Thread: what devices require 2000w inverter

Originally Posted by BreakingBad

Hi all,

I'm going to take the plunge and get lithium for aux in the near future.

One of the salesmen I have been speaking with gave me a few options.

12V 100Ah / 100A LiFePO₄ battery
12V 100Ah / 175A LiFePO₄ battery
12V 150Ah / 100A LiFePO₄ battery
12V 150Ah / 175A LiFePO₄ battery
12V 200Ah / 100A LiFePO₄ battery
12V 200Ah / 175A LiFePO₄ battery

He mentioned the 175A would allow the use of a 2000w inverter.

My only real need for an inverter would to charge a laptop so I don't think I need 2000w but I am curious what type of devices would require such high wattage? Or is it more about the quantity of things being used at the same time?

And if my laptop is charged via USB C, do I need an inverter at all? Or will a USB C fast charge plug suffice? such as

Server Busy

Microwave
Hairdryer
Coffee machine
Big screen TV

Just the essentials whilst travelling 🤪

Yep!

Originally Posted by BreakingBad

.... Or is it more about the quantity of things being used at the same time?

.....

oops! sorry yep to this part.

But also, a single item can draw 2000w too. Think .... kettle(or fast boil kettle), microwave, induction cooktops.

You're probably laughing right now thinking to yourself who would take a kettle or microwave camping?

From what I've seen .. they do!
But more so the caravanners use them.

You can get lower voltage appliances(such as microwaves), but are horrendously expensive. Can't remember if they're 12 or 24v(maybe both).

Check the power rating for your USB-C charger, should be easy to find a plug for it. From memory the Microsoft USB charger for their tablet/laptop thingies are rated at 45w. My daughter had one for school, and I got her a wall plug for her while she was with me. I recall 45w was about what it was rated at. 12v into USB at 45w should be easy .. just don't go cheapo!

We ditched gas for induction cooktop therefore upgraded to lithium

200ah battery with 200amp max. draw

Max we run the induction cooktop is 1800w, which is when we are boiling water and it pulls 162amps.

If you don't use the capacity, it is inefficient at light loads. You're better to match the inverter to expected loads. On the boat, I use a (relatively expensive) Projecta 600w pure sine wave inverter for charging laptops and cordless power tool batteries, and also keep an Ebay cheapy 1500w pure sine wave (allegedly!) inverter for running basically the missus's toaster and the wet and dry vacuum cleaner occasionally. In the car we use a 130 w inverter for ac battery chargers and a 12v to 5v 10A power brick and USB power outlets for charging USB stuff which works out really well - especially with a load of grand kids onboard.

Electric blankets 600 watt from what I read in 4x4 magazine, fella had one in a patrol decked out to sleep in.

We went for the same Enerdrive 200 amp lithium battery with 2000 inverter, chargers and 300 watts of solar on our new caravan.
Only used it once, but I can happily confirm it can run our Aldi coffee pod machine and also the frother, but not both at the same time.
Also happy to find the solar replaces the charge used within about half an hour if the sun is shining.
Haven't used it enough yet to comment on anything else.
I'm not expecting a problem with our eBay cheapie 12V electric blanket, as we only run it on low in cold weather, and it was no problem in our previous camper trailer. 12V is the way to go.

Originally Posted by W&KO

We ditched gas for induction cooktop therefore upgraded to lithium

200ah battery with 200amp max. draw

Max we run the induction cooktop is 1800w, which is when we are boiling water and it pulls 162amps.

Originally Posted by Gav 110

Microwave
Hairdryer
Coffee machine
Big screen TV

Just the essentials whilst travelling 🤪

I only use large inverters at home, during power blackouts, so have no real idea of the use and power consumption of these and other devices mentioned.

What sort of power consumption does each device require and how long do you run them for?

Big screen TVs use very little power. I have a large screen plasma TV and run it plus my DVD and Foxtel unit from a 750w inverter, that also runs a few 240vac lights, all at the same time.

Originally Posted by drivesafe

I only use large inverters at home, during power blackouts, so have no real idea of the use and power consumption of these and other devices mentioned.

What sort of power consumption does each device require and how long do you run them for?

Big screen TVs use very little power. I have a large screen plasma TV and run it plus my DVD and Foxtel unit from a 750w inverter, that also runs a few 240vac lights, all at the same time.

Hi Drivesafe

I don’t actually use one myself, I carry a 150watt pure sine wave inverter whilst camping, only if I have to fire up the laptop for work

My comments were based on observations of other people’s camp setups



Gav