Inverter installation

Beech2000

Active Member
Jul 11, 2015
242
NW Georgia USA
Boat Info
1990 Sundancer 350
Engines
2020 454 gen VI
Hurth V-Drive's
7.1 KW Kohler 5ECD
Hi all,
I purchased a GoWise PS1003-NP inverter. Our boat is an 90 Searay 350.
We would like to run the outlets on inverter power this winter so as to charge our phones, run the onboard PC and the Television when were away from the dock.
I still wish for these outlets to be powered as normal on shore power but switch over to inverter power using the house battery when were not connected.
Any special device required in addition? or is the inverter protected if it sees the shore power?
 
Hi all,
I purchased a GoWise PS1003-NP inverter. Our boat is an 90 Searay 350.
We would like to run the outlets on inverter power this winter so as to charge our phones, run the onboard PC and the Television when were away from the dock.
I still wish for these outlets to be powered as normal on shore power but switch over to inverter power using the house battery when were not connected.
Any special device required in addition? or is the inverter protected if it sees the shore power?

I know the Magnum Research 3.5 kw inverter/charger installed on our boat does sense shore or gen VAC and automatically switches from inverter mode to charging mode. Whether your GoWise will I don’t know, you’d have to check the specs for it. If it does not there is an easy fix with a lock out switch. What this switch does is sit between the VAC sources, and the main VAC panel. The shore power and inverter (or gen) are wired as inputs. On shore power this switch is set to feed that to the main panel and any current coming from inverter sees an open circuit. You still need to turn inverter off, but at least you won’t introduce 220 VAC into the boat.

I would suggest you hire a marine electrician. VAC on a boat can kill, or start a fire, if it is not connected to grounding and bonding correctly.
 
I know the Magnum Research 3.5 kw inverter/charger installed on our boat does sense shore or gen VAC and automatically switches from inverter mode to charging mode. Whether your GoWise will I don’t know, you’d have to check the specs for it. If it does not there is an easy fix with a lock out switch. What this switch does is sit between the VAC sources, and the main VAC panel. The shore power and inverter (or gen) are wired as inputs. On shore power this switch is set to feed that to the main panel and any current coming from inverter sees an open circuit. You still need to turn inverter off, but at least you won’t introduce 220 VAC into the boat.

I would suggest you hire a marine electrician. VAC on a boat can kill, or start a fire, if it is not connected to grounding and bonding correctly.

I called US customer service for the company and they said it would light up like a Christmas Tree and make the local news.
For the winter I'll just plan on using the inverter to plug in the TV and PC Directly to the inverter.
 
The trick to this is to get an inverter that has an internal transfer switch. Magnum and Victron are the two leaders in this arena for Boats and RV's

Here is how I added a Magnum 2800W 12V inverter to my boat. It was setup to accept power from Shore power, or Generator (manually selected from the standard SR panel), and if either of those were not present, then the inverter would automatically power 4 circuits - Port & Starboard (basically outlets so I could run TV's), the Galley Systems (Coffee Maker) and the microwave oven. I've been very pleased with this setup. Keep in Mind I'm Disel, so the inverter can be in the engine room. With Gas engines, this is a BIG NO NO!!!!!!


http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/inverter-install.89992/
 
Wow,
Lots going on with your original install.
For my install, I had always intended on installing inside aft cabin in bunk area over Stbd side. After reading your thread and others, I have decided to simplify my install and use it solely for the electronics.
I have two dedicated flooded group 27's mounted under seat at the helm for my high power deck stereo system for the girls to dance to. These are separate from the vessels 3 Group 31 AGM's. So all in all 5 Deep cycle batteries. All 5 Load tested and about a year old. The two flooded Group 27's have a 20 amp charger connected to spare outlet for rear fridge.
Inverter manual say's to use 8 gauge wires at a max of 6ft from source. I'm bumping up to 4 gauge and at 5' should have no problems reaching the inverter.
I plan to run single plug in 120VAC cord to the entertainment center, TV and internet router.
Thanks for sharing your big install. Super nice and hope to have same quiet as you someday. For now we run the 5ECD at night for AC. I only want the inverter to keep the TV, PC and Router alive during switch overs or long periods of no 120VAC. The current APC doesn't last long enough for the job.
Thanks again
 
Keep in mind that to produce 1000W on the AC side, you could be pulling almost 100A on the DC side because of inverter inefficiency (typically about 90%)

Also the wire distance needs to be calculated round trip…so if 5’ on both + and -, the total wire distance would be 10’. Might want to look at #2 or even #1 to minimize voltage drop, and hence your inverter dropping out at an inconvenient moment.

Also, make sure you add a properly rated fuse…there is a lot of power coming out of those batteries…literally enough to weld with. Blue Sea makes one that connects directly to the battery terminals for a quick clean install.
 
It also bears mentioning that every device that can be moved over to DC should be moved. Imagine the wasted energy of inverting 12VDC up to 120VAC, only to rectify it back down to 5VDC just to charge a phone! The same holds true for a TV. Finding a TV with a 12V, power brick, snipping it off and wiring it direct to your batteries will be far more efficient than making the round trip through an inverter.

When all is said and done, there are very few devices that cannot be run directly off your batteries. The efficiency savings may well be enough to eliminate a battery or two, and/or go with a smaller (less costly) inverter.
 
It also bears mentioning that every device that can be moved over to DC should be moved. Imagine the wasted energy of inverting 12VDC up to 120VAC, only to rectify it back down to 5VDC just to charge a phone! The same holds true for a TV. Finding a TV with a 12V, power brick, snipping it off and wiring it direct to your batteries will be far more efficient than making the round trip through an inverter.

When all is said and done, there are very few devices that cannot be run directly off your batteries. The efficiency savings may well be enough to eliminate a battery or two, and/or go with a smaller (less costly) inverter.
Keep in mind that to produce 1000W on the AC side, you could be pulling almost 100A on the DC side because of inverter inefficiency (typically about 90%)

Also the wire distance needs to be calculated round trip…so if 5’ on both + and -, the total wire distance would be 10’. Might want to look at #2 or even #1 to minimize voltage drop, and hence your inverter dropping out at an inconvenient moment.

Also, make sure you add a properly rated fuse…there is a lot of power coming out of those batteries…literally enough to weld with. Blue Sea makes one that connects directly to the battery terminals for a quick clean install.

Wow. 100 amps to run a hair dryer. The good news is we are older and drying hair is 5 minuets for my blond wife's hair and mine is dry immediately without heat.
Thinking if only needing to power up TV, PC and a router; then direct to these devices using the inverter connected to my 2 flooded aux batteries will be perfect.
Should we need 1500 watts of pwr spontaneously we always have the 5ECD as well as the Honda Companions.
 
It also bears mentioning that every device that can be moved over to DC should be moved. Imagine the wasted energy of inverting 12VDC up to 120VAC, only to rectify it back down to 5VDC just to charge a phone! The same holds true for a TV. Finding a TV with a 12V, power brick, snipping it off and wiring it direct to your batteries will be far more efficient than making the round trip through an inverter.

When all is said and done, there are very few devices that cannot be run directly off your batteries. The efficiency savings may well be enough to eliminate a battery or two, and/or go with a smaller (less costly) inverter.
So TV replacing, A new PC..... Thinking since I've already goofed with my inverter purchase...... I should try and make it work for now. I sure appreciate the knowledge on this forum I read. Since my wife's demand for late night high powered dance music, I've yielded a balance of providing her and the other girls consistent worry free music without jeopardizing the house or staring batteries. Now simply wanting to us that same power for TV, PC and Router devises.
Thanks All! Your the best
 

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