Salvage inverter question

[eddiepotts]

I have a 50amp system. I was wondering if I could buy an inverter out of an old salvage rv. I know I could not run the whole bus but could I put a plug on it to accept my coach plug so I could run heaters and a TV at night to keep from running my genny all night. Or for driving somewhere and run an ac and TV with the fridge. I guess I am asking is there a simple install or is a big undertaking to wire it all in. I am hoping it is plug and play. I leave for the NASCAR race at Texas motor speedway next weekend and for what 100 hours of running the genny cost me I could buy some batteries and inverter. If it is to big of a job then I will wait on spending the money and have it ready for the spring race.

[Tenor]

What kind of heaters are you using?  Electric or propane?  Do you have a line on a specific inverter, or are you asking in general.  Any chance you mean a converter?  A lot of different answers are possible.  If your inverter needs to be wired into your electrical panel, that adds quite a number of steps. 

Glenn

[eddiepotts]

I have electric heater. I do not have a line on one. I guess i am asking about an inverter but from reading I guess campers have converters. So let me ask this. If I buy a 3000w inverter ( http://houston.craigslist.org/tls/2005890707.html ) can I wirer a plug on it to power the house but just use a few items?

[bobofthenorth]

I have electric heater. .......... can I wirer a plug on it to power the house but just use a few items?

Like a lot of questions that get asked here the answer is "Yes, but ......"

There ain't no free lunch.  You need a basic understanding of watts before you go too far down this road. 

Poop sheets is a good place to start.  Read #2 & #5 then come back and ask the question again.  Others much wiser than me will no doubt hop onboard with other resources.

[robertglines1]

caution---if you run it off your start batteries (when parked) you might not have enough power to start bus. also ck see if it is 3000 continuous  or surge power with 2000 continuous.

[Tenor]

Eddie,
Inverters are an essential part of an integrated electrical system and can't usually be put together ad-hoc.  I would say the same thing about a heating system.  Do you only use the coach for tailgating?  I think we could help you out with a nice design once we know more about your plans.  It is possible to run a roof air (or 2) while travelling down the road if you have enough charging power and a big enough inverter.  Tell us about your coach as well.  We look forward to helping!

Glenn

[eddiepotts]

I do use it for tailgating. It is an entertainer so I just need to run 1 ac while driving. I have a slide door that shuts the front lounge off so not much space to keep cool. I have a 24v system with a 65a alternator. I won't use the start batteries. I plan to buy 2 deep cycles for this. I don't have room for a large battery bank and It does not have to last me all day. I just want something to turn some lights on at night and when we sleep I can have enough heat to take the chill out. I can add a 12v alternator to charge the aux batteries while driving and was thinking a switch that would charge if genny was running or a simple battery charger. I just hate running the genny if someone wants a light to read with or watch TV while I am driving. I have a small bar fridge that I have to keep cold also. I am wanting something I can just plug in and not have a major rewire job. Cold here is 45* so I don't need much heat. I want things down to the basics. I don't mind not being able to run the ac and the microwave at the same time.

[Tenor]

The picture in your file looks like a prevost.  Is that your bus?  I would think that a prevost would have a much larger 24v alternator.  Usually a 50DN.  Those put out around 250a.  If you don't have it anymore, you could do better with another 24v alternator tied in with your existing one.  That would allow you to run a large enough inverter (around 2000a or more) to run a roof air while driving down the road.  As for heat, electric won't work very well.  They need a big battery bank.  Does your coach only have the engine heat?  Do you only have 120AC lighting?  Do you have a propane system?  Tell us more.

Glenn

[Lin]

A 3000 watt continuous inverter is big enough to run an AC or heater plus some light stuff.  You could wire it so that you plug your shore cord into it also if you use the proper gauge wire and the right receptacle.   Where the power is coming from is the big question.  If you get a 24v inverter, it can do the job, but your 65a alternator will not.  If you get a 12v inverter and want to run AC on the road, you will probably need at least a 200 amp, 12v alternator.  I am just using approximates here, but as Bob said, there is no free lunch.  Running a couple of reading lights is easy.  Running hear and AC is serious.  Since an average electric heater will use something like 125 amps, you will need a good battery bank to support it.  Also, even if you wire the coach cord to connect to the inverter through a plug and receptacle, which saves you needing a transfer switch, you will still have to hard wire it to the battery bank with large gauge cable.

If you really want to keep things simple, skip the idea of using the inverter for AC and heat.  Just look to cover the small loads.

[eddiepotts]

Yes, the prevost is mine. it's an 83. The 50dn is gone. The bus is all 120ac lights. The 2 24v alternators sound good. Are you saying inverters come in 24v? I do have an automatic switch that changes from shore power to generator. How big of a battery bank would we be talking to run an ac and flat panel TV for 10hrs. Just for an idea. I have a roof top ac.

[robertglines1]

Ed..don't think it is possible to do 10 hrs..I have heard even the large batt banks just do a ac for a very short time..that's with the 24volt several thousand dollar units. then you get into  the fact that some items won't run off modified sine wave--and need the more expensive pure sine wave units..the high tech guys can put numbers to it..I don't think a 3000 unit has enough surge power to start a ac unit..Bob

[eddiepotts]

Well this is good info. So it sounds like a good cheap one would be the way for me to go just for a light and TV. I just keep hearing the generator uses about a gallon an hour and the thought of $300 in fuel for a few days just gets to me.

[Van]

I think the biggest hurdle here will be trying to drown out the sound of every one else's Generator at the speed way

[robertglines1]

maybe a small 1000 watt quiet gen set.low fuel consumption

[buswarrior]

There's a busnut up here that hated the generator noise, so way back in 1999 or so, he was working on having the capacity to put 16 golf cart batteries under the front in the spare tire compartment of an MC9.

Wired for 24 volts, with the newest/most efficient big name roof air of the day, he was able to keep the rear bedroom cool overnight with 8 batteries installed and some careful power management. A Trace 4024 was the inverter involved, IIRC.

So, you can do lots of things, as long as you are sufficiently committed, and pay the costs!

For tailgating, lights and televisions are easily powered with a modest sized system. Air conditioning, heat and microwaves are big power hogs, but you can fire up the generator to supplement and then shut it off again.

Just some math. Add up your anticipated power consumption, convert your amp hours from the 120 volt for the voltage of the intended battery bank, and then double the size of the battery bank, running batteries less than half kills them quickly.

Yes, you could whip up a system for this race, but I fear your learning curve may not keep up, and you may end up with hardware that won't make you happy moving forward.

Skip it for now, do some research and execute a winner for next race?

happy coaching!
buswarrior