Oh great! You’re gonna love having it hooked up

haha ... thanks, man!

That crimping trick might end up kicking him later.. there's a reason crimp tools have a 'V' shape on Both sides.

Chris W Same idea using two triangular files then. Still saves buying a crimping tool for a single job.

That sounds like it would work well

They say, give a competent man a tool and he can find a 1000 uses for it.

hey, nice of you to say! I really appreciate that. take care!

Wow, crazy story! Thanks for the tips

There are some good jumper cables out there I have one I don't want to cut, there is also another trend of 10 pounds of insulation on a 20 gauge wire they were free.

Yes! For the best quality and price for cable, source it from a welding supplier. Even Harbor Freight (U.S.) or Princess Auto (Canada) welding cable by the foot is a better gamble than recycled booster cables. Size the wire as large as you can tolerate for DC current and keep the runs as short as possible. Never exceed 10 feet per run.

@@chrisgraham2904 10 ft? If you never exceed 10ft per run than no car amplifiers could ever be installed in trunks etc. As this is common practice what is your reasoning?

@@donalddluckerii3147 For every inverter manufacturer that I investigated, somewhere in their fine print they state that the wire length between the battery and the inverter must not exceed 10 ft. The inverter warranty is void if that length is exceeded, so I assume that this is their legal liability issue. Many people do exceed that limit when installing on pick-up trucks, etc. and seem to have little issues. Don't skimp on wire size and oversize beyond recommended where ever possible. Solar panel manufacturers and retailers are also a good resource for expert advise on inverter installations.

Oh good! Good luck with the project!

Thanks! Tundra will great with more power options

Glad to hear it!

Most excellent! Gotta get the good deals when ya can

@@metaspencer you bet!

Solid ideas, thanks !

Thanks! Real nice of you to say

Okay, now why didn't I think of that! Put the inverter up front and then just run an extension cord to the rear of the truck. Doh! Great plan there, man. I really like that idea. Plus, it's flexible if you need to run the cord out the front end. Thanks for that tip and the thinking of power reduction.

wouldnt you have to open the hood and switch the inverter on everytime you wanted to use it. what about water getting in the inverter.

@@bobmanfredonia8412 I could keep the breaker switched on all the time, but prefer to keep it off when not using the inverter. For me, using the inverter is just an occasional thing, so switching it under the hood is not a big deal. I'm sure others have different needs. As for water, it's not a problem: the unit is nice and dry under my topper.

I wonder about the heat AND the water ...

@Hell's favorite NPC #69OU812 . exe Yeah, that makes sense ... seems to work for the low draw uses I put it to, at least

Haha ... yeah, definitely a little bit sketchy. :)

I get that now - thanks. Too many years of house wiring on my end I guess haha ... take care

In my opinion it's still best to run straight to the battery especially when drawing a lot from the battery

Any inverter over 1000 watt must have both - & +, 2 awg (or larger) cables. Im not an expert, but every one I've ever owned would clearly state that in the manual.....

@@jasonpintler8150 but isn't several hundred square feet (guess) of conductive metal at least 0 gauge? Its an honest question as I don't know the answer.

@@awesomesauce2935 The ground circuit thru the chassis must still be connected to the battery. The small size of the battery to chassis ground cable will result in a voltage drop going to the inverter. The greater the load on the inverter the greater the voltage drop. The more the voltage drop the more amps required to deliver the same watts/power. The greater the amp draw the more the wires will heat up. The resistance from the heat will farther reduce will the voltage requiring even more amps.

92! Excellent

I installed this inverter after spending a week sleeping in the back of the truck -- it's great to be able to plug in and charge things back there. You're gonna like it. Note that you might be able to save some money and time by installing the unit under the hood and simply plugging in an extension cord for your power. That's another option. Good luck with the project and truck life!

I wonder if this inverter is strong enough to run a small 100 psi air compressor.

I think it would be. Just check amps on the compressor

@@metaspencer Great vid.... question please. I have read that car batteries are inherently limited to about 150 to 200w power draws? can that be true? how does a 2000w inverter work with a regular battery then? Thank you so much.

@@uber2tuber Yeah you will surely encounter limits when pulling from a car battery ... from what I know it all depends on the size of the batteries, alternator, etc

I just cut and cut and cut until all the strands are cut ... seems to work!

@@metaspencer I'll give it a go on an old cable , my snips are probably crap and dull too. cheers

Most excellent! Nice of you to say

Oh dang, I like the sound of that. A nice soldered connection is always the best. T'hanks for the tip!

haha ... big thanks!

Interesting ideas and insights. Thanks buddy!

Man, I'm jealous! How did you get a long enough wire to reach the tailgate? I know what you mean about it being a pain, but I've been using a 10ft extension cord, which is less annoying. Take care!

I purchased stranded #6 house wire. Put it in the flex duct like you did yet the cheap duct rotted out after about 8 years. Just got a new f150 and will reinstall this wiring and some new duct. I may have to buy some new wire. Welding cable is a good choice as well for longer runs. Again good job on the video and install.

Oh, very good. I think I'll follow your advice on my other truck. It would be great to have the plugs way in back

Thanks! Yeah still liking my setup

Haha … you are absolutely right!

Oh good! You’re gonna love it

That all makes good sense ... 100 amp is way safer. I use it sparingly but see what you mean. Thanks!

And open the hood every time I need to use it? Hmmm

@@gradyrm237 for me that works since I use it only once a week or even less ...

@@gradyrm237 You can run an extension cord to the back of the truck. AC has less loss/heat than DC does and doesn't require as thick of a cable

You've given me a lot to think about, thanks! I guess the risk would be if I was pulling big power, like with a chop saw or something. I'm thinking of either 1) switching out that breaker, or 2) moving the inverter to the engine compartment and using an extension cord for the plug-in ... anyway, thanks for the careful reasoning!

Sounds like a coool idea :)

Thank you very much! I'm glad it was useful!

Oh good idea! Never thought of that. Maybe I'll apply some liquid electrical "tape" ... thanks!

Yep you said it. Great idea

Good to hear! You'll like the setup

cool idea, especially if you plan to use it a lot

That copper coated aluminum is too common! Saving the clips was smart

@@metaspencer I was between a set at Walmart and a set an a bargain Close out store, from what I could tell thoroughly looking at them in the store they looked good and that they were supposedly 2 gauge. the price was about the same and I couldn't see the Walmart version which was smaller. So I went with these big suckers they're about the size of my thumb and nice and flexible, now if only my fuse holder would come in I would have to force myself to find a way through the firewall and be good. My biggest inverter is a 750w MSW :-( I keep saying my next is going to be a true sine-wave output it runs things more efficiently and some audio/amps/motors don't like modified. so I'm like way overkill anyway with a little bit of expansion. And all I have to do is get some ring terminals, nuts and bolts and I can put clips on whatever I want, or use them as clamps. Another thing I did instead of ring terminals is I got some electrical terminals that you usually bolt to a bus bar and have a screw tightened clamping mechanism to put the wire in and tighten it down which will make it easy to remove or change in the future. I do a lot of stuff with the end goal of having it be removable with minor changes, considering I went through three cars in six months :-( I am certainly looking at how easy it is to remove in 30 minutes while the guys watching you at the junkyard. I had to rip out my Bluetooth aftermarket radio and any other modifications I wanted to save and even tried to get the full tank of gas that I just put in…

@@imark7777777 Sounds like a good set-up and approach to me! You're gonna love it

The funny thing is a day or two after making this last comment my fuse holders finally came in and they sat around for a while. I Finally got everything in and it's all done and it works nice. I was looking around for a small disconnect to turn off and not drained the battery when not in use and decided to go with my original plan of using the second fuse holder.

Awesome! Great to have it running

I guess I really should put a solar panel on top of my topper for off-grid camping ... cool idea! Solar is definitely a bit more complicated, as you'll need a charge controller and all that, but you should be able to find some useful diagrams online. Good luck with it!

Oh yeah, that will save you time and wire. The chassis is definitely a good ground

You and me both: I'm checking those holes all the time for leaks :)

Makes good sense. Thanks man

Oh how I'd love a van! Now I'm jealous. Good luck as you set it all up ... you're gonna love being able to charge stuff up

metaspencer I just got the unit up and running now I can charge my phone I’m taking a road trip so now I have power for my 2 laptops and I can put in work When I build my new house I’m going to wire it up for direct current I may have an underground wire to a utility shed with city power but other then that AC power useless in my mind

@@joshuajonathanhood1227 Sounds excellent. I've got a buddy who has a full solar setup and it's awesome

metaspencer I already am using my laptop and charging my phone it’s awesome ! My inverter already has a switch in it so I didn’t have to install one , the vans nice I’m living in my van while I travel across country working from vehicle it’s a must to have power

metaspencer does he have a KZfaq ? I would love to see his set up I’m actually friends with Elon Musk & will be lobbying for solid energy above all other energy sources . When I build my new house I’m going to install solar panel roofing shingles do you own your own home ? If so how long does your roof have left on it’s life ? I may be able to get you some solar panels at cost once available I’m I’m thinking in the next 1-3 years....

Thanks for checking it out!

Thanks man!

woah, 400k! it's hard to believe, but this 1990 has just, wait for it, 53k miles. hardly any miles and next to zero rust. so you can imagine that I really like it :)

WOW, you better love that truck.

"ran pretty good till my 17 year old got ahold of it..." Wish I had a dollar for everytime that was uttered...….

They’re dangerous!

Good luck with it!

Thanks!

Thanks man

You’re looking for a 2000 watt inverter I’m guessing... sounds like a good setup

I don't think any consumer microwaves exceed 1500 Watts -- the smaller compact units are usually around 1,100 Watts and are quite adequate for reheating a coffee , a sandwich, soups and stews..etc. Size the inverter 500 Watts above what your plugging into it.

I see your point on that routing method for the wire but didn't want to come in low as I was thinking about water infiltration. But I see your point.

sounds like a pretty good setup -- I would have figured that those CPAP machines took more power than the battery could produce. but no! I'm pretty psyched to have this AC power option for trips and remote builds. take care!

Man that's rough glad it's been working out for you!

Good to hear from you!

Thanks man. It's great having the 110 AC power option. A real game changer

hey guys! :) I hope he's feeling better

@@metaspencer he's better than ever thanks

Thanks for the tip! I'll check that out periodically

it charges just like the main battery: off the alternator

Thanks for checking it out!

I got the jumper cables cheap ... just use what works for ya

Yeah, good point. I didn't exactly know that when I was doing it ... years of wiring houses got in my way. Thanks for the tip!

Number one is a yes, but just keep it charged regularly. Number two is that it’s just how some heavy duty trucks are set up. Good luck with it!

You bet!

Check a wire size chart. Depends on load but also length of the wire. Fuse is a good idea

You can ground to the body of the vehicle ... that's the the negative cable. I ran mine to the battery but you can just ground to the frame

Great setup. Just get a high quality unit

That humming doesn't sound good to me ... I guess I'd probably not use it if possible. It would be bad to have a fire

@@metaspencer thank you so much for your reply, i really appreciate it. I will look for another power inverter. Thank you so much 🤗

thanks, man

Thanks man!

Yep, on my list for when I replace the leisure battery. Also an isolator

Good point! I've since added a 10' extension cord to be able to charge my batteries back at the tailgate

I see your point, but the dang strap just keeps hanging in there! I should change it, but I somehow never do

I've had that question a few times. Yes, microwave has a big draw

That would be amazing! I kinda doubt you’d get enough heat … but it would be cool

I've heard that from a few people -- seems they're especially important if running electronics. Thanks !

It wasn't intentional to get the 220v and makes sense to keep in the 110 arena for sure

@@metaspencer makes sense. Funny as I’m looking for a 220v one to use overseas ha. Thanks for the vid! Good stuff.

Sir, no I can't do that. I'd never run a heater on a battery. That would be too much power draw

good idea!

Thanks! It's still running well and very useful

Yes, thicker and shorter cables will hold more load with fewer problems. If you look at a wire size chart you will be able to tell you what wire you need. Good luck!

@@metaspencer thanks

Thanks for checking it out

There seem to me to be a few potential problems: one would be having the heater pull more than the inverter can handle ... the other would be killing the alternator. I'd be hesitant, myself, to run a heater just because of the draw, but I hope it works out for you!

metaspencer well if I run say a 1000w heater on a 2000w inverter, I wouldn’t think the inverter would be overloaded. But I guess I don’t know enough about the alternator charging capabilities.

I'm super happy about it ...

Big battery and limited draw ... charge often

I've had that question a few times. Without a crimper I used a pair of vice grips, sandwiching the wire between screwdrivers. That puts a nice dent in the fitting. Some will add solder to the end too

Thanks man

recharge but linking it up in series or parallel depending on what you want, if your alternator can handle it

It's a great setup

I have a Corolla so i don't have to drill any holes in the back--I can just use one of the holes they added to let mice in

Love those carollas! I had one for 20 years

Oh what a great idea. Thanks for that tip! Good one

That’s a lot of power … second battery would be key

works for me! :)

That sounds smart. You can put the breaker anywhere, but keep in mind that the wire leading up to the breaker is not protected and, if cut into or something could arc

Vice grips and bolts to make the crimp ... worked but a crimper of that size would be nice

@@metaspencer sure would. anyway, great video.

Thanks for checking it out!

Thanks!

Worth a try but I can’t see starting the vehicle with no battery

oh yeah! me to ... thanks!

It’s tied into the main battery so the alternator charges both

The thing about my Chevy is that it's still at just 65k, so it's hard to tell about the overall cost of repairs. I have had a few things go, like the freakin' tranny! But that may have been a fluke due to hauling heavy loads. I've owned one Toyota and had a good experience: went 200k with little repairs other than the clutch at 180k. My ford and chevy trucks have not been so lucky ... but then, I still love 'em and get a ton of work done with them, so it may all even out. Good hearing from ya, man!

Hmmm, thanks for the tips!

Mat Gilan So what kind of wire can be used instead of jumper cable?

Thick gauge