Power inverters are electrical devices that convert DC power from a 12 Volt battery into conventional AC power. These are the batteries as found in cars, vans, trucks, RV’s, boats and the like.

The beauty of a 12 volt Power Inverter is that it allows you to power appliances and work tools directly from your vehicles battery.  For power requirements 300 watts and less you can use a cigarette lighter attachment so that you can plug the inverter directly into the cigarette lighter to power your appliance or tool.  For power requirements and inverters above 300 watts, the suggested method is to use alligator clips to connect the inverter to your battery.  This is relevant as the cigarette lighter is generally not made to have a higher power charge run through it.
Keep in mind that using a higher wattage than 300 watts through the cigarette lighter attachment may cause the lighter to blow it’s fuse.

 If you are not sure of which size inverter you need for which applince, refer to our handy power inverter table

Power Inverters are a cleaner, safer, less-noisy alternative to supplying “on-the-go” power than are gas/diesel generators. Power inverters are great for truckers who want to power their gadgets while they’re on the road, but power adapters can be useful at home in addition to on the road.

Power Inverters are small rectangular devices that have a trailing wire with a jack that plugs directly into the cigarette lighter on the dashboard as discussed above, and they also come with jumper-like cables (Aligator clips) for connecting directly to a battery.

Power inverters are also helpful when camping when no electricity is provided so that toasters or radios may still be used. In case of a power outage, a power inverter can be used by running an extension cord to a car battery and providing power to a radio, lights, or anything else necessary. Power inverters are become more and more common everyday. Most of us now take our electronic devices on the road with us and the need to have an A/C outlet in our cars has been a problem. Power inverters are typically found in caravans and campervans. Whether an inverter is “right for you” depends entirely upon your camping lifestyle. Keep in mind that an inverter can be of great assistance during an emergency or a break down.

Due to the lack of any protection circuitry short of a fuse, certain kinds of overloads and short circuits can seriously damage both the inverter and the equipment. Due care should be taken in starting a vehicle. Make sure that the garage is open else carbon monoxide in the exhaust may impart threat to human health.Simply add battery power to a power inverter and you are off and running. With the proper power inverter and the proper configuration nothing is out of your reach. Simply run any AC device off of a DC source.

There are two types of power inverters – Modified Sine Wave Inverters and Pure Sine Wave Inverters - The difference is the clarity of the wave produced by the inverter – Pure sine are more rounded an therefore almost duplicate the wave of normal house hold 240 watt power.  To gain a better understanding, refer to the Power Inverter output diagram