Newbie Electrical questions about 3000w inverter Installation.

Thread Starter

Dorfmeister Studios

Joined May 31, 2019
2
I just bought a 3000w inverter for portable use. The idea was to set it up in random locations for short DJ promo videos - in a field, on the beach etc. I had it connected to the battery yesterday and worked ok but when everything was disconnected and packed away the red and black wires from the inverter touched and cracked a spark leaving a mark on the metal connectors.

My question is how can I stop that.... and / or - is that even bad? Would grounding the chassis stop those sparks happening if the wires touch when disconnected? I'm a bit worried about that residual charge left there when it's all in the box being moved about so is there a good way of releasing that charge safely after you disconnect everything so it's not gonna spark if they touch in transit?
 

dendad

Joined Feb 20, 2016
4,451
It was probably just the input capacitors holding charge. If you are worried, you can put each battery clamp in a plastic bag for insulation.
Or, leave it off the battery for a time and usually the caps will discharge.
Or, discharge it through a resistance.
 

Thread Starter

Dorfmeister Studios

Joined May 31, 2019
2
Great thanks! If it's something that discharges naturally then i'll go with the plastic sheath option probably. When you say through a resistance is that a specific bit of equipment? Or can you sort of whack them on a grounded peg or something to discharge them that way?
 
Top