Your device must be plugged into a converter to change the voltage to avoid overheating or frying. If your device only operates at 110/120 volts (American devices) you will need a converter to step down (or convert) the power supply in your destination country for it to work safely. >220/240 volts = Vast Majority of the Rest of the World ConvertersĬonverters change the voltage from one level to another, usually from 220/240V to 110/120V. If you’re not sure what you need, read on for a better understanding. Many savvy globe trotters pack a universal travel charger and adapter device as it’s an all-in-one device. Read on to the bottom of the article which explains what universal travel chargers and adapters are. One of the best tips you can follow is to buy your adapter plug and travel converter here before you travel internationally and take it with you. Most of the time, you will need just adapter plugs when traveling however in some cases, you may need a voltage converter (also known as a travel charger). Many of today’s devices like newer laptops, apple products like iPhones and iPads are dual voltage, so you don’t need a travel converter or charger to use charge and use them in foreign countries. The OEM batteries never really had the reserve needed to do this.įor me I feel that I needed to have a working solution.A travel adapter makes it so that your device can plug into the outlet which has holes that are different than ours in the US. The largest demand I have figured is my CPAP and the propane heater running through the night. My OEM batteries have gone to crap in 1.5 years and I'm putting in Lifeline AGM 6 volt 220amp hr in the very near future. There are self contained battery packs made for CPAP machines but the cost (3-4 hundred) is crazy considering we have batteries and generators already. In the past I have woken early to turn on the gen because the house battery was projected to be getting low, or ran the gen all night. I think using a CPAP or any other medical device should be a priority for those that need it. I use a CPAP, depending upon weather conditions I use a heated hose, I always use the humidification which is adjusted to what I like (like a thermostat it only turns on when needed). I don't have a CPAP but from reading about them, the humidifier is the largest current draw, and it may not be running continously so the numbers on the nameplate may not be reflective of actual power consumption. While you may be able to run a hair dryer for brief use from those batteries with a large enough inverter, most people here would recommend against it as the inverter and wiring would be a large investment (hundreds of dollars) for a single purpose use. A pair of T-105s taken from 100% to 50% SoC over ten hours is good for about 187 Ah, or 1.12 kWh. Something like this would be a good choice:įor case a), running a 120~180 watt appliance for 8 hours overnight would require between 0.96 and 1.44 kWh. In either case a hair dryer is simply not an option unless the inverter is hard-wired.Īs mentioned, your CPAP will very likely require a pure sine-wave inverter. With case a), you're right at the limit for using that type of connection. That's a pretty significant difference.Ī cigarette lighter plug-in style inverter will be limited to drawing about 15 amps at 12 volts, which is 180W. You will want to use a wire gauge large enough to run the inverter with a minimal voltage drop and you can use an online calculator to tell you what size you need (depends on distance from the power source.) You should size it for 15-20 amps and ideally you don't want to drop more than a few tenths of a volt.Ĭase a) If the amperage you're quoting is at 120V, then your CPAP machine draws 120V * 1A~1.5A = 120~180 watts.Ĭase b) If the amperage is at 12V, then your CPAP machine draws 12V * 1A~1.5A = 12~18 watts. Regarding plug-in or hardwired, even a 250-watt inverter will draw more than most cigarette lighter plugs can supply (safely at least) so hard-wired is really the way to go, and of course it would be mandatory for a larger inverter. 1.5 amps 120 volts is 180 watts so allowing some safety room a 250-watt or higher inverter would run the CPAP, and for this type of device you should probably get a true sine wave converter (somewhat more expensive but a good idea for certain types of devices.) The hair dryer will draw much more current (> 1000 watts) and it probably wouldn't be a good idea to get an inverter sized for the hair dryer if the primary purpose will be for the CPAP, the reason being the larger inverter will not only be much more expensive but it will also likely be less efficient powering small loads.