110 power on inverter ?

JamesnJulie · 11-22-2016, 02:01 AM

I just got a 2005 Voyage 33' and when on batteries with the inverter on it seems I only have 110 power on the front and back TV and the vcr/DVD unit.

Shouldn't I be able to use the microwave or an outlet on 110 power? I know I won't have a lot of power available but only tv's and video seems a little weird.

I checked all the breakers and they are in the correct position and all go hot when I start the generator or plug in so I believe I have tried everything I can think of.

A little help is greatly appreciated by this newbie.

Thank you in advance.

MutinyGuy · 11-22-2016, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesnJulie

I just got a 2005 Voyage 33' and when on batteries with the inverter on it seems I only have 110 power on the front and back TV and the vcr/DVD unit.

Shouldn't I be able to use the microwave or an outlet on 110 power? I know I won't have a lot of power available but only tv's and video seems a little weird.

I checked all the breakers and they are in the correct position and all go hot when I start the generator or plug in so I believe I have tried everything I can think of.

A little help is greatly appreciated by this newbie.

Thank you in advance.

Looks like you have a 300w inverter onboard so all that will be able to run is what you describe. See this WGO wiring document:

http://www.winnebagoind.com/diagram/...ire_148468.pdf

JamesnJulie · 11-22-2016, 08:21 AM

Is it easy to upgrade to a larger inverter or am I stuck?

Thank you for the info.

docj · 11-22-2016, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesnJulie

Is it easy to upgrade to a larger inverter or am I stuck?

Our MH is an example of one which was designed to have several of its 120V circuits be fed off of the inverter in a manner more like you are describing. Originally, all our lighting and TV plus the microwave were on the inverter; we have since revised that to include the residential fridge and remove the microwave. The microwave is a large energy user and will rapidly deplete the batteries; we find it just as easy to turn the generator on if we want to run the microwave.

As for retrofitting a larger inverter (we have a 2.8kW one), you would have to remove the selected circuits from the MH's breaker box and connect the inverter in their place. For example, we have a 30A breaker feeding the inverter. The circuits following the inverter are connected to its output side usually through a small subpanel (either a built-in one, or freestanding).

Conceptually, it's not difficult, but the space constraints in a MH will make it challenging to say the least. The inverter needs to be very close to the batteries because the current flow going into it is very large. It can be done, but it will be a significant undertaking.

wa8yxm · 11-22-2016, 05:16 PM

Inverters come in assorted sizes... Many "Factory option" inverters JUST Feed the MAIN electonics bay (Main TV, VCR/DVR, Sat Receiver and house radio if not the dash doing double duty)

Up to around 500 watts that's all you get

You need at least 1500 watts (mine is 2000) to make the Microwave happy

And at that level they often add SELECTED outlets (THE GFCI Ones)

So now you know, inverter is not big enough for microwave.

JamesnJulie · 11-23-2016, 01:25 AM

If i was to upgrade to a larger inverter, at 1000, 1500, or 2000 (I know I will use up the battery faster) is it basically that I would then need to wire from the inverter output to the breaker switches input to those items I choose to heat up (such as I want the electrical outlets and the TV/DVD player but not the microwave) and then just control my DW not using the blow dryer, the curling iron, etc at the same time?

I think this is important enough to have it done (electricity is a scary thing to play with), and the only reason I will do it is our bed is a sleep number bed and sometimes we need a little electricity to pump it up or let it down, or DW to use the blow dryer or curling iron while not hooked up and didn't want to start the generator for 5 minutes to let air out of the bed, as it was 11pm when we pulled in.

Thanks

SCVJeff · 11-23-2016, 03:53 AM

If that's the only issue to power a sleep number compressor, its WAY easier to power that one plug from the existing inverter than spending significantly more on a whole house inverter. The Sleep Number compressor doesn't take that much current and you're only running it for 30 sec.

Running a hair drier is equivalent to running a microvavw and that's a whole different conversation along with about $2000 in upgrades to make it reliable to do so.

John Hilley · 11-23-2016, 10:44 AM

You could add a small 200 watt inverter in the bedroom just for the bed. They are inexpensive and you could use an existing 12 volt circuit.

tderonne · 11-23-2016, 11:00 AM

The other problem with replacing/upgrading the inverter you have is that the wiring to it from the batteries is barely adequate for the 300 watt inverter.

So you are basically looking at adding an inverter. Good news is that the AC breakers and the batteries, the two things you need to hook wires too, are pretty close together, if you want to add a big one.

Rockwood27 · 11-23-2016, 03:37 PM

If you upgrade to a larger inverter, you need to evaluate your battery bank size. Winnebago typically supplied 2 Group 24 batteries. They will only give you about 70 amp-hours of power...not much to run a high draw item like a microwave. You should have room to mount two golf cart batteries (GC2), which will give you about 100 A-H of power. After I relocated my starting battery, I was able to squeeze 4 GC2 batteries under the steps. This gives me about 200+ A-H of usable battery power.

CJBROWN · 11-28-2016, 05:28 PM

All good advice here. We have virtually the same coach. I remember looking at the Voyage at Giant RV and then the Sunrise at Mike Thompsons. Just the colors were different.

Sorry I can't help with the issue, as we only use 110 when plugged in or fire the gen.

For dry camping I have replaced all of the lighting with LED, and the TV, and set up a portable solar charger. Replacing the Parallax converter to IOTA was probly the most significant improvement in the electrics. Now the furnace is the sole energy-hog, and will likely supplant it with a catalytic heater if we do much winter camping.

Saw your post on the leaky windows - the dual panes can be a source of problems on these. Likely the weep hole in the frame is plugged. They are capped on the outside with little plastic vent covers.