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DC to AC Inverter........

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jmh

12-08-2005 15:12:56

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Rigging up a wagon to pull behind my 51 Cub so we can ride around town and look at the Christmas lights. I will be using a DC to AC 400 watt (800 max) inverter to power the lights around the trailer. I will use 4 strings of lights that are rated at 72 watts each. The battery is 440 cold cranking amps. My question is ..How long will a fully charged battery power these lights? Do you need more information to figure this? Thanks, jmh

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Hurst

12-09-2005 15:34:09

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

This may be a little too much, but...
What about taking of the generator and just taping up all the wires for the tractor system and put on a Delco 12 volt 10si alternator (or what ever you may have avalible) and use that to power the inverter and then put 12v lamps of the front of the tractor that just clamp on (probably less than 10 bucks at walmart) and then run them through the battery for the inverter and use a light switch that I am sure you have sitting around in the pantry to control the front lights. It sounds like a lot, but when you think about it, it is just an alternator, headlights (and you may be able to use the originals with new bulbs, which are not expensive in most cases if they are the removable) and then you have a little bit of 14 guage and maybe some 12 guage wiring from the alternator to the battery (which you would probably want to mount somewhere on the tractor, like bungy it to the existing battery box). The tractor battery should have enough charge to get about 10 starts out of it easily.

Hurst

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doogdoog

12-09-2005 10:48:58

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

Aloha, Maybe you could borrow a Honda EU1000i from a friend to power the lights. It is a very small compact inverter generator that is very, very, quiet and very stingy on fuel. It is rated at 900w and 1000w max, weight 29lbs, 59db,.6gal tank, 3.8hrs at rated load, 8.3hrs 1/4 load. Just an idea.

Mahalo,
doogdoog

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MarkB_MI

12-09-2005 03:40:47

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

A lot is going to depend on how good the battery is and how efficient your converter is. The only thing that's certain is that the lights will need 288 watts total. I'd double that figure to allow for losses and the fact that you won't be able to discharge the battery fully. (The inverter will quit at some point, as the battery voltage drops off.) So figure 600 watts. A typical (new) car battery is about 80 amp-hours or 960 watt-hours. So you should be good for at least an hour and a half, maybe two. More if you use a deep-cycle battery, less if your battery is old.

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jdemaris

12-08-2005 17:12:33

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

Just to give you some idea - the cheapest 12 volt deep-cycle battery that Walmart sells for $50 is a 110 amphour battery. That means it can supply one amp for 110 hours at 12 volts. The inverter will also use current, i.e. the inversion is not 100 % efficient. So, a rough estimate with the 110 AH deep-cycle battery to run your lights that draw 288 watts (2.4 amps at 120 volts) plus the loss will be about a 25 amp draw at 12 volts which can be done for 4 1/2 hours. The time will be less with a standard automotive battery - I'd guess about 2 1/2 hours.

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RAB

12-08-2005 22:46:57

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jdemaris, 12-08-2005 17:12:33

Also, one should not discharge a battery more than about a quarter without affecting it"s life span. Once for a good battery that is recharged very soon afterwards would not be too bad, but the max rec. discharge for the deep discharge batteries is 60%, I would think.
Regards, RAB

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Bob

12-08-2005 16:50:45

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

CCA is the measurement of the maximum number of amps the battery can deliver over a certain (very short) period of time.

To accurately answer your question, we would need to know the AMP-HOURS of capacity the battery has.

For what you intend to do, set it up ahead of time, and monitor the length of time you can operate the lights, to see if it is adequate.

Also, if there is any question of capacity, round up a couple more batteries (surely there's a car or two around that batteries can be "borrowed" from for the length of the parade). Connect 2 or 3 batteries in parallel, and have them fully charged before the parade, and you'll be "good to go".

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old

12-08-2005 16:15:57

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

It will depend a lot on the 12 volt battery you use. The higher the CCA the longer it should last, or even better a deep cycle battery which is made for that type of draw down.

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jmh

12-08-2005 16:08:08

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

I forgot to state that the tractor system is 6 volt. The inverter works with 12 volt battery. I will mount the 12 volt battery and inverter under the trailer. Thanks, jmh

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John T-IL

12-08-2005 15:24:12

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to jmh, 12-08-2005 15:12:56

Connect converter to tractor battery and then run a drop cord to the trailer. No need for an extra battery. I do this all the time for our lighted christmas parade

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RayP(MI)

12-08-2005 15:37:02

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Re: DC to AC Inverter........ in reply to John T-IL, 12-08-2005 15:24:12

He probably has a 6v battery on the tractor, inverter will not swallow that well. I'd guess (without doing the math) that you can get a couple of hours out of that setup.

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