power tools from inverters?

[Soundguy]

not all inverters drop the output when the load goes low... and many smart chargers check battery level after a few seconds of charge and shut back off... then again.. not all do.. so as you point out.. good to check what you have.

lots of variables...

i routinely charge a laptop off an inverter.. it's a type that will not drop the output when the load goes low..

 

[Travelover]

.............10a at 12v is 1200w.. .............soundguy

Anybody seen a missing zero around here? :laughing:

 

[Soundguy]

wattage is correct.

it's this darn 7" keyboard.. half the time I look up and am typing in caps.

will see if it will let me go correct it.

glad to see we are focusing on the minutia and not the real subject though

 

[Dmace]

why guess and pull numbers out of thin air????

tools have a rating.. inverters have a rating.

match them up.

You can EASILLY get inverters up to 5kw 'affordably' ...

10a at 12v is 1200w..

soundguy

Speaking of pulling numbers out of thin air...
I also said typical inverter assuming he was talking about one that plugs into a cigarette lighter not one you have to connect straight to the battery.

 

[Soundguy]

a typo? you are equating your guess to my typo? weird. besides. end number was correct. was 100% obvious what I was showing.

as for 'typical' I'm still not sure a cig lighter model is typical.

I own .. lets see... 6 inverters.. one is a cig lighter style.

i see plenty in the 60-150w range that are cig lighter styles. but most units higher have a multi option for bare wire /terminal, or cig lighter, and if you read their manual.. they usually state for 'x' wattage to go wire and terminal to the bat.. nt a cig lighter.

on the question of the cig lighter outlet.

I'm not up on anything new.. but all my old vehicles are fused at 20 or 25a.. that's a paltry 240w or 300w

neither of those would be good for running much of a power tool.. that's 2a or a hair more.. and I don't like being at the edge on an inverter.. thus if I had a 2a capacity.. i'd personally like to use 80% of that as rated.. thus 1.5-1.6a load.. etc. that 80% number is my own personal protection margin I like to use on most electronic devices when looking at their ratings. YMMV.. etc.

in a thread talking about power tools, I respectfully suggest that 'typical' is going to be a much bigger size than say if this thread were talking about a gps / cellphone / laptop charger capable device... in which case.. typical could be small.. like 45-150w.. vs the 500-700-2k+ units that a real power tool might want. IE.. something that is using 4-10a.. etc.... drills, sanders, small and medium saws.. etc.. just trying to keep some perspective and subjectivity going here, since the thread title does mention power tools andnot power toys..

soundguy

 

[grsthegreat]

DO NOT charge your tool batteries on an inverter. When the charger goes into float, the inverter will cycle the AC power and will start the charge routine all over again. We almost burned the work van down when the battery on my impact caught fire.....

?? ive been charging mine this way for 5 years. never an issue.

edit: My milwaukee charger is a smart charger. If it senses a full charge it shuts off within 5 seconds. so non issue

 

[texasjohn]

I have a 2500 watt inverter on my RTV. Use huge wire direct battery connect with fuse properly sized. it runs drills shop vacuums you name it. extremely useful add on. take all of your power tools anywhere your vehicle will go.

 

[Qapla]

I have a 1500w inverter that connects to the battery. Not only will it run may electric impact and my sawsall, it also runs my carpet seaming iron - as long as the truck is running.

It will still run them if the truck is off ... but not for long.

 

[handirifle]

Great, thanks for the replies. I guess i was concerned more about a "brush" type motor, than power consuption.
To me matching the inverter output to motor requirement, was obvious. I had NO intention of running any inverter from a cig lighter, my tractor doesn't even have one , besides, this is not going to be a heavy duty operation, but is intended to save me having to fart around with cordless tools, of which I am no fan, again.

Thanks again for the replies. I will see what various motor amperage requirements are and get an appropiate sized inverter.

Now to figure out how to mount my MIG on my tractor???? Just kiddn!

 

[tcartwri]

?? ive been charging mine this way for 5 years. never an issue.

edit: My milwaukee charger is a smart charger. If it senses a full charge it shuts off within 5 seconds. so non issue

My tools are a certain 'yellow' brand. After the first battery let its smoke out, we tested another with the same result.

We have 5 and 2.5 kW inverter in our work vehicles. Very handy, but spendy.