Watch this before you buy an off grid inverter

Comparing transformer size in low and high frequency inverters is apples versus oranges. I was around in the days of vibrator-powered inverters whose output was a square wave AC waveform from a big, heavy transformer and I still have a CDE 140 watt unit whose case is big enough for the 12 volt car battery that was popular in 1957 (Group 22?) and it includes a charge/discharge amp meter and a built in charger. High tech in 1957 ;-) With current technology, I could fit an equivalent or better LiFePo4 battery, a 1000 watt pure sine wave inverter and a smart charger in that same case. I have two 2000 watt Reliable Electric high frequency pure sine wave (PSW) inverters (12 volts to 120 volts) and they work fine. I never load an inverter more than 80% of its rating (same for the EPEver charge controllers) and they just keep working. Obviously, it's all a matter of system expectations. My solar power is a backup system that provides "Wait until daylight" power (8 to 24 hours depending on season) so I'm not outside in a thunderstorm or digging my way through 7 inches of snow to get a generator out of the shed (did the snow thing once but not again). With a continuous 440 watt (measured) load, these inverters might run the cooling fan for a couple of minutes every 15 minutes or so. I agree on the limited start surge capability. A very efficient counter height fridge runs at 55 watts and maybe 5-6 hours a day in a 78F environment. The maximum estimated start power of 10 times the run power should be within the range of a 500 watt continuous PSW inverter. However, a 500 watt Reliable Electric PSW inverter can't start that fridge. The 2000 watt inverter has no problem starting the 28 cu ft fridge/freezer or the 15 cu ft upright freezer. You need to know the average and peak power required by every device you want to power. FYI, the output waveform on the Reliable Electric inverters is a better (cleaner) sine wave than what the local electric co-op delivers (checked with a 'scope and I have pictures). I have a spreadsheet with pages for the typical loads plus a page with maximum versus average loads (fridge/freezer averages 59 watts/hour in winter but max is 560 watts when both defrosters are on) and peak versus average loads (garage door opener runs at 430 watts but startup is 1290 watts). I can selectively transfer circuits to inverter power to limit how much power can be drawn - the "1100 watt" microwave oven is simply unplugged as it needs more than my chosen 80% loading of the inverters. The microwave actually draws 15.77 amps at 120 volts so the measured power is 1892 watts. Even for short runs, the microwave would need its own 2000 watt inverter. The convenience of the microwave isn't worth the battery cost (a 175 amp drain from the 420AH battery bank is excessive) and I'd have to get out a bigger gen to power it - not worth the extra gas. If solar power were primary, the system would be more robust but it's fine for our typical outages (longest in 15 years at this location is 16 hours),. Other areas of the county have seen multiple days without power so the backup to the solar system is a 1600 watt inverter generator. The inverter gen can also charge the solar battery bank so we get another night of silent power if there isn't enough sun. 4 to 6 hours of gen time for 24 hours of combined power at the lowest level (no internet, no TV, upright freezer only powered when the gen is running) isn't a bad tradeoff if we have central heat in winter. There's a 5000 watt Generac as the final backup but primarily to be able to run power tools and lots of lights if the house needs repair after a storm. It'll run every tool I have but it's a large, loud and thirsty beast ;-)

Great video! Our magnasine 4024 was unintentionally torture tested 8 years ago. Mounted in the basement under the place where the bathroom is located, about a year later the toilet tank broke, by the time we got home, water was cascading down the wall over top the magnasine and to my surprise, still working to supply power to the water well pump and the septic pump to keep the basement from flooding. Turned it off, took it apart and blew air on it for 2 days, cleaned up the mess, fixed the toilet, relocated the magnasine to the main floor, turned it back on and it worked perfectly. Today 8 years later its still working supplying power to our off grid farm. In my humble opinion most inverters would be completely destroyed under those circumstances. Magnasine Built like a tank!

i have a SW-2524 for about 4 years working flawlessly thanks for the nice feedback

Excellent info...happy I tripped over your channel..keep up the good work. ! Thank You!

Finally, someone contrasted the differences between the two. Thank you.

Good info, I recently started working for Schneider and will share this info internally. I’ve also been a fan of the vfx’s serviceability

Absolutely spot on. Started out with Cotek (Meanwell) inverter and Midnight Solar MPPT charge controller and quickly realized I had fallen for internet hype--run fast from both these, IMHO. After a few more trials and mistakes, I've been very happy with my TS-MPPT-60s and my single MS4448PAE for the last 6 years. Additionally, the high frequency inverter was not only anemic with inductive loads/startup current, the equipment it powered produced more heat as well. Welcome back, Casey.

The military ensured against premature failures by way of controls for what components were used. Now that the military is using more COTS (commercial off the shelf) components, they are experiencing many of the same failure problems with reliability, longevity and robustness.

Excellent vid: Good technical content. Opinions backed by experience and technical info.

I have a kisae 24 volt 2000watt pure sine wave and am really impress it is holding up. I have over 2500kwh on my victron and still going fine.

Just checking in to say thanks and let you know I'm hoping you follow through and make some more videos.

Hi, thanks for comparing different inverters, very instructive. Do you think the Magnums (Magnasine) are still as reliable as before ? I have seen a lot of people on youtube having problems with the temperature sensors and the fets. Also, the fets on the ms4448-pae seems to be soldered directly on the main board and hard to service.

I really wish I saw this before buying a “Reliable” WZRELB 48v “3,000w” inverter. Family member sold me 2 relion 51v 100ah batteries for really cheap (she upgraded to a 20kw battery) since I blew my budget, I got this piece of crap, shuts off at 2am with a 5,000btu AC, didn’t know about HF vs LF. Saving up for a LF inverter now. Very informative video.

I've had a trace 3624 inverter running nonstop since 2000 , it powers 2 fridges all my work tools, washing machine and just about anything else

I watched video 4IlgVPiDScQ the other day and looked you both up. You live about two miles from each other - I wonder if you've run into John Wells. I've wondered how the couple from upstate New York adapted to life in no man's land - glad to see a new video and glad to see your business is thriving. John is also from upstate New York according to the video description. Hi from North TX.

What would be a decent inverter in 2020 for a small cabin running off 2.5kw in solar. Biggest load may be a window unit (8000btu) think under 700 running watts.

Great comparison! LF obviously its a better choice for its robust nature but there are some HF designs like the Xijia brand that has a large start capacitor now. It causes a soft start and that helps a lot with surge current. On the flip side soft start has some disadvantages with some sensitive devices. But they are cheap so you could have a couple of them dedicated to one task. In my case I'm prepping for power outages without an entire house solar system and so I have 3 inverters one of them being an Xijia and all it will be doing is running the fridge. But purchasing an Outback could be the start of something that is much better in the long run. Even if I'm using it as a heavy portable setup to use at home for now.

my stuff also love large and heavy transformer.they do heavy-duty kickoff induction motor.look they traditional,durable. with 24h/day and all year long.thanks for share,from Vietnam with love.

What about hybrid inverters? I have a grid-tied solar system. Now I want to install another small array with hybrid inverter to add some battery backup. Looking at all options, what do you recommend?

I really need an inverter for testing. I am just looking for a deal to pop out.