Failed Inverter

[smileypete]

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.

As I said, relatively straightforward.

 

(It's likely to be a shoot-through condition that's blown at least one side of the H bridge, the trick is finding out why....)

 

 

About £75 I think, they are IRF1010E's

They appear to be obsolete, if so any stock is bound to be pricey.

 

Edit:

 

Just found some on Ebay, a snip at 50p each...:

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Intl-Rectifier-F1010...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited March 25, 2008 by smileypete

[Dylan]

Grapefruit juice??

[chris w]

As I said, relatively straightforward.

 

(It's likely to be a shoot-through condition that's blown at least one side of the H bridge, the trick is finding out why....)

 

cheers,

Pete.

 

Would "Boyles Law" help?

[blackrose]

As I said, relatively straightforward.

 

(It's likely to be a shoot-through condition that's blown at least one side of the H bridge, the trick is finding out why....)

They appear to be obsolete, if so any stock is bound to be pricey.

 

Edit:

 

Just found some on Ebay, a snip at 50p each...:

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Intl-Rectifier-F1010...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

cheers,

Pete.

 

Whether it's a straightforward repair job or one that's more complex than it looks, if the inverter's out of warranty and the burned out components are cheap to replace then it's got to be worth trying to fix it. Prepare for the worst & make sure you test it safely. If it goes bang then chuck it in the bin and buy a new inverter.

[chris w]

Normally I would agree with you Mike, but in this case we are talking about an inverter with lethal mains voltages present. There are a few measurements that need to be taken with the inverter switched ON. Gibbo and I would have a go for sure, but we've half an idea what to look for.

 

Chris

Edited March 25, 2008 by chris w

[blackrose]

Normally I would agree with you Mike, but in this case we are talking about an inverter with lethal mains voltages present. There are a few measurements that need to be taken with the inverter switched ON. Gibbo and I would have a go for sure, but we've half an idea what to look for.

 

Chris

 

If it's unsafe then ignore my post, but I meant that it should be removed from the boat and tested elsewhere.

 

Edit: Hang on a minute Chris? You told me to open mine up and check the fuses inside when I couldn't get it to work last time! You could have killed me!

Edited March 25, 2008 by blackrose

[Tusses]

there could be way more than mains voltages there under a fault condition !

[chris w]

Edit: Hang on a minute Chris? You told me to open mine up and check the fuses inside when I couldn't get it to work last time! You could have killed me!

 

B*gger.... mea culpa. OK Officer, I'll come quietly.

[pagan witch]

Seems there are several of us on here who fancy a go just because it can be done and all of us say chuck it unless you feel competant at repairing it and don't mind the dissapointment if it goes bang after you've 'fixed' it.

 

Word of caution not yet specifically mentioned here so far - beware of capacitors. They can hold charge for a considerable time - many a satelite repair bod had 'Dracula marks' on their fingers in the 90's as a result of a power supply fault in one of Amstrads early offerings that made the power supply appear dead but left one of the caps fully charged.

 

So to sum it all up then . . . . IF you know what you are doing and can get the parts it is worth a try. If not then don't risk killing yourself and throw it.

[chris w]

Further, many of the inverter circuit boards will be multi-layer. You'll never get a component out of them with a normal soldering iron anyway without wreaking havoc. In my experience - and I have managed to repair a few (but not all) - the typical cost for components on average has been around £20-£30.

 

Chris

Edited March 25, 2008 by chris w

[Gibbo]

So to sum it all up then . . . . IF you know what you are doing and can get the parts it is worth a try. If not then don't risk killing yourself and throw it.

 

If you know what you're doing you won't bother trying to repair a fifty quid inverter

 

Here's the way it is with inverters. It might sound harsh but it's just the way it is.

 

Someone with the knowledge and necessary test equipment to repair it (whatever the fault) is not going to risk 2 hours work to save 25 quid.

 

Anyone else is almost certain to make it worse (not better) and in the process waste a few days of their time and a few tens of quidsworth of components.

 

It MAY be a simple fault, but honestly the chances of that are very slim. They nearly always go with a right bang and rip through at least a third of the components in there. Unless you catch every single faulty component they go bang again as soon as they are switched on (after you've just wasted 3 hours replacing what you though were all the faulty parts.

 

I will state again that very occasionmally a simple fault crops up, but I've seen about 3 of those as opposed to at least 10,000 seriously faulty units.

 

Gibbo

[Bullfrog]

Enough already!

 

I've just ordered a new one from Maplins - £22.97 inc P+P and VAT - thanks Bottle

 

 

David

Edited March 25, 2008 by Bullfrog

[smileypete]

Unless you catch every single faulty component they go bang again as soon as they are switched on (after you've just wasted 3 hours replacing what you though were all the faulty parts.

 

Bit of lateral thought needed there...

 

BTW how is your Mikuni doing these days?

 

cheers,

Pete.

[bottle]

Enough already!

 

I've just ordered a new one from Maplins - £22.97 inc P+P and VAT - thanks Bottle

 

 

David

 

David

 

You're welcome as an aside I use the same model in the car for my laptop.

[RobinJ]

If you know what you're doing you won't bother trying to repair a fifty quid inverter

 

Someone with the knowledge and necessary test equipment to repair it (whatever the fault) is not going to risk 2 hours work to save 25 quid.

 

Anyone else is almost certain to make it worse (not better) and in the process waste a few days of their time and a few tens of quidsworth of components.

 

It MAY be a simple fault, but honestly the chances of that are very slim. They nearly always go with a right bang and rip through at least a third of the components in there. Unless you catch every single faulty component they go bang again as soon as they are switched on (after you've just wasted 3 hours replacing what you though were all the faulty parts.

 

I will state again that very occasionmally a simple fault crops up, but I've seen about 3 of those as opposed to at least 10,000 seriously faulty units.

Its already in the bin.

 

Reason for taking it apart was to determine the effect (as the cause was known) in case it may have damaged the 12V system as a result of the failure.

Having taken it apart, the damage suprised me, as it was very limited, the possibility of repair was an option until the cost of parts was determined!

[chris w]

Its already in the bin.

 

Reason for taking it apart was to determine the effect (as the cause was known) in case it may have damaged the 12V system as a result of the failure.

Having taken it apart, the damage suprised me, as it was very limited, the possibility of repair was an option until the cost of parts was determined!

 

The point Gibbo was making, and I agree with him, is that you can't just look inside, see a couple of obviously burnt-out MOSFETS, and conclude they alone need replacing. My experience has been that an inverter failure rips through many components and i/c's leaving no visible trace.

 

Chris

[tomsk]

Yet more contradictory posts from The Experts.

[RobinJ]

The point Gibbo was making, and I agree with him, is that you can't just look inside, see a couple of obviously burnt-out MOSFETS, and conclude they alone need replacing. My experience has been that an inverter failure rips through many components and i/c's leaving no visible trace.

Inclined to agree Chris.

Looking at this one because the cause was external, the earth path went through the inverter!