Which outlets and/or appliances work with inverter?

[fansill]

How can I tell which outlets I can use when I am drycamping with only the inverter on? And will my TV's work or do they have to be re-routed to a designated inverter outlet...BTW it is a 2005 Revolution..

Thanks in advance.

[GaryKD]

Hi fansill,
There are several ways to do this.
1. with a meter
2. with a power checker device (just plug it in and read the power)
3. with a small appliance or charger

The house batteries need to be fully charged. Disconnect shore power. The generator is off. The inverter is on. With your tool of choice check the outlets in the coach. I have marked my outlets with an "I" for those that have inverter power. Try the TV(s) and any other appliance (Sat Dome, sat receiver, sound system, etc.)

[palehorse89]

How big is your inverter? Take and disconnect from shore power and turn the inverter on and try the tv's,microwave,and everything else inside to see what works and what does. Then take a voltage meter and check all of your outlets for power. Make a note of the outlets with power

[fansill]

It is a Magnum 2000 watt inverter. Does that tell you anything that I will need to know?

[Bill Barclay]

Our 2000 inverter does not produce the proper/normal(?) sine wave of power and burns out some plug-in electrical devices. This is noted in the inverter manual, I found out after the fact.

[FormerBoater]

If your Revolution is like my Eagle, the inverter will power everything on the coach except the Air Conditioners and perhaps the refrigerator (As I recall, the refrigerator will stay on propane when the inverter is on, but as we do not ever use the inverter except to run a vacuum cleaner, can't say for sure).

Your TV's should be connected to an inverter socket.

Dave
98 American Eagle 40EVS

[Dacotah]

Your question is a good one because most coach builders do not seem to give that information. Our 2001 38 Sportscoach supplies an outlet in the bathroom, one in the kitchen, the microwave/convection oven,and all TV's. I do not believe it has the power for the convection oven, only the microwave. The problem we have is with the generator on, the power to those outlets seems to go on and off at random, and there is no information in the manuals on how the switching system works. Motorhome electrical systems have become very complicated as everything has become automated. DACOTAH

[Luckiest Dreamer]

I have had a couple of inverters and it seems to me that the documentation about them always had a chart that listed what an average appliance needed to run. Based on that chart your could determine your needs and buy the right size inverter. Since you already have yours, go to Google search for the Manufactures web page and look for a manual for your model. At the very least you can check for support from their site.

We have a side by side house refrig in our MH. The invertor will run that all day as we travel and we do not need to start the gen set. Although it may also run other appliances there are few that need to be used as we travel that would drain the inverter batteries.
Things like a toaster, coffee pot, water heater use a lot of the inverter's power because of the heating elements. They are usually listed in the chart. The chart will be generic and each appliance should have a tag telling what it's needs are.

[bluepill]

All of my 120 volt outlets have a little green LED on them that tells me when & if they are powered. Very handy.

[Stogie]

My inverter has a power draw led meter. The lights are green when the load is light and turn red when the inverter is drawing heavily on the batteries.

Microwave turns it red. Heaters and hair dryers turn it red. If it produces heat it uses high amps and is not good for your batteries.

I run a few lights, some electronics chargers (phone, Ipod) and some small appliances such as the TV/VCR. At meal time if I need the Microwave, toaster, etc. I turn on the generator. Air Conditioner is a no brainer.

For movie time at night I run the Generator so when I go to sleep the batteries have a full charge.

[hooverbill]

Fleetwood should be able to tell you. My AC came with a little tag that said which appliances and outlets were powered by the inverter.

[WeBeGone2]

Mine runs every 120 outlet. Can not do AC. Only 4 batteries. The Refrig stays on gas but the ice maker will do its thing.