Inverter to run Cathode TV

[mr300ce]

I am going camping in the Bounder in the desert for 5 days Thanksgiving.

Will have 15 yr old G-child along. I will want to run the Panasonic 20" TV

and the Sony DVD player at night. I don't want to run the genset forn this.

I have a cigar lighter outlet in the dash that is hot all the time.

What size inverter do you think I should get to make this happen??

Maybe one from wallyworld???

This MH did not come with an inverter. Later (3yrs), when I retire and fulltime, I will get a very good inverter and mount it in the system properly, but for now I just want something portable and cheap to run these items.

Suggestions?? 400w?? 600w?? More??

[Conquest102]

You will need to check the back of the tv and dvd to get there power needs. I don't think a cig plug is going to carry enough power you are probally looking at a direct to the battery connection. If memory serves correct you are maxed at around 300 watts for the plug after that its a direct connect to the battery.

[JimM68]

we did this on a pace arrow gasser, used a 400 watt inverter plugged into the lighter outlet. It would onlky run both the TV and DVD player if the engine was running, 12 volts wouldn't do it, it needed 14.

Later I replaced it with a 700 watt inverter, wired directly to the house batteries with 6 gauge cable.
Guess what? It would only run the TV and DVD together if the main engine was running!

[Engineer Guy]

You pretty much have to do the current draw Math as suggested above. Assuming +13 VDC from the Battery and NO Wire-based losses, 20 Amps current draw would be 'only' 260 DC Watts max. available to the Inverter input side. And, all Inverters have some conversion loss. A GREAT Converter is 90% efficient. So, the Cig Lighter Plug mode results in only about 2 Amps of 115 VAC available at the output side [115 VAC x 2 Amps = 230 Watts].

Meanwhile, a generic 'fault' in Cig Lighter Plugs is how small the surface area is on the center +12 VDC Positive Lead side. Putting 'too much' current through so small a contact point heats it, causing failure. Even my Trouble Spotlight heats up a Cig Lighter Plug to the melting point w/o blowing the 15 Amp 'Aux' Cig Lighter Plug Fuse; bad news.

So, count on a direct Battery connection AND 'good size' Wiring to avoid further power drops.

Last, pulling 'plenty' of Amps off the Battery [or Batteries] will force you to watch Battery depletion level, and recharge occasionally...

After reading Reviews, I chose to avoid the Black and Decker Inverters from Wally World and sprung for this 400 Watt Cobra. It's quiet, and works flawlessly at a great price point. Direct-from-Battery Clips and Cable come with it, as does a Cig Lighter Plug/Cable. My recollection is that you can't see or measure any 115 VAC at the Inverter Output until you connect a Load to it.

Amazon - 400 Watt Cobra Inverter

[JeepTJ5]

A good rule of thumb is that the 12 volt current draw is about 10 times the 120 volt draw. So if the TV draws 100 watts, that’s about .8 amps at 120 volts which would be about 8 amps draw plus the inefficiency of the inverter, so make it 10 amps. Your cigarette lighter outlet might work, but probably the voltage under load will drop below the inverter's shut-off threshold and it will stop or beep, etc. If the TV draws more, the problem will only be worse. Best advice is in the previous message, connect the inverter directly to the battery and run an extension cord to the tv, etc.

Harbor Freight sells a really nice 400 watt inverter (about $30) that I use for my tv and satellite receiver (and it's connected directly to the batteries) It is more than enough for TV's, etc. (I use it so I don’t have to run all the stuff that’s connected to the big inverter – I’m on solar power boondocking)

Do remember that running the inverter for an hour at say 20 amps draw is 20 amp-hours from the battery, and 20 more each hour. Know the capacity of your batteries so you don't kill 'em.

[mr300ce]

I have the owner's manual for the TV, but it does not say how many watts it is. Does anyone have a clue. Just figure an average 20" TV.

I can set the inverter next to the batts & clamp the terminals onto the batts, and then run an extention cord into the RV to plug the tv & dvd into.

Mr. Electricity says my 20" TV likely uses about 100 watts. If so, a 600 watt inverter might work. They are super cheap, which is what I want for now.
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/tv.html

[MickBrennan]

A personal size TV/DVD player might be about the same cost as your disposable inverter. Find a 12 volt adapter for that and you will be good to go!

[mr300ce]

Yes thanks, HF is 2 miles away. I will check them for inverter, as they ALL seem to be made in chinna anyways. I will buy their extended warranty too. Thanks for the input folks.

[mr300ce]

Originally Posted by MickBrennan

A personal size TV/DVD player might be about the same cost as your disposable inverter. Find a 12 volt adapter for that and you will be good to go!

I have one that is about a 6" screen. Never have used it. Too small for 2 people to watch. "I" sure couldn't see the screen.

I guess I can always use my 15" screened laptop (what I am using this very moment). 12v plugin.

I just thought that it would be nicer to able to use the built-in tv so it would be easier to veiw and hear, without genset running.

You know how we all are.....have to have something to do.....something to 'make it better'......improvements.......gadgets.

[mr300ce]

Finally found a chart that shows the basic watss used by various appliances and gadgets.

[Bill Adams]

Lots of very good info available here.
Watts Used by Appliances & Tools - DonRowe.com
You are going to need a pretty good size battery bank to run a TV and DVD for any length of time so be sure you are wired to the house (not engine) batteries and if they are older or only a couple are available you might want to test the application before making the run to avoid disappointment.
A long extension cord run will also add additional losses so think "the shorter the better". If you can get some good #6 or #8 wire from the battery to where the TV/DVD/inverter will be co-located you will end up with the best result.

[wa8yxm]

Lighter socket won't do the job. You need to hard wire an inverter.. I suspect my 450 watt might do it but the last time I tried it I used an X-power 10000 (This is an MSW inverter I got for like sixty bucks at Costco years back) I think a 750 would too.

Normally I am anti MSW by the way. I prefer a TSW and they do work better in nearly all cases.. However the only TSW I have (Which by the way does a very fine job of what you want to do) is a 2KW job

Get a Kill-a-watt. Push the button for watts and plug the TV in, Note the instant peak if you can.. (Hopefully it will be small) then turn on,, You should see a great big peak, perhaps as much as 500-1,000 watts.. If so, you need at least 1.5 that for your inverter.

This peak will quickly subside to perhaps 100-300 watts. (the running power of the TV)

[Ramblin]

I bought one of these from Best Buy about a year ago to replace a tube TV in my conversion van. Nice thing about it is it has a 12V power input, and a wall-wart type power supply. I wired it directly into the 12V, no inverter necessary.

Insignia NS-LDVD19Q-10A 19" 720p HDTV-Ready LCD TV - FREE SHIPPING UNTIL 2012 (600603122354) | eBay

(I'm not 100% sure this is the exact model, but it was a 19" insignia that looks just like this. Ask about the wall wart before you buy.)

[Bill Adams]

The "all-in-one" solution.
12 volt tv | eBay