Turning off inverter

[Rlynxgolfer]

When plugged into shore power at camp ground shouldn't you turn off inverter
at night in case you would lose camp ground power and wake up to inverter shutdown due to battery depletion over night. Would rather have lost of electric
Than depleted batteries. At least the batteries are still good.
Reason for this post is that we lost Shore power over night in camp ground and woke up to a inverter low voltage shut down with things plugged into inverter
side that was really unnecessary.
Thank you

[SeaDog]

Your inverter was doing what it is designed to do a better solution may be to limit the number of things plugged or turned on over night.

[formerFR]

what is your yr/mke/model of coach?
what type of inverter do you have?

You'll find that folks take different sides on this, as each does what makes them comfortable, depending on their camping style... but

the Inverter is your back-up power source when Shore Power is lost - but you also can control how and when it provides that back-up 120v power, and for how long...
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- turn your inverter off. you'll lose Shore Power, and you'll have no 120v power until you either turn the Inverter on, crank your generator, or Shore Power is restored

- leave your inverter on. you'll have continued 120v power if your Shore Power is lost. What items/devices that are active at the time of the loss of power, your battery amp hours(number of batteries), and the charge status of your batteries will determine how long this power 'lasts'...

- use your AGS(automatic generator starter), if you have one. This automatically cranks your generator to recharge your batteries(if your Charger is also ON) when they reach a certain Voltage level you set, such as 12.0, and will run as long as you set it to, such as 30mins or up to 2 hours or more.

- set your LBCO inverter limit - the LowBatteryCutOut(LBCO) setting tells your inverter 'when' you want it to shut off automatically if your batteries fall 'too low', such as 11.5 or less. This setting is what is really important if you want the 'back-up' to your back-up, especially if you don't have an AGS to start your generator automatically, or your AGS can't start your generator(low fuel, etc).

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... some folks with few 120v items being powered thru the overnight hours might not worry about whether the Inverter kicks in if Shore Power is lost, but others of us who have residential refrigerators, satellite receivers, and desktop computer that require continuous power will want the inverter to continue that power, uninterrupted - nothing has to be 'reset' due to a power outage. Our AGS will provide generator power if the Shore Power is lost too long, and the LBCO will preserve the battery levels should all else fail.

...in almost 4 years, our Inverter has NEVER been off, and the LBCO has probably gone off maybe twice in that time, usually under 'generator run time' limits at a campground with no hookups. We've also lost power very infrequently at several rv parks, and awaken by the generator starting up, but everyone else had lost power too, and other generators were also running.

enjoy! : )

[Rlynxgolfer]

Thank you...I have just purchased a 2006 Dynaquest 320. The inverter I see a zantrex
1055. Just getting use to RVing. One trip lost power middle of night inverter went to LBCO @ 10.5 volts. The mystery is the power was back on checked the voltage at the
Panel all OK actually went outside and unplugged and replugged inverter did not go back
to shore power. This has never happen before also switched back.
I have now set the LBCO @ 11.8 volts. We do not have AGS start for Generator.
Actually called zantrex no one no why it did not switch back to shore that time.
Also have purchased 50 amp surge protector from techno RV.
Why does everything always happen at night ???
Thanks again

[Cypressloser]

Rlynxgolfer, I have a question for you. What is the length and gauge of the wiring between the batteries and your inverter. I'm asking this because in a low voltage (12 Volt) setup wire size, quality and length are critical to minimize voltage drop and premature inverter shutdown. I've seen setups where the inverter went into LBCO but the batteries were still at 12.3 Volt, this is so common it is almost the norm.

[Rlynxgolfer]

Looks like #2 tough to read markings but at the crimp lug looks like #2. The distance
to the batteries is around 8 to 10' no more, inverter middle on one side of Coach batteries slightly forward on opposite side. Have 3 ..12 volt deep cell marine batteries at
100 AH each with looks like 350mcm jumpers between them.
I quess I can take voltage at batteries and then go to inverter and take reading to see any drop in voltage.

[Cypressloser]

Our last trailer had a factory installed 1800 Watt inverter mounted in a "convenient" location so far from the batteries that the highest voltage was 11.8 Volt even with a 14.4 Volt charge on the batteries.
When testing the voltage make sure the batteries have been in a 'resting stage' for 30 minutes or so to get an accurate reading.