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Failed Inverter

Bullfrog

By Bullfrog
in Boat Equipment

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Bullfrog Rising Star

Bullfrog

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Today I switched on my small inverter (Sterling Model A-300-350 2/12 volts modified sine wave. almost exactly 3 years old ) and there was a pop, the light in the switch flashed and went out and that was it - completely dead.

 

Is there anything fixable in one of these, like a fuse or something, or should I just chuck it and get another, it wasn't expensive when I bought it.

 

Help, please.

 

Thanks

 

David

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pagan witch Community Regular

pagan witch

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Maybe just my preference but I'd definately look at getting it fixed.

 

I'm old enough to have been taught to fix things down to component level and as far as I am aware there isn't too much in an inverter that is complicated so a fix is a definate possibility.

 

Usual problems of labour cost if you have it done for you or parts availability (and safety) if you do it yourself.

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jollyroger Contributor

jollyroger

Posted
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Today I switched on my small inverter (Sterling Model A-300-350 2/12 volts modified sine wave. almost exactly 3 years old ) and there was a pop, the light in the switch flashed and went out and that was it - completely dead.

 

Is there anything fixable in one of these, like a fuse or something, or should I just chuck it and get another, it wasn't expensive when I bought it.

 

Help, please.

 

Thanks

 

David

If it went Pop you will probably find that a component has gone. the first problem is finding out Why, the second is identifying it, the third is replacing it (Inverters can be quite complex) and lastly and most important, doing it safely as high voltages are present, my advice is to bin it

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Tusses Collaborator

Tusses

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It really depends on how confident/knowledgable you are at component level electronics.

 

It could be something simple like a Cap or Diode - or it could be something on the HF side where you could do with the circuit diagram showing the waveforms and voltages to be expected at various test points.

 

Def worth taking the lid off tho :rolleyes:

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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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I will say this once. The chances of fixing it unless you are very experienced are about nil.

 

It's possible that it's something minor but extremely unlikely. When these things go they usually go big time.

 

The labour costs for a professional to remove the screws to have a look inside it will exceed the value of the unit.

 

As I said, it is possible for minor faults to happen, but it is EXTREMELY rare.

 

Gibbo

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chris w Veteran II

chris w

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Gibbo is right. TBH, even if a fuse has blown, and you replace it, there will have been a reason for its blowing which is usually down to a component failure somewhere deep inside. Even for someone with electronics knowlege, without a circuit diagram, one is working in the dark.

 

Chris

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Bullfrog Rising Star

Bullfrog

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I will say this once. The chances of fixing it unless you are very experienced are about nil.

 

It's possible that it's something minor but extremely unlikely. When these things go they usually go big time.

 

The labour costs for a professional to remove the screws to have a look inside it will exceed the value of the unit.

 

As I said, it is possible for minor faults to happen, but it is EXTREMELY rare.

 

Gibbo

 

Thanks - this was my original reaction and you've confirmed it!

 

Regards

 

David

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chris w Veteran II

chris w

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I bought a 600W inverter a couple of years ago from Maplin simply because they were at a give-away price at the time. Although I've never yet used it, I did put it on my oscilloscope to have a look at its output. I was surprised to find that it wasn't even a modified-sine wave (ie: a multi-step square wave) output but just a simple square wave output. Lots of stuff will object to running on that.

 

That's not to say of course that this model is the same kind of output but it's something of which to be aware.

 

Chris

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Tusses Collaborator

Tusses

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I bought a 600W inverter a couple of years ago from Maplin simply because they were at a give-away price at the time. Although I've never yet used it, I did put it on my oscilloscope to have a look at its output. I was surprised to find that it wasn't even a modified-sine wave (ie: a multi-step square wave) output but just a simple square wave output. Lots of stuff will object to running on that.

 

That's not to say of course that this model is the same kind of output but it's something of which to be aware.

 

Chris

 

doesn't the wave form improve with load ?

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chris w Veteran II

chris w

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doesn't the wave form improve with load ?

 

No it doesn't.

 

A squarewave inverter is the simplest way of making an inverter and will have tons of harmonics as well as high harmonic distortion. It will still run Switched-Mode Power Supllies (SMPS) though as these are indifferent to waveform input shape.

 

Chris

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smileypete Veteran II

smileypete

Posted
Posted (edited)
Today I switched on my small inverter (Sterling Model A-300-350 2/12 volts modified sine wave. almost exactly 3 years old ) and there was a pop, the light in the switch flashed and went out and that was it - completely dead.

 

Is there anything fixable in one of these, like a fuse or something, or should I just chuck it and get another, it wasn't expensive when I bought it.

 

I'd hold onto it for a while, you may come across someone who can fix it cheaply and easily.

 

They are relatively simple, I'd expect a 50% chance that £2 of components will sort it.

 

If you really want to bin it, and live in E. Grinstead and pass Horsham any time, could you possibly drop it off there? If so please PM me.

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited by smileypete
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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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I said a 350W MSW is relatively simple, do you find them complicated? :rolleyes:

 

 

cheers,

Pete.

 

A perfect of example of a novice believing something is simpler than it really is.

 

The timing waveforms, voltage levels, shoot-through prevention, inductor current and saturation levels, snubbing, along with a handful of other things are absolutely critical in inverters. If any one of them is out by just a tiny fraction the result is another bag of charcoal as soon as all the expensive components have been replaced.

 

I've watched in amazement (many times) as a novice switches on a freshly repaired inverter and instantly gets his eyebrows blackened even though he "replaced all the burnt parts".

 

Just because only one part shows external physical damage does not mean that's the only part failed.

 

Just because there are few parts in a device does *not* mean it is a simple device. The operation could be very complex.

 

Try to build yourself one from *your own* design if they are so simple. You'll be in for a shock.

 

Gibbo

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