Hello to all you electrical wizards, i need some advise. I am in the process of attempting to setup a 12volt system that wiil free me from the grabbing hands of some of the sharks out there that have gained control of the caravan park industry. I know that description does not apply to all but theres enough of them to cause me to stop using caravan parks if at all possible. My immediate problem is i need to install a 2000W inverter. After a great deal of searching i have found one i can afford, but can i be sure its safe. The ad says that it is built to australian standards. Attached is the specs for it. My question is "would you buy it". Your comments please.
The quiescent current is a little on the high side, but many of the cheapies are around that figure.
They say Aust safety design, which may not necessarily be certification, they also claim source/load isolation, and the price is certainly OK.
They don't mention what the stabilised output voltage is, and some of these that claim 240v actually have no load V closer to 220v which can depress considerably under load.
Whilst the no load volts can often be tweaked, there is no remedy for heavy depression under load.
Send them an Email and see if you can find out a bit more about it.
Try to get no load and full load voltage info and see if they will send you a screen shot of the output waveform.
hako said
10:59 PM Feb 14, 2014
It helps if your warranty is covered in Australia like the one listed below is (from a quick search). Also a 100% feedback score. Electrical information - I doubt you'll get much from the seller as they are just middlemen.
You have some protection by paying with Paypal which is more than you sometimes get buying locally.
While I have no problem buying goods on Ebay I tend not to buy inverters of unknown chinese origin as if its not right it can cause death. I tend to buy from recognised outlets so I can take it back as not all Ebay sellers ore honest with a lot being chinese uni students making a quick buck.
My tuppence worth take it as you will
Pete
oldtrack123 said
12:11 AM Feb 15, 2014
HI
Also ask them for the AUSTRALIAN APPROVAL NUMBER. & AUS Standard# it's made to!
PeterQ
brian said
12:17 AM Feb 15, 2014
You can be pretty sure that almost any inverter that you purchase for a cheapish price will be of Chinese manufacture.
The fact that you might purchase it from an Australian outlet, and that it may carry an Australian warranty in no way guarantees that it will be safer than its Chinese equivalent with just a different label on it.
I contacted an Ebay seller of a Chinese brand inverter called Powerjack some time back with a request for further electrical info Including waveform pics, and received everything by return email 2 days later, so some will cooperate if approached.
Mr B2 said
01:12 AM Feb 15, 2014
I bought a Power Jack Invertor, 12 Volt, 240 volt, Pure Sine, 5000 Watt, 10,000 Watt surge,
I looked it up online, Found the Factory it was made in, Very impressed with their Factory set up,
One 200 Amp/hour Battery with the Invertor connected to one 500 Watt power drill, and a 5 inch Grinder,
Had them both going at the same time and loaded, Ran them both with no problems, The Invertor didnt miss a beat,
I bough it because my Xantrax 1800 Watt Invertor got drowned and needed to be replaced, Its also 2 grands worth,
Why Chinese you ask, Because my American Xantrex Invertor was made in China as well,
And my new Chinese Invertor was $500-00 Delivered, Not $2000-00 for the Chinese made Xantrex,
It comes with all the bells and whistles included inside,
Whether it works for years or not, I will tell you in a few years,
I buy a lot of gear from China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Never had a problem with any of it, So Far,
The same gear here, in exactly the same packets I buy it in, Is usually a minimum of four times the cost I pay for the same item direct from China,
All my new electrics cost me $1400-00, The same gear bought from OZ was well over $8000-00,
It comes with a Booklet with all the instructions on how to use it and set it up,
It also has a section on repairs if needed, with all the diagrams, Etc,
Also, all the technical specs are on their page on Ebay, So you do know what your buying from them, Its all clearly listed,
I can post the tech details up if you like,
Every country makes Cheap Crap, You just have to sort thru it all to get a good buy,
native pepper said
07:22 AM Feb 15, 2014
Only inverter we had problems with was bought from a well known Aus RV distributor and had nothing but problems dealing with them. Now buy everything off Ebay or go direct to the manufacturers or suppliers, you get all the details and service you ask for and save a huge amount of money. it also allows us to carry spares of everything, as the more units we buy the cheaper they become and postage is fare cheaper from overseas than within Aus. Unlike in Aus, if you have a problem they don't ask questions, just replace it instantly. Here they moan, blame you, try to get out of the warranty and waste your time.
Herb said
10:22 PM Feb 15, 2014
well to add to the mix I brought two pure sinewave inverters made in China. Same brand and the supplier had a good rep and lots good feedback. the first inverter worked well for about two months until we started traveling. We had it fixed to the inside of a cupboard in the van and with normal travel movement the inside shook loose and nearly caused a fire. The second was great for charging of the laptop BUT as soon as we turned computer on it went haywire and did all sorts strange stuff (not true sinewave I guess).
To make matters worse the supplier stopped importing them as wernt worth his while, no replacement and of course, he informed us, were warranted by the factory and because he wasnt the agent anymore we would have to deal direct. We cut our loses and brought a Protech one. no issues since.
Cloak said
11:19 AM Feb 16, 2014
I think a quick check of consumer law would have those items refunded if they can't be replaced from the seller.
Friar Park said
03:54 PM Feb 16, 2014
Thanks to all that replied to my query. It seems that from my own experience and from your comments that theres very little difference in risk factor between buying online or buying local, but pricewise theres a tremendous difference in some cases.
thanks for your comments and advice
Friar Park
oldbobsbus said
08:55 PM Feb 16, 2014
I wasn't going to post on this thread becoz everyone wants to knock stuff you buy on ebay..
BUT I am now going to say I have bought and used many PSW inverters from Power Jack over the last 4 years and never had a moments problem with them..( I do solar installations}..
The only one that I needed to contact them about was one that was damaged in transit and once I sent them photos of the damage they replaced it instantly..
I therefore have no hesitation in recommending them..
Baz421 said
09:00 PM Feb 16, 2014
hako wrote:
It helps if your warranty is covered in Australia like the one listed below is (from a quick search). Also a 100% feedback score. Electrical information - I doubt you'll get much from the seller as they are just middlemen.
Dont take feedback score too seriously,, guide only. Someone advertised on Gumtree for a eBay user ID with 100% feedback score,,, ie they wanted to BUY SOMEONE ELSES REPUTATION AND USE IT THEMSELVES.
Told Gumtree and eBay,, not interested.
brian said
09:03 PM Feb 16, 2014
oldbobsbus wrote:
I wasn't going to post on this thread becoz everyone wants to knock stuff you buy on ebay..
BUT I am now going to say I have bought and used many PSW inverters from Power Jack over the last 4 years and never had a moments problem with them..( I do solar installations}..
The only one that I needed to contact them about was one that was damaged in transit and once I sent them photos of the damage they replaced it instantly..
I therefore have no hesitation in recommending them..
I have to agree with you Bob, I received one on which the terminal insulators were broken. Sent them a pic, told them I could effect the repairs myself, and they sent replacement parts plus a couple of spares within a week.
oldbobsbus said
09:15 PM Feb 16, 2014
brian wrote:
oldbobsbus wrote:
I wasn't going to post on this thread becoz everyone wants to knock stuff you buy on ebay..
BUT I am now going to say I have bought and used many PSW inverters from Power Jack over the last 4 years and never had a moments problem with them..( I do solar installations}..
The only one that I needed to contact them about was one that was damaged in transit and once I sent them photos of the damage they replaced it instantly..
I therefore have no hesitation in recommending them..
I have to agree with you Bob, I received one on which the terminal insulators were broken. Sent them a pic, told them I could effect the repairs myself, and they sent replacement parts plus a couple of spares within a week.
I must be smarter than you Brian.
I got them to replace the inverter and then replaced the exact same parts locally so I finished up with 2 inverters..
SnowT said
11:23 PM Feb 21, 2014
Hi Friar Park..
An inverter is Only as good as the battery system[Batteries + charging system] it's hooked up to..
You can have the best most efficient Inverter in the World, but if the Batteries and charging are not up the scratch then Why bother..
Juergen..
Psst I'm going to leave it at that, as the small number know Where I'm heading..
J
Hello to all you electrical wizards, i need some advise. I am in the process of attempting to setup a 12volt system that wiil free me from the grabbing hands of some of the sharks out there that have gained control of the caravan park industry. I know that description does not apply to all but theres enough of them to cause me to stop using caravan parks if at all possible. My immediate problem is i need to install a 2000W inverter. After a great deal of searching i have found one i can afford, but can i be sure its safe. The ad says that it is built to australian standards. Attached is the specs for it. My question is "would you buy it". Your comments please.
Friar Park
As with all things Ebay it is Caveat emptor.
The quiescent current is a little on the high side, but many of the cheapies are around that figure.
They say Aust safety design, which may not necessarily be certification, they also claim source/load isolation, and the price is certainly OK.
They don't mention what the stabilised output voltage is, and some of these that claim 240v actually have no load V closer to 220v which can depress considerably under load.
Whilst the no load volts can often be tweaked, there is no remedy for heavy depression under load.
Send them an Email and see if you can find out a bit more about it.
Try to get no load and full load voltage info and see if they will send you a screen shot of the output waveform.
It helps if your warranty is covered in Australia like the one listed below is (from a quick search). Also a 100% feedback score. Electrical information - I doubt you'll get much from the seller as they are just middlemen.
You have some protection by paying with Paypal which is more than you sometimes get buying locally.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2000W-4000W-Watt-Pure-Sine-Wave-Inverter-12V-DV-Battery-240V-AV-Power-/281261017587?pt=Caravan_Parts_Accessories&hash=item417c7689f3&_uhb=1
Good Luck.
While I have no problem buying goods on Ebay I tend not to buy inverters of unknown chinese origin as if its not right it can cause death. I tend to buy from recognised outlets so I can take it back as not all Ebay sellers ore honest with a lot being chinese uni students making a quick buck.
My tuppence worth take it as you will
Pete
HI
Also ask them for the AUSTRALIAN APPROVAL NUMBER. & AUS Standard# it's made to!
PeterQ
I bought a Power Jack Invertor, 12 Volt, 240 volt, Pure Sine, 5000 Watt, 10,000 Watt surge,
I looked it up online, Found the Factory it was made in, Very impressed with their Factory set up,
One 200 Amp/hour Battery with the Invertor connected to one 500 Watt power drill, and a 5 inch Grinder,
Had them both going at the same time and loaded, Ran them both with no problems, The Invertor didnt miss a beat,
I bough it because my Xantrax 1800 Watt Invertor got drowned and needed to be replaced, Its also 2 grands worth,
Why Chinese you ask, Because my American Xantrex Invertor was made in China as well,
And my new Chinese Invertor was $500-00 Delivered, Not $2000-00 for the Chinese made Xantrex,
It comes with all the bells and whistles included inside,
Whether it works for years or not, I will tell you in a few years,
I buy a lot of gear from China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Never had a problem with any of it, So Far,
The same gear here, in exactly the same packets I buy it in, Is usually a minimum of four times the cost I pay for the same item direct from China,
All my new electrics cost me $1400-00, The same gear bought from OZ was well over $8000-00,
It comes with a Booklet with all the instructions on how to use it and set it up,
It also has a section on repairs if needed, with all the diagrams, Etc,
Also, all the technical specs are on their page on Ebay, So you do know what your buying from them, Its all clearly listed,
I can post the tech details up if you like,
Every country makes Cheap Crap, You just have to sort thru it all to get a good buy,
To make matters worse the supplier stopped importing them as wernt worth his while, no replacement and of course, he informed us, were warranted by the factory and because he wasnt the agent anymore we would have to deal direct. We cut our loses and brought a Protech one. no issues since.
Thanks to all that replied to my query. It seems that from my own experience and from your comments that theres very little difference in risk factor between buying online or buying local, but pricewise theres a tremendous difference in some cases.
thanks for your comments and advice
Friar Park
I wasn't going to post on this thread becoz everyone wants to knock stuff you buy on ebay..
BUT I am now going to say I have bought and used many PSW inverters from Power Jack over the last 4 years and never had a moments problem with them..( I do solar installations}..
The only one that I needed to contact them about was one that was damaged in transit and once I sent them photos of the damage they replaced it instantly..
I therefore have no hesitation in recommending them..
Dont take feedback score too seriously,, guide only. Someone advertised on Gumtree for a eBay user ID with 100% feedback score,,, ie they wanted to BUY SOMEONE ELSES REPUTATION AND USE IT THEMSELVES.
Told Gumtree and eBay,, not interested.
I have to agree with you Bob, I received one on which the terminal insulators were broken. Sent them a pic, told them I could effect the repairs myself, and they sent replacement parts plus a couple of spares within a week.
I must be smarter than you Brian.
I got them to replace the inverter and then replaced the exact same parts locally so I finished up with 2 inverters..
An inverter is Only as good as the battery system[Batteries + charging system] it's hooked up to..
You can have the best most efficient Inverter in the World, but if the Batteries and charging are not up the scratch then Why bother..
Juergen..
Psst I'm going to leave it at that, as the small number know Where I'm heading..
J