Waeco PerfectPower PP1002 Inverter

[JF117]

Yes those are intended for caravans, where by your charging the battery in the caravan and possibly running the fridge whilst driving. They rely on the length of wiring from front of the car to the caravan to limit the charging current and then handle the fact that when on-site the car is disconnected and the caravan uses its own battery or its own EHU connection. Whilst in principle this is similar to a campervan its NOT identical, hence the relay is not adequately rated for the charging current and often burns out after a while depending on how much the LB is used etc! There are much better options designed for campervans where the relay is much more adequately rated and doesn't have the need to handle the back of the van being disconnected from the the front seats and engine!

Good to know.

At the time when I was doing all my research on trying to figure out what the problem was I do recall coming across threads/articles which advocated the better options you’re talking about.

Something for the future perhaps as I haven't revisited it since I replaced it.

I know that its current function / use is to solely charge the LB when the engine is on. The fridge is only powered on when the inverter is on, so if its off and the engine is on the fridge will not run.
If the both the engine and inverter are on, the component is at its highest usage and Im thinking thats because the LB is being used/charged at the same time.

In an attempt to achieve best efficiency, thats when I turn my fridge on, whilst the engine is running, so that I can preserve the LB for when I need it most.

[g8dhe]

Can I ask why your not using a 12v compressor fridge ? Using the inverter is not the best way forward ....."One other aspect to bear in mind is that inverters are not the best way to get the max from the battery, there usually quite poor efficiency wise unless your spending a lot of money, typically only 80% efficient so your throwing away 20% of your batteries charge! "

[JF117]

Can I ask why your not using a 12v compressor fridge ? Using the inverter is not the best way forward ....."One other aspect to bear in mind is that inverters are not the best way to get the max from the battery, there usually quite poor efficiency wise unless your spending a lot of money, typically only 80% efficient so your throwing away 20% of your batteries charge! "

That was just the way it came when I bought it. Everything else within this thread has just been me figuring it out / unravelling the puzzle .

With all your helps ofc!

Perhaps at one stage that's the way it was [12v] because I do think the fridge was replaced at a later stage, as the wooden fixture which was used to hold it in place was different from the rest of the fittings. However, I just replaced the fridge there recently like for like [see other thread regarding fridges] and it's all back to "normal" or rather, what it was when I first bought it.

The previous owners told us that they never had an issue with it and I was none the wiser.

the [LB] runs through to the [Inverter] which I think runs to a [circuit breaker] which then powers the 4x [Outlets].

The [Fridge] is running off the [Outlets] and power only runs through the [Outlets] when the [Inverter] is on and the [LB] has charge.

If and when the [Vehicle] is attached to [EHU] the main board switches over to [EHU] and not the [LB] although the [LB] needs to be in place for the power of the [EHU] to pass through.

Atleast thats how I understand it. Let me know if I'm missing something or not understanding it fully.

[g8dhe]

Yup understand, its often the way things are in the vans!

[JF117]

Yup understand, its often the way things are in the vans!

Do you think I should just leave it as is?

Its probably not the most efficient or ideal but it's doable, right?

[g8dhe]

Indeed, if it works for you then leave it as it is.
Having been involved in the design of various inverters, which HAD to be highly efficient and very light weight, getting the very last drop of efficiency out of these designs took 6 months of my life So seeing the marketing words put around 12v DC to mains inverters to sell them, when inside the mains device is the exact opposite to change 240AC back down to 12v DC grates badly with me as in most cases you end up loosing 36% of the power as unwanted heat!