Can anyone reccomend a microwave oven that will run off an inverter ?
dozza said
08:33 PM Apr 27, 2015
I am fitting out a coaster in Tassie, one of the regulations requires permanent cooking facilities, apparently a microwave and inverter qualifies
Philw said
09:13 PM Apr 27, 2015
Dozza. We have a Jayco Conquest with a 900 watt microwave / convection oven. It can plug into the 240 volt mains switch or the inverter switch. Runs well either way. We never run out of power. Have 2 120 amp batteries and a 100 watt solar panel. Hope this is of some help. I think the issue is that you have the right size and type of inverter. Maybe the local Jaycar type place would be best to ask. Good luck. Phil
2foot6 said
09:23 PM Apr 27, 2015
Welcome to the forum Dozza,also important to make sure the inverter is PURE SINE WAVE for the safety of the electronics ,our m/wave is an LG 1000 watt running on a 1500 watt PSW inverter. cheers Peter.
-- Edited by 2foot6 on Monday 27th of April 2015 10:27:05 PM
dozza said
03:30 PM Apr 28, 2015
Thanks fellas,I have a pure sine wave 3000watt inverter and 4x105A/H trojan batteries I plugged in an old microwave that said on the back 600w=1100w but the inverter started to give a warning squeal .Do more modern ovens work more efficiently?
2foot6 said
04:47 PM Apr 28, 2015
I would have thought the inverter should be able to operate the m/wave with out bringing on the warning buzzer,try leaving the m/wave on and see if the buzzer goes off.May be borrow a m/wave and test it to see if its ok...................cheers Peter.
-- Edited by 2foot6 on Tuesday 28th of April 2015 04:48:04 PM
Plendo said
07:56 PM Apr 28, 2015
Welcome Dozza.
The modern inverter microwaves appear to use less power, our 3,000 w inverter happily runs the small one in our van (Daewoo non inverter model).
Jaahn said
09:34 PM Apr 28, 2015
dozza wrote:
Thanks fellas,I have a pure sine wave 3000watt inverter and 4x105A/H trojan batteries I plugged in an old microwave that said on the back 600w=1100w but the inverter started to give a warning squeal .Do more modern ovens work more efficiently?
Hi dozza,
Perhaps the problem here is not the microwave or the inverter, but the wiring for the inverter. Your system should be OK but if the wiring for the inverter is not up to the job the voltage at the inverter input terminals falls and the squeal is telling you that. "low voltage". My suggestion is check the size of the wires, the length of them and the connections. You could put a meter on the wires and check what is happening.
Jaahn
oldtrack123 said
10:17 PM Apr 28, 2015
dozza wrote:
Thanks fellas,I have a pure sine wave 3000watt inverter and 4x105A/H trojan batteries I plugged in an old microwave that said on the back 600w=1100w but the inverter started to give a warning squeal .Do more modern ovens work more efficiently?
Hi
The Watts are the heating power NOT the the max input VOLT AMPS
On a 1100W cooking power those could be more like 1500<1800VA. depending on the unit's efficiency & power factor
You could be pulling around 180A from the batterries.
That will require SHORT HEAVY cables from the battery to the inverter input
PeterQ
-- Edited by oldtrack123 on Tuesday 28th of April 2015 10:19:37 PM
Ondabeach said
10:56 AM Apr 30, 2015
The 600w=1100w means 600 watts cooking power and 1100 watts maximum power consumption.
A HF (High Frequency) 3000w inverter is going to be too small for a microwave.
An LF (Low Frequency) 3000w inverter is just ok for your microwave.
An LF inverter will have a HUGE transformer inside and be quite heavy for it's size.
Typically, the more modern the microwave, the smaller the gap between cooking watts and power consumption watts.
Hope that helps,
Steve.
Rock said
06:01 PM May 17, 2015
I reckon the best bet is to think bigger. I've just put a 5000w Pure Sine Wave LF inverter in and hooked it up to a 100ah deep cycle and it ran the micro (about 800-900w), the fujitsu 2.5 reverse cycle air con and the 3 drawer freezer (about 700-800w). Had about 500w to spare with no alarms. I realise it would not do that for very long but it handled it ok. Have since added a 150ah AGM battery and it is all fed by 4 panels totalling about 300?w). Can't say for sure as I don't want to pull the panels off the roof. Cost? I bought the inverter on EBay for $305 plus $60 postage. The AGM is second hand and I bought that off EBay for $150. It is dang heavy tho- 48 kg so that needs to be factored into your weights and measures (another subject). The inverter is also heavy- about 14kg from memory). Hope this helps.. :)
-- Edited by Rock on Sunday 17th of May 2015 06:01:40 PM
Baz421 said
07:34 PM May 17, 2015
Rock wrote:
I reckon the best bet is to think bigger. I've just put a 5000w Pure Sine Wave LF inverter in and hooked it up to a 100ah deep cycle and it ran the micro (about 800-900w), the fujitsu 2.5 reverse cycle air con and the 3 drawer freezer (about 700-800w). Had about 500w to spare with no alarms. I realise it would not do that for very long but it handled it ok. Have since added a 150ah AGM battery and it is all fed by 4 panels totalling about 300?w). Can't say for sure as I don't want to pull the panels off the roof. Cost? I bought the inverter on EBay for $305 plus $60 postage. The AGM is second hand and I bought that off EBay for $150. It is dang heavy tho- 48 kg so that needs to be factored into your weights and measures (another subject). The inverter is also heavy- about 14kg from memory). Hope this helps.. :)
-- Edited by Rock on Sunday 17th of May 2015 06:01:40 PM
Good luck with your battery life,,, the AGM,s won't last long.
Rock said
08:52 PM Jul 19, 2015
Baz421. Here's a cut and paste from another guru on GN. ?
AGM and deep cycle batteries are what you need as while some will also start a engine are not desighed for this type of abuse. These batteries are more suited to your caravan to run your compressor fridge, television and your lighting. In general AGM bateries do cost a lot more than a good lead acid, like about 3 times the cost and if looked after they also would have a long life, eg: I have a 12 Volt 200 Amp AGM battery in my caravan that would be now be going on 8+ years old and even now looks like it's never going to die !! This was second hand and had lived on a house boat as part of a battery bank and was several years old when I was give it and I've now had it for about 6 years. My caravan is connected to the 240 Volt mains 24/7 so as to keep the house batery charged and the satilight decoder to get it's up dates and remain active so as to be ready for when we go away.
The Phantom said
04:23 AM Jul 20, 2015
Any microwave will run off an inverter as long as the inverter has the capacity to feed the microwave.
That it will completely stuff your batteries is another topic.
If you have something along the lines of an 8 x 5 trailer load of batteries and enough solar to feed them, you may be able to get the baked beans done for breakfast. I would make the toast first otherwise you may not be able to get the toaster going after the beans are cooked.
On another tack, go back and read the relevant regulations and see if there is any reason why you cannot just have a microwave plugged into a 240v outlet. Said regulation may not mention that you are free camping at all and need to have an inverter. Sometimes it pays to do some research before committing your hard earned.
The Phantom
Jaahn said
08:05 AM Jul 20, 2015
Rock wrote:
I reckon the best bet is to think bigger. I've just put a 5000w Pure Sine Wave LF inverter in and hooked it up to a 100ah deep cycle and it ran the micro (about 800-900w), the fujitsu 2.5 reverse cycle air con and the 3 drawer freezer (about 700-800w). Had about 500w to spare with no alarms. I realise it would not do that for very long but it handled it ok. Have since added a 150ah AGM battery and it is all fed by 4 panels totalling about 300?w). Can't say for sure as I don't want to pull the panels off the roof. Cost? I bought the inverter on EBay for $305 plus $60 postage. The AGM is second hand and I bought that off EBay for $150. It is dang heavy tho- 48 kg so that needs to be factored into your weights and measures (another subject). The inverter is also heavy- about 14kg from memory). Hope this helps.. :)
-- Edited by Rock on Sunday 17th of May 2015 06:01:40 PM
Hi Rock,
I think the comments made about the AGM battery are aimed at the inverter load not the fact it is an AGM battery. AGM batteries are probably the best type for value and performance IMHO. Pairing it up with a lead acid of different capacity will not lead to a long life for one of them probably.
The inverter load is really excessive for your battery setup and others should realise this. A 5000 watt inverter will draw about 400++ amps at close to full load, so from a 350w battery bank that will last less than half an hour to 50%. Not good for regular use. Do-able, just, but people should know what is being said. The batteries had better be good too or they will just quit anyway sooner.
Jaahn
-- Edited by Jaahn on Monday 20th of July 2015 08:08:06 AM
-- Edited by Jaahn on Monday 20th of July 2015 08:11:28 AM
I am fitting out a coaster in Tassie, one of the regulations requires permanent cooking facilities, apparently a microwave and inverter qualifies
Dozza. We have a Jayco Conquest with a 900 watt microwave / convection oven. It can plug into the 240 volt mains switch or the inverter switch. Runs well either way. We never run out of power. Have 2 120 amp batteries and a 100 watt solar panel. Hope this is of some help. I think the issue is that you have the right size and type of inverter. Maybe the local Jaycar type place would be best to ask. Good luck. Phil
Welcome to the forum Dozza,also important to make sure the inverter is PURE SINE WAVE for the safety of the electronics ,our m/wave is an LG 1000 watt running on a 1500 watt PSW inverter. cheers Peter.
-- Edited by 2foot6 on Monday 27th of April 2015 10:27:05 PM
I would have thought the inverter should be able to operate the m/wave with out bringing on the warning buzzer,try leaving the m/wave on and see if the buzzer goes off.May be borrow a m/wave and test it to see if its ok...................cheers Peter.
-- Edited by 2foot6 on Tuesday 28th of April 2015 04:48:04 PM
Welcome Dozza.
The modern inverter microwaves appear to use less power, our 3,000 w inverter happily runs the small one in our van (Daewoo non inverter model).
Hi dozza,
Perhaps the problem here is not the microwave or the inverter, but the wiring for the inverter.
Your system should be OK but if the wiring for the inverter is not up to the job the voltage at the inverter input terminals falls and the squeal is telling you that. "low voltage". My suggestion is check the size of the wires, the length of them and the connections. You could put a meter on the wires and check what is happening.
Jaahn
Hi
The Watts are the heating power NOT the the max input VOLT AMPS
On a 1100W cooking power those could be more like 1500<1800VA. depending on the unit's efficiency & power factor
You could be pulling around 180A from the batterries.
That will require SHORT HEAVY cables from the battery to the inverter input
PeterQ
-- Edited by oldtrack123 on Tuesday 28th of April 2015 10:19:37 PM
A HF (High Frequency) 3000w inverter is going to be too small for a microwave.
An LF (Low Frequency) 3000w inverter is just ok for your microwave.
An LF inverter will have a HUGE transformer inside and be quite heavy for it's size.
Typically, the more modern the microwave, the smaller the gap between cooking watts and power consumption watts.
Hope that helps,
Steve.
I reckon the best bet is to think bigger. I've just put a 5000w Pure Sine Wave LF inverter in and hooked it up to a 100ah deep cycle and it ran the micro (about 800-900w), the fujitsu 2.5 reverse cycle air con and the 3 drawer freezer (about 700-800w). Had about 500w to spare with no alarms. I realise it would not do that for very long but it handled it ok. Have since added a 150ah AGM battery and it is all fed by 4 panels totalling about 300?w). Can't say for sure as I don't want to pull the panels off the roof. Cost? I bought the inverter on EBay for $305 plus $60 postage. The AGM is second hand and I bought that off EBay for $150. It is dang heavy tho- 48 kg so that needs to be factored into your weights and measures (another subject). The inverter is also heavy- about 14kg from memory). Hope this helps.. :)
-- Edited by Rock on Sunday 17th of May 2015 06:01:40 PM
Good luck with your battery life,,, the AGM,s won't last long.
AGM and deep cycle batteries are what you need as while some will also start a engine are not desighed for this type of abuse. These batteries are more suited to your caravan to run your compressor fridge, television and your lighting. In general AGM bateries do cost a lot more than a good lead acid, like about 3 times the cost and if looked after they also would have a long life, eg: I have a 12 Volt 200 Amp AGM battery in my caravan that would be now be going on 8+ years old and even now looks like it's never going to die !! This was second hand and had lived on a house boat as part of a battery bank and was several years old when I was give it and I've now had it for about 6 years. My caravan is connected to the 240 Volt mains 24/7 so as to keep the house batery charged and the satilight decoder to get it's up dates and remain active so as to be ready for when we go away.
Any microwave will run off an inverter as long as the inverter has the capacity to feed the microwave.
That it will completely stuff your batteries is another topic.
If you have something along the lines of an 8 x 5 trailer load of batteries and enough solar to feed them, you may be able to get the baked beans done for breakfast. I would make the toast first otherwise you may not be able to get the toaster going after the beans are cooked.
On another tack, go back and read the relevant regulations and see if there is any reason why you cannot just have a microwave plugged into a 240v outlet. Said regulation may not mention that you are free camping at all and need to have an inverter. Sometimes it pays to do some research before committing your hard earned.
The Phantom
Hi Rock,
I think the comments made about the AGM battery are aimed at the inverter load not the fact it is an AGM battery. AGM batteries are probably the best type for value and performance IMHO. Pairing it up with a lead acid of different capacity will not lead to a long life for one of them probably.
The inverter load is really excessive for your battery setup and others should realise this. A 5000 watt inverter will draw about 400++ amps at close to full load, so from a 350w battery bank that will last less than half an hour to 50%. Not good for regular use. Do-able, just, but people should know what is being said.
The batteries had better be good too or they will just quit anyway sooner.
Jaahn
-- Edited by Jaahn on Monday 20th of July 2015 08:08:06 AM
-- Edited by Jaahn on Monday 20th of July 2015 08:11:28 AM