Inverter / Converter Difference
- Thread starter MrBee
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Traditionally, "Converter" was a thingie that changes DC to another DC like 12VDC to 9VDC , or 36 to 24.. and "Inverter" changes DC to AC like 12VDC to 110 VAC.. But I do know that some folks have used converter and inverter words interchangably.. Best to get some model/brand info as SeaDaddler sez..
It would help if you included information like model names and numbers, since without those somewhat pertinent pieces of information, we can't really tell you much.
Definitions do help
A good topic about asking questions is here: http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=101369
In general, kloudie is right that converters are generally thought of in doing DC to DC work, although some folks have called chargers converters, taking 120 V AC and converting it to 12 V DC.
Inverters, the opposite of converters, is always used to designate DC 12 V to AC 120 V.
If your inverter is a separate standalone unit, which it appears it is from what you've said, then just wire it in per the instructions.
Find our what your converter is doing, and let us know. I'm bettin' it's your battery shorepower charger.
A good topic about asking questions is here: http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=101369
In general, kloudie is right that converters are generally thought of in doing DC to DC work, although some folks have called chargers converters, taking 120 V AC and converting it to 12 V DC.
Inverters, the opposite of converters, is always used to designate DC 12 V to AC 120 V.
If your inverter is a separate standalone unit, which it appears it is from what you've said, then just wire it in per the instructions.
Find our what your converter is doing, and let us know. I'm bettin' it's your battery shorepower charger.
I run my laptop off of an inverter that plugs into my 12V powerplug. It is all that I need and it doesn't draw an overwhelming source of power.
Maybe his boat is 24V. Then he would need a converter for some things. Those are complicated things aren't they?, because there is no way to directly step DC up or down like there is for AC. I think it inverts DC to AC then steps it up or down and then changes it back to a different DC voltage than the original DC.
Converters, inverters, transformers? To answer your question, the converter in your boat is there to convert shorepower, 120V ac power, to 12V dc power to opertae your refrigerator and other 12V fixtures independent of your battery bank. They can also act as a trickle charger for your batteries. The inverter usually does the opposite it converts 12V dc power from your batteries into 120V ac power to operate 120V frixtures. Utilizing a converter requires very little care as the shorepower capacity is considered to be unlimited but the use of an inverter requires careful planning as the capacity of the batteries is limited. A 1 amp/hour draw at 120V becomes a 10 amp/hour draw at 12V and if you add the inneffiency factor of an inverter you are probably looking at a 11.5 amp/hour draw. Inverters are rated in watts and a 100W inverter to run a PC is no great cause for concern but when you run a 3000W inverter to run a coffe maker you better pay attention.
Thanks for all the replies. I don't really have any info on the Converter. It's at the boat and I'm not. I know how an inverter works, 12v to 120v. That's what I have to run my Laptop. The boat we just bought has a Converter on it and has a 120v outlet on it. I'll have to wait till this weekend to look at it closer..There is NO shore power installed on the boat so it can't be for that. There's a good chance the PO has no idea what it was for as they just day sailed and didnt mess with electronics. I'll have to get back with more info next week sometime.
Thanks
Thanks
The term converter is generic, it means different things. It could be for changing 60 hertz to 50 hertz, or 12V DCto 360 V AC....etc But they're not going to put something weird on a sailboat unless it's for international cruising. Most likely what Benny says is what it does.
But I wouldn't start hooking stuff up until I knew for sure.
Has anyone dealt with the electricity being different in a different country?
But I wouldn't start hooking stuff up until I knew for sure.
Has anyone dealt with the electricity being different in a different country?
Thanks Hermit,
I know the boat wasn't cruised oversea's. I will be the forth owner and the previous three were in New England, and it's not a blue water boat. I'm sure I'll figure it out over the next week, while we are bringing it down from CT. to Md.
And no, i don't plan to hook anything to it till i figure out what exactly it is and if it is working correctly. I do have the tools to check input and output so it won't be hard to check.
Thanks
Brian
I know the boat wasn't cruised oversea's. I will be the forth owner and the previous three were in New England, and it's not a blue water boat. I'm sure I'll figure it out over the next week, while we are bringing it down from CT. to Md.
And no, i don't plan to hook anything to it till i figure out what exactly it is and if it is working correctly. I do have the tools to check input and output so it won't be hard to check.
Thanks
Brian
I am very distrusting of other people's electrical set ups. Not because I think they did a bad job, the PO of my boat was an electrician. But I haven't hooked anything up or turned anything on through that system because I don't know exactly how it's wired. For me it's going to be a weekend screwing around with the system on my boat before I will be able to use the DC. I tracked most things down with the AC and I have been able to use that though.
Everyone has already answered the difference between a converter and inverter but to address your laptop usage you might want to consider a few things. An inverter is an inefficient way to run the laptop since the extra power you will use with the inefficiencies of the inverter will use more amp hours. The converter on board switches 120 volt to 12 volt and your laptop more than likely runs at 19 volts. The best overall solution in my opinion for using your laptop would be a DC to DC converter cord that can be purchased from Radio Shack and lots of other sources. They are adjustable for voltage and come with a variety of tips to fit different laptop models. The plug into a typical cigarette lighter plug and convert the 12 volts from your system to the 19 volts your computer will want. This option is the most efficient way in terms of power consumed from your batteries. Chuck
If your "converter" has a 120V outlet on it I think you may have an inverter in your hands. A basic converter mostly used on RVs only has 12V outlet. Trace the connections back from the converter to see where they lead; if you have heavy gauge wiring leading to the batteries you have an inverter. Check the brand name and model number and google it to find operating instructions and other information on the unit.
Chuck-do you know the effieciency of the DC to DC converter you are talking about, or the method it uses to step the DC current up or down? In engineering school I saw some very clever things done with AC frequencies that I had not heard of before. Maybe they have a clever way to convert the DC.
Here is some quick info that might answer your questions
http://www.elecfree.com/electronic/dc-dc-converter-basics/
and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_to_DC_converter
From that reading, It looks that all the ways to do this still involve converting DC to AC then changing the voltage then using a diode to rectify it back to DC. The way about using capacitors is clever.
I gather that the closer the voltage output is to the voltage input the more efficient the DC to DC conveter is. Since 19 V is half again as large as 12 V, I wonder how efficient that is in a real world situation?
I gather that the closer the voltage output is to the voltage input the more efficient the DC to DC conveter is. Since 19 V is half again as large as 12 V, I wonder how efficient that is in a real world situation?
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