Not only DC to AC inverter is essential in the process of converting sunlight to electricity, but the choosing of the right resource to build small solar powered system is equally important, and that would lead you to Earth4Energy Review: “Earth4Energy” reveals much information regarding solar energy, solar panel and how to build it and Do-It-Yourself blueprint to making DC to AC inverters produces electricity for your household consumption.
I will have some videos coming out on how to modify a APC unite and take it
from a 980 watt pure wave inverter to a 1500 watt inverter Pure sign wave
inverter. soon. Already modded on now to mod the other to make the videos
on.
So called “Modified Sine” inverters should really be called “Modified
Square Wave” inverters, as their output is essentially a square wave but
with a short “dead time” between the +ve & -ve excursions.
They run resistive loads perfectly well, such as incandescent light bulbs
and heating elements. But there are issues when you connect them to
inductive and capacitive loads.
This is because a square wave’s power is not only at the fundamental
frequency, 60Hz in most cases. Much ov it’s power is also delivered at
120Hz, 180Hz and so on in a descending way.
Induction motors can not use the power delivered above 60Hz very
effectively, they tend to dissipate it as heat. So you use your battery
quicker and your motor gets hotter running modified square.
Capacitive fed power supplies are a problem too. A much higher current
passes through the dropper cap when it is fed on mod. square. This tends to
overheat it and generally leads to it cooking over time and failing. Often
it can actually become a fire hazzard.
Switch-mode power supplies generally have no problem with a square wave
input. This is because the first thing they do is rectify the power to DC.
So the incoming waveform is not very important.
But it can be a problem in audio gear though as those harmonics from the
square wave can pass through the power supply section and into the audio
lines, where it tends to make a nasty buzz in the speakers. It largely
depends on the particular piece ov gear and also how fussy you are about
it. :)
Jeff, you said in this video that the plug in grid tie inverter can be
plugged into any house wall outlet and back feed into the grid if it is not
used by the house. Can this heat that circuit if it is sending a lot back
into the house wiring? Huge safety issue there. AND more importantly, if
you send this back through your meter aren’t you still paying the utility
company for your excess power? Without a true grid tie inverter all the
excess energy you send back to the grid is charged to your account correct?
I have been using inverters for a lot of years now because we live in an
area where the power would go out for just looking at the sky.
Inverters may use a lot of power just for having them hooked up to the
batteries and/or turned on without having a load hooked up to the inverter
at all ( idle). My inverter uses 20 watts of power just in idle, so be
cautious and check into it.
I used to have a smaller modified inverter and fans and motors would humm
with it and CFL bulbs would kinda stay dim, until I bought doubled the
power of an modified inverter. Motors are quiet and lights have more
output. There is nothing that this inverter could not run yet, except as
noted below.
There is one thing to note on using a modified inverter. Electric drills
with an electronic speed control have an very good potential to be killed
and to burn up as well as some cordless battery chargers.
Also to note is that most inverters will shut down at about 10.5 volts,
which is to low of an voltage and would damage batteries if they would get
that low.
Is it safe to be running a garage door opener from a modified sine wave
inverter? Or will it shorten the lifespan of the motor and control board?
It’s lifting a 7 foot high door. I don’t want to ruin a $250 unit
With the cost of pure sine wave inverters dropping, just spend the extra
and then you don’t have to worry about what you plug in besides the load it
will draw.
Some factors to coinsder:-Place your solar cells at the best angle for the current season to optimize your exposure to solar energy.-You can have an off-grid or on-grid system, Off the grid you are going to be storing your power in batteries, with a circuit designed to best charge your batteries for different changes in weather i.e. cloudy days, low sunlight conditions.You will also need to look into power inverters to take that DC battery power and transform it 120V AC (U.S.)-An on-grid system will send your power directly into the grid of your utility company. Instead of producing your own power you will be paid for the energy you supply to the grid.-5 KWh = 5000 W * hHow many hours of sunlight do you average per day?5000 / hours of sun = the wattage your solar power plant needs to produce.i.e. 5000/6 = 833.3 Watt system needed.
Jeff, I’ve watched at least 20 of your videos today! I have learned so
much. Thank you so much. When I can afford to I will definitely buy from
you when I’m ready to get my wind turbine generator. 🙂 Mahalo
How do these work with foreign currents? 220/50 ? What about bigger
equipment like a welder or air compressor? What about off grid situations?
Does the outback work better with 220? What about situations where you are
combining wind turbines and solar? Will I need two separate systems.
The PMG produces a sine wave, we call it wild AC because it varies
according to the speed of the shaft. The frequency of the cycle, which is
the voltage changing from positive to less positive, changes with the speed.
An inverter, dc (direct or constant current from a battery or solar panel,
etc) to AC (alternating current, voltage and frequency cycles) to be
similar to the Power Company Grid of your area. The power companies motor
like generators to produce the grid which gives a true sine wave form at a
rated frequency, like 60 cycles per second or hertz.
A modified sine wave takes the dc, constant voltage and pulses it to
imitate the AC grid. Now how well the inverter performs that is what you
pay for. A modified wave has the top’s of the waves cut off, which means
you don’t get a full cycle. A true sine wave inverter gives the full sine
wave from a constant voltage.
You can not plug one of these inverters or a portable generator into the
grid because the the wave form cycles are not matched at the same
frequency, meaning the grid could be at the peak while the inverter is at
the zero points which would cause a short or boom.
The grid tie inverter will sync or match the two sine waves together and
combine the power together, this is why when the utility power grid goes
down so does your grid tie inverter. However your grid tie inverter will
sync with any grid source like portable generator or a inverter running off
batteries as long as you isolate your home power grid ties from the public
power grid by turning off the main panel breakers.
hope this helps
After learning about Malcolm’s dementia, it really makes it hard for me to
listen to this concert. I alway’s thought to myself: “man the Malcolm tone
is really lacking this concert, except for on Shoot to Thrill.” There
seemed to be an instant spark the second Mal kicks in during the intro, and
I was confused why the rest of the concert didn’t sound like this. Knowing
that he was struggling with it during this tour is hard to fathom, but i
feel as if something inside him went off and he just explodes like you
would expect from him.
But it’s a bittersweet victory as you can also catch glimpses of him slowly
falling. For example, right after the first chorus going into the second
verse, Malcolm plays the suspended A chords with Angus (like on the record)
but Mal’s played the main riff itself during that part live since 1980. Go
look at any live version and you’ll hear him play the main riff instead of
the open A’s.
Then you reach the breakdown. He hits an A, G, and D during the entire
thing, when he’s supposed to do 2 open A’s, a little run up the 6th sting
into the A, G, D twice, then the little run again, but aggressive (along
with the bass) into the vocals.
Now why would he play it different then of all times when he’s done it the
same way for 25+ years at that point. Maybe it’s because he forgot. I’m not
sure. It’s just a theory really. And I hate to think the worst. So I’m sad
that he can’t remember anymore, but knowing that and hearing that explosive
intro really makes me happy. It makes me feel that even when things seem to
be at their worst, there’s always that fire inside just waiting to come
out.
They’re holding up *really* well, all things considered, but I think vocals
are the thing that age most noticeably. Your guitar playing can improve
with age in a way that your voice usually can’t…
50 comments
No ping yet
Lightendog says:
April 11, 2015 at 1:00 pm (UTC 0)
Any way you could do a video on the AC to AC grid tie inverters? Hardly no
info out there on these units but they do sell them now.
Bikerbob59 says:
April 11, 2015 at 1:21 pm (UTC 0)
Thanks was wondering what the difference was going to have to change some
stuff in the preps now.lol
MissouriWindandSolar says:
April 11, 2015 at 1:50 pm (UTC 0)
McCuneWindandSolar says:
April 11, 2015 at 2:39 pm (UTC 0)
I will have some videos coming out on how to modify a APC unite and take it
from a 980 watt pure wave inverter to a 1500 watt inverter Pure sign wave
inverter. soon. Already modded on now to mod the other to make the videos
on.
xanataph says:
April 11, 2015 at 2:56 pm (UTC 0)
So called “Modified Sine” inverters should really be called “Modified
Square Wave” inverters, as their output is essentially a square wave but
with a short “dead time” between the +ve & -ve excursions.
They run resistive loads perfectly well, such as incandescent light bulbs
and heating elements. But there are issues when you connect them to
inductive and capacitive loads.
This is because a square wave’s power is not only at the fundamental
frequency, 60Hz in most cases. Much ov it’s power is also delivered at
120Hz, 180Hz and so on in a descending way.
Induction motors can not use the power delivered above 60Hz very
effectively, they tend to dissipate it as heat. So you use your battery
quicker and your motor gets hotter running modified square.
Capacitive fed power supplies are a problem too. A much higher current
passes through the dropper cap when it is fed on mod. square. This tends to
overheat it and generally leads to it cooking over time and failing. Often
it can actually become a fire hazzard.
Switch-mode power supplies generally have no problem with a square wave
input. This is because the first thing they do is rectify the power to DC.
So the incoming waveform is not very important.
But it can be a problem in audio gear though as those harmonics from the
square wave can pass through the power supply section and into the audio
lines, where it tends to make a nasty buzz in the speakers. It largely
depends on the particular piece ov gear and also how fussy you are about
it. :)
Ronne Richter says:
April 11, 2015 at 3:25 pm (UTC 0)
Jeff, you said in this video that the plug in grid tie inverter can be
plugged into any house wall outlet and back feed into the grid if it is not
used by the house. Can this heat that circuit if it is sending a lot back
into the house wiring? Huge safety issue there. AND more importantly, if
you send this back through your meter aren’t you still paying the utility
company for your excess power? Without a true grid tie inverter all the
excess energy you send back to the grid is charged to your account correct?
From Urban to Country Homestead says:
April 11, 2015 at 3:44 pm (UTC 0)
Great info once again Jeff, thanks for sharing. ollllllllo
Bonnie Flory says:
April 11, 2015 at 3:44 pm (UTC 0)
I have been using inverters for a lot of years now because we live in an
area where the power would go out for just looking at the sky.
Inverters may use a lot of power just for having them hooked up to the
batteries and/or turned on without having a load hooked up to the inverter
at all ( idle). My inverter uses 20 watts of power just in idle, so be
cautious and check into it.
I used to have a smaller modified inverter and fans and motors would humm
with it and CFL bulbs would kinda stay dim, until I bought doubled the
power of an modified inverter. Motors are quiet and lights have more
output. There is nothing that this inverter could not run yet, except as
noted below.
There is one thing to note on using a modified inverter. Electric drills
with an electronic speed control have an very good potential to be killed
and to burn up as well as some cordless battery chargers.
Also to note is that most inverters will shut down at about 10.5 volts,
which is to low of an voltage and would damage batteries if they would get
that low.
GarageDoorMan89 says:
April 11, 2015 at 4:36 pm (UTC 0)
Is it safe to be running a garage door opener from a modified sine wave
inverter? Or will it shorten the lifespan of the motor and control board?
It’s lifting a 7 foot high door. I don’t want to ruin a $250 unit
Matt Lesak says:
April 11, 2015 at 5:25 pm (UTC 0)
With the cost of pure sine wave inverters dropping, just spend the extra
and then you don’t have to worry about what you plug in besides the load it
will draw.
Tinggoy Lim says:
April 11, 2015 at 6:14 pm (UTC 0)
Would that Grid Tie inverter work on 220 VOLTS?
Agus says:
March 1, 2016 at 4:40 am (UTC 0)
Some factors to coinsder:-Place your solar cells at the best angle for the current season to optimize your exposure to solar energy.-You can have an off-grid or on-grid system, Off the grid you are going to be storing your power in batteries, with a circuit designed to best charge your batteries for different changes in weather i.e. cloudy days, low sunlight conditions.You will also need to look into power inverters to take that DC battery power and transform it 120V AC (U.S.)-An on-grid system will send your power directly into the grid of your utility company. Instead of producing your own power you will be paid for the energy you supply to the grid.-5 KWh = 5000 W * hHow many hours of sunlight do you average per day?5000 / hours of sun = the wattage your solar power plant needs to produce.i.e. 5000/6 = 833.3 Watt system needed.
Aceman307 says:
April 11, 2015 at 7:06 pm (UTC 0)
Knurlgnar24 does a great job of putting different inverters through there
paces. If you have a chance check out his channel.
WORRO01 says:
April 11, 2015 at 7:28 pm (UTC 0)
Thumbs up!~~John
rick d says:
April 11, 2015 at 7:31 pm (UTC 0)
Jeff, I’ve watched at least 20 of your videos today! I have learned so
much. Thank you so much. When I can afford to I will definitely buy from
you when I’m ready to get my wind turbine generator. 🙂 Mahalo
sha whit says:
April 11, 2015 at 7:38 pm (UTC 0)
Great info Jeff. Gets you really wondering. What is best for each
household. Glad for your input. Thanks.
Richard Maunder says:
April 11, 2015 at 8:38 pm (UTC 0)
Thank you for this video Jeff. :)
Raymond Earle says:
April 11, 2015 at 8:47 pm (UTC 0)
ChileExpatFamily says:
April 11, 2015 at 9:08 pm (UTC 0)
How do these work with foreign currents? 220/50 ? What about bigger
equipment like a welder or air compressor? What about off grid situations?
Does the outback work better with 220? What about situations where you are
combining wind turbines and solar? Will I need two separate systems.
Richard Downer says:
April 11, 2015 at 9:09 pm (UTC 0)
great video, thanks for the info.
ronald sardes says:
April 11, 2015 at 9:13 pm (UTC 0)
GREAT VID THANKS GREAT TO NO.
cabmaker says:
April 11, 2015 at 10:01 pm (UTC 0)
Thanks great videos I have learned a lot by watching these. Keep them
coming.
Jeffrey Mccarty says:
April 11, 2015 at 10:36 pm (UTC 0)
This video is very informative for a novice wind turbine and solar panel
owner on inverters.
mags71 says:
April 11, 2015 at 11:11 pm (UTC 0)
Good info never knew about the double power draw on the modified inverter
compared to pure. ( looks like a few didn’t ).
john otoole says:
April 11, 2015 at 11:49 pm (UTC 0)
The PMG produces a sine wave, we call it wild AC because it varies
according to the speed of the shaft. The frequency of the cycle, which is
the voltage changing from positive to less positive, changes with the speed.
An inverter, dc (direct or constant current from a battery or solar panel,
etc) to AC (alternating current, voltage and frequency cycles) to be
similar to the Power Company Grid of your area. The power companies motor
like generators to produce the grid which gives a true sine wave form at a
rated frequency, like 60 cycles per second or hertz.
A modified sine wave takes the dc, constant voltage and pulses it to
imitate the AC grid. Now how well the inverter performs that is what you
pay for. A modified wave has the top’s of the waves cut off, which means
you don’t get a full cycle. A true sine wave inverter gives the full sine
wave from a constant voltage.
You can not plug one of these inverters or a portable generator into the
grid because the the wave form cycles are not matched at the same
frequency, meaning the grid could be at the peak while the inverter is at
the zero points which would cause a short or boom.
The grid tie inverter will sync or match the two sine waves together and
combine the power together, this is why when the utility power grid goes
down so does your grid tie inverter. However your grid tie inverter will
sync with any grid source like portable generator or a inverter running off
batteries as long as you isolate your home power grid ties from the public
power grid by turning off the main panel breakers.
hope this helps
vergil heartnet says:
April 12, 2015 at 12:25 am (UTC 0)
Truth to be told, if there was an AC/DC concert in Hell,I wouldn’t mind
heading there once , lol
Iskender Agha says:
April 12, 2015 at 1:16 am (UTC 0)
Buenos Aires rocks!
acdcrocker22 says:
April 12, 2015 at 2:04 am (UTC 0)
After learning about Malcolm’s dementia, it really makes it hard for me to
listen to this concert. I alway’s thought to myself: “man the Malcolm tone
is really lacking this concert, except for on Shoot to Thrill.” There
seemed to be an instant spark the second Mal kicks in during the intro, and
I was confused why the rest of the concert didn’t sound like this. Knowing
that he was struggling with it during this tour is hard to fathom, but i
feel as if something inside him went off and he just explodes like you
would expect from him.
But it’s a bittersweet victory as you can also catch glimpses of him slowly
falling. For example, right after the first chorus going into the second
verse, Malcolm plays the suspended A chords with Angus (like on the record)
but Mal’s played the main riff itself during that part live since 1980. Go
look at any live version and you’ll hear him play the main riff instead of
the open A’s.
Then you reach the breakdown. He hits an A, G, and D during the entire
thing, when he’s supposed to do 2 open A’s, a little run up the 6th sting
into the A, G, D twice, then the little run again, but aggressive (along
with the bass) into the vocals.
Now why would he play it different then of all times when he’s done it the
same way for 25+ years at that point. Maybe it’s because he forgot. I’m not
sure. It’s just a theory really. And I hate to think the worst. So I’m sad
that he can’t remember anymore, but knowing that and hearing that explosive
intro really makes me happy. It makes me feel that even when things seem to
be at their worst, there’s always that fire inside just waiting to come
out.
Beatrice Kirsten says:
April 12, 2015 at 3:04 am (UTC 0)
AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill: http://youtu.be/VlWgVdrnuhU
Xion Sieghart says:
April 12, 2015 at 3:29 am (UTC 0)
I never tire of listening to your songs x3
Ozzy Pit Bull says:
April 12, 2015 at 4:16 am (UTC 0)
Non ho sonno….shoot to trill, a palla!!!!
Johnny Sandoval says:
April 12, 2015 at 4:49 am (UTC 0)
AC/DC –
Shoot to Thrill:
http://youtu.be/VlWgVdrnuhU
Giuliano De Nardis says:
April 12, 2015 at 5:48 am (UTC 0)
AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill: http://youtu.be/VlWgVdrnuhU
Ville Pirinen says:
April 12, 2015 at 6:45 am (UTC 0)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlWgVdrnuhU
So big and so loud :)
Anna Wesp says:
April 12, 2015 at 7:23 am (UTC 0)
AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill (Live at River Plate 2009)
Dario Verardo says:
April 12, 2015 at 8:05 am (UTC 0)
DjVader112 says:
April 12, 2015 at 8:14 am (UTC 0)
i’ve never been to any concerts before just one question,how do you pee
with a crowd like that?
kingwells2 says:
April 12, 2015 at 8:22 am (UTC 0)
The Argentinian crowd looks crazy! Love from UK
lucio cianci says:
April 12, 2015 at 8:26 am (UTC 0)
AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill: http://youtu.be/VlWgVdrnuhU
gábor kispál says:
April 12, 2015 at 9:05 am (UTC 0)
daniel cordero says:
April 12, 2015 at 9:47 am (UTC 0)
Una de mis favoritas de este grupos =)
michael rumiche tejeda says:
April 12, 2015 at 10:08 am (UTC 0)
The best crowd of the world !!!
boiledelephant says:
April 12, 2015 at 10:42 am (UTC 0)
They’re holding up *really* well, all things considered, but I think vocals
are the thing that age most noticeably. Your guitar playing can improve
with age in a way that your voice usually can’t…
Lahouari Boulayoun says:
April 12, 2015 at 11:09 am (UTC 0)
Szilárd Mátrai says:
April 12, 2015 at 11:21 am (UTC 0)
Sorry for Malcolm, you can recognize at 4:15 there are no pick-ups in his
guitar. But anyway it is one of my favourite concerts.
Saverio Ciotoli says:
April 12, 2015 at 12:04 pm (UTC 0)
9 Luglio 2015, Imola. Biglietto fatto !!
Ho quasi paura
Paul Sisalema says:
April 12, 2015 at 12:54 pm (UTC 0)
Mis respetos de conciero Argentina increible
Enzo Racchi says:
April 12, 2015 at 1:47 pm (UTC 0)
ЛЕВСКАР ЗАВИНАГИ says:
April 12, 2015 at 2:37 pm (UTC 0)
LEVSKI SOFIA & AC/DC FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!! BULGARIA
2015!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Real Bonnie Tyler Not Even Kidding says:
April 12, 2015 at 2:50 pm (UTC 0)
This makes me wanna go to an AC/DC concert!