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Old 04-15-2006, 10:50 PM   #1
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How much power should it draw?

Today I removed the old Univolt and wired up my new Intelipower 60 with Charge Wizard. At the moment, I have no way to bring shore power to the AS to test it, so I thought that I could take an 800W inverter, attach it to a separate batttery and plug it into the AS to supply the 120V wiring with a few amps for testing purposes. This didn't work--the inverter shut down instantly, as if there were a dead short! Not only that, but after I unplugged the Intelipower unit and tried again it shut down as before. To my knowledge, no 120V appliances are turned on. Everything on 12V still works fine.

Is this just a question of more power needed? Do I have trouble I don't know about? Comments, please!
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Old 04-15-2006, 10:57 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Vince Brach
Today I removed the old Univolt and wired up my new Intelipower 60 with Charge Wizard. At the moment, I have no way to bring shore power to the AS to test it, so I thought that I could take an 800W inverter, attach it to a separate batttery and plug it into the AS to supply the 120V wiring with a few amps for testing purposes. This didn't work--the inverter shut down instantly, as if there were a dead short! Not only that, but after I unplugged the Intelipower unit and tried again it shut down as before. To my knowledge, no 120V appliances are turned on. Everything on 12V still works fine.

Is this just a question of more power needed? Do I have trouble I don't know about? Comments, please!
Not sure about the inverter you're using, but my Intellipower makes a pretty good sized spark when plugging in to a 30A 120v outlet, with no load applied, just hooked to batteries. Maybe it has a startup surge greater than what your converter can handle.
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Old 04-16-2006, 06:23 AM   #3
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If you can use a small generator, the Intellipower will work on standard household 15 amp service. A Honda E1000 would be more than adequate for this, if you have one.
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Old 04-16-2006, 06:58 AM   #4
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Vince,

Is it possible the battery that powers the inverter is dropping too low, and the inverter is just shutting off due to low voltage?

BTW, love your user title.
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Old 04-16-2006, 07:05 AM   #5
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Vince,

Is it possible the battery that powers the inverter is dropping too low, and the inverter is just shutting off due to low voltage?
No, because this setup powers an electric drill and other fairly high-wattage devices just fine. The problem is limited to plugging the trailer power plug into the inverter--and note, the shutdown occurs whether or not the Intelipower unit is plugged in to the "patio plug" in the curbside compartment.
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Old 04-16-2006, 09:39 AM   #6
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Some things that would otherwise run off an inverter can shut it down on initial connection or power-up. That includes, for example, a TV with a degaussing coil. I don't know for sure, but suspect the Intellipower has a pretty healthy filter capacitor on the 12VDC side that is charging up on power-up, and that would happen whether the batteries are connected or not. That would appear as a dead short to the inverter initially.
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Old 04-16-2006, 05:27 PM   #7
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Some inverters do not generate a sine wave, which is what you get from the power company's AC line. The univolt replacement could require a sine wave input for proper operation.
The other explanation has been mentioned, surge current creating a "brownout" dip in voltage from your inverter. Have you used a voltmeter to verify that the inverter is generating 120VAC throughout its cycle from no load to loaded by the unit?
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Old 04-16-2006, 09:09 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by herrgirdner
Some inverters do not generate a sine wave, which is what you get from the power company's AC line. The univolt replacement could require a sine wave input for proper operation.
The other explanation has been mentioned, surge current creating a "brownout" dip in voltage from your inverter. Have you used a voltmeter to verify that the inverter is generating 120VAC throughout its cycle from no load to loaded by the unit?
On that subject, be sure to use an RMS type voltmeter. Anything else will not give you a true reading of the AC voltage.
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