Need info from those that know

[$100horse]

I am planning a road trip. I want to take my laptop with me and run it off of a power inverter. This way I can run my GPS on my laptop, and a few other things that are on there, and surf the net at rest stops, etc.

Does anyone know what SIZE power inverter I need? I've seen them at the parts stores and at WallyWorld that are 100w, 400w and 700w. I'm guessing the 100w is not what I'm looking for.

Any help on this is appreciated. Thanks.

Jes

 

[Maniak]

Check your laptop power brick. The Lenovo Notebooks (t60p series) take 90 watts.

A 100 watt inverter worked fine when the truck was running. If I started the truck with the inverter/laptop plugged in and running the inverter would shut off.

I'd go with an inverter that is a little bigger.. If your notebook takes 100 watts or so, grab a 140 watt inverter.

On most bigger than 140 watt inverters you have to run direct to the battery instead of the through a 12v power plug (lighter).

~Mark

 

[bisjoe]

Think about a multitasking tool as more valuable in the long run. I have a 250 watt, and can run a hammer drill or small compressor on it. I do have to
clip to the battery, though you can mount it in the engine compartment and run an extension into the passenger area.

 

[$100horse]

Okay, I must be missing something HUGE! I just tried a 400w and it will not run the power supply for my laptop.

 

[Spdrcer34]

My wife's brand new laptop only uses 65w.

100w would work for hers....and then some.

I was thinking of installing one on my X....but I would probably install a 250w minimum...

What do you mean the 400w didn't work? How was it installed? Direct wire? cigarette lighter? How was it grounded?

Ryan

 

[$100horse]

Cigarette lighter. Does it need to be direct wired?? Thanks.

 

[Maniak]

450 watt inverter will pull around 40 amps or more. Thats way more than you can put though a cig. lighter.

Was it 450 watt peak and only 200 or so continuous? I could see that, but that is still quite a bit through the wires running through the dash.

~Mark

 

[JohnB33]

Volts x Amps = Watts if im not mistaken.

 

[Maniak]

Volts x Amps = Watts if im not mistaken.

Sort of. . volts x amps is volt-amps (VA). To get watts, you also have a power factor involved.. But many people use VA interchangably (sp?) with watts.

It will at least get you close enough for this usage (how many amps are you going to pull to run the inverter at full power).

~Mark

 

[$100horse]

Sort of. . volts x amps is volt-amps (VA). To get watts, you also have a power factor involved.. But many people use VA interchangably (sp?) with watts.

It will at least get you close enough for this usage (how many amps are you going to pull to run the inverter at full power).

~Mark

This solves the problem. The input of the power supply for the laptop is "110-240volts 2.5AMPS" so...if I sort of split down the middle and go, say, 180x2.5=450watts. Basic logic says that a 400w power inverter won't work. So, tomorrow, I will be getting a 750.

 

[Maniak]

Well, sort of..

The 110/220 just means it will work in US 120v, or the 220V that is used in other countries.

The 2.5 Amps is more than likely for the 110V.. which means you need 275 VA continuous for the computer to run, when it is running at max power.

~Mark

 

[$100horse]

This is the one that I got, and it wouldn't power my laptop:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10780287

This is the one I am considering hard wiring in to the vehicle:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10780288

more info from B&D's website:
http://www.blackanddecker.com/productguide/product-details.aspx?productid=17929&toolview=4#details

More from B&D's website. This may be the problem. If I multiply 100v X 2.5Amps, and get, roughly, 250w required, and the unit will only provide 100w through the power adapter in the vehicle, then, it's not enough to power the laptop.

So, it would seem that hard wiring the unit would be the best way to go. I'm going with the 750 based on the the comments posted in this thread (re: multitasking) and figuring that it may be needed for other things later on and the extra wattage will come in handy.

If this is the wrong direction of thought, someone feel free to chime in. Maniak, thanks for the technical input. I appreciate it.


jes

 

[gijoecam]

Umm, here's a dumb question: Why not get a 12V power supply cord for the laptop? More often than not, the output on the power brick is a 12V supply anyways, and the laptop manufacturer more than likely sells a 12V adapter for it (which can easily be found on Fleabay for a fraction of the cost). Why take a DC power source (the truck) convert it to AC using a highly inefficient inverter, just to convert it back to DC in the power brick? Cut out the middleman!