Need Input from Real Truckers: Best things about a Power Inverter?

Reasons to have an inverter:
Microwave
Refrigerator/Freezer
Coffee pot
Electric skillet
Crock pot
Flat Screen TV
Laptop computer
Gaming system
etc., etc.,etc.
Just make sure you have to correct welding cable size for the maximum amperage of the inverter and the correct fuse inline on the positive cable between the batteries and the inverter.

 

For those who are required to use a CPAP, an inverter is a must-have.

And I have a gas monitor (I drive in the oilfield) that has to be recharged with a 120 volt charging cable, so I use my inverter for that.

 

Wow, I know truck stop food can cause indigestion, but they monitor that now?

I guess the monitor goes up the rear huh? Best place to get the most accurate information on gas production.

 

Ok Ben, there are no "cons" to having an inverter, just like there are no "cons" to having power at your house. Just replace "inverter" with "electricity" of your home, and you can almost answer your own questions. Reasons for having one are the same as the reasons you need power at your house. Not much in a truck is 12v. If it is, they are much more expensive. Having 120v in the truck allows you to use home appliances which are much cheaper than appliances specially made for use in a truck (or RV). I have a freezer in my truck that allows me to keep over 3 weeks of meals frozen and ready to eat at all times. I have a microwave that allows me to then heat those meals to eat them. I have a bluetooth sound bar and subwoofer mounted in the sleeper that I use, instead of the truck radio, for streaming music while I drive as it sounds MUCH better because it's for your house, powered by 120v. I also occasionally use it for online gaming on my gaming laptop I keep in the truck. Sounds far better than the speakers in the laptop. Negative impacts of not having one? No food in the truck. I'm out almost a month at a time. I'm not buying truck stop food every day. I cook a dozen meals at the house and put them in containers before leaving, so I can have home cooked food in the truck, no matter where I am. Cheaper, healthier and taste far better.

A truck is basically like an RV or house without the bathroom. So taking that into consideration, you should be able to figure out why a driver would want power at their house. I will make this important point though. Not all inverters are created equal. The cheap ones you get at truck stops are junk, for the most part. They are not pure sine wave, so they make 120v, but its "dirty." This non-smooth power supply can wreak havoc on sensitive electronics like computers, etc. I used to have an actual desktop computer in my truck. The power supply would buzz so badly with the cheap inverter that my company installed in the truck, I had to BUY MY OWN pure sine wave inverter so my power supply wouldn't burn up. They are more expensive and harder to find, but mimic the power coming out of the wall at your house. Since truck power is DC and 12v, an inverter inverts it to AC power like your house, and ups the voltage to 120v. Doing that causes problems with the power signal itself. A good expensive inverter can clean it up and send it out as pure as your house current. A cheap one won't, it will just send you the dirty 120v signal.

 

OST.. I'll come back to this one

 

A bonus to having an invertor (that I never considered until I got one) is being able to pack a tiny shop vac in the truck. I picked up a 1 gal vacuum that tucks out of sight and works like a champ.

Another perk is always having a fresh battery for impact, grease gun etc. No more running air tools off the truck.

Annnnnnd no more crappy truck stop coffee

 

My company puts Pure sine wave inverters that are factory installed by freightliner and the trucks are wired with 4 regular plug like you have at home. Just plug anything in you want. I think they are 1500 watts. It nice option to have in trucks

 

Now write another article that says trucking companies need to invest in LipoFE4 lithium batteries to run the inverters... huge weight savings, cheaper, and longer life than AGM house batteries, when properly installed.

Reference this thread...

Ionic Lithium 12V Group 31 3000 CA LiFePO4 Heavy Duty Battery