Filter
Top Products
Installation
44 975-0126-02-01
Battery Bank Sizing
Purchase as much
battery capacity as
possible
Battery size or capacity is just as important as the battery type selected for use
with your MS2000 Sine Wave Inverter/Charger. The batteries are the most
important part of your system, so Xantrex recommends that you purchase as much
battery capacity as possible. A large battery will extend running time and ensure
that your inverter/charger delivers full rated surge. Your inverter/charger can be
configured to work with batteries from 50 Ah (120 reserve minutes) to 2000 Ah
(4800 reserve minutes).
Battery capacity A number of different standards are used to rate battery energy storage capacity.
Automotive and marine starting batteries are normally rated in cranking amps.
This is not a relevant rating for continuous loads like an inverter. Deep-cycle
batteries use a more suitable rating system, either amp-hours (Ah) or “reserve
capacity” in minutes. Battery reserve capacity is a measure of how long a battery
can deliver a certain amount of current—usually 25 amps.
For example, a battery with a reserve capacity of 180 minutes can deliver 25 amps
for 180 minutes before it is completely discharged. Amp-hour capacity is a
measure of how many amps a battery can deliver for a specified length of time—
usually 20 hours.
A typical marine or RV battery rated for 100 Ah can deliver 5 amps for 20 hours
(5 A × 20 hours = 100 Ah). This same battery can delivery a higher or lower
current for less or more time, limited approximately by the 100 Ah figure (50 A
for 2 hours or 200 A for 1/2 hour), but usually the capacity figure given is only
accurate at the specified rate (20 hours).
The minimum battery size you can use with the MS2000 Sine Wave Inverter/
Charger is 50 Ah. However, you can expect performance to suffer with such a
small battery. Even if your battery is in excellent shape and is fully charged, you
will likely experience poor surge power performance and unsatisfactory operating
time with anything but a small AC load. Xantrex recommends a minimum
battery size of 200 Ah for moderate loads (<1000W) and greater than 400 Ah
for heavy loads.