Issues and Solutions to the Modified Sine Wave Inverter

[swanneemtb]

We recently went on our first overlanding trip in our Taco. Its a 2024 TRD Off Road. I have a Jackery E 1000 V2 power station and a ICECO 60 e-cooler. The problem we immediately ran into was charging the Jackery from the 120V outlet in the rear of the truck bed. What we found out is that the Jackery doesn't like the modified sine wave of the Taco inverter. My question is this if...or if anyone has tried it and/or has a better solution: for a quick fix, we read that the Jackery does pretty well with a 12 volt DC input to charge it, so I bought a $30 adapter to try vs buying a $200 + pure sine wave inverter to wire to the battery. Has anyone out their run into this issue and if so, what was your solution? Thanks. (also, if you did use a pure sine wave inverter, what type and size did you choose...I'm just wondering as I can't see the need for much more wattage than that needed to charge the Jackery)

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[Reconsnake]

If you dont need a large inverter, I keep one of these in each vehicle, only $40.
Amazon.com: BESTEK Pure Sine Wave Power Inverter - 300W Car Plug in Charger Outlet DC 12V to 110V AC - Cigarette Lighter Adapter 4.8A Dual USB Fast Charging Ports for Phone, Laptop, CPAP - Black : Automotive

 

[myhikingboots]

Is your truck a hybrid? The inverter on my hybrid had no problem charging my EcoFlow battery.

 

[Wife bought my 24 TRD]

Ran into the exact issue trying to charge my Jackery 3000 and the same solution 12v.
As you mentioned the need for more wattage while overlanding comes down to a few solutions that I know of.
Larger solar panel, i use a 500 W.
Or like you mentioned, get a pier sign wave inverter with charger controller and wire in a second battery to create an independent system.

 

[gofastdan]

The problem with the (non-hybrid) inverter is that even if you get a pure sign wave it only puts out 400w when it's in park. As soon as you take the vehicle out of park the output drops to 100w. The attached Bestek solution might be fine but most stock 12v outlets are limited to 120w and if you try to pull more than that you'll blow the fuse. 120w takes hours to charge a decent size battery. Plus, personally, I don't trust a $40 solution to convert 12v to 120v. One short and the whole vehicle goes up in smoke.

Like Wife Bought... says, IMHO the best solutions are ones that completely bypass Toyotas hardware. There are many, many ways to set it up and the first thing you need to do is clearly define your needs. The jackery might be fine now but how long before you add a diesel heater, induction cooktop, etc and want a more robust solution...?

Personally, I have solar on the top of my camper and an ETaker F1000 charger, which connects to both the battery and the solar panel. It prioritizes solar charging but also charges via the alternator when the truck is running. I limit the alternator input to 400w just to make sure I don't damage it but most of the time when I'm driving it's combining solar and alternator and charges at 500w (a limit I set in the app and the most power a single port on my EcoFlow Delta 2 pro can handle). There are far more robust (and expensive) solutions but this works for me.

 

[swanneemtb]

Is your truck a hybrid? The inverter on my hybrid had no problem charging my EcoFlow battery.

No, standard 4 cylinder - I've read similar reports about the 120v outlet on the hybrid.

 

[swanneemtb]

The problem with the (non-hybrid) inverter is that even if you get a pure sign wave it only puts out 400w when it's in park. As soon as you take the vehicle out of park the output drops to 100w. The attached Bestek solution might be fine but most stock 12v outlets are limited to 120w and if you try to pull more than that you'll blow the fuse. 120w takes hours to charge a decent size battery. Plus, personally, I don't trust a $40 solution to convert 12v to 120v. One short and the whole vehicle goes up in smoke.

Like Wife Bought... says, IMHO the best solutions are ones that completely bypass Toyotas hardware. There are many, many ways to set it up and the first thing you need to do is clearly define your needs. The jackery might be fine now but how long before you add a diesel heater, induction cooktop, etc and want a more robust solution...?

Personally, I have solar on the top of my camper and an ETaker F1000 charger, which connects to both the battery and the solar panel. It prioritizes solar charging but also charges via the alternator when the truck is running. I limit the alternator input to 400w just to make sure I don't damage it but most of the time when I'm driving it's combining solar and alternator and charges at 500w (a limit I set in the app and the most power a single port on my EcoFlow Delta 2 pro can handle). There are far more robust (and expensive) solutions but this works for me.

All this makes sense and I'll definitely keep this as point of reference moving forward - thanks!

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