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Inverter

Liam

By Liam
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Liam Veteran II

LiamDonate to Canal World

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We have one 70Ah starter and four 130Ah domestic batteries, each with their own alternator and with an Adverc controller. When we're moored up with the engine off the 1500W inverter runs the TV, Laptop, CD player etc with no problems. When you start the engine (and rev it slightly to make the alternator kick in) and then leave it in tick over the Invertor still works fine but as soon as you speed the engine up - not even to normal cruising speed, the inverter starts beeping and the display shows "overload" and all the 240v appliances go off.

 

It has been like this since we bought the boat and although I know I haven't really explained how it's hooked up (because I don't understand it) I'm hoping someone can give me some pointers so the inverter works when cruising?

 

Thanks, Liam.

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Liam Veteran II

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Well along with the beep the display shows "overload" where it shows the voltage so I'm guessing the accompanied beeping is because of this.

 

Somebody mentioned that it could be something to do with the inverter being connected via the alternator, instead of the batteries?

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Liam Veteran II

LiamDonate to Canal World

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Not sure what you mean by being able to change the settings, but I don't think so... there's a button on the side which you can flick left / right to turn it on / off and a bigger fuse which you also need to turn on...

 

It doesn't look like it's just hooked up to the batteries as there are other bits and peices connected to different things... I am at the boat tomorrow and so will try and take some pictures.

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Keeping Up Veteran II

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Assuming it isn't running so many devices that it's on the verge of overloading (does it do the same with no load connected?) then the "overload" warning presumably means "overvoltage". In that case the most useful thing would be to know how many volts the inverter is getting, with the engine running.

 

It is possible that there is a voltage drop between the alternator and the batteries (due to thin wiring, or a bad connection, or a dodgy isolator switch, or something similar. I've not included diodes or relays in the list because presumably you don't have them). If there is a voltage drop, the Adverc (which measures at the battery) will increase the alternator output voltage to compensate for this and charge the battery. If the inverter WAS wired more-or less directly to the alternator as your friend suggested, it would see this increased voltage and treat it as an overload condition.

 

Or it could just be that the inverter has become faulty or maladjusted. Only a voltage reading, at its 12v input terminals, is likely to tell us.

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Liam Veteran II

LiamDonate to Canal World

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Hi Allan,

 

It does the same whether the TV/DVD player are running or just a single mobile phone charger. I am going down in a short while and will see whether it kicks off when there's nothing connected and I will try and check the thickness of the wiring but I wouldn't know how thick it actually needs to be.

 

I'll take some pictures of the set up and from there, with a bit of luck, somebody maybe able to spot the problem!

 

Liam

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Keeping Up Veteran II

Keeping UpDonate to Canal World

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Hi Allan,

 

It does the same whether the TV/DVD player are running or just a single mobile phone charger. I am going down in a short while and will see whether it kicks off when there's nothing connected and I will try and check the thickness of the wiring but I wouldn't know how thick it actually needs to be.

 

I'll take some pictures of the set up and from there, with a bit of luck, somebody maybe able to spot the problem!

 

Liam

It doesn't sound like an "overload" condition as such then, if it does it with only a phone charger connected. It is almost certainly registering too many volts on its input - but that may be a real or an imaginary condition!

 

When I referred to thin wiring, I was thinking not of the wiring to the inverter but of the wiring in the charging circuit; anything which restricts the current from the alternator into the battery will cause the alternator output voltage to rise, and if the inverter is wired up in such as way as to be on the wrong (ie alternator) side of the restriction, it will see this increased voltage. The most common culprits are probably the isolator switch and the battery terminals. But without actually knowing how many volts the inverter is actually receiving when the engine is running, it's all just guesswork

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Theo Veteran

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Yeah, i notice our new inveter max input is 30v (24v system), should a problem, but if yours is s little less then espically with the advec it might just be a bit close!

 

 

Daniel

We had this poblem on Theodora when we were using an old Kestrel alternator controller. It caused the alternator to kick out 16.4V which the 1800W Sterling didn't like a bit.

 

Try measuring the voltage at the input to the inverter when the engine is running that will establish if it is overvoltage that is causing the problem. If it is more convenient you can measure the voltage at aany of the sockets around the boat as long as you are not using lights or water pumps it will be accurate enough.

 

N

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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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Most very old inverters had a high voltage cutout at 14.0 volts. When 3 stage chargers became popular running at 14.4 volts this was increased to 15 volts. With the increasing trend to higher and higher charge voltages most new inverters are now manufactured with a high voltage cut out at 16 volts.

 

I suspect this is the root of your problem.

 

Gibbo

Edited by Gibbo
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