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cottersay asked

Phoenix 500VA 12V-120V shutting down with 150W laptop transformer!!!


I have the Victron Phoenix 12V/500VA 120V AC Pure Sine Wave Inverter (as well as other Victron inverters), and I run into a problem when I try to power/recharge my HP Pavilion laptop off of it: The 12/500 (as well as my other Victrons) immediately shuts down (LEDs indicating overload or short circuit). There are no other loads on the inverter when I do this, either. However, the laptop does not have this issue when plugged into the 120V mains or a 300W Solar Generator.
(The HP's power supply is a basic 150W HP power brick.)
How can I prevent this from happening? Any thoughts?

Thank you!

-C. W. Sayre
Phoenix Inverter
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wkirby avatar image wkirby ♦♦ commented ·
Yes, those HP laptop chargers are a nightmare. The inrush current on them is too high.

I have two of them for my work laptops, I cannot have them on the same circuit otherwise they will drop a 16A circuit breaker when switched on.

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cottersay avatar image cottersay wkirby ♦♦ commented ·
Thanks -- I thought that was the problem!
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cottersay answered ·

Victron, for all intents and purposes, has no Customer Support, and this useless forum is certainly no substitute.

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klim8skeptic avatar image klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·

Going back to your Previous Question , where have you wired the inverter to?

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cottersay avatar image cottersay klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·
I wired the inverter with 14 AWG 4 feet long wire to the RV's lighting circuit (10 AWG 3 feet long), which then goes to the two 100Ah lithiums...
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klim8skeptic avatar image klim8skeptic ♦ cottersay commented ·

14awg is to thin.

As a test, wire the inverter directly to the battery using the recommended gauge cable. Be careful, dont short things out or reverse connect the inverter.

inverter.png


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inverter.png (130.3 KiB)
cottersay avatar image cottersay klim8skeptic ♦ commented ·
Great idea, Skeptic! As soon as it stops raining, thundering, and generally flooding here in AZ, I will test it as you say. And if it works, I will now have more 10AWG wire ordered, and then tie it in directly to the Shunt, which is only about 5 feet away.


I'm hoping!

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