Check out Renogy Batteries: www.renogy.com John Ward explaining IT system on Inverter: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mzCGE5wnWos.html German RU-vidr "ProofWood" solving the RC problem in Caravans: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FM9lvwX39g0.html German RU-vidr "Freunde des Stroms" making an adapter cable for Ecoflow for Caravans: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BTDX4ZoCEpc.html
This information is really good as I'm looking to do the same sort of thing but it is a shame Renogy don't call you to discuss there camper van complete kit requirements even if you log a request as I live in the UK and I need to make sure the system is UK compatable.... Great work Lilly
Nice! I have a Renogy inverter to fit hopefully before the winter (on a boat mind). :) PS thanks for the info, my motor will be running of a 24v system, so interesting to know some don't allow being put in series!
Good video! A Way to Think about wiring in an inverter is to think about the inverter as the City Wires Coming from the Street ( Your Electricity Provider ) Put an Electrical panel on the Wall with breakers in it and use the Inverter to power that Electrical panel solely. Ground inverter to earth , Ground Electrical panel to Earth & Ground inverter to Electrical panel. Treat the inverter as “ Your Electric company “ & Wire As usual to code to the Panel.
The initial voltage of a compressor starting is called inrush The compressor will have a start load run amperage sometimes noted as SLRA . Then you have rla which is run load amperage. To verify your ratings to a sine wave converter and to the power supply peak and discharge you need to take an amperage and voltage reading from the compressor when it comes on. You do this directly at the terminals and then after it begins to run so you do not damage the inverter the battery or the compressor Yes I am an HVAC and refrigeration technician and specialist for over 25 years.
Anytime you can run your appliances DIRECTLY from the battery/solar system (DC), you are way more efficient. There are very good DC powered freezers and fridges available. INVERTERS, by nature, are ONLY about 75-80% efficient. The components inside them get hot (that's why they have a fan inside) and they are ON all the time drawing some power. All "whole-house" systems HAVE TO BE designed at least 20% over sized to take care of this! For small apps, such as a freezer, I myself, would rather not waste my limited solar/battery capacity going through an inverter. For a whole house with a huge array....well that's different! Only an E.E major's perspective. 😝 But, in your case, Lilly, you are using this mainly as a backup, short term. So I get it!👍
Hello Super Lilly ,a great thankyou for your time and comparing batteries , at the moment i will install 2 agm batteries of 100 amp hours in paralel so i should have atleast 100 amp hours but to my calculations i will have less and the cost of agm is low , i realy would tell people that electronic devices are in grave danger of emp or super solar flares , so all make there own decisions , big hug from an old survivalist .
You can keep food in a metal garbage can if it’s freezing outside. Also freeze left over h2o gallons outside inwinter then put in freezer or refrigerator until power comes back on.
The freezer does not run constantly, the motor cuts in and out when needed. The inverter will always be drawing current when on, I believe you could extend the usage by only plugging it in every 4 of 6 hours (would need testing) and only having the inverter turned on at that time.
Except the freezer runs for a reason. If you have items in there you don't mind thawing a little bit then ok, but the temp fluctuations can actually pull more power to bring back to temp rather than maintaining. Like cooling your house only a couple of times vs maintaining the Temps and vice versa for heating. The items inside at the temp you want help keep it from running as much over time than expending more energy to cool/heat it further than you would have just maintaining it.
@@bonedoc4556 This is all true. But having to not open the door for 10 hrs a day means you can set the timer to 4hrs etc but during the day, when charge is available, you can have it on all day. 👍
Great video. I thought I was going to need to correct you but you did a great job. I just want to reemphasize that the LiFePo4 batterys give you double the run time of a lead acid that is rated at the same amp hours. So that cuts the cost in half when you compare. Plus the batteries last way way longer. Never by lead acid again. Waste of money.
Ya gotta also think about what happens if theres a EMP but also to keep ya freezer from turnin on soo much ya put bottles or bags of water in it so when they freeze it acts as a thermal capacitor which will make the freezer stay off even longer cause it will stay cold and u can always wrap the freezer in some foil board or have a small air gap and then some foil board as it will keep the freezers insulation cooler on the outside
A Good Rule of thumb when sizing an inverter to a Refrigerator load is Size inverter to 8 times Compressors Running Watts Minimum ! Compressors on start up draw about 7 times the running watts For 1 second on start up. Example: if Refrigerator or Freezer draws 100 watts while Compressor is cooling the System You Would Need an inverter capable of supplying 800 watts Peak inrush current Minimum. When in Doubt ALLWAYS Go bigger. Refrigeration man for 40+ years.
The dirty little secret about electronics / technology is hazmat. Most folks ignore this because it’s not in my backyard. I think even an old fashioned lead acid battery is less of a hazard then lithium batteries. That being said I have a 1000 watt jackery in my van and I bought a 500 watt jackery for the wife. Just be aware lithium is a heavy metal. Love your work Lady always appreciated.
When figuring peak current/power one must take into consideration the inductive kick AC or DC motors calculate for peak current to be safe. As a young man we carried powerful DC motors driven by power amps of the same size. Driving the large reel to reel tape recorders in aircraft. Monitoring the inductive kick of the motors with an “O” Scope was always way off the scale. Okay I’ll be quite now.
Nice to hear your comments and experiences. I have a couple of questions about a DIY project that involve a 100lts freezer. The actual supply battery is 150 amps, Lead acid, I have 4 solar panel 150amps, connected to the controller. I use for lead lights bulbs and planning to power the freezer. The question is, in order to run the freezer I need to use another battery ? Is recomendable to paralell to use 24 V o continuous with 12v. ? Appreciate some advise, Thanks in advance
In America, a two-wire connection is allowable downstream of a Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI). This is known as a Residual Current Device (RCD) in the EU. I am finding that many inverter manufacturers include GFCI functionality. YMMV
The LiFePo charge life is also where it goes to 80% charge capacity, after 1500 or its rating, so it has much longer life. The caveat is that they are much more expensive, not just a little, but reliability in low temperatures and long life are the worthy trade off.
Why do you consider it underpowered, it draws 170 watts and inverters work most efficiently under larger load, so a bigger inverter will be less efficient and also draw more phantom charge. Lilly, can you measure the voltage and amps in the DC part so you can calculate the actual efficiency. Perhaps the Renogy app even shows the value
My freezer draws 26 watts. The surge power is around 800 watts, but that is just for a few milliseconds. So the inverter is big enough for my model of freezer.
Lifepo4 batteries and new inverters all have safty mecanism. Most people have issues from loose connections, they can over heat because of poor connection conductivity and melt the wires plastics . Buy a Bluetti, safer and space saving devices. Insurance will not pay when fire is caused by DIYers.
I was thinking of getting a 12v compressor fridge as a backup too. I have absorption fridges which are great for propane but not as efficient running on electricity as a 12v compressor fridge is. I have a large modern frost free fridge and freezer but they are power hungry on the batteries running on a inverter.
Store an ice cube or two in a sealed plastic bag in the freezer. If you lose power, the ice will begin to melt. The size of the cube (that is, if any of the cube is left) will let you know how long the power was off.
this appears to be a re post with the info about the grounding added. If you want the safest you can have then you should have a qualified electrician set this up..... my question is with all the electronics in appliances now days would a short to the body of any appliance even work?
"would a short to the body of any appliance even work?" It would be inconsequential. However, if you had TWO (or more) devices and one of them shorts one polarity (or phase) and the other shorts the other polarity (or phase), then if you put hands on both of them at the same time you will get a dangerous shock. A physical or earth ground on the appliance won't help simply because the inverter itself does not use ground. The idea of grounding appliances is that with two appliances grounded, and each shorts to the other phase, it will short circuit the mains and blow a fuse or trip the circuit breaker. Even if not, the appliance being grounded won't develop a voltage relative to, say, the household plumbing so you don't get shocked touching the water spigot at the same time as an appliance. Which you ought not to do anyway.
@@thomasmaughan4798 Thanks for the explanation. I dont understand if this applys to an inverter powering a freezer? There is no mains to trip so what happens with the inverter? and how do all the portable power stations get by without a earth connection?. I am not asking for you to answer as i have contacted an electrician and will be picking his brain when he installs a transfer switch at my house.
Try not to be too dependent on a freezer. I wouldn't fill it with a lot of expensive cuts of meat or other expensive items. If frozen vegetables or quick meals go bad, it's not a big loss. My only real need for refrigeration is for insulin. I have a portable mini fridge for that. It uses far less electricity. It can hold several dozen vials of insulin with enough additional room for a bunch of ice packs. I also have a backup travel CPAP for the same reason.
I don't think you're going to have to worry about keeping your food frozen this winter. Maybe buy some blankets, It's going to be a cold one with no Russian gas.
the RCDs after the inverters do not work because energy is being generated in an isolated way, the "neutral" is isolated from the ground, which in the area transformer substations is not, since the fault loop is isolated and therefore the RCD protection does not close after the inverters, especially if mobile and portable do not work, a thermal magnetic circuit breaker protection is more useful, it is important that the devices connected downstream of the inverter or mobile generator have a system in compliance with the law, plugs sockets extensions in good condition state without isolated central poles, there must be equipotentiality between the devices and the inverter, masses connected to each other through the plugs, in the event of a first fault with one of the 2 conductors of the inverter, we take the phase that goes to earth the magnetic circuit breaker senses the short to ground and opens and the inverter switches off on its own, the inverters to make 230V generate 2x115 Volts, in the event of a second fault on the neutral a real short is created the magnetic circuit breaker opens, The RCDs give a false safety after the offgrid inverters or portable gasoline generators, the same thing in this case of isolated power generation, there is no need to connect the masses to the earth leakage system if not c 'there is a danger of atmospheric discharges, as mentioned above it is important that the masses are connected to each other. Ciao
Yes the rcd connection needs to be modified. Please check the youtube video of ProofWood on how he solved this problem. I linked the video in the first pinned comment
Hey Lily, I got a question for you sweetheart oh my name is Dennis I would like to know about your bow if mine if I buy drawl length is a 26 inch what size bow do one long bow word need to get for the Rolaids. I will appreciate it if you will let me know what kind of company that I would have to get one from. Thanks Lily you have a nice day.
Good, but, dear sister, any meat is Unhealthy 4 the human's body. Ofcourse that our bodyes were constructed 4 alll king of foods, But, after a while, the Harmfulness of meat eating Will show !!! ! !!! Thanks 4 the video .
Your freezers are not "energy efficient". This can be seen on the EU energy label stuck to the front of your freezers. The older freezer is rated "B" for energy efficiency, your new one only "C". You could have bought a much more economical "A+" rated freezer for under 500 euros. It would have consumed considerably less electricity in everyday use and would have needed less battery capacity in the event of a blackout. Sorry, but you haven't thought things through completely.
@@SurvivalLilly That can not be the reason for not bying an A+++ rated fridge. You can easily save 30% energy. Energy that gets energy, which becomes particularly valuable in the event of a crisis
Nice to hear your comments and experiences. I have a couple of questions about a DIY project that involve a 100lts freezer. The actual supply battery is 150 amps, Lead acid, I have 4 solar panel 150amps, connected to the controller. I use for lead lights bulbs and planning to power the freezer. The question is, in order to run the freezer I need to use another battery ? Is recomendable to paralell to use 24 V o continuous with 12v. ? Appreciate some advise, Thanks in advance
Tip: there are LiFePo4 batteries that can be charged in below freezing temperatures. A bit more expensive than the regular ones. But all in all good choice!
Excellent video. Wife and I have been watching you for years. I agree the 500 watt will power one freezer. I needed to power 1 freezer and 1 refrigerator. The 500 watt would work either one, and sometimes both. When they both tried to start at the same time, the inverter tripped off due to overload. I installed an 800W inverter and it runs both with no trouble. Also, look at a “low frequency” inverter such as a Victron phoenix. Those inverters have a really low “idle” current (when neither device is running). It extended the tome between battery charges by a significant amount. Amp draw of the idle current dropped from 2.5A to 0.57A
Fill any empty spaces between food with containers of water. Once frozen, the ice will help keep the food from thawing so fast should the battery and/or inverter stop working.
I am almost positive you can connect those renogy batteries in series you should look into that for sure. I have 2 renogy 48 volt lifepo4 batteries connected in series with no problem ,it actually came connected in series I have the lycan 5000 ,but I can't say with 100 percent certainty just that you should double check anyway thanks for the video . Have a great day
Nice and informative video😎☕ . I use a 200w invertor and 4 lead acid deep cycle RV batteries, in my little watchmans trailer. The invertor starts sounding an alarm at 11.1volts, and automatically shuts off at no less than 10.9 volts. Keeps batteries in safe range, living longer.
Nice to hear your comments and experiences. I have a couple of questions about a DIY project that involve a 100lts freezer. The actual supply battery is 150 amps, Lead acid, I have 4 solar panel 150amps, connected to the controller. I use for lead lights bulbs and planning to power the freezer. The question is, in order to run the freezer I need to use another battery ? Is recomendable to paralell to use 24 V o continuous with 12v. ? Appreciate some advise, Thanks in advance
I was hoping you would discus the surge watt question in greater detail. For example, when choosing an inverter, do you add the running watts to the surge watts and use the total? Say 500 running watts and 1200 surge watts for a device. (500+1200=1700)? Is this correct?
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Are you still enjoying this setup? I just moved off great and I need to figure something out but I'm really unsure on what to do. Lots of people tell me this setup is not going to work..... I feel like it will! Please let me know what you think
its crazy how you went into meticulous details about battery type and grounding yet you neglected very important such which is : how long will this battery power this thing ? how long it takes to recharge it which charger etc .
Great video as usual. What was the app/website you used to calculate the amperage of different gauge wires at certain voltages. That looked very handy because I do all my own electrical work. Usually I err on the side of caution and use much thicker wires than necessary. This also helps with voltage drop through the cable.
500 w inverter may not be big enough to run the amps from your refrigerator I would have gone from 1500 w minimum to 3000 w cover your back a lot better
Are you married? I need a good woman here in America We can move you're stuff before Christmas ☺️🎄 ☃️⛄ We could sell what you don't want or give it away 🙂 We can buy a bunker from Atlas Shelters and have them put it beside a national forest We can do it 😊 we are survivers
@@elaineh2286 I’m sorry I offended you with my question. I am actually well versed in freezers, electrical code, solar power stations, so the reason I watch is way different than the reason you watch. If you are just now figuring this stuff out, you are so far behind, you won’t make it. -Again, my bad
