Because of specialized power cables, chargers and other interface cables, we are able to use many of our electrical devices on the go by plugging into the cigarette lighters in our cars, SUVs and RVs.
On a day-to-day basis, we use this power source to charge our phones, power GPS units or power an MP3 player.
If you want to use your vehicle's power system to power a more advanced device, however, you will need to employ the use of a power inverter.
A power inverter will allow you to convert the DC power from your vehicle into AC power, and has one or more standard electrical outlet to plug into.
You can then provide power to a television, laptop computer, or even your blender.
The size of the appliances that you can plug in depends only on the size of your inverter and the robustness of your vehicle's electrical system.
How Do Inverters Work? In a nutshell, a power inverter will take the direct current (DC) power from a 12-volt or 24-volt battery and convert it into the alternating current (AC) that most of our everyday devices use.
In most cases, an inverter will take low-voltage DC power and increase it before changing it into AC current.
Modern power inverters utilize oscillator circuits to change the power from DC to AC.
After they have successfully converted the electrical current, an inverter must then clean the power to make it suitable for use.
To do this, a series of inductors, capacitors and filters are used.
The resulting product is a clean and usable electrical current that makes a smooth sine wave.
The quality of the electricity produced, naturally, all depends on the quality of your inverter.
Choosing an Inverter The first thing that you want to do when choosing an inverter is match your inverter to the voltage of your battery.
This means using a 12-volt inverter with a 12-volt batter and so on.
In addition to matching the voltage of your battery, you will also need to have a good idea of what exactly you want to power with your inverter.
Each inverter should include the total wattage at which it will operate.
You can then match this up with the wattage that your devices require to operate.
Although many inverters include handy charts that give you an idea of what they can provide power to, you should still check each device's rating, especially if you will be powering multiple devices.
If you need to power two 400-watt items, for example, you will need a power inverter that is at least 800 watts.
A simple 400-watt inverter just won't cut it in this situation.
Having a power inverter at your disposal is great for using portable devices under many situations.
Not only can you power more advanced electronics, such as laptop computers, while you are driving, you can also use an inverter to power many of these devices after you have reached your destination.
As a result, you can have the comfort and capability of many of your in-home devices when you are camping, tailgating or just traveling from one place to another.
On a day-to-day basis, we use this power source to charge our phones, power GPS units or power an MP3 player.
If you want to use your vehicle's power system to power a more advanced device, however, you will need to employ the use of a power inverter.
A power inverter will allow you to convert the DC power from your vehicle into AC power, and has one or more standard electrical outlet to plug into.
You can then provide power to a television, laptop computer, or even your blender.
The size of the appliances that you can plug in depends only on the size of your inverter and the robustness of your vehicle's electrical system.
How Do Inverters Work? In a nutshell, a power inverter will take the direct current (DC) power from a 12-volt or 24-volt battery and convert it into the alternating current (AC) that most of our everyday devices use.
In most cases, an inverter will take low-voltage DC power and increase it before changing it into AC current.
Modern power inverters utilize oscillator circuits to change the power from DC to AC.
After they have successfully converted the electrical current, an inverter must then clean the power to make it suitable for use.
To do this, a series of inductors, capacitors and filters are used.
The resulting product is a clean and usable electrical current that makes a smooth sine wave.
The quality of the electricity produced, naturally, all depends on the quality of your inverter.
Choosing an Inverter The first thing that you want to do when choosing an inverter is match your inverter to the voltage of your battery.
This means using a 12-volt inverter with a 12-volt batter and so on.
In addition to matching the voltage of your battery, you will also need to have a good idea of what exactly you want to power with your inverter.
Each inverter should include the total wattage at which it will operate.
You can then match this up with the wattage that your devices require to operate.
Although many inverters include handy charts that give you an idea of what they can provide power to, you should still check each device's rating, especially if you will be powering multiple devices.
If you need to power two 400-watt items, for example, you will need a power inverter that is at least 800 watts.
A simple 400-watt inverter just won't cut it in this situation.
Having a power inverter at your disposal is great for using portable devices under many situations.
Not only can you power more advanced electronics, such as laptop computers, while you are driving, you can also use an inverter to power many of these devices after you have reached your destination.
As a result, you can have the comfort and capability of many of your in-home devices when you are camping, tailgating or just traveling from one place to another.
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