Furrion RV inverter deal at Camping World

[outsider]

Camping World is having a sale on Furrion 1 kW 12 V inverters. The MSRP is $528 https://furrion.com/collections/inverters/products/1000w-deck-mount-inverter although CW was listing them for $199, before the markdown, but now are $40 https://www.campingworld.com/furrio...000w-12v-dc-to-110v-ac-#fivbdp10a-145133.html .

These are deck-mounted, and are to be hard-wired into the RV system - using wire nuts, ugh. They also have a built-in transfer switch of stated < 20 ms switchover time, which makes me think of using them in a DIY UPS, in addition to using them as fully off-grid (low-power) inverters.

Stated battery input is 10.5 - 15 V, so they would also work the Li batteries as well as lead acid, although they do advise 500 CCA capacity from the battery to support the surge power level of 2500 W, which is rather sporty for small Li batteries.

I have no relationship with either Camping World or Furrion, other than as a sporadic customer of the former.

I have searched threads here and haven't found either conspicuous love nor hate for Furrion. Any thoughts? I'm thinking of picking up a small number "just in case" - $40 seems like a good price for a brand new 1 kW 12 V inverter.

 

[Daddy Tanuki]

Camping World is having a sale on Furrion 1 kW 12 V inverters. The MSRP is $528 https://furrion.com/collections/inverters/products/1000w-deck-mount-inverter although CW was listing them for $199, before the markdown, but now are $40 https://www.campingworld.com/furrion-pure-sine-wave-rv-power-inverter---1000w-12v-dc-to-110v-ac-#fivbdp10a-145133.html .

These are deck-mounted, and are to be hard-wired into the RV system - using wire nuts, ugh. They also have a built-in transfer switch of stated < 20 ms switchover time, which makes me think of using them in a DIY UPS, in addition to using them as fully off-grid (low-power) inverters.

Stated battery input is 10.5 - 15 V, so they would also work the Li batteries as well as lead acid, although they do advise 500 CCA capacity from the battery to support the surge power level of 2500 W, which is rather sporty for small Li batteries.

I have no relationship with either Camping World or Furrion, other than as a sporadic customer of the former.

I have searched threads here and haven't found either conspicuous love nor hate for Furrion. Any thoughts? I'm thinking of picking up a small number "just in case" - $40 seems like a good price for a brand new 1 kW 12 V inverter.

Anything that sells for $40.00 and claiming 2.5kW... I would keep a fire extinguisher nearby as a precaution. even the well known "lower cost" alternative like samlex would run you 7 or 8 hundred i would bet for a 2.5 kw unit. if not more. anything below samlex does not go into anything that I sleep in.
so as a backup quick wire in and use while awake OK but if I had to sleep in the same space it would be a no go simply as I find it hard to trust something that costs 199 in that range, let alone 40.00. just me. flip side buy one and play with it in the garage to test it. you never know.

 

[IGBT]

Anything that sells for $40.00 and claiming 2.5kW... I would keep a fire extinguisher nearby as a precaution. even the well known "lower cost" alternative like samlex would run you 7 or 8 hundred i would bet for a 2.5 kw unit. if not more. anything below samlex does not go into anything that I sleep in.
so as a backup quick wire in and use while awake OK but if I had to sleep in the same space it would be a no go simply as I find it hard to trust something that costs 199 in that range, let alone 40.00. just me. flip side buy one and play with it in the garage to test it. you never know.

Well, if you think about it, the 1800 watt inverter in a Anker solar generator can't be much more than $150 or so, considering the whole thing sells for $500 and includes a solar charger and 1000 watt-hr of LiFePO4 as well. This particular inverter for $40 though, it is sold on Amazon right now for $99 and has mediocre reviews of about 3 stars.

 

[outsider]

2.5 kW is the surge power level, these are 1 kW units.

Even the pricey Victron is just $334 for 1.2 kW, whether 12 V input or 48 V input.

 

[outsider]

Well, if you think about it, the 1800 watt inverter in a Anker solar generator can't be much more than $150 or so, considering the whole thing sells for $500 and includes a solar charger and 1000 watt-hr of LiFePO4 as well. This particular inverter for $40 though, it is sold on Amazon right now for $99 and has mediocre reviews of about 3 stars.

I hadn't thought of looking at Amazon reviews. Thanks! Seems like the unit is quite hit-or-miss.

 

[Infinion]

I have two of these, paid $69 CAD before tax and am using one as a portable inverter with booster clamps, and the other as a UPS.
The only downside is the size and weight, 11 pounds and 14.7" x 5.7" x 4.5" compared to others that are 5 pounds (thinking about Vevor branded true sine inverters).

The reason for the weight and extra dimension I suspect is the hardware for the 16A transfer switch, the extra structural integrity for it to be suitable for RVs (withstand vibrations on the road) and maybe extra capacitors, larger transformer for the 2.5x surge rating where most would only be 2x.

So far build quality is solid. Wish it were a little smaller but it's better than the Samlex 600W I upgraded from. As an aside for that 600W Samlex unit, they decided to split hot and neutral as two 60V AC hot lines. I hated that fact because it was pure sine wave, but most intelligent eletronics trigger their fault detection.

The Furrion also has an internal fuse, I would guess it is soldered to the PCB, allegedly to protect against reverse voltage catastrophic failure. But despite the fuse, they still recommend that you add your own fuse on the positive leg of the 12V battery.

source: user manual https://cdn.accentuate.io/1906129403993/5237057552473/IM-FIVBDP10A-v1570065399798.pdf
spec sheet https://cdn.accentuate.io/1906129403993/5237057388633/MS-FIVBDP10A-V1.7.pdf

If anyone wants me to do anything like open the unit for pictures or test the unit for some quality (waveform, time before overload) let me know and I can spare some time for it.

 

[Rednecktek]

Shows as $99 when I follow the link.

 

[Infinion]

Shows as $99 when I follow the link.

I should have been more specific, but I got mine for $69 Canadian at another store that somehow consistently buys warehouse liquidation stock, princess auto

 

[outsider]

Camping World is apparently discontinuing them, so they're on sale again. (They went back up to normal price after I originally posted this, but are now back to $50. Not quite $40 as before, but still much below MSRP. They are on clearance.)

Furrion Pure Sine Wave RV Power Inverter - 1000W, 12V DC to 110V AC #FIVBDP10A

Furrion RV power inverters efficiently invert 12V DC power stored in batteries to 110V AC power for the electronic needs in your off-grid or mobile living system

www.campingworld.com