How-To Info for Living in a Honda Fit (or any car!)

[Victor]

The inverter is rated for 120 watts 12v. It is designed to plug into the cigarette lighter so I only have it when my car is running. I use it to run my lap top 60wats, phone5watts and FM transmitter3watts. I can also charge my Ryobi charger 50watts. It's pretty simple, as long as you don't draw more than 120 watts it shouldn't blow fuses or break. It has two 120 plugs and 2 USB plugs. one is 2.5 and the other is 1.2 watts. I usually charge my phone using the plug which will charge at 5 watts. The inverter does have a fan on it that is kind of loud but I listen to movies and music through the car speakers so it's just background noise. The inverter also has a 12 volt female plug so I could probably run a 12 volt fan or something pretty easy.

 

[Spirit4earth]

I will definitely get one of those. What brand? Is it a Radio Shack (if any of them exist anymore) type thing, or Best Buy, or...?

 

[Victor]

I believe the inverter is by Road Proof. You should be able to find it at an auto store. An internet search should show you which ones.

The following is a link to the exact model I have. I am not suggesting you buy it from this store it was just the easiest way to share the exact model.

https://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com...MI6tThgL7d2QIVg6_ICh18oASaEAkYASABEgLzBPD_BwE

Just make sure you do the math on what you plug in. Otherwise you'll burn out the inverter or overload the circuit your plugging it into.

 

[Spirit4earth]

I wonder if a 200 watt would be too much?

 

[Spirit4earth]

What’s the max wattage the little fit battery could handle? There are several 200 watt inverters.

 

[John61CT]

Don't run your vehicle battery down, put in a House bank.

The hard part's getting it recharged.

Most things don't need an inverter, what do you think does?

 

[Spirit4earth]

I’d like to be able to charge my iPad while driving, so the usb would be helpful.

 

[Victor]

Spirit4earth

The Honda 12v outlet only has 120 watts. So, no don't plug 200 watts. If you want more than 120 watts, you need to add a battery. That being said, you should be able to plug in a phone, computer and tablet all at the same time. You could also probably hook up LED light or something. To stay on the safe side, I always stick to computer and phone. When I need to plug in more I unplug something. But then I don't have a lot of power needs.

If you over load your outlet - best case you blow the fuse - worse case you start a fire. So make sure you know what your outlet is rated for and don't exceed it.



I like the inverter and have been using it for about 4 months now.

John61CT,

I only run power when my engine is running. Since it's cold right now New York State, I run the engine when I am awake.

 

[Victor]

You can just buy a little 12v usb plug if you only need to plug in one device. I power my computer off the inverter.

 

[Victor]

Spirit4earth,

I'm amending my post because I just read what you posted more carefully. You said, how much inverter can the Fit Battery handle. You don't want to use your starting battery for your house power supply - it's just not a good idea.

The inverter isn't running directly off the battery when you plug it into your car lighter 12v plug. If you were hard wiring it to the battery it would. However, you would not want to hard wire your inverter to your starter battery because you need your starter battery to start the car. If you are going to use an inverter plugged into your cigarette lighter that lighter plug has a certain thickness wire behind it and will usually a circuit breaker or fuse rated for the wire. If you pull too much power through the plug the circuit will trip. If you draw too much for the thickness of the wire the wire will melt or catch on fire. So, what your doing is getting the inverter which is rated the same as the plug you are plugging it into.

So, find out what your cigarette plug is rated to and get a power inverter rated to the same or less. My Honda fit is rated at 120 watts. If you want more than 120 watts you should buy a battery for inside the car.

Also, if your going to use an inverter which uses the 12v plug in your car - only use it when the car is running- otherwise you risk draining your starter battery.

 

[John61CT]

Stock factory ciggie ports claim to handle 10A of current safely (@12V = 120w).

Some laptops alone can pull more than that, but most are well below.

Phones and tablets are well below. None of these require an inverter, should be charged direct from 12VDC.

I would not go past 6-7A on a regular basis, but ideally get away from ciggie ports completely for any consumers used for long periods.

The way ciggie port connections are designed they are inherently poor, subject to arcing from intermittent contacting and easily pulled loose. Keep aware of that, look out for plastic melting, burn marks and smells.

Ideally you'd wire a pair of Anderson plugs from a suitable circuit at the fuse box, or even direct from the alt / starter circuit.

Then you could more safely plug in almost anything you wanted as long as the engine's running.

 

[Victor]

Excellent - I may look into those Anderson plugs. My computer is only 3.6 amps. That's why I always look at the panels. I've never come close to 120 watts. I think I'm at 67 with my computer and my phone and my FM transmitter plugged in. Thanks for the additional info John61CT.

 

[NomadicFoodie]

The Fit also has a USB port in the upper glove compartment on the passenger side. I use that to charge my computer or phone as I drive freeing up the cigarette lighter for a mini cooler on the passenger side floor. I also splurged on a Jackery 500 for heavier duty things when the car is not running, and to plug the cooler into overnight. The Jackery has a solar panel which I have not bought yet. I'm looking for a larger vehicle to fulltime in so am only spending on things that will be useful for that too, I can recharge the Jackery from the cigarette lighter when the car is running too.