Power Inverter

I'm considering installing an Inverter in my boat. Lots of choices available. Not sure which is best. Any ideas?

Did one on our past boat - Maxum 2700SCR. This is what I did and works well. Puchased a pure sine wave inverter, 1500watt / 1850 peek startup from The Inverter Store (online, good prices). Now I did not intend to have to use all 1500watts, but didn't want to get cut short. Boosted my battery banks up to 2 batteries (group31 AGMs) on the side that inverter pulled from and 2 of the same on the other side. This was a single engine boat with 2 battery banks and a selector switch. Wired it into the power panel just as a genny would have been. (first boat did not have genny). Worked well. Just had to be conservative when using it for long periods.
Current SR 340 has a 750watt system that was there when I purchased the boat. Not sure if factory or installed by PO. It is wired in and turns on/off with the forward accs. switch on the port side control pad. It actually pulls from all 5 of my batteries and has an alarm when voltage gets down to 12.2volts. We primarily use it for TV, blender, charging portable vacuums, screwdrivers, etc. Since we have genny, we use that for heavier loads. This system has a relay that shuts out the inverter automatically to protect it when either the genny or the shore power is brought on line. Very nice system. This inverter is only wired into the 120v outlets (all of them).
Be sure to mount yours out of the engine compartment and somewhere with good ventilation. Purchased our first one online from The Inverter Store. Hope this helps.

We have a Magnum charger/pure sine inverter that was installed by the builder. That handles the house batteries (2x 8D), and there’s also a Promariner charger for the engine batteries. The inverter will run everything AC except the air con. The inverter is needed as we have a fridge/ice maker that is AC only. While we love having the generator, not having to run it to have coffee in the morning is pretty nice too.

Bob Withum Sr said:

I'm considering installing an Inverter in my boat. Lots of choices available. Not sure which is best. Any ideas?

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My advice is figure out what you want it for and then buy a bigger one than you think you need. I installed an 1800w and wish it was bigger every time I run the microwave. It runs, but it sounds odd and probably won’t last if I use it a lot. Mine is a Xantrex. You should get a pure sine wave, not modified sine wave. There is a cost difference, but modified sine wave is harder on electronics. If everything you use runs through a power block (like laptops), that won’t matter as much I don’t think though.

I agree, get the pure sign wave, modified is a square wave.

an example of why a square wave is not good, it takes about twice as long to heat up something in the microwave as it does compared to the Genny or a pure or true sign wave