Inverter Issue

[Brianoc]

Hi Folks,

My van is used for going mo'bike racing and there usually aren't many/any hookups in the paddock so the van is generally plugged into a non-inverter 3.5Kw generator. When it's running the 240v LED spotlights flicker so I know I need to do something with a power regulator to get rid of that issue but, the bigger issue is coffee !! When plugged up to the gennie, my coffee machine takes an age to work and then produces small squits of coffee at a time so it takes ages to get a brew. I've tried several machimes all rated around 14-1600 watts and only one of them worked......Anyway
I have 2 x 110ah leisure batteries on a Victron Smart charger and a 3000W Edecoa inverter do I thought I'd be smart and run the coffee machine off that. When I tried it, the coffee machine lit up and appeared to be heating up but.....Stayed looking like it was heating up...No Coffee :-( There is obviuously output from the inverter and stupid me though it would run the coffee machine easily...Am I dumb or am I missing something ??
TIA for any advice/thoughts

PS - Coffee is a fundamental and critical racing component...Right up there with petrol, tyres and leathers !!

 

[Ray-Vic]

As your generator is a non-inverter type and your inverter is modified sine wave, it's very likely that your coffee machine is throwing a wobbly because of that. Many items like coffee machines will not work well with anything other than pure sine wave inverters.

You could replace your inverter with something like a Renogy, which is pure sine wave and on deals at the moment, at a very manageable cost. If cost isn't that much of an issue then you could look at a Victron.

Hope you get it resolved as my views on coffee are exactly the same.

 

[DBK]

The flickering LED lights are another clue the genny is not producing a pure sine wave. Some sort of "regulator" won't cure that.

What's happening is both with the genny and the inverter you are feeding things with a modified sine wave, not a pure sine wave. Electronic items don't like this and can be damaged. You either need a better genny or better inverter which can produce a pure sine wave.

 

[StillGoing]

The batteries will not provide enough current to support a 3kW inverter

 

[headlight]

As your generator is a non-inverter type and your inverter is modified sine wave, it's very likely that your coffee machine is throwing a wobbly because of that. Many items like coffee machines will not work well with anything other than pure sine wave inverters.

You could replace your inverter with something like a Renogy, which is pure sine wave and on deals at the moment, at a very manageable cost. If cost isn't that much of an issue then you could look at a Victron.

Hope you get it resolved as my views on coffee are exactly the same.

My Edecoa inverter is pure sine wave.

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[headlight]

Hi Folks,

My van is used for going mo'bike racing and there usually aren't many/any hookups in the paddock so the van is generally plugged into a non-inverter 3.5Kw generator. When it's running the 240v LED spotlights flicker so I know I need to do something with a power regulator to get rid of that issue but, the bigger issue is coffee !! When plugged up to the gennie, my coffee machine takes an age to work and then produces small squits of coffee at a time so it takes ages to get a brew. I've tried several machimes all rated around 14-1600 watts and only one of them worked......Anyway
I have 2 x 110ah leisure batteries on a Victron Smart charger and a 3000W Edecoa inverter do I thought I'd be smart and run the coffee machine off that. When I tried it, the coffee machine lit up and appeared to be heating up but.....Stayed looking like it was heating up...No Coffee :-( There is obviuously output from the inverter and stupid me though it would run the coffee machine easily...Am I dumb or am I missing something ??
TIA for any advice/thoughts

PS - Coffee is a fundamental and critical racing component...Right up there with petrol, tyres and leathers !!

I'm assuming your leisure batteries are lead acid ?
If so they are rated to give a continuous discharge of 22 amps.
Times the 2 batteries that 44 amps.
Your 3,000 watt inverter supplying 1400-1600 watts will be trying to draw about 4 times your batteries rated continuous discharge rate.

 

[Raul]

Hi Folks,

My van is used for going mo'bike racing and there usually aren't many/any hookups in the paddock so the van is generally plugged into a non-inverter 3.5Kw generator. When it's running the 240v LED spotlights flicker so I know I need to do something with a power regulator to get rid of that issue but, the bigger issue is coffee !! When plugged up to the gennie, my coffee machine takes an age to work and then produces small squits of coffee at a time so it takes ages to get a brew. I've tried several machimes all rated around 14-1600 watts and only one of them worked......Anyway
I have 2 x 110ah leisure batteries on a Victron Smart charger and a 3000W Edecoa inverter do I thought I'd be smart and run the coffee machine off that. When I tried it, the coffee machine lit up and appeared to be heating up but.....Stayed looking like it was heating up...No Coffee :-( There is obviuously output from the inverter and stupid me though it would run the coffee machine easily...Am I dumb or am I missing something ??
TIA for any advice/thoughts

PS - Coffee is a fundamental and critical racing component...Right up there with petrol, tyres and leathers !!

Inverter can deliver, but the batteries can not cope with demand, for that load. The inverter is asking for more juice from batteries to invert it into AC. Fit more batteries and inverter will work, the power comes from batteries VIA inverter.
The genny, you are missing an AVR, or existing avr has gone south: automatic voltage regulator. Generator probably outputs 200v if that; you need more volts to push more amps, resulting in more power W. Having a defective AVR, the frequency will be out to, hence flickering lights. Cheapest way out of this is an inverter generator.

 

[Just smiffy]

Problem solved…

+

 

[Gromett]

Just for those curious. Here is the difference between a pure sine wave and a modified sine wave.

The digital output has fewer steps and no smoothing. This causes harmonics amongst other things.