I plan to hook up a large inverter to an electrical circuit w/ an extension chord..will it work?
June 2nd, 2009 | 
Author: making my own rv out of a schoolbus..have a generator, converter box to change 120 v to 12 v when necessary, solar panels to hook into system, and a 2500 watt inverter. Most of the appliances are 120 volts..only the water pump is 12 volt. I need someone to help with hooking up this system…
Thanks,
Jess O. Adkins DVM
I have a system similar to that which I put together.It's really pretty simple,some people are overwhelmed and scared to try.
Keep the 12 volt leads to the inverter from the source as short as possible and don't expect miracles out of the inverter because they consume power even at idle.Here's a good website to glean some information from.
http://www.oynot.com/solar-info.html
Posted in 12 volt Water Pumps
Is quiet of a project there. You have to learn some about Volts, Amperes and Watts.
Each appliances has a Wattage rating. Is stamped along with the UL (Underwriters Laboratory). It also has a Voltage rating and a Current rating Amps. The cabling has to stand the amount of amps that will be carrying. A cable AWG 12 can hold 15 amps at 600V max the insulation can hold. The lower the number the thicker the wire. An AWG 10 can hold 35 Amps. Distance is important too. Is called Line Voltage Drop.
You have an inverter that can push 2500 watts. The data plate will tell you the Voltage and the Amperage inputs and outputs.
If you ever seen the movie Appolo 13 you will see what I am talking about when they tried an new starting procedure because of not enough electric power.
You need to make the wiring based on your power demand, also how the whole thing is set up determines also how are you going to laid the wiring. Also you need to have good mechanical grounds or someone could be shocked. Also a circuit breaker panel for protection in case of shorts and overloads.
My advice, call an electrician and do it right. Is like wiring a house.
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I agree with the previous answer and would like to add that inferior or insufficient gauge wire can result in a fire. Keep that in mind also.
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I have a system similar to that which I put together.It's really pretty simple,some people are overwhelmed and scared to try.
Keep the 12 volt leads to the inverter from the source as short as possible and don't expect miracles out of the inverter because they consume power even at idle.Here's a good website to glean some information from.
http://www.oynot.com/solar-info.html
References :
If you are talking about going from 12 volts on the bus and stepping the power up to 120 volts for the appliances the 12 volt circuit on the converter will require large cables like the battery cables At full load you will draw a little over 200 amps at 12 volts to run the inverter. The further you have to run the wires the larger the wires will need to be you will need at least 2 gage and probably 1 or 0 gage if you have to run the wires very far.
As far as the 120 volt side you will be running a little over 20 amps most extension cords can handle less than 10 amps. A single extension cord will need 12 gage wire if its only about 15 feet long and 10 gage if its longer. Also a 20 amp circuit has a different plug with 1 of the blades turned sidewards so you cant try to put 20 amps through a normal cord.
You may be able to run several cords 1 for each appliance. I would spend the extra money to set it up with circuit breakers for each appliance and use normal residential wiring.
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Your question sounds a little confused. Why would you convert 120 volts to 12 volts? If your inverter is converting 12 volt solar panel juice into 120 Volt AC, you're going to be drawing over 200 amps at maximum load. An extension cord would melt. You'd need at least 2 gauge wire (0 gauge would be better) and as short a run as you could manage.
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