Marine Inverters

INVERTERS

Did you ever wake up at a beautiful anchorage where everything was just divine except "I wish I could make myself a fresh cup of coffee". Inverters allow you to do that without buying a generator or even if you have a generator without starting it and waking everyone up.

Inverters make AC power from your house bank or designated inverter bank if space is available. Electronic AC Inverters change 12 volts or 24 volts into 120 volt AC household current for those appliances aboard that require AC. Actually, many larger vessels have Inverters as well as generators, since generators must be turned on to produce AC, even if you only want to brew a cup of coffee. If you've ever had a peaceful evening at anchor shattered by a neighboring boat's AC generator, you'll appreciate inverters even more.

Inverters installed by Wirewiz or Wirewiz tech support do not use your start batteries to run the inverter. You will always be able to start your engine or generator to get home or recharge.

An inverter will run anything a generator will run except air conditioning. And will do it without making noise, without using fuel and without requiring maintenance. Why run your generator just to watch TV or a movie or make some popcorn. Why wake your mates up in the morning because you started the generator to make a fresh cup of coffee.

Most inverter/chargers have fallen out of favor with me. I had been looking for a new one to install. A customer bought a Magnum and I installed it for him. I liked what I saw and since have sold and installed another one. The Magnum comes with a remote control/display which can be turned into an amp hour meter with an optional easy to install kit. I also know the Magnum story which is dedication to producing a quality product. So Magnum is my inverter/charger of choice. Outback would be as well if they had a simple remote panel. For stand alone inverters it is the Prosine 1000 watt or 1800 watt. I have personally installed dozens of these and rarely have a problem. Click spec sheet links below for more data on the Prosine and Magnum Inverters.

You must provide a house or inverter battery bank large enough to run the loads you plan on running with your inverter. For example, an inverter running a microwave or coffee maker will draw 100 amps DC. Rule of thumb is the battery bank should be 3-4X this draw in amp hours or 300-400 amp hours. So, a 300-400 amp hour battery bank will be required. The reason for this rule is because a 100 amp draw out of a smaller battery bank will drop the voltage of the bank below the point where the inverter will operate, thus causing the inverter to shutdown.

Inverter loads such as microwaves, coffee makers and hair dryers will require the Prosine 1800 watt, stand alone inverter or the Magnum 2000 watt, inverter/charger. Inverter loads such as computers, TV, DVD, blenders will only require the Prosine 1000 watt stand alone inverter.

The Xantrex Prosine 1000 and 1800 watt inverters are stand alone inverters. They do not have built in chargers. These are ideal for vessels that already have a satisfactory charger or do not need to increase their charging capacity for rapid generator charging. The Magnum Inverters have built-in chargers. These are ideal for boats that also need a new charger or want to increase their charging capacity for a more rapid charge when the generator is running.