling!!!

[ QUOTE ]
Another 2.5kw Vectron on ebay - search under vectron as inverter has been spelt wrong.

[/ QUOTE ]That's inadvertently one of the funniest posts - it is of course a V<span style="color:red">i</span>ctron. Oh, and ccscott's looking for a 24v inverter, both your suggestions are 12v.

 

[Colvic Watson]

Re: Spelling!!!

I'm impressed - what kind of battery bank do you have that could drive a 3kw inverter for any length of time?

 

[samwise]

I assume you have looked at Merlin Equipment www.merlinequipment.com They do a leisure and a professional series for 12 and 24v. I've used them for various bits of equipment including a complete switchgear and panel rebuild plus galvanic isloators etc. I find them helpful. Re costs, I guess we have to expect that reliability, durability and performance will always cost.

 

[PhilipH]

Why do you need a pure sine wave 3kw? If it's for computer kit and also high output electrical stuff, why not have a small (say 200 watt) pure sine wave for computer and a modified sine wave for the other stuff - much cheaper.

 

[ccscott49]

Re: Spelling!!!

12 x 110ah batteries arranged as 24volts, that's 660ah.

 

[ccscott49]

Need puere sine wave for, video, DVD, fridge, computer. It also makes motor driven stuff work much better, belive me I have 3kw modified and after prolonged use they screw up lots of gear. I'm not rigging up two inverters, plus the large cables etc.

 

[ccscott49]

Yeah, still in Barca, but been very busy! Marriage etc. working my bum off! as well. But not much longer! I may well go for a mastervolt, have one of their chargers, good robust gear.

 

[charles_reed]

S\'pose

you don't need any ballast then?

 

[ccscott49]

Re: S\'pose

That's just the domestic bank, got another 4 x 110, 24v bank for engine starting, independent of the domestics, but with a solenoid to short them together in an emergency. Plus of course 2 x 110, in 12 volt bank for genny start. I like plenty of battery!! For a boat the size of englander and liveaboard, this is not over the top.

 

[ccscott49]

Re: S\'pose

Sourced a Victron 24/3000 for £969.0inc, so I'll probably go with that, has all the bells and whistles I require. (JG tech)
One of the reasons for this high power, is I have a mains watermaker, which I will run with my genny when at anchor, when I charge my batteries, but when motor sailing (which I do mostly) I can use the output from one engine alternator, (70a) to charge the batteries and run the watermaker at sea, dont need to run it too long, as it's a 95 liter an hour one. See my thinking here? Three hours at sea, make water for one, two charging through smart charger.
Dont need to run the genny. Engine alternators keep up with any loads when at sea and solar and large battery bank when at anchor. Run genny every couple or three days for three hours to top up.
Have lead ballast in the after end of Englander to counteract the anchor chain and water tanks, forward, so may move my battery banks to under aft cabin floor and remove the lead, no need to carry all of the weight. Still in the thinking about stage, leave the engine start batteries in the engine room.
Any further advice on this and any other battery, charger, inverter, power etc, gratefully received.
Thanks guys and gals!

 

[PaulJS]

Re: S\'pose

If you do relocate your batteries by the accommodation, please remember the ventilation. 2 Hydrogen + 1 Oxygen = 1 Water, but there's a blooming big bang first!
Take care.