I need a inverter, either new or used. Any busnuts have one?
What size? 12 or 24 volts?
I need a inverter covers a lot of territory ::)
He said it had a 24 volt inverter that didn't work when he bought the bus and he converted everything to 12 volt, and never put a inverter on it. So Im guessing I need a 12 volt :-\
You want something repairable. Aren't any available that are repairable.
We are using a Trace SW4024. Translation: SW- sine wave, 40 - 4000 watts, 24 - 24 volt system.
As posted more info about size and input voltage.
Bill
Ok the bus is in phoenix and Im in St.Louis, and I don't know much other than what I have told you other than he said he just used a simple battery charger to keep the house batteries charged. Would the information from the old 24 volt inverter info that is in the bus tell me what size 12 volt inverter I need? Im sorry for the ignorance on my part, but My plan is to pick the bus up in Phoenix and after having a oil sample test done buy the bus and spend a month on the road before comming back to St. Louis. I will need a inverter and also the Jake brake fixed( it is installed but not working) This was Macs old bus.
personally that would be down my list of repairs (personally)
get the bus first so you can learn about it........don't throw parts at it.........yet ;D
and if you want to charge your house batteries off 110/120 you need a converter to step down from AC to Dc
if you want to turn your DC battery bank into AC 110/120 you need an inverter
First figure out what you need to power with it (12v,24v 110v or?) and if you need an inverter or converter
google both terms so you can read about them, maybe print them out and start a binder for all the knowledge you need to learn and save it for later
I would buy a cheap Harbor Freight inverter in the size you decide you need, just to get started for your trip. $50 to $150. Then, when you get home and have time to figure out what you need you can agonize for months over the correct high-buck choice. Or keep the small cheap one till it smokes. No need to rush the big buck decisions. You can buy a whole bus for what some battery/inverter setups cost.
Brian
Oh, boy. It is just beginning.
Scott, this is the tip of the iceberg.
I have a 24 volt inverter, free to a good home. Just pick it up here in Knoxville. BTW, it is not just an inverter. It is an inverter charger and you need to find out if you need an inverter or an inverter / charger.
Scott, if you are planning on coming to Phoenix to spend a month AC is on the top of the list it's supposed to be 122 Sat don't worry about a inverter ::)
It's only gonna be 118, Don't be so dramatic. lol
122 here in Mohave for Sat Kevin I think we will be north come Sat lol
From Monday to Thursday it is supposed to be from 95-110 in eastern Wa. and Central Oregon, and in the 90s in Montana.
I remember the 122 here. I was breaking down tires and swapping wheels that day, 20 of them! It did seem a little hotter than normal. I didn't hear about it until I got home and saw the news. You're already north!
I worked in Ehrenburg one summer,(02) and in Lake Havasu the next summer.(03) It was 122 in both places during the day and got down to about 110-112 at nite. When the temps finally dropped down to 114 during the day, it wasn't too bad. ;D
OK, you guys talked me into it. Leaving for Sun Valley ID. tomorrow. Forecast is for 100* here and we're at 5800 ft in Southern Utah.
Only 10-12 degrees cooler up there on Monday and Tuesday, Mike.
Hailey is in the 90's Mike rain on Sat that is were it starts to cool it is going to be a hot trip across the Nv and Id desert as Dan said you were stopping in Wells so I guess that is your route 93 to 75 up to Ketchum
Hey, have you all forgotten we have "dry heat"? Clifford, are you suggesting that Wells could be considered a "hot Box". Thanks Ed, I was hoping the weatherman would be wrong this time????
Dry heat what a joke a 117 is hot!!!!
And 90 with higher humidity is going to feel a lot hotter! ;D Clifford, as my wife says, "its a dry heat stroke".
Mikey you will like Stanley a lot better than Sun Valley ,keep going north Red Fish Lake at Stanley is beautiful place nice camp grounds also on the lake
Thanks Clifford, our true destination is Smiley Creek which is just south of Stanley on 75.
I couldn't under stand why you were going to Sun Valley lol you will be fine once you reach Hailey but except over the 100's across the Idaho desert around the Twin Falls areas through Jerome and Goodings I have saw 112 before there
Harleyman: Chances are any short term inverter solution is not going to handle a AC unit. It takes a good well though out unit to handle a minimal amount of AC. Several thousand of dollars. Don't get caught out in high temp in a new bus without AC. Add about 30 plus to outside temps in sun. FWIW Bob
Yeah, but it's a dry heat out there. Here in Michigan, 95 with 90% humidity feels like 122.
good advice Bob ac is a must this time of the year in Az
Scott will you be coming north towards Vegas by any chance? Does the bus have a generator?
Not if he is smart VAN he will head due north on I 17 to Prescott or Flag some steep climbs there for a old bus this time of year
Red Rider
If you get to hot and need to cool off. We are in Boise ID. Come on by our ac is on. Fri day is going to be 100 at min. and only getting hotter till wed. Good luck
Kevin
No problem come on over to Northern , Cali we have a big pond and it is gonna be cool here only 106 on tuesday!...
So Scott add up all your loads you would be using that would be running off an Inverter and then add about 20% more Watts. Lookup Inverters on the net and a bunch of places should show up in your area. A lot of them are actually made by the same maker under different names now. Outback, Magnum, Xantrex, just to name a few. The ones that have a plug receptacle on them are generally just for an appliance to plug in, TV, Refrig, Small heater etc. You would want one that you can hard wire a circuit into and have a pass through current.
Some say that it is better to get one with a charger in it, but others say that if you get them seperate that if one goes bad it is cheaper to replace later. HTH
Dave5Cs
At -30 deg I can go for a walk if I dress for it dave
The bus has 2 roof ac's that work and the dash air also works, so hopefully I have that covered. I will most likely do like one of you have said and buy a cheap harbor freight inverter. Here are 2 at harbor freight. They seem to be identical, but have different numbers? Can one of these 2 units be wired directly?
http://www.harborfreight.com/2000-watt-continuous4000-watt-peak-power-inverter-69662.html (http://www.harborfreight.com/2000-watt-continuous4000-watt-peak-power-inverter-69662.html)
http://www.harborfreight.com/2000-watt-continuous4000-watt-peak-power-inverter-60432.html (http://www.harborfreight.com/2000-watt-continuous4000-watt-peak-power-inverter-60432.html)
I agree with what others have said.. your ultimate inverter choice will require some knowledge of your electrical loads and desired style of travel. What size house battery system does the bus have? What are you needing to run while not plugged in or running off a generator? What features do you want in your inverter - charging, boosting, pure sign wave or modified, etc?
With the heatwave ramping up, I doubt you'll be enjoying much dry camping inside a metal tube anyway :D We bought our bus this time 2 years ago in southern AZ, and it was ... not fun.. weather wise. The high on the day of our first long drive from Yuma to Lake Havasu was 127. We had no house battery system at all, and no way to run an AC when not plugged in.
We picked up our bus in Yuma, went to the nearest campground with 50a hook-ups, a bathhouse and a pool, bought a Passport America membership and paid for a week at 50% off. And then we dug into learning all the new systems and figuring everything out. And then we did as Clifford suggested... retreated to Flagstaff to cool off after baking our brains for a month.
After getting our bus settled and getting a feel for it.. we then designed our house electrical system with a boosting inverter that could run a roof AC for a couple hours off grid, with a battery bank to match. An off grid electrical system requires some serious thought, planning and investment to find your ideal balance... don't rush if you can avoid it.
For your initial time... I'd suggest getting to the bus and see what is there, and what you'll absolutely need to get through the initial days. If there's a 12v outlet, you may find that picking up an automotive 400w or so inverter is enough to run things like a laptop and small items. And you can pick that up in any truck stop, Walmart, Radio Shack or Harbor Freight.
Best wishes... it's a fun adventure to finally get your first bus! Excited for you!
- Cherie
I use to have a old rv that I bought and never used. I remember that the inverter went out and I bought a identical one off ebay. I seem to remember that it was wired directly? I never used the rv or even drove it out of my yard so I never learnd anything about it, other than when I replaced the plumbing that the mice chewed up, when I first bought it. The rv was used as a club house for my son.
I will just wait untill I get the bus and go from there. Maybe I will spend my first month on the road meeting all you good people ;D
this will work http://onan-generator.blogspot.ca/2009/12/kipor-ig3000-3000-watt-generator.html (http://onan-generator.blogspot.ca/2009/12/kipor-ig3000-3000-watt-generator.html) dave
That Kipor generator would work when stopped and sitting outside, but it would require some work to get it working while going down the road.
I have a Prosine 3000 inverter. It is 3,000 watts which is not really enough to run two rooftop A/C units. I originally had the front A/C unit wired to the inverter thinking I might use the A/C with the inverter. I have since rewired the front A/C unit directly to the generator since it was pulling too much power through the inverter when it was really hot out.
We just run the diesel generator when we need A/C on the road. We usually need to run both the front and rear A/C units anyhow as people are usually sleeping while going down the road.
One other note: I know at least one busnut that decided not to do an inverter and just runs their generator 24x7. They use their bus for work at Walmart stores building or remodeling hair salons within the stores. They decided it was less costly to run the generator instead of buying batteries and an inverter. They are in the south so they run the A/C pretty often plus they have a very large fridge.
She was on the forum a year or two back asking about inverters and batteries due to cost of diesel getting so high. I don't know if they added an inverter or not.
Quote from: sledhead on June 28, 2013, 12:58:51 PM
this will work http://onan-generator.blogspot.ca/2009/12/kipor-ig3000-3000-watt-generator.html (http://onan-generator.blogspot.ca/2009/12/kipor-ig3000-3000-watt-generator.html) dave
That's the exact generator I have (except mine is the 240v version). The wheels shown in the photo are mounted on little sub-frames which can be very easily exchanged for fixed mounts to install it permanently. It's probably not the best choice for heavy (liveaboard) usage but for recreational use it's perfect, and it's really quiet
Jeremy
Could I use a inverter out of a rv salvage yard?
Why Not ? If it suits the size you need and works well. There are no rules with Buses except learning the correct way to do the stuff that could be dangerous to you or others. There are codes when it comes to electrical and plumbing for your safety but a lot here don't follow those. Some I am sure have ended up costing them selves more money but the majority end up asking questions and /or buying books about the subject. It all depends what your skills are.
Don't use things like lamp cords to extend a circuit just because its cheaper. It may not be in the end when it over heats and burns your bus up. Plumbing should have a filter or 2 on it because not all water across our great nation is clean.
stuff like that. Some fix their buses up in a few months others it takes 10 years because they enjoy working on it. So it is all up to you. ;D
Dave5Cs
If you don't mind me asking; what is the main reason you want an invertor for?