What Wattage Inverter, And What Are You Running On It?

In about 3 weeks I will become a solo company (Prime) driver and I am curious as to what can be hooked up to a 1500 watt inverter. I am not to fond of eating out, and like to cook. Would like to get a refrigerator, crock pot, electric skillet. Don't really need a t.v. I use my laptop but.... Anyway, what size inverters are you folks using and how have you made your truck your home away from home.

In about 3 weeks I will become a solo company (Prime) driver and I am curious as to what can be hooked up to a 1500 watt inverter. I am not to fond of eating out, and like to cook. Would like to get a refrigerator, crock pot, electric skillet. Don't really need a t.v. I use my laptop but.... Anyway, what size inverters are you folks using and how have you made your truck your home away from home.

Prime has 1500 watt inverters installed in their trucks. You as a driver for Prime are not allowed to install one on your own (whether you are a company driver or a lease operator). So no need to worry about that. I found that the 1500 watt inverter was more than enough to handle just about anything you would want to have. Just remember, if you are trying to use multiple appliances at the same time, that depending on what you are trying to do, may not work out. As for the refrigerator, that is on a separate circuit from the inverter, so that will not take away from the overall wattage you have available.

Now you can request a larger inverter to be installed that you can provide (unless the policy has been changed since I left Prime).

Good luck.

Ernie

Sounds exactly like my setup. You'll be fine.

My microwave draws 1000 watts so I always run that by itself just to be safe. Same with the skillet.

My crockpot is much less, maybe around 100 or less, and my laptop draws 85.

I do also have a small 150 watt inverter that plugs into the 12v outlet. I use that for the crockpot so I don't have to have the big inverter on all day, and I also use it to charge my phone and laptop at night.

Basically I just turn on the big inverter when I use the microwave or skillet for brief periods.

Sounds exactly like my setup. You'll be fine.

My microwave draws 1000 watts so I always run that by itself just to be safe. Same with the skillet.

My crockpot is much less, maybe around 100 or less, and my laptop draws 85.

I do also have a small 150 watt inverter that plugs into the 12v outlet. I use that for the crockpot so I don't have to have the big inverter on all day, and I also use it to charge my phone and laptop at night.

Basically I just turn on the big inverter when I use the microwave or skillet for brief periods.

Thanks guys. Do you have any recommendations for size or wattage of appliances? With winter around the corner the last thing I want to do is drain the batteries and be stranded in the cold.

1000 watts is plenty for a microwave or a skillet, or really any appliance I guess. When running those, just make sure to have the engine idling to avoid any battery issues.

Since Prime has APU's on all their trucks, draining the battery is really a non-issue. Now on the outside chance you do drain the battery (because the APU is not working), if you are in the reefer fleet, you always have the reefer unit to charge the batteries enough to start as a fall back if needed.

Ernie

Reefer:

A refrigerated trailer.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

Since Prime has APU's on all their trucks, draining the battery is really a non-issue. Now on the outside chance you do drain the battery (because the APU is not working), if you are in the reefer fleet, you always have the reefer unit to charge the batteries enough to start as a fall back if needed.

Ernie

That's why this is my favorite site on the internet. You "truthers" are so helpful.

Reefer:

A refrigerated trailer.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

Since Prime has APU's on all their trucks, draining the battery is really a non-issue. Now on the outside chance you do drain the battery (because the APU is not working), if you are in the reefer fleet, you always have the reefer unit to charge the batteries enough to start as a fall back if needed.

Ernie

That is a very interesting tip to know. Now what gauge jumper cables do i need to carry lol

Reefer:

A refrigerated trailer.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

Since Prime has APU's on all their trucks, draining the battery is really a non-issue. Now on the outside chance you do drain the battery (because the APU is not working), if you are in the reefer fleet, you always have the reefer unit to charge the batteries enough to start as a fall back if needed.

Ernie

That is a very interesting tip to know. Now what gauge jumper cables do i need to carry lol

I don't remember the gauge, but the ones Prime has in the company store is what is needed (I am thinking 10 gauge, just not positive).

Ernie

Reefer:

A refrigerated trailer.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

APU's:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.