Example – Reserve capacity: a battery with a reserve capacity of 180 minutes can deliver 25 ampere for 180 minutes before it is completely discharged. Example – Ampere-hour capacity: a battery with an ampere-hour capacity of 100 ampere-hours can deliver 5 ampere for 20 hours before it is completely discharged. To determine the battery ampere-hour capacity you require: 1. Determine how many watts each piece of equipment consumes. This can normally be found on the product label. If only the current draw is given, multiply the current draw by 115 to get the watt consumption. 2. Estimate the time (in hours) that each piece of equipment will be running between battery charging cycles. 3. Calculate the total watt-hours of energy consumption (power x operating time) using the average power consumption and the total estimated running time (in hours). Power x Operating Time = Watt-Hours. Ground Wiring • There is a screw on the rear panel for Chassis Ground. This is to connect the chassis of the inverter to ground. The Chassis Ground Screw must be connected to a grounding point, which will vary depending on where the unit is installed. Use a #8 AWG copper wire (preferably with green/yellow insulation) to connect the chassis ground screw to the grounding point. Chassis Ground IntroOperationCustomerAssistanceWarrantyNotesNoticeMain IconsSecondary IconsCautionWarningInstallation In a vehicle: Connect the Chassis Ground to the chassis of the vehicle. In a boat: Connect to the Boat Grounding System. In a fixed location: Connect the Chassis Ground Screw to earth ground by connecting to a ground rod (a metal rod pounded into the earth) or other proper service entrance ground. Laptop TV/VCR (up to 25") Blender 100 watts x 2 hours 115 watts x 3 hours 300 watts x 15 minutes = 200 watt-hours = 345 watt-hours = 75 watt-hours 4. Divide the watt-hours by 10 to determine how many battery (12 volt) ampere-hours will be consumed. 12 Nothing Comes Close to a Cobra™ 13 10276_CPI2575_PH1 8/20/07 2:33 PM Page 14 Power On and Off Remote On/Off Switch Turning Your Inverter On or Off • Be sure to have your power inverter properly installed before attempting to turn the unit on (see installation page 6). To turn the power inverter on: 1. If a DC power supply is being used as the power source, switch it on. 2. On the Output End, press the Power Button to on. Power Button IntroOperationCustomerAssistanceWarrantyNotesNoticeMain IconsSecondary IconsCautionWarningInstallation The inverter is now ready to deliver AC power to your loads. If several loads are to be operated by the inverter, turn them on separately, after the inverter has been turned on. This will ensure that the inverter does not have to deliver the starting currents required for all the loads at once. IntroOperationCustomerAssistanceWarrantyNotesNoticeMain NOTE The Power Button turns the control circuit in the inverter on and off. It does not disconnect power from the inverter. When the button is in the off position, the inverter draws no current from the battery. When it’s in the on position, but no power is being supplied to a load, the inverter draws less than 600 milliamperes from the battery. This is low current draw. It would take more than a week to discharge a 100 ampere- hour battery at this rate depending on the age of the battery. Remote On/Off Switch • An optional Remote On/Off Switch (see page 24 to order accessories) can be connected to the Remote Jack allowing you to turn the Cobra power inverter on or off from a convenient location when the inverter is installed in an out of reach location. Remote Switch Remote Jack IntroOperationCustomerAssistanceWarrantyNotesNoticeMain IconsSecondary IconsCautionWarningInstallation 14 Nothing Comes Close to a Cobra™ 15 10276_CPI2575_PH1 8/20/07 2:33 PM Page 16 Operating Indicators Operating Indicators Operating Indicators • Indicators at the Output End of the unit show the unit’s power status and alarms for conditions that could cause it to shut down. Output Watts Power on – The Voltage Input and Power Output indicators automatically toggle between input and output values at three-second intervals. The three LEDs indicate the mode the meter is in and the three digits indicate the voltage or power value. Current Overload Protection – If the inverter is overloaded, it will shut down to protect itself. The meter will flash as shown to indicate Overload Protect. To restore normal operation, disconnect the excessive load and turn the unit Off and On again using the Power Button. Short Circuit Protection – If the AC output of the inverter is shortcircuited for one second or more, it will shut down to protect itself. The meter will flash as shown to indicate Short Circuit Protect and an alarm will sound. To restore normal operation, disconnect the short circuit and turn the unit Off and On again using the Power Button. Over Current Short Circuit Low Voltage High Voltage Low Voltage Protection – If the DC input voltage drops below the ala...