What's the biggest/best (highest power capacity/quality, etc...) power inverter you can buy that plugs into a vehicle's cigarette lighter (as opposed to directly connecting to the battery)?

Anybody?


Anybody?


Bueller?


Bueller?


Bueller?

 

I've got a jensen that I've used occasionally to power my laptop and charge my cell phone. Only thing I don't like it is it's very tough to "hard mount" since theres no way to screw it down or tie it down or anything, and it is very noisy. It's a 400-watter I believe.

 

I'm looking for something to run a small refrigerator/freezer for those long trips. As well as run a Playstation to keep the kids content.

 

You'd be better off buying a fridge designed for boats. It will run on 12 volts DC and 120 volts AC. They have compressors instead of absorption or Peltier refrigeration. Absorption fridges have to be level to operate. Peltier fridges can only cool to around 40º. Marine fridges will operate at almost any angle. Most of marine units have freezer compartments and can even make a small tray of ice. They come in all kinds of sizes and configurations from uprights to horizontal (like a cooler). Check with West Marine as a starting point.

Then buy one of those small 300 watt inverters to run the Playstation and a small tv.

The above will be a much more efficient setup. If you got an inverter to run a fridge and the electronics, you'd need one of fairly high capacity to handle the surge of the compressor. I have a feeling that an inverter capable of handling the load will cost you a lot and will draw too many amps to be run through the socket.

 

So do these reefers plug into the socket? Or do they have to be hardwired?

 

The ice chest sized ones plug into lighter sockets.

 

If you do go with the ice chest model, here's a few small suggestions for you:

Always start the cooler off with cold cans. Hot cans in the cooler will never get cold (they will, but it takes forever)

Don't let the thing run for more than 4 or 5 hours with out starting your truck to recharge the battery (more than once I have needed a jump)

And lastly, I have found that the cooler works better with the exhaust fan facing away from the sunlight. Even with the tinted windows, I turn mine around to help the cooler work. I know it sounds crazy, but someone suggested it to me in St. Louis, and I tried it. It really does make a difference.

 

Adamski, you probably have the Peltier (solid state) fridge. The ones designed for boats actually have a compressor and are capable of reaching and maintaining the same temperatures of the home fridge.