can a 10,000 watt power inverter power an air compressor of 3hp?

Question

i dont have a garage and want to do projects with my truck. I am planning to use power tools such as grinders, and most especially an air compressor that can supply enough power to paint a car. i know i can put up light bulbs with any power inverter but vaccuums and other power tools that have moving parts, even if their rating is well below the rating of my inverter does not work, why and how can i solve this problem?

Answer 1

You definately have enough juice for the power inverter. It may be that your power tools requires pure sine wave power vesus the modified sine wave of regular power inverters, i.e. some power tools with motors that have speed control will work only with pure sine wave. Also check the cable size from the battey to the power inverter, i.e. it may not be supplying enough current.

Answer 2

A horsepower is equal to 746 watts, so a 3 hp motor should be able to be powered under steady state operating conditions by a 2238 watt inverter.

However, you should consider the surge current required to start the motor when sizing the inverter. This depends on the type of motor used in the air compressor. This is probably why you have not been able to power equipment with nominally sized inverters in the past.

In some motors, surge current is 5-6 times greater than the operating current. If this is true for your compressor, you will have problems with anything less than a 11kW to 14kWt inverter.

Answer 3

If you could be more specific about the compressor: brand & model, for instance, that would help. Look at your compressor and find it's wattage rating. If it doesn't specify watts, it should say voltage and current draw (Amps / Amperage). Multiply the amps and volts and this will give watts. You'll need an inverter capable of supplying at least that many watts. More than likely, your compressor is around 2000 or so watts so you're looking at a moderately expensive inverter- between ~140-~500 depending on brand and wattage. An inverter in that range will likely also hard-wiring to the battery instead of the cigarette lighter type since most cig lighter inverters will peak around 400 watts due to the wiring to the lighter plug.

Answer 4

If your 3hp compressor runs on 120 V, it is likely to have a starting current between 200 and 300 A., about 10-11 times what your inverter is rated to provide. Your inverter may not be able to handle any motor above 3/4 HP, as single-phase motors are also notorious for having poor power factors, as well (that's where I got the 300 A. value above).

Answer 5

10000 Watt Inverter

Answer 6

! horsepower is about 750 Watts or 0.75 kW, so 10,000 Watts would be over 13 horsepower -- more than enough for the 3 hp compressor. 10,000 watts is a pretty large inverter for 'home' use.


note: the exact conversion is 745.699 -- close enough to 750

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