Power invertor for block heater

[Wilson]

Has any one installed a power invertor on there tow vehicle to plug in the block heater while trailering . If so how big does the invertor have to be . There must be some electrical guys out there that know about this stuff .

 

[BigMac]

Has any one installed a power invertor on there tow vehicle to plug in the block heater while trailering . If so how big does the invertor have to be . There must be some electrical guys out there that know about this stuff .

Wow. It's a great idea, but that block heater draws about 600 watts. That's going to require about a 50-60 amp circuit and the inverter itself is going to be about $250-$300. You would have to direct wire it to the battery, but you might find that your alternator and battery don't have the juice to keep up with that kind of continuous draw.

 

[QCRider]

Has any one installed a power invertor on there tow vehicle to plug in the block heater while trailering . If so how big does the invertor have to be . There must be some electrical guys out there that know about this stuff .

Wow. It's a great idea, but that block heater draws about 600 watts. That's going to require about a 50-60 amp circuit and the inverter itself is going to be about $250-$300. You would have to direct wire it to the battery, but you might find that your alternator and battery don't have the juice to keep up with that kind of continuous draw.

DUDE, try 5-6 AMPS!!!

 

[BigMac]

DUDE, try 5-6 AMPS!!!

Oops, right...divide by 120 not 12......

 

[Flipper]

This one got me thinking, amazing how fast you forget. It has been a little while since I worked with any inverter circuits....

5-6 amps would be correct for the secondary side of the transformer which would be operating at about 120 volts (600 Watts/120 Volts). On the primary side, assuming a center tap transformer (24 volts across primary winding) it would be around 25 amps (600/24). Actual values would be slightly higher than this due to losses I believe.

I would want to look into the ratings on your vehicle's electrical system before trying this. I know my Freestar van has 12 volt outlets each fused at 25-30 amps so I assume it would handle it.