susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 We have a 300w pure sine wave inverter placed under the bed and have left it switched on overnight before with no problem. Last night I got woken up by a wailing sound, couldn't figure out where it was coming from first, looked in the drawers, checked the mobile phones, wasnt them. About to ignore it then thought better not, found out it was the inverter wailing under the bed, opened the door underneath bed and saw the green light on, heard it wailing, smelt some sort of electrical smell so switched it off and disconnected the crocodile clips from the leisure battery around 2 feet away. Any advice please? Haven't tried it out yet to see if it still works, could it have fried the battery or inverter m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 9:07 AM We have a 300w pure sine wave inverter placed under the bed and have left it switched on overnight before with no problem. Last night I got woken up by a wailing sound, couldn't figure out where it was coming from first, looked in the drawers, checked the mobile phones, wasnt them. About to ignore it then thought better not, found out it was the inverter wailing under the bed, opened the door underneath bed and saw the green light on, heard it wailing, smelled some sort of electrical smell so switched it off and disconnected the crocodile clips from the leisure battery around 2 feet away. Any advice please? Haven't tried it out yet to see if it still works, could it have fried the battery or inverter m Oops sorry about the double post, only went in to edit my original post, tee spelling and it double posted, must get the hang of this. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 knackered?overloaded? crocodile clips and thin cables? not the best way to connect an inverter.... you can always delete a double post..happens to the best of us :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 JudgeMental - 2013-08-29 9:42 AM knackered?overloaded? crocodile clips and thin cables? not the best way to connect an inverter.... you can always delete a double post..happens to the best of us :-D We used the cable and clips that came with the inverter. Nothing was on when the inverter was on and the inverter is only about a month old. Did originally run it from the supplied cigarette plug but as suggested on the literature now run it directly from leisure battery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 Crocodile clips are fine for 300 watts which is a maximum of 15 amps and one can only presume that the makers of the inverter would have fitted it with adequate cable, apart from which it has been working OK which suggests that some kind of malfunction has developed? All one needs to do is check the security of the crocodile clips from time to time and ensure that they are not getting warm through poor contact. As it is quite new I would be inclined to contact the supplier and get it replaced as the loss of confidence in it would not be worth the worry in my view? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 ps, How do you delete posts, I thought that once posted they are there forever? Also can people other than yourself delete posts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 9:50 AM How do you delete posts, I thought that once posted they are there forever? Also can people other than yourself delete posts? A - you can't - all you can do is edit out all or some of the text, but you can only edit within the first 30 minutes from posting. B - No - other than the moderators! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 Tracker - 2013-08-29 9:49 AM Crocodile clips are fine for 300 watts which is a maximum of 15 amps and one can only presume that the makers of the inverter would have fitted it with adequate cable, apart from which it has been working OK which suggests that some kind of malfunction has developed? All one needs to do is check the security of the crocodile clips from time to time and ensure that they are not getting warm through poor contact. As it is quite new I would be inclined to contact the supplier and get it replaced as the loss of confidence in it would not be worth the worry in my view? It's only a month old and under warranty and it cost £80 which is to us a lot to just discard it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 9:53 AM It's only a month old and under warranty and it cost £80 which is to us a lot to just discard it Sorry about that Susie - I didn't realise from your original posting that it was new and under warranty - which is why I edited it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 9:53 AM Tracker - 2013-08-29 9:49 AM Crocodile clips are fine for 300 watts which is a maximum of 15 amps and one can only presume that the makers of the inverter would have fitted it with adequate cable, apart from which it has been working OK which suggests that some kind of malfunction has developed? All one needs to do is check the security of the crocodile clips from time to time and ensure that they are not getting warm through poor contact. As it is quite new I would be inclined to contact the supplier and get it replaced as the loss of confidence in it would not be worth the worry in my view? It's only a month old and under warranty and it cost £80 which is to us a lot to just discard it Sorry misread your post, I thought you said , bin it. :$ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 29, 2013 Author Share Posted August 29, 2013 We will wait for the solar panel do its work for a few hours if that's what caused it and try it again, if it's the same we will take it back to the shop where we bought it. Tracker I thought I was going mad, I was sure I read, bin it, then you said you had edited it, phew, thank goodness for that . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 10:04 AM We will wait for the solar panel do its work for a few hours if that's what caused it and try it again, if it's the same we will take it back to the shop where we bought it. Tracker I thought I was going mad, I was sure I read, bin it, then you said you had edited it, phew, thank goodness for that . What has the solar panel got to do with it unless your leisure battery/s are well down and the inverters giving a fault warning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brambles Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 If the inverter is only a month old, simpe, return to supplier and ask for a replacement or redund and the get a new one. You should not leave an invertor connected when it is not in use. It will always draw some power and why use precious battery power when not needed. Not to mention the risk of a fault developing while you are sleeping or away from the van. Get back to the supplier, it is their responsibilty to replace or redund. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 You need to give it another try and come back to us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 If the inverter is new, did it come with instructions? If so, is there any mention of low battery charge/low voltage warning? Alternatively, as you say it smelled hot, is there adequate ventilation to prevent it overheating? Again, reference to the instructions should tell you if the space around the inverter is as specified. If the battery is fully charged, and the ventilation sufficient, and it is still hot and noisy, it seems likely it has developed a fault. Inverters cane batteries, so the charge level needs to be kept high. Leaving an inverter connected, as Brambles says, is unwise, because they draw current all the time, irrespective of whether or not they are being used. They draw much more when in use, but the small draw when quiescent is 24/7, so will run a battery flat over time. This is the main reason for making a permanent connection to the habitation battery, and installing an illuminated switch into the inverter supply, so that it is immediately apparent when it is on, and so that it can easily be switched off whenever not in use. As advised, it would be wise to try the inverter again with the battery fully charged, and after checking the ventilation is sufficient. If it still performs in the same way, then take it back to the supplier, and advise them that it appears to have developed a fault. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teflon2 Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-29 9:07 AM We have a 300w pure sine wave inverter placed under the bed and have left it switched on overnight before with no problem. Last night I got woken up by a wailing sound, couldn't figure out where it was coming from first, looked in the drawers, checked the mobile phones, wasnt them. About to ignore it then thought better not, found out it was the inverter wailing under the bed, opened the door underneath bed and saw the green light on, heard it wailing, smelt some sort of electrical smell so switched it off and disconnected the crocodile clips from the leisure battery around 2 feet away. Any advice please? Haven't tried it out yet to see if it still works, could it have fried the battery or inverter m[/ You were lucky before you should never leave an inverter on and not feeding an appliance it just becomes a coil heater. Hope you have luck with the supplier but it was your error sorry. John QUOTE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 The OP hasn't said what they had previously been running from the inverter, has it been overloaded, and with most to my knowledge being rather ambitious for the rated output, coupled with some very dodgy manufacturing could be the culprit. Our 1200 watt unit which we have used for four years now is hard wired with welding cable, and inline fuses, as well as the inverters fuse, but I've never used anything much more than 100 watts, and never an inductive load, as that was the advice in the instructions,. ;-) Anyway as others have said take it back and try to get an exchange or refund. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Collings Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 Try changing its nappy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 £80 seems a lot for a 300 watt inverter. £30 seems more realistic. It must be a good one. Could be low battery voltage warning alarm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted August 29, 2013 Share Posted August 29, 2013 peter - 2013-08-29 9:19 PM £80 seems a lot for a 300 watt inverter. £30 seems more realistic. It must be a good one. Could be low battery voltage warning alarm. It's a pure sine wave the OP said, always as I'm sure you know more expensive. ;-) but agree the wailing could be exactly as you said, why they leave it on when not in use is an odd thing to do if they do not mind me saying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-30 7:37 AM Ok. well we tried it with another battery and it was ok. Seems like the dealer had not fitted a battery to battery charger to charge the leisure battery. We have only used it with a freesat box, and charging 2 phones. not even a hairdryer. We use a kettle on gas. We cook on gas. We have fitted LED lights. Used it for 3 hours last night, no wailing or smell. Thanks for all the advice have to ask the dealers now to correct their work, seems we have been using the one battery all week and no charge going back in from the solar panel. When we bought van we asked for another 110 leisure battery, a 80w solar panel, and a battery to battery charger. Seems they didn't wire it up correctly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 First time for us using an inverter, we thought you could leave it on at night as it didn't take any power when not being used. Other people, we read, have it permanently fixed to their batteries so we thought it was ok. We have now learned to switch it off at night and disconnect. Shows you can teach old dogs new tricks! Thanks for all your input guys. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshortcircuit Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 susie1997 - 2013-08-30 7:47 AM First time for us using an inverter, we thought you could leave it on at night as it didn't take any power when not being used. Other people, we read, have it permanently fixed to their batteries so we thought it was ok. We have now learned to switch it off at night and disconnect. Shows you can teach old dogs new tricks! Thanks for all your input guys. Cheers. Have you resolved the situation? Is it a faulty unit or a flat battery? Feedback would be appreciated as it helps others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susie1997 Posted August 30, 2013 Author Share Posted August 30, 2013 It seems it was a flat battery and as I don't have a multimeter to test until tomorrow can't prove it. All works ok from the proper leisure battery!! We have a battery under the rear single beds, which are electric, and that battery was put there solely for the beds, so we were told today. It is not a leisure battery, so we have 4 batteries in the van including the starter battery. The First leisure battery is under the driver seat along with the original starter battery. The second leisure battery was fitted under the passenger cab seat and they are connected together as a battery to battery charger connected to a solar panel. so we have changed our ways and now have the inverter plugged in to the 12v cigarette lighter in the habitation part of the van as we cannot access the leisure batteries under the passenger cab seat. So we have changed our ways . and have to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 Blimey, that all sounds very complicated, hope you get your issues sorted. ;-) but I'm sorry to muddy the waters but I would be wary of using a cig lighter socket to power it as a permanent solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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