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darz5150
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2011 21:11
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I just installed 2- 45 watt solar panel kits, hooked up to a new maxx29 walmart deep cycle battery, pig tailed to a new maxx start car battery, running through a power drive 1500 inverter. just checked the output voltage on the inverter and it was in the mid 90's. I hooked up another inverter, with about the same voltage output. QUESTION......is this normal? I also have a coleman generator........same deal. I used to use the generator on construction sites and never gave it much thought. I am wondering if the herz is more important than the voltage.
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2011 21:24
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Sounds like you need a better meter
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darz5150
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2011 21:45
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good point. I used a Fluke meter. I will try a different one. everything seems to work OK but I did notice when i plugged in a 110 volt fan, it ran a little slower than when I had it plugged in a regular outlet. It still will power up my fridge and TV. My plan was to use it for my 12 volt pumps and back up power......but .......I just wanted to kinda test the system out since its all new to me .
thanks for the help Rob.
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2011 22:35
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Have you tried the meter on line power? You should get the same reading from your generator running at rated RPM
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darz5150
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2011 23:01 - Edited by: darz5150
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I L check it out for sure. I am just expirimenting with the solar panel panel thing. We lose power all the time, even in good weather. The main power line goes through the woods about a mile or so. When we lose power from the grid they aren't so quick to fix it, since there are only 2 of us on our end of the extension chord, (so to speak).
just tryin to keep my meat from defrosting.LOL we have lost power 14 times this year. 4 times in 1 day.( they never give us a discount on the electric bill tho') thanks again for your input.
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darz5150
Member
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# Posted: 12 Jul 2011 22:48
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I tested the system underload. checked out fine. I ran a chest type freezer, 4 foot 2 bulb flouresent shop light, 2 fans,4 12 volt cfl lights a radio, an under counter 2 bulb flouresent, and a bench grinder. I also ran a 2 gal. air comp. for a little while. I guess when you check out a new system, you should probably check it out under load.
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 12 Jul 2011 23:48
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Good to hear it worked fine under load. That's the important thing
You might want to look at this system for some ideas on making the thing fully automatic.
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Kithera
Member
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2011 16:04
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Quoting: Rob_O Sounds like you need a better meter
Quoting: darz5150 used a Fluke meter.
I found this Hilarius! Fluke generally makes the best equipment.
Still, make sure you're testing the right value. 110V used in the US is the peak to peak measurement. Your meter could be testing the RMS (or average actual power flowing), which should be closer to 90. Maybe the Fluke has settings for both?
That said, the dc v from your battery is a much more important value.
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smitty
Member
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2011 16:48
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I disagree.. As a laid off service tech.. I prefer Greenlee.. :D
I'm just poking..
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CabinBuilder
Admin
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2011 16:50
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A typical AC voltmeters assume sinusoidal output voltage waveform.
A typical inverter produces "Modified Sine Wave", or sometimes even a square or triangular waveform - not an ideal sinusoidal waveform.
That's where voltage measurement discrepancy comes from.
There are "Pure Sine Wave" inverters, which would generate (or claim to generate) a waveform same as from the power grid - measuring output of those would come close to 110V.
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 14 Jul 2011 22:36
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Quoting: Kithera Still, make sure you're testing the right value. 110V used in the US is the peak to peak measurement. Your meter could be testing the RMS (or average actual power flowing), which should be closer to 90. Maybe the Fluke has settings for both?
120V *is* the RMS voltage. Peak is 1.414 * RMS or about 170V to ground
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Kithera
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2011 14:58
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Rob_O is correct, I'm wrong. That opens the question again, I don't know where the 90 comes from. The Modified Sine vs True Sine doesn't make sense if he is getting 90V from the generator as well. Maybe the meter really is damaged.
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MtnDon
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2011 17:31
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Test under a moderate load. Some cheap inverters need a load to "settle down". Might be the same with the generator? ??? For sure I would take readings off a grid connection as well for comparison.
Even good meters may need to be calibrated if something has been messed with.
Digital or analog display? Analogs can go out of "zero"
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Rob_O
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2011 18:31
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Quoting: Rob_O Have you tried the meter on line power?
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darz5150
Member
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# Posted: 15 Jul 2011 23:45
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yes I tested the on line power. I used the same same meter and also an A.W. SperryDSA- 440 Digisnap meter (this meter is pretty old) they both were comparable. Thats why I thought maybe I should load the system up. So thats what I did. The 1500 watt inverter is "square wave". It would run the freezer ( 400 watts while running ) but wouldn't fire up both bulbs in a regular 4 foot shop lite. So I also have a 750 watt inverter and tried the shop lites etc. with it, and it worked just fine. I did not try powering the freezer, but I have already used it ( the 750 ) for my fridge and it worked hard, but worked fine. It seems to me, if you don't have a big load, maybe, use the inverter big enough to do the job.....
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