2015 or 2016 T@B inverter question ?

MAG
MAG Member Posts: 10
in Battery/Electrical & Solar
How can I find out if the inverter in my 2016 T@B is a pure sine wave inverter ?

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  • Marceline
    Marceline Member Posts: 1,779
    MAG said:
    How can I find out if the inverter in my 2016 T@B is a pure sine wave inverter ?
    T@Bs don't come with inverters. So if your T@B has one it was likely installed by a previous owner. So you'll have to find the model information on the inverter itself (assuming you don't have the literature that came with it) and look up the information on the manufacturer's website.

    San Francisco Bay Area | 2013 CS-S us@gi | 2015 Toyota Tacoma PreRunner Double Cab

  • MAG
    MAG Member Posts: 10
    Thats interesting, I guess I really don't understand the electrical workings of the trailer. I thought that the 12 volts that power the different electrical items in the trailer came from some kind of inverter. I am installing a 12 volt compressor type Fridge. I took the 3 way Norcold out and disconnected the 12V lead that the Norcold used in its DC mode. I metered the lead and it read 12V. I assumed that the voltage came from an inverter. 
  • VictoriaP
    VictoriaP Member Posts: 1,496
    edited September 2019
    Simplified explanation:
    An Inverter takes 12v DC current and changes it to 110v AC current. (110v is what you have in your house.)
    A Converter takes 110v AC and changes it to 12v DC. There should be a converter in your T@b, it’s a black panel usually under the dinette with breakers and fuses in it.

    Inverters have never been stock on smaller T@bs. I believe they can be ordered on the 400 series, which was not manufactured at the time your T@b was made. So IF you have an actual inverter, it would be aftermarket. Norcolds generally are 2-way (12v & 110v) or 3-way (with propane). Neither of these requires an inverter.
    2019 320s BD Lite, white with blue (“Haven”)
    2015 Subaru Outback 3.6r (unsafe 200lb tongue weight limit until 2020 models)
    2020 Subaru Outback XT
    Pacific NW
  • Sharon_is_SAM
    Sharon_is_SAM Member Posts: 10,034
    @MAG, the TaBs come with a CONverter that reduces 120v to 12v.  The inverter uses 12v power to run 120v ac appliances.

    I would send an email to nuCamp tech to see what converter they were using in the 2016 models and go from there.  We have a 2017 CSS and an ARB that recommends using only a pure sine wave converter and the ARB works fine with our stock converter.
    Sharon / 2017 T@B CSS / 2015 Toyota Sienna Minivan / Westlake, Ohio
  • ChanW
    ChanW Member Posts: 3,171
    edited September 2019
    To go a little further with the previous excellent explanations...
    'Pure sine wave' refers to the output of an inverter, as your original posts suggested. But the 'wave' part of that expression is in reference to AC (alternating current), which is what 120V house electricity is.
    The 12V that you want for your new fridge is DC or 'direct current', and therefore has no 'wave' component.

    Chan - near Buffalo NY
    2014 S Maxx (ie: "320")
    2011 Tacoma 4cyl ... edit: 2022 Tacoma 6cyl - oh yeah!
    ll9normvqdmg.jpeg


    A_Little_T@b'll_Do_Ya

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