The DCDC is capable of pushing 200A, so there will be bigger issues if one is pulling more than that. There are accessories such as power steering, seat heaters and such that costume quite a bit of power which the DCDC is meant to power. That 20-30Ah 12V AGM battery will not hold up too much current for very long. Use the DCDC, not the battery if possible.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Whats the largest Power Inverter you can use in a Tesla?
- Thread starter Toasty
- Start date
I thought we were talking about using the inverter while stationary to power house loads during power outages or run power tools. None of the loads you mention should come into play for this use. The car's 12v battery can easily supply the surge current that the inverter pulls. But, yes, you don't want to on average pull more than 2000w out of the dc/dc battery combination or you will deplete the 12v battery.
Last edited:
Yes, definitely stationary. I am just listing examples of loads the DCDC is designed to support and they are pretty beefy. When stationary, it is possible for the DCDC to turn on for things like coolant pumps and such, so you don't want to push it all the way to the max. I drew 800W from the 12V DC system for almost 2 hours and it was perfectly good. My Tesla Fi says that the idle consumer 1.5kWh of battery, which is in the right ball park. 1000W is almost certainty going to be fine and maybe 1500W should be OK electrically. However, I don't know if the car will complain of a 12V system fault if there is a large 12V DC draw when nothing "seems" to be on according to the car.
What I did notice that my Amazon bought Chinese branded 1000W pure sine inverter is getting almost too hot to touch after running at 800W for 2hrs, not sure if I trust that running all night by itself.
Anyhow, I think this experiments shows pulling 800W connected to a 1000W inverter when wired to the DCDC side of the battery terminal is good. If anyone tries a 1500W inverter and pulls say 1200-1500W from it, please post the results here.
The Wagan ones are well built and will feed their rated wattage without issue. As a bonus they also come with decent cables.
On current production the front ports are supposed to be 36W. They were previously 27W. So they should charge something like an Air but probably not more laptop than that.
Cool. The person I was responding to was asking about the ports built in to the car, not the ones in your inverter.
n2mb_racing
Active Member
Yes, I've done that, though it will depend on your usage if it can keep up. I got 36W from the two USB-c ports in the front, 27W on the two rear ports in my Plaid S.
n2mb_racing
Active Member
The power outlet in the refresh S may be able to do even more.150W will be better
"The power socket is suitable for accessories requiring up to 12A continuous draw (16A peak)."
It's about 16V, so 192W continuous max, 256W peak.
Has anyone found a high current circuit to tap into for more power in the refresh S?
Hey everyone,
I'm rather new to this forum, and am hoping to make this mod with a 2000 w pure-sine inverter on my pre-April 2014 Model S (Supercharging active, and charges with a CHAdeMO adapter, I believe one or both of those are the DC-DC inverter(s)) and shoot a video for my small YouTube channel. Is there anyone from California who could and would take the hour or two off to do this with a 2015 Model S?
I've done some basic stuffs on the car, but nothing so substantive, and would be great to have a step-by-step guide for those coming after us in the future to do be able to do this.
Alternatively, if someone could explain it in basic terms how to do this, I'll probably go for it alone if no one is up for it.
Any help will be much appreciated!
I'm rather new to this forum, and am hoping to make this mod with a 2000 w pure-sine inverter on my pre-April 2014 Model S (Supercharging active, and charges with a CHAdeMO adapter, I believe one or both of those are the DC-DC inverter(s)) and shoot a video for my small YouTube channel. Is there anyone from California who could and would take the hour or two off to do this with a 2015 Model S?
I've done some basic stuffs on the car, but nothing so substantive, and would be great to have a step-by-step guide for those coming after us in the future to do be able to do this.
Alternatively, if someone could explain it in basic terms how to do this, I'll probably go for it alone if no one is up for it.
Any help will be much appreciated!
Some background.. I'm planning on purchasing a Knaus E-Power camping trailer. I don't have it yet, but I'm planning my options in advance.
They are all electric, there is no LPG equipment. I think it also doesn't have any battery, 12V is supposed to come from car. With 12V only fridge, water and lighting works. For the heating/cooling or induction hob you need external 230VAC. They sell a separate Einhell 6Ah Lithium pack for the 12V side, but even that only lasts for one night.
Hyundai/Kia EV folk are using these by simply hooking the trailer to the car's 230V output when parked. Those cars have V2L (vehicle to load) outlet directly on side of the car, just plug the cable in and you have 3700W of power available! Sucks that Tesla doesn't have this.
So, I guess the options are:
1) Buy Kia.
2) Install some beefy (1500-2000W) inverter to my Model X, directly to the battery or DCDC converter. Then the problem is, how to get the 230VAC output cleanly outside of the car? Really can't leave the frunk open in case it rains or something.
3) Instead of inverter in Tesla, simply route +12V using some heavy duty cable to the trailer and have the inverter there. Again the problem; where to safely route the cable.
4) Install a 12V battery to the trailer, together with inverter. Then charge that battery from car, through the regular trailer connector. I assume you can safely draw something like 10A or 15A.
I'm currently thinking maybe 4) is the wisest choice as it requires no changes to the car and would work equally well on any other car, even ICE. The european 13pin trailer connector has both permanent and switched +12V available. I guess for Tesla you would want permanent and for ICE use the switched supply..
They are all electric, there is no LPG equipment. I think it also doesn't have any battery, 12V is supposed to come from car. With 12V only fridge, water and lighting works. For the heating/cooling or induction hob you need external 230VAC. They sell a separate Einhell 6Ah Lithium pack for the 12V side, but even that only lasts for one night.
Hyundai/Kia EV folk are using these by simply hooking the trailer to the car's 230V output when parked. Those cars have V2L (vehicle to load) outlet directly on side of the car, just plug the cable in and you have 3700W of power available! Sucks that Tesla doesn't have this.
So, I guess the options are:
1) Buy Kia.
2) Install some beefy (1500-2000W) inverter to my Model X, directly to the battery or DCDC converter. Then the problem is, how to get the 230VAC output cleanly outside of the car? Really can't leave the frunk open in case it rains or something.
3) Instead of inverter in Tesla, simply route +12V using some heavy duty cable to the trailer and have the inverter there. Again the problem; where to safely route the cable.
4) Install a 12V battery to the trailer, together with inverter. Then charge that battery from car, through the regular trailer connector. I assume you can safely draw something like 10A or 15A.
I'm currently thinking maybe 4) is the wisest choice as it requires no changes to the car and would work equally well on any other car, even ICE. The european 13pin trailer connector has both permanent and switched +12V available. I guess for Tesla you would want permanent and for ICE use the switched supply..
Last edited:
Pin 9 and Pin 10 can both separately provide power, probably something like 10A. That's not a trivial amount of power either. It's around 130W, so in use 24x7 you could pull over 3kWh out. If I were going to do this I'd probably get one of those 'solar generator' units which is an all-in-one battery, charger, and inverter, and connect the 12V charge lead from it to pins 9 and 13 on the trailer connector, then connect the outputs to the trailer. Bonus: the trailer would still have power if I unhooked the car and used it for a trip while the trailer was in use. If you happen to be in a campsite with 230V power, you can connect the battery charger there as well, and not have to move a single other connection on the battery bank.
n2mb_racing
Active Member
Yeah, I'd go with #4. Get a big lifepo4 battery and inverter. Do you need 240V power in the trailer? You might need two inverters, one for each phase.Some background.. I'm planning on purchasing a Knaus E-Power camping trailer. I don't have it yet, but I'm planning my options in advance.
They are all electric, there is no LPG equipment. I think it also doesn't have any battery, 12V is supposed to come from car. With 12V only fridge, water and lighting works. For the heating/cooling or induction hob you need external 230VAC. They sell a separate Einhell 6Ah Lithium pack for the 12V side, but even that only lasts for one night.
Hyundai/Kia EV folk are using these by simply hooking the trailer to the car's 230V output when parked. Those cars have V2L (vehicle to load) outlet directly on side of the car, just plug the cable in and you have 3700W of power available! Sucks that Tesla doesn't have this.
So, I guess the options are:
1) Buy Kia.
2) Install some beefy (1500-2000W) inverter to my Model X, directly to the battery or DCDC converter. Then the problem is, how to get the 230VAC output cleanly outside of the car? Really can't leave the frunk open in case it rains or something.
3) Instead of inverter in Tesla, simply route +12V using some heavy duty cable to the trailer and have the inverter there. Again the problem; where to safely route the cable.
4) Install a 12V battery to the trailer, together with inverter. Then charge that battery from car, through the regular trailer connector. I assume you can safely draw something like 10A or 15A.
I'm currently thinking maybe 4) is the wisest choice as it requires no changes to the car and would work equally well on any other car, even ICE. The european 13pin trailer connector has both permanent and switched +12V available. I guess for Tesla you would want permanent and for ICE use the switched supply..
I'd also consider a 48V server rack battery, to minimize the size of the wiring. You should be able to find a charger that will charge the 48V battery with 12V from the car.
I think you can often get a good 48V 1000Ah battery for about $1299 shipped on sale.
EG4-LifePower4 Lithium Battery | 48V 100AH | Server Rack Battery | UL1973
EG4 (48V/100AH) LifePower4 Battery EG4 Lithium battery 51.2V (48V) 5.12kWh with 100AH internal BMS. Made of UL Listed Battery Cells. Off Grid Solar Batteries - Off Grid System - Solar Batteries for Home - Lithium Solar Batteries - Deep Cycle Solar Batteries - Power Reserve - Solar Panels Plus...
signaturesolar.com
This is supposedly a pretty good inverter, with bonus solar inputs and AC charging inputs:
EG4 3kW Off-Grid Inverter | 3000EHV-48 | 3000W Output | 5000W PV Input | 500 VOC Input
Signature Solar provides solar panels, off-grid solar systems, grid-tie, and hybrid systems. Quality solar inverters, bifacial solar panels, complete solar kits, solar batteries. Featuring brands such as EG4 Electronics with their solar battery, LifePower4 and EG4 LLifePower4 and EG4 LL
signaturesolar.com
There are also combined units that do 120/240V in one:
EG4 6K Off-Grid Split Phase Inverter | 6000EX-48HV | 6000W Output | 7500W PV Input | 500V VOC Input | Split Phase 120/240VAC | All In One Solar Inverter
Signature Solar provides solar panels, off-grid solar systems, grid-tie, and hybrid systems. Quality solar inverters, bifacial solar panels, complete solar kits, solar batteries. Featuring brands such as EG4 Electronics with their solar battery, LifePower4 and EG4 LLifePower4 and EG4 LL
signaturesolar.com
I got this lower power inverter when it was on sale for $279. I'm using it with some ebike batteries for backup power. I'm planning on charging it from my car 12V, if needed. If I did it again, I might snag the EG4 inverter above when on sale.
They are in Finland. 230V is a single phase and will be necessary to run all the equipment in the trailer.
I was thinking of something more like the Ecoflow Delta 2, or the Bluetti AC200MAX. A battery, charger, and inverter all rolled in to one, without having to do any the integration work or find the room for all that equipment. Those two will charge from multiple sources at once, so they could even have solar panels added while still drawing 100W from the car if needed. Both are also made in 230V EU versions. There are bigger units available if you want more backup time or to run a larger cooker than 1500W as well.
n2mb_racing
Active Member
Ah yeah. If you just need a single phase and don't mind paying the extra, those all in one boxes will work great.
I'm not even sure they could as paying extra, once you consider your effort for the integration. The units I suggested are the same cost as your inverter and include basically everything needed.
n2mb_racing
Active Member
The price per kWhr is much higher on those all in ones, even when you include the inverter.
Thanks a lot for your comments!
I looked at Tesla Service and I think the constant +12V supply is actually behind 30A fuse:
(Sorry for the bad quality, Tesla PDF picture is in incredibly high resolution and had to be scaled down). But anyway it says 30A in the AUX BEC fuse rating. This fuse is labeled "trailer brakes" in AUX fusebox, but I think this still is connected to pin 9 in the EU trailer connector.
Anyway it seems you could actually draw quite a bit.
I have use these "hybrid inverters" earlier in other projects with good results. Might be the easiest here as well. Could add a few solar panels perhaps also.
I looked at Tesla Service and I think the constant +12V supply is actually behind 30A fuse:
(Sorry for the bad quality, Tesla PDF picture is in incredibly high resolution and had to be scaled down). But anyway it says 30A in the AUX BEC fuse rating. This fuse is labeled "trailer brakes" in AUX fusebox, but I think this still is connected to pin 9 in the EU trailer connector.
Anyway it seems you could actually draw quite a bit.
I have use these "hybrid inverters" earlier in other projects with good results. Might be the easiest here as well. Could add a few solar panels perhaps also.
Similar threads
- Question
