Summer is the season of vacations, trips to the sea and the forest, a time of incredible stories and crazy adventures. Are you already looking forward to when your boss will let you go on vacation so you can jump into your favorite basin and go explore places where no man has gone before?
Don’t forget to get an outlet in your car so you can charge all your gadgets even on the beach! It’s strange, but many people don’t know that it’s very easy to add it , and today we’ll talk about it.
Bogdan D., a car master with golden hands, helped me in working on this material; let’s all say thank you to him, he sorted out all the nuances.
You will need a car inverter, what is it?
Modern cars have a lot of electrical devices powered by a battery. They need 12V, and all the electronics inside your pelvis are designed for that. But you need 220 or so, where can you get it?
Imagine you want to go outdoors with friends, load shrimp into a frying pan, throw it all on the fire and celebrate any day of summer with good European beer. You take the most ordinary audio system from home and plug it into the socket right in the car. Great plan!
To realize your plans, you need to buy a couple of kilos of seafood, a box of unfiltered seafood and a car inverter.
This is a device that will help convert the current in the electrical system of the car in the necessary way and will make it possible to connect not only a home audio system, but even a TV or refrigerator.
A car inverter converts DC voltage in a car into alternating voltage , which is what you use in your home. For this you need a built-in current generator. It creates a harmonious wave that converts your 12V into 220 or so.
A normal inverter also has protection mechanisms. They are needed to prevent the device from catching fire when it gets too hot from a high load. There are even models that provide active air cooling.
What kind of inverters look like? Most often these are small boxes that can be connected either to the cigarette lighter or directly to the car's electrical system.
They have several sockets for connecting the most common plugs from household appliances, and some even have a pair of USBs, and you can stick any mobile gadgets into them.
In general, if you plan to go on adventures, you definitely need an inverter.
Correct installation and use of the inverter
It is not difficult to connect an inverter in the car that allows you to get 220 volts, so anyone can perform the manipulation with their own hands, having first studied the user manual for the device that comes with the kit.
If the purchased device is connected through the cigarette lighter, then to connect it it is enough to connect the corresponding inverter cable to the cigarette lighter connector; when using a more powerful unit, you will need to connect its holders to the battery terminals.
When installing an inverter in a car, you must adhere to several rules:
- The device, and, accordingly, the socket must be located in a dry place.
- It is not recommended to install a current converter from 12 volts to 220 in direct sunlight.
- It is strictly forbidden to run the converter near flammable materials, and mount it near the heating and heating elements of the machine.
- To install the device, it is advisable to choose a place with good air circulation.
Regarding the operation of the converter, the main requirements from manufacturers are as follows:
- Do not start the car with the inverter on.
- If you need to plug in an electrical appliance, first connect the converter, and only after a few seconds connect the equipment.
- If you intend to connect several electrical appliances, carry out the process of connecting them sequentially, with a break of several minutes, since the peak energy consumption of the equipment occurs precisely at the stage of their startup. This precaution will protect the equipment, inverter and vehicle wiring from overheating, and will extend their life.
- Turn on only devices compatible with the inverter, avoiding the simultaneous connection of equipment whose total power consumption exceeds or equals the power of the inverter. Ideally, the latter should have a power of at least fifteen percent higher than the sum of the powers of the connected devices.
How does an expensive inverter differ from a cheap one and vice versa?
I’m sure you’ve already gone to online stores to look for a suitable inverter. When you realize that the price of these devices can differ tenfold, return to this article and study further.
Rest assured, it's not just about the brand name. No, in most cases, the cost is influenced by the functionality of the device - for example, its power.
The expert I invited to back up the information with experience suggests dividing all inverters in this regard into three categories.
Up to 300W. These are the weakest models, which in most cases are connected through the cigarette lighter. There are options when these can be attached directly to the car’s electrical network, but this is pointless - too much hassle.
Most often, these are used to recharge mobile devices and some laptops. But sometimes it’s easier to just stick a car charger in the cigarette lighter.
300 - 1500W. Such automobile inverters are called standard or conventional. They are powered only directly from the machine's electrical network.
They can be used to connect a TV, any laptop, and even a microwave.
More than 1500W. These particularly powerful inverters are only connected directly to the power grid, and are chosen mainly for difficult work in wild areas (for example, construction).
You can easily connect a drill to this, and a grinder, if you really need it.
Look, when you choose an inverter, make sure that it exceeds your devices in power by at least 20-30%. If you connect something too powerful, it will burn out and risk frying the wiring in the car (at least in theory). And don’t load it 100% for a long time, you risk ruining it.
If the devices that you plan to connect to the inverter require stable 220V, choose the most powerful one - more than 1500 W. 300W models are unlikely to produce more than 200V.
Each car inverter can operate in 3 modes:
- Startup mode - in this mode the device quickly delivers maximum power in order to “start” something demanding. He won't last long in this mode.
- Normal mode - in this mode, the inverter maintains its normal power as needed.
- Overload mode is a particularly powerful mode. In this case, the inverter will work for up to 30 minutes; in this case, it produces up to 1.5 times more than the declared power.
An experienced engineer will confirm that at maximum power any device will not last long.
So in 95% of cases the inverter should be used in normal mode, and for this there is no need to connect devices to it that are not suitable for its power.
Areas of application
Inverters are used in various situations:
- On long trips, they provide the ability to connect the necessary devices (refrigerator, electrical tools, etc.) to the car battery.
- Conversion of energy obtained from alternative sources (for example, from solar panels).
- Backup power supply to your home in case of an unexpected power outage.
- Source of energy in suburban areas in the absence of centralized electrification, etc.
To perform each of these tasks, select the appropriate converter models. Most often, 12/220 inverters are used by motorists.
Devices with 12 V and 24 V input voltages are not interchangeable!
How to choose a normal car inverter and not miss the mark
There are frankly cheap, low-quality inverters that should be avoided. As for the rest, the correct choice of such a device will be different for everyone.
The inverter is selected for the specific devices that will be connected to it, and here are 6 points that need to be taken into account.
1) Check the power of the car's generator. There is a golden rule: the inverter power cannot be more than 50% of the generator power.
Only in this case, when your car is started, the inverter will not discharge the battery - at least with devices connected to it. About one half of its power will go to the needs of car systems, so you have the second left.
If you don’t follow this rule, you risk ending up somewhere in the forest with a dead battery. Doesn't sound too rosy, does it?
Look, a 750W converter operates at 13V - that's 58A. The VAZ 10 will not produce such current at idle speed, so the inverter will eat up the battery charge and will let you down at the most inopportune moment.
The maximum generator of this car can produce 80A, but this can only be achieved at 5000 engine rpm.
2) Define devices for it. It is advisable to carefully study the devices that you will connect to the inverter: how much power they need at startup, in normal mode and at peak.
Also keep in mind that the voltage depends on the power of the inverter, and only the most powerful ones can produce 220V more or less stably.
Xiaomi Mi Car Inverter Mijia from the inside
3) Understand its usage pattern. The cigarette lighter in a car usually produces no more than 100W, so when buying an inverter that will be connected to it, pay attention to this.
If you need something more powerful, think about what and how it will be connected, where the outlet should be: inside the cabin or not - all this will greatly influence your choice.
Xiaomi Mijia SMARTMI
4) Pay attention to his brand. A normal inverter is equipped with protection against short circuits and overheating, but a Chinese one of unknown origin is not.
It’s best to look for a suitable model in large chain stores; they definitely won’t sell you something outright wild there.
If you love AliExpress, be sure to pay attention to Xiaomi inverters:
- Xiaomi Mi Car Inverter Mijia (RUB 3,550) - inverter for cup holder
- Xiaomi Mijia SMARTMI (RUB 3,350) - traditional inverter
Both inverters are 100W - they connect to the cigarette lighter specifically for mobile gadgets.
Xiaomi Mi Car Inverter Mijia
5) Check the type of inverter socket. Look, for example, in Xiaomi Mi Car Inverter Mijia for the cup holder is not our socket, so you will need an adapter.
But Xiaomi Mijia SMARTMI has a universal input for any plug, but a completely different form factor. Choose what is closest to your liking if you are considering Xiaomi.
6) Check out the extras. inverter features. Expensive inverters offer a lot of auxiliary features: information screens, voltage changes and USB. If it's not necessary, don't overpay.
I like USB cigarette lighter inverters. On the one hand, you get a full-fledged outlet, on the other hand, you do not lose the interface for charging your iPhone.
How to make 220 volts in a car? (4 proven methods)
Good afternoon. In today's post I will tell you how to make 220 volts in a car. The article presents 4 options with different maximum power and different quality of output voltage.
A little about electric current.
The car uses direct electric current with a voltage of 12 volts.
An electric current that does not change over time is called constant.
Household electrical outlets use alternating electric current with a voltage of 220 volts. Variable current is a current that changes over time. In Russia, the current frequency used in everyday life is 50 Hertz, and the voltage waveform is sinusoidal.
Here is a short video to understand what electric current is and what it comes in:
If it is easy to make a constant voltage of the required voltage from alternating current using transformers and rectifiers, with alternating current everything is more difficult. In sockets, the sinusoid is, as a rule, close to ideal:
After low-quality, cheap converters, something like this happens:
Or this:
As you can see, the graphs are very different. And if a laptop doesn’t care what form of voltage is supplied to its power supply, then a power tool such as a drill or fan will work with difficulty.
We agreed that the more expensive the converter, the larger and heavier the transformer, the closer the voltage it produces to a sine wave.
Attention.
When using any voltage converters, do not forget that they use electricity from the battery. With a load of only 100W. Your battery will run out in 6 hours! Don't forget this. Periodically start the engine and recharge the battery, and it is better to use converters only when the engine is running.
The cheapest and easiest way to make 220 volts in a car.
If you travel frequently, or your job involves completing paperwork in the car, there is a high probability that you have encountered the need to connect a laptop, and possibly a small printer in the car.
Naturally, both of these devices require 220 volts AC. In a car, at best, there is 12 volts DC.
Praise be to the Chinese manufacturers, they sell a lot of 12v dc - 220v ac car converters.
All of them are plugged into the cigarette lighter, and are limited in power to 150 W, at best! The fact is that the cigarette lighter, as a rule, is powered through a 15-20 ampere fuse and it will simply burn out when a powerful load is connected.
Examples of such converters:
This is the cheapest device, you can order it here. At best it can be used to charge a netbook or phone, its power output will prevent you from connecting a large laptop or power tool.
If you need to charge a good gaming laptop and print on an inkjet printer, it makes sense to purchase a device that is a little more expensive:
As you can see, the maximum load power is 200-250 W (although the Chinese write about 1000). You can order here. This is enough for any laptop and inkjet printer. If desired, you can connect a mid-diagonal LCD TV or stereo system to such a converter.
If you have a garage that is not connected to the electrical network, using this converter will provide autonomous lighting with 6 LED lamps of 20 W each.
There are no more powerful cigarette lighter converters. All converters connected to the cigarette lighter are not suitable for power tools because... They have a poor sine wave shape and insufficient power.
The second option is converters connected to the battery with a separate wire.
The power of these converters is approximately 3-4 times higher than that of cigarette lighter devices, and the quality of the sine wave is directly proportional to the price. The more expensive the device, the better the quality of the sine wave at its output.
Here is an example of a cheap device:
You can buy it here.
Here is an example of a more expensive device:
You can buy it here.
The manufacturer claims that the sinusoid is without distortion. This is, of course, a blatant lie, but the sine wave shape of this converter will allow you to connect a low-power power tool such as a drill or jigsaw to it. Although the manufacturer indicates a peak power of 4 kW, I would not risk connecting a kettle or a hammer drill to a car battery. And the point here is not in the quality of the converter, but in the capacity of the car battery.
How to make the highest quality sine wave?
Option three is to redesign the uninterruptible power supply. If you search on Avito, there are many uninterruptible power supplies for computers on sale. They are usually sold with dead batteries and are inexpensive. 500-1000 rubles.
It is very easy to convert such an uninterruptible power supply for use in a car.
Let's take it apart.
We extend the terminals from the battery with a copper wire with a cross-section of at least 4 mm, and install crocodiles at the ends. Red connects to +, blue/black to minus.
And on the case, in the area where the UPS battery was located, we install ordinary electrical sockets.
In place of the old battery, it is advisable to install coolers to cool the power transistors. If their radiator is flimsy, you can increase it.
Here is a video showing the modification of the uninterruptible power supply:
This is how we managed to remake a computer uninterruptible power supply for use in a car. The uninterruptible power supply can be connected to a long-term load from 300 to 700 W, depending on its power.
This, in our opinion, is the best option to make 220 volts in a car. The total costs do not exceed 2000 rubles, and the quality of the sine wave is excellent.
The most powerful option.
If you use your car as a mobile workshop, for example as a mobile tire service, you need a powerful voltage source and no converters will help you.....
In this case, the only option is to install a gasoline or diesel generator of the required power in the car.
Diesel generators, although more expensive to purchase, pay for themselves during operation due to lower fuel consumption, but in general it is advisable to install a gasoline generator if your car runs on gasoline, and a diesel generator if it runs on diesel. Because if something happens, you will have a supply of fuel and the ability to transfer fuel from the tank.
Conclusion.
That's all for me today. I hope that the article was useful to you and completely answered the question of how to make 220 volts in a car.
If you have any questions, or if you want to supplement the article, write comments.
Best regards, administrator
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The inverter is a complex device and must be used correctly
Despite the mass of protective mechanisms, inverters still remain quite complex devices that do not like to be ignored.
To avoid burning out all the electrical components in your car, remember a simple 3-step procedure for using it.
Firstly. When you start the car, the inverter must be turned off.
Secondly. When you start up and turn on the inverter, wait 10-15 seconds.
Third. Only after this connect your devices to the inverter.
If you choose a normal inverter and use it correctly, you will not have any problems at all.
How many cigarette lighter sockets do you need?
Autotourism experience suggests that the driver and navigator use 3-5 slots for portable equipment:
- DVR;
- navigator;
- mobile phone.
Advanced users will add more consumers:
- tablet or chartplotter to view the map;
- radar detector to avoid speeding;
- spare mobile phone for communication while roaming;
- a walkie-talkie for talking on the road if you are traveling in a convoy.
All that remains is to add heated seats, charging a laptop, camera and batteries for flashlights - and the problem will rise to its full extent. What to do?
The easiest way
— buy a splitter (tee) for the cigarette lighter and attach it next to the main one. As the number of electrical appliances increases, use new tees or Y-splitters.
Negative point
— you need to control the total power (read: current consumption) of the connected equipment. The cigarette lighter is not designed for currents exceeding 10 amperes, the total load should not exceed 120 watts. Therefore, attempts to use a boiler with a fan heater are nipped in the bud.
Helpful advice:
In advance, find in the fuse box the chip responsible for the operation of the cigarette lighter. Stick a contrasting mark nearby and attach a spare fuse-link of the required rating. Then, when you change it at night during the rain, you will thank yourself.
It is prohibited to replace a blown fuse with a higher rating! Thin wires will not withstand such current, the insulation will melt, and a short circuit will lead to a fire!
Instead of a conclusion: do you really need an inverter?!
In fact, this is a very difficult question that you must understand first.
For example, for all mobile devices you definitely have charging banks that will extend their life by several days. It’s the same story with modern laptops, and normal portable speakers will last for days on a single charge.
However, you may not have the newest laptop, a camera battery charger, home speakers that can be used on the go, and other gadgets for which an inverter outside the city will be a real godsend .
As is tradition, write your opinion about the socket in the car. An absolute must-have or insanely useless nonsense?
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2 votes, overall rating: 4.50 out of 5)
