I'm not convinced about inverters. Why? In theory, when you convert 12v to 240v you're multiplying the voltage by a factor of 12. Therefore, if you're running something which consumes 5 amps at 12 volts, you'll be consuming 60 amps (5 X 12) when you're running it through an inverter. If you have a 60ah battery, that gives you one hour then your battery is stuffed - unless you keep the engine running or run a solar panel.

I've got most things on my Defender down to 12v. The only thing I need mains for is a battery charger to keep the battery in good order. I'm also going to fit a solar panel to keep things topped up that way.

Inverters seem an expensive way to run mains stuff when most of it will run off 12v with a little ingenuity.

Think about it. You'll be converting 12v, to 240 v and back to 12v or less just to charge your shaver / camera / lap top / mobile phone charger etc. etc. Where does all this excess energy go? The inverter chucks it out as heat. Just what you need in the Sahara.

I know that in practice, using inverters is not as grim as I suggest, but my advice would be to try and figure out a way to not use one if you can.

Coffee machines however will almost certainly need 240v.

Pete.

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Pete Sinclair.
Alnwick to Botswana
http://www.a2b.uk.net

[This message has been edited by Pete Sinclair (edited 07 May 2002).]

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Pete Sinclair.
Alnwick to Botswana
http://www.a2b.uk.net