Proud owner (I hope) of a new inverter

santanatwins

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Jan 20, 2004
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Well, after some sweat and tears on my wifes part, I finally purchased an inverter for the apartment. I was hoping all you knowledgible and wise folks could tell me if my purchase was wise and worth the price

2.5 K watt Power Maker Inverter 24 volts 15,000 pesos
4x12 volt 150 amp batteries @3100 pesos 12,400 pesos
Installation Material (wires, connectors,etc) 3,000 pesos
Electrician 2,500 pesos

total 32,900 pesos= 723 US dollars

1 year gaurentee on the unit and batteries.

It was a professional installation, no wires showing except for the ones connected to the batteries, and took about 4 hours. He even corrected a faulty wiring circuit I had somewhere in the living room that prevented me from using 6 outlets in the living and dining room.

I know it?s not a Trace Inverter but it was recommended by a friend that has purchased a similar unit in the past and hasn?t had any problems with it. The independent contractor-electrician also told me he had installed many of the the same units without an complaints.

I was told if I want to run the Friegh, I can but that I should purchase 4 more batteries. Let me know if I bought wisely our should I hide my head in shame for not consulting the board first.
 

Rocky

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Welcome..

santanatwins said:
Well, after some sweat and tears on my wifes part, I finally purchased an inverter for the apartment. I was hoping all you knowledgible and wise folks could tell me if my purchase was wise and worth the price

2.5 K watt Power Maker Inverter 24 volts 15,000 pesos
4x12 volt 150 amp batteries @3100 pesos 12,400 pesos
Installation Material (wires, connectors,etc) 3,000 pesos
Electrician 2,500 pesos

total 32,900 pesos= 723 US dollars

1 year gaurentee on the unit and batteries.

It was a professional installation, no wires showing except for the ones connected to the batteries, and took about 4 hours. He even corrected a faulty wiring circuit I had somewhere in the living room that prevented me from using 6 outlets in the living and dining room.

I know it?s not a Trace Inverter but it was recommended by a friend that has purchased a similar unit in the past and hasn?t had any problems with it. The independent contractor-electrician also told me he had installed many of the the same units without an complaints.

I was told if I want to run the Friegh, I can but that I should purchase 4 more batteries. Let me know if I bought wisely our should I hide my head in shame for not consulting the board first.

to the world of "The Connected"
There's nothing like the pleasure of seeing your neighbours lights go out, and your house doesn't miss a beat.
The bad news is that you can't compare buying a Lada to buying a Mercedez Benz.
 

Hillbilly

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Jan 1, 2002
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Just be sure to keep us apprised of

How good (or bad) this inverter turns out to be. To me the price seems very reasonable, very very reasonable.

Good luck

HB
 

AZB

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Jan 2, 2002
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Did you say you were using 12 volt batteries? usually we use 6 volt deep cycle batteries in series to make up of 24 volt connection to the inverter. My inverter has 12 volt DC connections so I use 2 batteries in series and then 2 more batteries in series and then connected them (both pairs) in parallel to get 12 volt input to the inverter. In your case you would have 6 volt batteries in series 4X6volt = 24 volts.
I hope you didn't buy car batteries.
 

Mirador

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Apr 15, 2004
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santanatwins,

I have a similar system, except mine was a 24V Powertec 2400 inverter. Initially, I installed an 8 battery system (all Delco Voyager 12V maintenance free). In less than a year half my batteries were useless. It seems that the inverter is not designed to charge so many batteries and it went out of sync (had to be sent to the shop for calibration) and/or the frequency of power outages ruined the batteries. I had the technician set the inverter for 4 batteries. With a low power consumption refrigerator (about 1kw) low power fluorescent lightbulbs its ok. I got 4 to 6 hours max on emergency supply. When I changed all four batteries after about a year and half, a season of outages of up to 5 per day ruined the batteries. At best battery life is 500 cycles. With 2 and 3 outages a day, batteries will not last a year. The inverter went out of sync again, so I decided to wait. Incredibly, by not using the inverter, I noticed that my electricity bill had gone down over 1000 pesos a month. Also, I noticed that power outages are not long enough to spoil food in the refrigerator, or thaw out the freezer. Now I have two Delco Voyagers and two small ( 1 kw) inverters which I manually connect and charge (I have my son Alan take care of that) when and where they are needed.


Mirador
 

Rocky

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Lo barato sale caro !

Mirador said:
santanatwins,

I have a similar system, except mine was a 24V Powertec 2400 inverter. Initially, I installed an 8 battery system (all Delco Voyager 12V maintenance free). In less than a year half my batteries were useless. It seems that the inverter is not designed to charge so many batteries and it went out of sync (had to be sent to the shop for calibration) and/or the frequency of power outages ruined the batteries. I had the technician set the inverter for 4 batteries. With a low power consumption refrigerator (about 1kw) low power fluorescent lightbulbs its ok. I got 4 to 6 hours max on emergency supply. When I changed all four batteries after about a year and half, a season of outages of up to 5 per day ruined the batteries. At best battery life is 500 cycles. With 2 and 3 outages a day, batteries will not last a year. The inverter went out of sync again, so I decided to wait. Incredibly, by not using the inverter, I noticed that my electricity bill had gone down over 1000 pesos a month. Also, I noticed that power outages are not long enough to spoil food in the refrigerator, or thaw out the freezer. Now I have two Delco Voyagers and two small ( 1 kw) inverters which I manually connect and charge (I have my son Alan take care of that) when and where they are needed.


Mirador

Very good point about cheap systems consuming batteries and landing up costing you more money in the end, not to mention the headaches. As long as I have been using Trace inverters with Trace batteries, I have been getting 3 to 5 years out of the batteries.
I have been through five brands of inverters, including Trace, since I moved here 13 years ago. It took me awhile to finally learn that I had just been wasting my money buying cheap systems.
 

sjh

aka - shadley
Jan 1, 2002
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seems like a good price but spend the money to get 4 more batteries.... it will double your power storage and make your batteries last longer. definately worth it in the long run.

we just upgraded from a 2.4 to a 3.5 because sometimes the fridge would pop the fuse on the 2.4
 

gringo in dr

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May 29, 2003
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Sounds like horror stories with the off brands.

I have a trace 3.6 kw with 8 trace batteries. I've had the system installed for about one year now. Everything in my house is hooked up to it except the A/C, hot water heater and whirlpool dryer. I've gone through 24 hour outages, with only 8 hours to charge without a hitch. This is with fans, fridge and normally 3 tv's on (2 20" apex and 1 27" JVC).

The old saying you get what you pay for.
 

AZB

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Jan 2, 2002
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I have a dominican brand inverter (made by eddy in capital) and guys, its a work of art. If you open the cover and you would think it was assembled in japan or USA. The design is perfectly suited for dominican republic (input voltage fluctuation, shorts and over loads). I have the unit installed in my home for 3 years and never had a problem. The only time I know the lights are out is when I try to turn on my A/C. His units are designed by him (real engineer) and modified to suit your needs. Unlike trace, if it goes bad for some reason, the repair will only cost you few hundred pesos. I also have a unit by him in my office. The old design had a few defects but he new design is flawless. If you want his number, send me a PM.
AZB
 

gringo in dr

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May 29, 2003
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AZB said:
I have a dominican brand inverter (made by eddy in capital) and guys, its a work of art. If you open the cover and you would think it was assembled in japan or USA. The design is perfectly suited for dominican republic (input voltage fluctuation, shorts and over loads). I have the unit installed in my home for 3 years and never had a problem. The only time I know the lights are out is when I try to turn on my A/C. His units are designed by him (real engineer) and modified to suit your needs. Unlike trace, if it goes bad for some reason, the repair will only cost you few hundred pesos. I also have a unit by him in my office. The old design had a few defects but he new design is flawless. If you want his number, send me a PM.
AZB

Trace DR series invertors were specifically designed for the special needs presented by the power situation in the DR.
 

santanatwins

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Jan 20, 2004
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4 x 12 volt batteries

That?s correct. Two pair in series and the four connected in parrallel for a total of 24 volts. Is this good or bad?

I plan on buying 4 more on my next trip. And I don?t believe they are car batteries. Too big for a car. I will post a picture of the installation when I can.

The system seems to work fine these past two days except for the buzzing sound it makes when it?s charging the batteries.
 

Rocky

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Buzz

santanatwins said:
That?s correct. Two pair in series and the four connected in parrallel for a total of 24 volts. Is this good or bad?

I plan on buying 4 more on my next trip. And I don?t believe they are car batteries. Too big for a car. I will post a picture of the installation when I can.

The system seems to work fine these past two days except for the buzzing sound it makes when it?s charging the batteries.

Sounds right to me and if it wasn't, it wouldn't work properly.
If you are buying more batteries, buy then soon, as you cannot connect new batteries with the old ones, as the old ones will just drain the new ones.
The buzzing noise when charging is somewhat normal, even a Trace makes a small hum.
If the noise bothers you, try to isolate it a bit, without impeding it's free flow of air, so as to not overheat it.
Marco.
 

frank alvarez

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Apr 13, 2004
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inverters

I bought a very small inverter (just to run the TV, a fan and a couple of lights--Trace 400 watt) in January of 1997 and it's still going strong with only the second set of batteries (2)....the first two lasted 5 years thru all kinds of blackouts!....

8 months ago I bought a locally-built 1.3 watt inverter (professional job with the correct protective boards, etc.) with 4 batteries and it has been incredibly reliable and I have lasted up to 4 days without electricity (transformer problems in my neighborhood)....by rationing its use, of course....all in all, the best way to survive the critical energy problems of the DR.
 

Bok

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Mar 13, 2004
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We just bought a new inverter from Mr.Mike and Stephen his partner. A 3.6 if I recall correctly. Although it is soon to know if we will have any problems in the future I cannot but reccomend them if only for their patience and excellent customer service. We'll be buying another one just the same for the other appartment, upgrading from a local made one that gave me too much grief.

Mrs. Bok
Who doesn't seem to find out how the hell to log out
Help Uncle Rob!
 

Bok

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Mar 13, 2004
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Robert said:
Try the "Log Out" link on the top right.
It just logs me back as Bok.

Oh well. I suppose I really don't need my own identity now that I am Mrs. Bok, right AZB? ;)
 

MrMike

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Mar 2, 2003
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About batteries:

The standard inverter battery is also a golf cart battery. This is a 225 Amp/hr 6 volt deep cycle battery.

The best brands are:

US (model US2200)
Trojan (model T105)
Exide (don't know the model #, just make sure it's 225 Amp/Hr)

These batteries are listed in order of reliability, as far as my experience goes, and oddly enough the same order applies for pricing. Street pricing for these batteries averages $80 for US, $75 for Trojan and $70 for Exide (the PriceSmart brand is usually Exide)

There is no such thing as a "Trace" battery.

The Dominican company "Trace International", which is illegally using the registered trade name and logo of US Company "Trace Engineering" (now taken over by Xantrex) buys whatever batteries are cheapest at the moment and puts the name "Trace" on them. So far they have been decent quality, but the fact that they claim to be Trace when they are not makes one wonder.

Watch out for bargain deals on batteries like US2000 and Trojan T115 which will usually come in a couple hundred pesos cheaper than the US2200 and T105 but both have around half the capacity of their big brothers.

Also locally made batteries can seem to have very attractive pricing and some have good warrantees, but often will test much less capacity than what they are rated and sold as.
 

AZB

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Jan 2, 2002
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MrMike said:
About batteries:

The standard inverter battery is also a golf cart battery. This is a 225 Amp/hr 6 volt deep cycle battery.

The best brands are:

US (model US2200)
Trojan (model T105)
Exide (don't know the model #, just make sure it's 225 Amp/Hr)

These batteries are listed in order of reliability, as far as my experience goes, and oddly enough the same order applies for pricing. Street pricing for these batteries averages $80 for US, $75 for Trojan and $70 for Exide (the PriceSmart brand is usually Exide)

There is no such thing as a "Trace" battery.

The Dominican company "Trace International", which is illegally using the registered trade name and logo of US Company "Trace Engineering" (now taken over by Xantrex) buys whatever batteries are cheapest at the moment and puts the name "Trace" on them. So far they have been decent quality, but the fact that they claim to be Trace when they are not makes one wonder.

Watch out for bargain deals on batteries like US2000 and Trojan T115 which will usually come in a couple hundred pesos cheaper than the US2200 and T105 but both have around half the capacity of their big brothers.

Also locally made batteries can seem to have very attractive pricing and some have good warrantees, but often will test much less capacity than what they are rated and sold as.

Very informative post. You may have saved alot of headaches to alot of new battery buying customers.
 

gringo in dr

New member
May 29, 2003
434
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MrMike said:
About batteries:

The standard inverter battery is also a golf cart battery. This is a 225 Amp/hr 6 volt deep cycle battery.

The best brands are:

US (model US2200)
Trojan (model T105)
Exide (don't know the model #, just make sure it's 225 Amp/Hr)

These batteries are listed in order of reliability, as far as my experience goes, and oddly enough the same order applies for pricing. Street pricing for these batteries averages $80 for US, $75 for Trojan and $70 for Exide (the PriceSmart brand is usually Exide)

There is no such thing as a "Trace" battery.

The Dominican company "Trace International", which is illegally using the registered trade name and logo of US Company "Trace Engineering" (now taken over by Xantrex) buys whatever batteries are cheapest at the moment and puts the name "Trace" on them. So far they have been decent quality, but the fact that they claim to be Trace when they are not makes one wonder.

Watch out for bargain deals on batteries like US2000 and Trojan T115 which will usually come in a couple hundred pesos cheaper than the US2200 and T105 but both have around half the capacity of their big brothers.

Also locally made batteries can seem to have very attractive pricing and some have good warrantees, but often will test much less capacity than what they are rated and sold as.


I'm going to take a good look at my batteries. Besides topping off the water level I never really paid to much attention to them.