Why are many power inverters less expensive than ProSine Power Inverters? If you're a serious RVer, trucker, business traveler, you will want clean power for the products you wish to power with 120VAC. Get the top power inverter with the Continuous Power you need.
Are you thinking of getting a new power inverter? Did you see a cheapie 12V power inverter somewhere with the same power output? THEY ARE NOT THE SAME, JUST BECAUSE THEY LOOK SIMILAR!!! Low cost could be a pirated power inverter product, a copy of a good 12V inverter, but so cheap it seems to be good to be true. It is too good to be true, when you see an absurd price difference. Buy smart, not cheap.
Why are ProSine 12V Power Inverters better than most power inverters?
Power Output in Watts. You'll need to get an inverter capable of more than the max watts you'll use at any one time. Max power ratings are fine, but the number you are looking for is the amount of power in watts continuous. Continuous power is the real capability of an inverter; how much power can it deliver in a sustained manner without overheating and overloading. If a competitive inverter actually does run continuously at its rated power, how clean is the signal? Is the sine wave chopped, allowing higher power out, but a poor looking AC signal output? Chopped AC signals cause products connected to the inverter to run hotter, thus induces a shorter product life. Inverters with poor, un-refined AC signal output are less expensive, but offer higher power out. Good inverters with good AC signals cost more to produce a better AC signal, but provide lower heat operation and longer product life. Check the equipment specs. Xantrex 12v power inverters specify continuous rated power output.
Surge Power is needed to start products with heavy load capability, but is not commonly listed. Surge is typically short, less than 2 minutes. Any longer and the inverter would get hot and destroy itself. Xantrex ProSine inverters list Surge Power.
Idle Current or No Load Power Drain is important measure of an inverter. The inverter is waiting in standby to provide can deliver full power when an appliance is turned on. Idle Current can be as much as 20 watts in some 12 volt power inverters. (20Watts/12Volts = 1.66Amps of idle current). You certainly don't want an idling, standby inverter to constantly drain over 1.5 amps from your battery. Quality inverters such as Xantrex, draw a fraction of an amp, typically less than 0.1A (amps of current) at idle. Inexpensive inverters draw high current during idle time, thus drawing the battery down very quickly.
Efficiency is critical figure and represents how well the 12V input is converted to a 120VAC output. It is typically greater than 90% in chopped sine wave inverters, but less in ProSine inverters since the output is more refined to provide a true signal output. Beware of inverters that advertise 90+% overall efficiency, as these inverters may drop to less than 50% as the number of products are added for power. Load level increases (demands more power), as you increase the number of products connected to a single AC output. How many of you connect a power adaptor with 2 to 6 AC plugs? Not good if your power inverter can not sustain the power demand.
The better power inverters will regulate voltage to within 2% of the rated 120VAC. 5% or more is typical in low performance power inverters. The better inverters will have a clean AC signal. Products connected to a power inverter with good power regulation and a clean signal output will run cooler, thus last longer in life. In the end, you save money by extending the life of laptops, computers, electronic products such as microwaves, DVDs, TVs, etc.
Cost is the financial comparison. Many inverters are in-expensive. There is a reason for less cost. Less overall performance, less quality, less capability. Many companies try to make less performing products look good, so check the specs and get a ProSine, 12V power inverter.
