T.V. won't work off Inverter

[John From Detroit]

Shadow, when it comes to engineering knowledge I'm the low man on this forum's totem pole.

And a lot of folks think I'm good.

There are folks here in the forum who's retirement checks say things like BOING or JPL or some such (NASA contractors)

Mine just says Michigan

Thus, when one makes a technical mistake,  It does not take long to find out about it.

I hang out in a number of places where is someone were to ask us for engineering advice it would cost them over 1,000/hr. Of course that's not why we are there (I mean the Ripples Amateur Radio Club meets for the sole purpose of LUNCH every Wed at Ripples on the lake in White Lake Township, Michigan.  Secondary is social chat.  But there is a good kilobuck per hour of engineering mind power around that table,  This forum meets primarly for chat and to help those who need it, and there is a good kilobuck per hour worth of talent here too.  Same for the other places)

Thankfully for those needing help here... The forum experts run on "Thank You" instead of $$$$$$$$

Oh yes, and "Pass it on".  I mean at one time we were all newbes and most of us had to learn.  If we can help you to learn the easy way as opposed to the school of hard knocks... Well, that is good, but pass it on!

 

[Shadowman]

First of all, John, I couldn't agree more. The information here is invaluable, and I appreciate every single reply and ounce of advise. Believe me, I would not know where I would be without all the knowledge I have gotten here and when ever the chance arises where I might know something someone else can use, you can bet I'll be there to help. Again, the reply above was all in jest. 

So, now, thanks to all of your combined knowledge, I am in business and I am not worried about a single thing.  I finally received the last of my parts today and I got everything hooked up just as suggested. I have a 200 Amp fuse, I have a battery disconnect switch, I have the the whole thing grounded and mounted. Believe it or not, it all works. I can turn it on from the comfort of the coach, I don't have to worry about any humming or fan noise. I couldn't be more thrilled and my thanks to all that have contributed, I'm sure I would still be trying to figure out how to take the battery out? I'm sure my kids will be absolutely tickled. I have a few more final touches to seal everything and make everything sound, but it was late and I was to excited to keep it going.

Finally I hope that this thread gets used over and over, because for a novice weekender, I think there is some great info.

Thanks again.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Shadowman,
We really weren't trying to nitpick you - some of us really do not think your batteries achieved anything close to full charge, not even 92.465%. [How did you come up with that number???] We were merely trying to educate you in 12V power basics so that you can handle problems when the RV Forum gang is not around and maybe even set some other Rvers on the right path in the future.  And yes, you really do need to provide as specific data as possible when asking technical questions - us gear heads just aren't happy without it. 

Regardless, we are happy to hear you have everything working to your satisfaction. Good luck with the rig and have some fun!

 

[rsalhus]

Shadowman,
First of all, congratulations on getting your inverter installed.  To me, you seemed to be rushing your project a bit and I was concerned that you weren't planning it through well enough before actually beginning the installation. 

BTW, I'm neither an engineer nor a gearhead, just the kind of guy that reads the manual before heading for the toolbench and if I don't understand everything, then I'm over my head and in need of help.  I've always liked the saying that "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Anyway, you worked your way through the inverter installation and it sounds like it meets your expectations.  (Actually, I had a few more recommendations for doing the wiring and cutting the holes, but it's too late for them now.)    Just remember to charge those batteries up completely before putting on that trickle charger.  ;D  Happy RVing to you and your boys!

 

[idive]

I'm amazed that you've gone to all this expense and time to set up a brute of an inverter that will operate a dinosaur of a CRT TV.  It would have cost less just to give the old TV to Goodwill and replace it with a modern, low current, LCD TV.  In case you haven't checked the prices lately, anything under 26 inches is relatively cheap compared to the monster inverter you finally installed.  And LCD TVs take up much less space which, in an RV, is a valuable commodity.  LCD TVs also weigh considerably less per inch of screen size, another important factor to consider in RVing.

When problem solving, apply the principle of Occam's Razor:  "All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the best one."

Good luck, and good travels. 

 

[Shadowman]

idive,

Believe me I considered the option of changing out the TV as one of the first steps. However, the TV I am powering is built in to the overhead compartment of my class A, and I was having a challlenge finding one with the same or similar dimensions, that would not require me doing a lot of cosmetic fabrication to make it appear asthetically pleasing. Had this been a TV that was mounted on a shelf, that probably would have been my first option. Secondly, had I known it was my batteries that probably caused the 750 Watt inverter to fail, I probably would have stayed with that option. However, as you may or may not have guessed, this was my first venture into working with inverters and therefore a process of trial and error, with the exception of the great advise I got here.

So, when all was said and done, I have an inverter that will power my old TV, it can also be used for firing up the coffee maker without use of the generator in the mornings, as well as running a few other appliances that we might have done without before. The bottom line is when I found out I would not be able to mount the inverter in the overhead compartment by the TV, and would have to locate it in the basement, the idea of the smaller inverter went out the window.

I'm not trying to justify anything, but simply putting the information out there for anyone else that might come across this same situation, and wonder what direction to go.

Thanks for the comments, it's always nice to know all the options.

 

[John From Detroit]

Though I agree that a 12 volt LCD TV might have been easier for OTA or park cable

Sat Receivers tend to eat 120vac, so does the controll box for my sat antenna (TV-RO) and the modem for my Sat Internet.

 

[joegrammier]

Everybody seems to have different ideas for rv inverters.  I dry camped at 9600 ft. (out of Silverton Colo.) for 14 days in July. I have a $40 300 watt inverter hooked to 2 maxx walmart deep cycle batteries ($66 apiece)  I wired inverter directly to batteries (about 2 ft heavy wire.)
I use inverter to power new 19" flat screen tv (54 watts) with a satellite receiver and also have a c-pac (breathing machine) hooked to it.  I watched tv for 3-4 hrs. each night and ran breathing machine for 8-10 hrs. each night.  The 300 watt works fine with tv, satellite receiver, and c-pac. I charge batteries with the motorhome generator (4kw) for 5-6 hrs. during the day. The generator started with ease each morning. From what I read about deepcycle batteries I was only charging batteries about 75% each day but it was enough to run ref. and hot water electronics, water pump, lights, inverter each day.  This is 6th year I've dry camped there for 10-14 days doing this.  The small inverter uses less battery draw than the larger ones, I use about 1/2 to 3/4 of watts that the inverter is rated for.