Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
RV Trip Planning Discussions

Go Back   iRV2 Forums > RV SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES FORUMS > Technology: Internet, TV, Satellite, Cell Phones, etc.
Click Here to Login
Join iRV2 Today

Mission Statement: Supporting thoughtful exchange of knowledge, values and experience among RV enthusiasts.
Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on iRV2
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 04-03-2021, 04:16 PM   #1
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 162
12 volt TV?

I will be replacing a 28" lousy tv in the living room of my 2015 Vegas 24.1. Tv is installed above the entrance door. I am wondering if getting a 12 volt TV is a better idea than an inverter. I have no need to run anything but this 1 TV while parked. I do not need a complex whole house solution. Access to 12 volts is easy and clean above the entrance door. Installing the inverter requires taking space under the sink, drilling and routing wires to the batteries under the steps and then finding a way to get the inverted 110v up to the TV. Inverter is about $100?
Any opinions?
__________________
1998 Chieftain - sold
2012 Tiffin Allegro Open Road gas 36LA - Sold
2015 Thor Vegas 24.1
Indytraveler is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 RV Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

iRV2.com RV Community - Are you about to start a new improvement on your RV or need some help with some maintenance? Do you need advice on what products to buy? Or maybe you can give others some advice? No matter where you fit in you'll find that iRV2 is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with other RV owners, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create an RV blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 04-03-2021, 05:37 PM   #2
Senior Member


 
Join Date: May 2019
Posts: 172
Couldn't you use a small handheld inverter that plugs into a cigarette lighter plug, Hide it behind the TV?
That way you could use any TV and not have to find one that runs on 12 volts. I have a $30 inverter like that that I run my laptop off in my car. The inverter will make up to 300 watts, which would run any television of that size.

Tv power consumption in watts:
https://www.batteryequivalents.com/o...-a-tv-use.html

The inverter I use:
https://www.amazon.com/BESTEK-300W-P...80697571&psc=1

Edit: this particular inverter has a small on/off rocker switch so you could power it off when not in use if you mounted it where you could reach it behind the TV.
Tim-n-Gina is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 07:05 PM   #3
Senior Member
 
smiller's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,303
The Best Buy Insignia (house brand) TVs use a AC-DC power brick for a power supply and will run directly off of 12 VDC, or at least the last one I bought does. It has never had an issue at 14+ volts (i.e. when the house battery charger is online.)
smiller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 08:03 PM   #4
Senior Member
 
Isaac-1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: SW Louisiana
Posts: 8,850
My take on it is that most 12V TV's are older designs which draw more power, so you are generally better off getting a newer design AC model and take the hit from running the inverter, as it will be a smaller hit than the higher power draw of the older 12V TV design.
__________________
2002 Safari Trek 2830 on P32 Chassis with 8.1L w/ 400 watts solar 420Ah LiFePo4
2017 Jeep Cherokee Overland & 2007 Toyota Yaris TOADs with Even Brake,
Demco Commander tow bar and Blue Ox / Roadmaster base plates
Isaac-1 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 08:56 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
smiller's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,303
Quote:
Originally Posted by Isaac-1 View Post
My take on it is that most 12V TV's are older designs which draw more power, so you are generally better off getting a newer design AC model and take the hit from running the inverter, as it will be a smaller hit than the higher power draw of the older 12V TV design.
Why are most TVs that operate off of 12 volts an 'older design'? Any TV you purchase today would likely have been designed recently. Unless you have pulled something many years old out of the closet then the loss though an inverter would almost certainly be more than any loss simply because the unit operates off of 12 volts. In fact you'd have double loss since modern TV internals run off of a relatively low DC voltage (this is why they frequently use external power bricks to convert from 120VAC to DC) so you're doing a conversion twice, once to step up 12V to 120VAC with an inverter and then again from 120VAC to a low DC voltage inside the TV.

Bottom line, if power consumption is a concern then your best bet is a new TV that can be run directly off of DC.
smiller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 09:22 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
Isaac-1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: SW Louisiana
Posts: 8,850
This is just based on casual observation of date first sold when looking at 12V RV tv models on amazon. Looking up 4 random brands and models of tv's sold on amazon marked as 12V car / RV tv's showed first sold dates of 2011,2013, and 2 from 2018.
__________________
2002 Safari Trek 2830 on P32 Chassis with 8.1L w/ 400 watts solar 420Ah LiFePo4
2017 Jeep Cherokee Overland & 2007 Toyota Yaris TOADs with Even Brake,
Demco Commander tow bar and Blue Ox / Roadmaster base plates
Isaac-1 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 09:37 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
smiller's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,303
First, don't use RV or car TVs, use a modern TV that runs off of 12 volts as described above. Second, you can't make any accurate assumptions regarding power consumption solely from date of manufacture, and third with an inverter you know you are losing 10-20% efficiency right out of the gate.
smiller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 09:58 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
Isaac-1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: SW Louisiana
Posts: 8,850
Perhaps with older inverters though modern ones are closer to that 10% mark, also most newer TV designs build the power supply and everything else into the TV and not an external power brick. As to actual power consumption sometimes you can find it if you dig into the specs a bit.
__________________
2002 Safari Trek 2830 on P32 Chassis with 8.1L w/ 400 watts solar 420Ah LiFePo4
2017 Jeep Cherokee Overland & 2007 Toyota Yaris TOADs with Even Brake,
Demco Commander tow bar and Blue Ox / Roadmaster base plates
Isaac-1 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 04-03-2021, 10:22 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 35,349
You may be able to place a 100 watt inverter in the cabinet above the sink.

You can tap into the power wires for the drop down bunk.
If like my Axis, the controller is behind a false wall on the left side of that cabinet.
twinboat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-04-2021, 09:35 AM   #10
Senior Member
 
Ljwt330's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Capistrano Beach, California
Posts: 4,465
Just one point to add.


Though many TVs come with the DC "brick", they are not 12v DC sets, necessarily. You need to check the specs to find out the output DC voltage for the set. Many require ~19V. Ideally, wiring directly to a DC source is what you want, but you will have to shop carefully to find a set that falls within that DC voltage range.
__________________
Larry, Eileen, and Finley
2004 Alpine 36FDDS
Third motor home, first Alpine, no need for another.
Ljwt330 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-04-2021, 10:02 AM   #11
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 257
Just browsing for 12V TVs, seems you will pay more for that than a 120V TV + small inverter.
Wbago97 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-04-2021, 10:04 AM   #12
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2021
Posts: 214
Jensen, free signal, continu.us, axess all make 12v TVs. So much simpler and cleaner than an inverter based solution. Energy consumption of a 27" 12V TV will be under 30 watts. I have a 27" free signal TV.
Danny969 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-04-2021, 10:36 AM   #13
Senior Member
 
smiller's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 2,303
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wbago97 View Post
Just browsing for 12V TVs, seems you will pay more for that than a 120V TV + small inverter.
Yes, probably, so don't buy a '12 volt TV' from Jensen, etc. as these are usually very poor performers and more expensive vs. a standard TV.

As above, many/most smaller TVs these days use a wall wart power supply that converts 120VAC to DC so... just omit the converter, simple. It's true that not all DC-powered run on 12 volts vs. some other voltage, but many do and it shouldn't be difficult to find one you like. I gave an example above (Insignia/Best Buy) and there are others.
smiller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-04-2021, 10:44 AM   #14
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 908
I certainly agree with the advice of preferring a 12V DC TV rather than using an inverter. The less power conversions the better for efficiency so I cringe a bit at the idea of taking 12V DC to 120V AC through an inverter only to probably go back to DC inside the TV.

That said and being pragmatic, if you already have a reasonably modern 120V AC TV installed then an inverter might be worth a try as a quick and simple solution. I think it's true that modern inverters are quite efficient.

We have one of these https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rch_asin_title which we mostly use for charging laptops from 12 V. I haven't tried it but I think that would power the TV we have in the coach no problem. It's just a matter of how much current it would draw.

I recently bought one of these https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0..._title_o03_s00 primarily to start the car that had been sitting in the garage for six months on our return in the RV from TX to NH. It worked well for that but is also quite a useful thing to have around. 22 amp-hours is quite a good concentrated box of energy with a usual cigarette lighter type socket plus several USB sockets. I can imagine if we were boondocking or parking lot "camping" for a night and were concerned about draining the house batteries then that thing could probably power the TV for quite a few hours.

An inline current meter would be a useful thing to have. I just did a quick search and didn't really find what I was expecting. I'm imagining a short cable with a cigarette lighter plug on one end and a socket on the other and a digital current meter in-between that you would temporarily insert in the path to measure current. Lots of plugs and hubs etc have a voltage display but nothing much for current.
tetranz is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
12 volt



Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
12 volt parallel vs. 2 6-volt series batteries nascar-co RV Systems & Appliances 14 02-04-2010 09:50 AM
12 VOLT to 6 VOLT House Mikeeg MH-General Discussions & Problems 10 12-21-2008 03:25 PM
6-Volt vs. 12 volt Batteries BB501 MH-General Discussions & Problems 22 11-17-2007 10:10 AM
12 Volt Batteries vs 6 Volt kenbt Winnebago Industries Owner's Forum 12 12-14-2005 09:09 AM
12 Volt versus 6 Volt Batteries CYOUL8R MH-General Discussions & Problems 5 08-05-2005 05:40 AM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:11 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.