How to use the 110v bed outlet

I have never used this and wondering how do I go about using this.
How can I know what things will work there?
do I need to have my engine running inorder to use this outlet?
and would that drain my battery power?

I am on a camping trip tomorrow and want to use this outlet for air compressor and electric fryer.

thanks

 

Higher draw appliances won't work .

It's all in the manual .

 

You need the ignition in the on position or engine running. Push the button on the dash to turn it on. Plug in what ever you need to use and if it works you did everything right. If it doesn't work, it means you did something wrong or the inverter isn't powerful enough. You can't power much with the outlet, I've had luck with a small radio, but no hair dryer, circular saw, vacuum

 

yeah it's rated for small stuff.....like less than 4 amp's i believe

 

Thanks guys. I sure will give a try actually today to see if both of those appliances work before taking them.

how long can I run the outlet power without draining out the truck battery?

 

All appliances will have a UL sticker which lists the voltage requirement and amperage draw of that appliance. Multiply the voltage times the amperage and you'll get the wattage required to run the appliance. As long as you don't exceed the 400W supplied by the truck's inverter you should be okay. Keep in mind that most appliances with electric motors require a heavy draw in the instant that they're started, so even if the wattage rating is below 400W for that appliance, the instantaneous startup may trip the inverter's fuse (assuming it has one).

I was thinking of getting a 1000W from Harbor Freight for my truck. They're relatively cheap if you need something with a little more capacity.

Oh, and draining the battery depends on what you're powering with the inverter. Higher amperage will drain it much faster. The air compressor you want to use is, I assume, for an air mattress? If it's one of the cheapo ones that comes with the air mattress, then you''re not likely to drain the battery even with a few hours of continuous running. The electric fryer is a different story though. I doubt that the inverter will even handle that with the truck running.

 

ya I dont think I would be able to run the fryer on it. anyways, its good to know what it can do and what it cannot.

 

it's there so you can run a small line of LED Christmas lights. other than that, i have never seen anyone run anything the darn cig lighter in the cabin cant run..(i.e.charge cell phones)

 

Lol , I ran Christmas lights this last year .

 

No idea why Toyo would waste cost on such a useless component. If they are going to put it there then it should be able to handle a small appliance.

 

I've run a 27" TV off of it when my power went out.

 

I use it to power an AC air pump to handle air mattresses while camping. My pump draws ~ 324 watts. I think it works well for our needs.

At max draw (400W) the inverter is pulling ~33 Amps from the battery / generator.

EDIT: I added some outlets in the interior so I can use the inverter while driving. Also there is a mod to make the inverter 400W all the time.

 

I tried an 8 amp electric mini chainsaw yesterday and it worked

 

If you guys can run air compressors and vacuums then I must be doing something wrong. I have tried a hair dryer to remove dealer stickers and then a small vacuum and the power switch/light just shuts off. Motor running or just ignition on makes no difference.

 

I have a 5 gallon bucket of water with a water pump running off that outlet. It is able to power 21gph (although I usually run pump at 5gph) and it seems to work fine. I just don't like experience itself. You need to leave keys in ignition while you yourself are behind the truck. Someone can jump in and drive off with the truck. Lately I have been using a 2nd set of keys and just lock the truck while washing off my gear.

 

ive ran several different electrical lawn tools with it. weedeater, hedge trimmer, etc.

 

My air compressor works great with the bed outlet. Very pleased with that

 

i think it's pretty handy myself. the biggest thing i've used it for was to cut a lock off a gate w/ a heavy duty reciprocating saw. The truck was running, and I used it in the 400W mode. It did trip the fuse a couple times when i put too much load on the saw...but if i didn't bear down too hard and let the saw do the work, it kept going. Got the lock off in no time.

If you do trip the fuse, just push the button again and it will reset.

 

The average hair dryer is going to draw well in advance of 1000 watts, probably around 1500-1900 watts. It's simply beyond the ability of the factory 400 watt inverter unit. Compressors have large motors that draw lots of amps so unless they're really small motors drawing very little power, they're not going to work either.

My household vacuum cleaner draws ~1680 Watts (14 amps AC).

To run those kinds of appliances I would need an inverter capable of putting out 2000+ watts. They sell them too.



An inverter that is capable of putting out 2000 watts is going to draw 166 DC amps! That's an enormous power drain. People who use that kind of power with DC usually have multiple batteries to support the load and protect their starting battery with some kind of isolator.

 

My sawzall works fine with it. Tried running a circular saw and it kept blowing the breaker. I bought a lower amperage sawzall from home depot called a fuego one handed reciprocating saw. About half the size of a regular one. 100 bucks. Comes with carrying case and is the perfect size. Keep it in the truck in case I need to cut lumber down from 8+ foot lengths to fit in the bed of the truck and for other tasks. The link is below.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053