There are a few things to keep in mind when purchasing and auto 12v inverter.  There are many options available to consumers and you really need to look closely at what your needs are before making a purchase.  It’s easy to buy the wrong inverter and end up being unhappy with it.

First, you need to decide why you are buying an car power inverter.  If all you want is a small  power inverter to charge your laptop or digital camera batteries, your needs will be much different than if you want to run power tools from a power inverter in your work truck.

Power inverters should be sized according to the type of use that you anticipate putting them too.  Most electrical devices have a sticker or metal plate on them somewhere that lists the wattage requirements to run them.  For example, I just looked at the back of my small television an it says 25w.   If I was buying an inverter solely for the purpose of powering my small TV I would just need to buy one that was at least 25 watts.

Power tools are usually rated in terms of amps instead of watts.  You can calculate the wattage if you know the amps and voltage.  The formula is Amps = Watts/Volts.  The best thing to do when trying to decide how large of an auto power invert to buy is to make a list of all the items that you will be running at once and add up their individual wattage requirements.  It’s also a good idea to try and anticipate the electrical device you plan on using that has the highest energy requirement.  Then buy and inverter that is larger than you anticipate needing.

It’s not a good idea to run and car power inverter at or near full capacity.  If your device requires 190 watts and you have a 200 watt inverter, you would be working the inverter pretty hard.  It would be better to buy a 300 watt unit and it won’t have to work as hard.

You can buy auto power inverters at auto part stores, and big box stores like Walmart, Costco, or Lowes.  Keep in mind that the units you find in these stores are almost always low end economy models.  They are okay for light or occasional use but if you plan on using your power inverter daily or if you require a large inverter to run power tools, you should really consider purchasing a higher quality unit.

For this quality of auto power inverter, you are probably best off purchasing online.  High end power inverters are specialty items and it’s rare to find a store that will carry them.  Sometimes you can find larger inverters in shops that cater to semi trucks.  You’ll find a much better selection and be much more likely to find just what you’re looking for if you shop online.

I’ve purchased a few of these low end car power inverters in the past and none of them lasted very long.  I used them quite frequently though.  They might have lasted longer if I was only using them on the rare occasion here and there.

Thanks for visiting my site on 12v inverter info.

There are a few important things to keep in mind when planning your 12v power inverter installation.  If you take the time to carefully plan the installation, you’re likely to be much happier in the long run.  The inverter is likely to perform better and longer if you do the installation correctly.

The first think you need to consider when planning a 12v inverter installation is location.  The location of the inverter is very important.  You should make sure that you install the inverter in a location where it isn’t going to get stepped on.  You also want to make sure that the location that you choose for the 12v inverter isn’t one in which people are likely to stack things on top of it.  Putting things on top of the inverter can block the cooling vents and cause the inverter to overheat.  That brings up another point.  Ventilation.  Make sure that you don’t install the inverter in a location that’s not well ventilated or in an area that gets really hot like under the hood of your car or in direct sunlight

You also don’t want the inverter to be installed near water.  If you’re installing a 12v power inverter in a motor home, you wouldn’t want to install it under the sink for example.  If there was a plumbing leak, the inverter would probably get wet and that could damage the electronic circuits in the inverter.

When you finally settle on a good location for the inverter, drill some holes and bolt the inverter down securely.  Almost all inverters will have pre-drilled tabs for bolting the unit down.  Don’t skip this step.  Excessive vibration can damage the inverter and bolting it down will keep vibrations to a minimum.

The next thing to keep in mind when installing any 12 volt inverter is to use adequate wire.  Some inverters come supplied with wires but it’s usually not very heavy gauge.  It’s a good idea to buy heavily insulated 8 gauge wire.  The longer the distance between the battery and the inverter, the heavier the wire gauge needs to be.

It’s a good idea to solder the terminals on the wires.  This makes for a much stronger connection that isn’t likely to come loose from vibration.  Be sure and secure the wire out of the way.  Usually you can hide the wiring under the carpet.

It’s also a good idea to install an inline fuse between the positive terminal of the battery and the positive terminal of the 12v power inverter.  This way if there’s an electrical problem, the fuse will blow instead of the inverter.

If you have any questions about installing 12v power inverters leave a comment or send me an email at lawrencelahombre@yahoo.com.

If you are in the market for a 12v inverter that outputs the cleanest power possible, you need to buy one that outputs pure sine wave power.  There are basically three types of wave outputs.  They are square sign, modified sign, and pure sign.  Some sensitive electronic equipment requires pure sine power.

Unfortunately pure sine wave inverters are usually quite expensive.  Most mid range 12 volt inverters, output modified sine wave power and this is okay for most applications.  If you are in need of pure sine power from your inverter, perhaps you might consider the Samlex 300 – 500 Watt Pure Sine Inverter.

The best thing about this inverter is it’s price tag. I found it online for only $139!  That’s a great price for a pure sine 12v inverter.

Here’s the lowdown on this model:

• 300 watts continuous and 500 watts peak
• Efficiency -  >85%
• No load current draw – < 700 mA
• Output voltage – 12o VAC
• Input voltage range – 10.5 VDC -16.5 VDC
• Over voltage shut off – 16.6 VDC
• Under voltage shut off – 10 VDC
• Low voltage audible alarm – 10.7 VDC
• Overload shutdown – Yes
• Overheat shutdown – Yes
• Short circuit shutdown – Yes
• AC Outlets – One
• Weight – 3.3 pounds
• Dimensions – 8.5″x 4.6″x 2.5″
• Warranty – 2 years

The unit boasts total harmonic distortion of less than three percent which means it’s putting out some pretty clean power.  This 12v inverter ships with a power adapter so that you can plug it into your cigarette lighter.  I also comes with clamp on wires for connecting directly to a battery.  The cables are only 3 feet long which is fine for the cigarette lighter adapter but in my opinion the clamp on cables are way to short to be of much use.  I wouldn’t recommend using the clamp on wires.