andyball
Well-Known Member
a 1500W load will draw nearer 150 Amps given the efficiency of most inverters; also you'd probably want to not discharge the batt's below say 50% to keep the life reasonable ( unless you buy something very flash/expensive... and they are as good as claimed- hmm) .
a leccy blanket, sure; I've used mine to heat the water via an immersion before now ( yes, about 1500W ) so an hour tops still leaves plenty for the things you really bought an inverter for ( I've got abt 700AH total service capacity ).
Overall, I tend to agree with many others, not to rely on it for actual heating, likely you'll spend more on speccing it sufficiently for that than you would getting a better or secondary heating system.
Victron or mastervolt in a sinewave inverter/charger'd be my choice if speccing from scratch; note that inverter manufacturers vary somewhat in their description of say a 3KW output- some'll run this power even at typical ambient eng room temps, many won't - some will run start-up loads of perhaps 5KW+ & well over 3KW for quite some time....again, others won't. The makers I mentioned aren't as I recall especially generous in their specs, I just like their gear. pointing really to ensure that you buy gig.carefully enough to operate what you want it to.
Get cheap superflex or regular high current cable/lugs from Furneaux riddall if you're diy'ing, cheaper still from http://www.beal.org.uk/ . I've a giant crimp tool if you need it, or they're abt £100+. if you're running big loads, don't waste power in cables.
ahh, and shop around for prices as always, Victron & mastervolt vary widely in the uk, from full-retail to 30+% off last time I looked.
a leccy blanket, sure; I've used mine to heat the water via an immersion before now ( yes, about 1500W ) so an hour tops still leaves plenty for the things you really bought an inverter for ( I've got abt 700AH total service capacity ).
Overall, I tend to agree with many others, not to rely on it for actual heating, likely you'll spend more on speccing it sufficiently for that than you would getting a better or secondary heating system.
Victron or mastervolt in a sinewave inverter/charger'd be my choice if speccing from scratch; note that inverter manufacturers vary somewhat in their description of say a 3KW output- some'll run this power even at typical ambient eng room temps, many won't - some will run start-up loads of perhaps 5KW+ & well over 3KW for quite some time....again, others won't. The makers I mentioned aren't as I recall especially generous in their specs, I just like their gear. pointing really to ensure that you buy gig.carefully enough to operate what you want it to.
Get cheap superflex or regular high current cable/lugs from Furneaux riddall if you're diy'ing, cheaper still from http://www.beal.org.uk/ . I've a giant crimp tool if you need it, or they're abt £100+. if you're running big loads, don't waste power in cables.
ahh, and shop around for prices as always, Victron & mastervolt vary widely in the uk, from full-retail to 30+% off last time I looked.
