Not to be rude (but I’m often accused of being so) but what’s your plan for using the inverter? Lemme, if I may be so bold, share my thoughts. Hope they help!
kstephenson wrote:Hi Has anyone tried using the Cobra 1500 inverter?
No, I try and run stuff off of DC directly or directly off of ac (alternating current). More efficient. Things designed to run directly off of DC are usually smaller, more efficient, but can get the job done.
kstephenson wrote:I have 2 marine deep cycle batteries in Parallel with the Guest 6 amp charger.
If they are 100 amp hours each you can, if you do it slowly, pull only 50% of this rating out of em, so 100 amp hours max. If you are pulling 1000 watts your batteries will last about one hour. Even so, that is way too fast a discharge and will significantly shorten the life of your batteries. It’s also gonna take some serious wires to conduct all that juice from the battery to the inverter.
kstephenson wrote:Any good ideals to optimize this set up??
Don’t use it except for very short bursts to run a blender (but 12 volt ones are available), drill, or something like that.
kstephenson wrote:Will just be using it for up to 1000 watts.
Again, what are you going to power. Some things don’t like modified sine wave and will be damaged by it. Sometimes inverters have a rating for continuous output and surge output. Make sure you don’t exceed the continuous output rating for more than it takes to start a motor that starts up right away.
kstephenson wrote: I will run my AC off of shore power.
If you have s/p why not run your ac load right off it?
If you discharge your batteries fully 100 amp/hours it will take your 6 amp charger about 16 hours to put the charge back in. Have you factored that into your equation?
Inverters have their place (I have a small one to run a couple of small things like battery chargers for a camera) but sucking a lot of power out of an inverter without a HUGE battery banks IMHO isn’t very viable. Telephone offices actually run off of batteries. Not ac! The batteries are HUGE and weigh TONS and are constantly being charged (actually rectifiers provide the power and the batteries float but in the event of a power loss they can run the office.
Without knowing more of your plan I can’t say if you’re gonna get what you expect to. In general I feel that people expect way too much out of a battery and an inverter as there are a lot more factors involved than appear at first glance.
With more input, I can share more.
Hope you understand this is not criticism but I have my doubts that you’ll get what you want out of a battery/inverter setup unless you take into account exactly how you’ll use it, what the load will be, how fast you’ll draw down the batteries, how you put the energy back into the batteries, etc.
I used to live on my boat for more than a week at a time in the Channel Islands. Never had an inverter, never missed it.
Three 100 amp/hr batteries (always kept 2 disconnected, except when charging, to use only to start the engine as you can't push start a diesel sailboat) and never used one up. Typically ran the engine 20 minutes a day to get hot water for a shower.
You want more thoughts, send me a pm.
Cheers,
Gus
The opinions in this post are my own. My comments are directed to those that might like an alternative approach to those already espoused.There is the right way,the wrong way,the USMC way, your way, my way, and the highway.
"I'm impatient with stupidity. My people have learned to live without it." Klaatu-"The Day the Earth Stood Still"
"You can't handle the truth!"-Jack Nicholson "A Few Good Men"
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. The Marines don't have that problem"-Ronald Reagan
by kstephenson » Sun May 09, 2010 12:17 pm 
