Power loss through inverter

[mr.stang]

Greetings, I am trying to find a television in 12 v and the supply is limited. I will have the 1500 inverter from Escape, my question is. Is there significant power loss using the inverter vs going direct dc. Standard Escape solar set up 17b 1 panel, 1 Lithium battery. Thanks Stan

[Rockhead]

We have the 24 inch tv/dvd combo unit from skyworth. It’s been great easy to use n lightweight

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by mr.stang

Greetings, I am trying to find a television in 12 v and the supply is limited. I will have the 1500 inverter from Escape, my question is. Is there significant power loss using the inverter vs going direct dc. Standard Escape solar set up 17b 1 panel, 1 Lithium battery. Thanks Stan

There is modest loss - typically between 10 and 15 percent of the total power going to the load. So if the tv uses 100 watts, then the inverter might pull 115 watts from the battery. The acceptability depends entirely on your camping situation - lots of sun, little other demands vs. shade or winter, high power usage.

A note of caution: Electronics prefer "pure sine wave" type inverters.

[mr.stang]

Looks like Skyworth is currently unavailable everywhere.
Did not know 1500 from escape was not pure sine wave, perhaps a smaller unit can be branched off the 12v.

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by mr.stang

...
Did not know 1500 from escape was not pure sine wave, perhaps a smaller unit can be branched off the 12v.

I was not saying anything specifically about the Escape 1500 watt inverter. The manual should say if it is pure sine wave, or not. It should also tell you the efficiency percent plus the consumption when not powering devices.

But using a small inverter for a single purpose - like tv - might save some "overhead" wattage. I use a 400 watt unit myself for small charging chores and my electric blanket.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by mr.stang

Did not know 1500 from escape was not pure sine wave, perhaps a smaller unit can be branched off the 12v.

Originally Posted by alanmalk

I was not saying anything specifically about the Escape 1500 watt inverter. The manual should say if it is pure sine wave, or not. It should also tell you the efficiency percent plus the consumption when not powering devices.

To the best of my knowledge Escape still uses the GoPower GP-ISW1500 pure sine wave inverter. 91% efficiency which is on par with other quality inverters out there. No load power draw ~1.8A; power save mode ~0.1A.
https://gpelectric.com/products/1500-watt-industrial-pure-sine-wave-inverter/
https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/c...-1000-1500.pdf

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by mr.stang

I am trying to find a television in 12 v and the supply is limited.

Maybe not plentiful but they are out there. Not sure what size you are looking for or how much you want to spend

https://www.amazon.com/Jensen-JTV19D...f_=as_li_ss_tl

With built-in DVD:
https://www.amazon.com/ASA-Jensen-JT...s%2C116&sr=1-4
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0..._li_ss_tl&th=1

[Rockhead]

Roadtrucker.com has the skyworth tvs in stock. That where we got ours, a 22 inch not a 24 as stated above

[John in Santa Cruz]

FWIW, I just installed the Renogy 2000W pure sine inverter in my E21, along with my lithium+solar upgrades.. Amazingly, that 2000W inverter only draws about 12-15 watts with no load. I haven't measured the AC load to compare against the DC load when a higher power device is plugged in, I know it can draw around 160 amps DC at 1800 watt output (wife's hair dryer on high heat).

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

FWIW, I just installed the Renogy 2000W pure sine inverter
...

Since you mentioned it (shameless thread hijacking).
I saw this recently -
A Dakota (US brand) lithium battery with awesome specs:
Group size 24
28 pounds
135 AH
internal heater for charging in cold weather
270 Amps continuous discharging !!!
Rated as a starting battery also.
And only a measly $1200 USD
https://dakotalithium.com/product/dl...hjC9vauJg30%3D

Full disclosure - I own a Dakota 100 AH lithium battery that I bought 3 years ago for the trolling motor. Been dependable so far.
And more disclosure - I bought 2 Renogy batteries for dirt cheap last fall for the trailer - not tested out yet.
Now I have battery envy...

[John in Santa Cruz]

I have a pair of the 216AH SOK 12V batts, under $1100 each. not rated as a starting battery, but they can sustain 100 amps each. combined they are 5200 watt*hours. very nicely made in a metal case, fully reparable, quality BMS, low temp sensor, etc.

[cpaharley2008]

I have always bought 12v tv from a truckers website, she even have dvd built in. Seems wasteful to convert 12v to 120v and then back to 12v....

[mr.stang]

I agree, but when I checked the truckers website there was not a tv available, I am worried about the view-ability of the Jensen LCD, and concerned about the reviews on the supersonic. Can't find the Skyworth available anywhere.

[John in Santa Cruz]

conversion efficiency is surprisingly good now.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by mr.stang

Greetings, I am trying to find a television in 12 v and the supply is limited.

I've had good success with older models of Insigma TVs. They use the inline transformer on the power cord. I forget what voltage the transformer says is the output but I cut the transformer off and added a cigarette lighter plug and they work great.

I looked on Craigslist for a few days and one day there were two for sale so I bought them both. Less than $100 for both, good to have spares.

Ron

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

I've had good success with older models of Insigma TVs. They use the inline transformer on the power cord. I forget what voltage the transformer says is the output but I cut the transformer off and added a cigarette lighter plug and they work great.

I looked on Craigslist for a few days and one day there were two for sale so I bought them both. Less than $100 for both, good to have spares.

Ron

Bring one to Osoyoos and I'll help you move your inventory........

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

I've had good success with older models of Insigma TVs.

Ron just to clarify do you mean Insignia which is the Best Buy brand?

[Ron in BC]

Yes, my boo-boo.

Nice try Jim. They've been out of production for several years so I'll be hanging on to my spare.

Ron

[John in Santa Cruz]

wow, last night, I checked the power usage of my 2000W Renogy True Sine inverter again.

first shut off everything but one LED (it was night). -0.5 amps.
next, turn on inverter with no load.... quickly settled to -1.5 amps. *wow* only one amp 'wasted' by the unloaded inverter
then, plugged in my laptop charger cable. -5.5 amps, so the laptop charger was drawing about 65 watts off the battery including the inverter overhead. double wow.

[StillCampin]

Real usage of a somewhat similar setup...

My tv happens to be 12 volts but my satellite tv receiver and cell phone booster want 120v. I put in a small 300 watt inverter that I leave on when boondocking specifically for those items. They are powered all the time - with no noticable draw difference when the sat receiver is on or off (standby). My audio setup (12v) is also on all the time (tv's sound is horrible).

At night when watching tv I often see upwards of 7 amps being drawn; in the mornings before turning on the news it might be under 4 (but solar would be affecting that).

My nightly deficit, after turning off the genny after making dinner - usually by 7pm, is usually about 90ah (30% down on 3 100ah Battleborns). I often run the genny in the morning for under an hour to bring the batteries up to 85% and then let solar finish (380 watts flat on the roof feeding mppt controller). I usually get to 100% by 1-2pm (Arizona).