Charles Chodkowski Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 I want to wire a 700watt inverter in to my motorhome. The cable run to the leisure batteries will be about 4mtrs, can anyone advise me what size cable I should use and what size fuse do I need to use and where should I put the fuse. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scramblers Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 A word of warning if you use a 700 watt invertor at it's full capacity it will take approx 60 amps per hour from your battery (700watt/12volt = 58.3amp). A standard, fully charged leisure battery would last just over an hour when discharging at this rate. However if you wish to continue I would suggest that you have the cable run from the invertor to the battery as short as possible (to minimse volt drop losses) and the fuse next to the battery (to protect the battery from a catastrophic short circuit). It is easier, cheaper and safer to have very short 12v cable and a longer 240v cable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 One word BIG, if you want to do it that way at least 10mm sq & will cost a fortune. Best to do it the way John suggest, it's always best to have the inverter as close to the battery as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankkia Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 4 meters from the battery to the inverter is far too far. Can it not be sited close to the battery as the cables should be kept as short as possible (1/2 meter max). The fuse would need to be a minimum of 60amp (80amp to cope with short periods of running over the 700w) and sited as close as possible to the battery positive terminal. If you really must have the inverter so far from the battery bank you should use this table to decide on the gauge of cable to use http://www.btc-bci.com/~billben/maxwire.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 I have an 1100 watt inverter and have used arc welder/starter cable about 18" long and installed it as close to the batteries as possible and have a lead to connect it to my 240v ouside socket on the van. But my batteries are installed in an outside slide out drawer. You will also need to turn off the trip to the onboard charger/electroblock at the consumer unit if you do it this way, or it will be trying to charge the battery with it's own supply, not good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.