Tips & tricks
For less than $50, a power inverter can save a bundle
By Chuck Woodbury, editor

A small power inverter like this can provide some household power needs without the use of a generator or a utility hookup.

My motorhome does not have a generator and I don't need one. My needs for electricity while traveling in my motorhome are minor — to power my small combination color television and VCR, laptop computer and its printer, a small cooling fan in the summer, and to recharge the batteries of my camcorder and digital camera.

While my motorhome's onboard 12-volt power system powers the lights of my coach, its water pump and heater fan, it isn't good for much more.

And that's where my nifty little $45 power inverter comes in handy. All I have to do is plug it into the 12-volt receptical in my motorhome, and then plug my TV, computer, battery charger or other device into the inverter. The inverter converts the 12-volt power into regular household current to power the machines and appliances I otherwise couldn't use without running a generator or paying for hookups. But with the inverter, there is absolutely no noise (or maintainance) like a generator and no need to find a campground just for the hookups.

This small power inverter changed my life as an RVer by allowing me to have household power no matter where I am. It has saved me thousands of dollars through the years in hookup fees and generator costs. These small devices can typically be purchased for less than $50 places like Wal-Mart, Target and Camping World

I camp a lot in public campgrounds like those in National Parks and National Forests. Before I learned about small power inverters, I carried around a small Honda generator. From time to time I would crank it up, mostly so I could use my computer (I didn't have a battery-powered laptop back them) to write magazine articles. But I was always aware that the generator was making noise and so I would never use it when other campers were nearby. About every third day, I would need to check into a RV park where I would pay for hookups just so I could have regular household power to use my printer, TV and other household devices.

Many RVs come with built in inverters, most far more powerful than my little plug-in model. But they cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars and require professional installation. For my modest power needs, such a generator would be overkill.

There is really no downside to a small inverter like mine other than the power is limited to a few hundred continuous watts (in other words, it won't power hair blow dryers or microwave ovens), and if used for long periods of time will drain a deep cell battery (I had an extra deep cell battery installed in my motorhome years ago, so even if I use my inverter for hours on end, I still maintain power).

I can honestly say that in the six or seven years I have owned my inverter, I have saved at least a couple of thousand dollars in campground hookup fees, not to mention what I would have spent on a generator, its gas and maintainance. My little power inverter has given me the option of camping far from a regular electrical outlet, which has made my life as a roving, computer-dependent writer much easier.

Learn more about 12-volt power including generators at RVbookstore.com.

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