Share your AC easy start results...

**JHC210** · 08-18-2022, 05:54 PM

I have been reading the thread, all good information. I don't know if my Champion 2500W Dual Fuel Inverter will run my Coleman Mach 8 AC unit. No soft start yet. I think I will try it out this weekend and see if the Generator will handle the ac start.

**huntindog** · 08-18-2022, 05:55 PM

Reading all of this got me to thinking. If I installed the easy starts on all 3 of my Coleman Mach 5, 15K ACs, would my Onan 5.5 have enough power to run all of them at once?

**xrated** · 08-18-2022, 06:03 PM

Originally Posted by huntindog

Reading all of this got me to thinking. If I installed the easy starts on all 3 of my Coleman Mach 5, 15K ACs, would my Onan 5.5 have enough power to run all of them at once?

My 5500W Onan will run all three of mine.....2 are the 15K BTU and the third one, in the garage area is a 13.5K BTU. Normally, when the breaker panel is wire from the factory, a 15 and a 13.5 are on one side of the breaker panel feed (call it phase A) and the other 15K is on the other side (call it Phase b)

And as a side note, I do NOT have soft starts on any of them.

**onespeed** · 08-18-2022, 06:17 PM

Ya know, it would make life easier if all the a.c. manufactures installed soft-starts at the factory. Would only be a few bucks for them. Would be a great selling point. I would pay the extra.

**huntindog** · 08-18-2022, 07:10 PM

Originally Posted by xrated

My 5500W Onan will run all three of mine.....2 are the 15K BTU and the third one, in the garage area is a 13.5K BTU. Normally, when the breaker panel is wire from the factory, a 15 and a 13.5 are on one side of the breaker panel feed (call it phase A) and the other 15K is on the other side (call it Phase b)

And as a side note, I do NOT have soft starts on any of them.

I never tried to run all three on generator. During PDI we were told only 2 would work. Time for an experiment

**Hoopy Frood** · 08-18-2022, 07:32 PM

If you try it, be sure to keep an eye on running voltage, as well as start-up amperage. Don't want to run with low voltage.

**huntindog** · 08-18-2022, 08:22 PM

Originally Posted by Hoopy Frood

If you try it, be sure to keep an eye on running voltage, as well as start-up amperage. Don't want to run with low voltage.

I could turn the convertor off and the inverter on to help out the situation. My inverter powers the fridge, microwave and most if not all of the general outlets.
In just about any scenario the solar and/or batteries should be capable of doing it

**jkwilson** · 08-18-2022, 08:42 PM

Originally Posted by Riverbug

As I understand it, household electrical systems can handle the excess surge required on startup, but it's more of a challenge for generators and can certainly pop breakers on 15 or 20 amp circuits depending on what else might be connected and running on that circuit. Maybe someone with more expertise can confirm and explain it for both of us.

This is correct. The generator starting or surge rating is the maximum power the generator is capable of producing without excessive voltage reduction. No matter how brief the demand, the generator will not provide more power.

Utility service could potentially provide many times the rated current for relatively long times. It’s mostly limited by voltage drop in the wiring. Breakers used in consumer service don’t respond instantly to a moderate overload because they operate on heat.

**jkwilson** · 08-18-2022, 09:01 PM

Originally Posted by xrated

Soft starts are basically a VFD.....Variable Frequency Drive. All of those types of motors (along with everything else in the U.S. runs on 60 cycle power. The VFD has the ability to change that frequency to a lower number, say 25 cycles to start with, then ramp it up over time to 60 cycles. The result of that is the motor starting at say 25 cycles is that it pulls a lot less current on start up. The VFD for the A/C units are generally not adjustable as far as ramp up time, where in an industrial environment, there are many settings to be able to get the motor to perform at whatever parameters are needed....speed control, power consumption, etc.

I’ve never had a scope on one of the RV models, but I’d always assumed they used a thyristor to gradually increase the width of the near peak portions of the voltage rather than using a VFD. That’s the way we drove motors on tracking radars and I never figured there was a need for a more complicated setup on an air conditioner.

**Riverbug** · 08-19-2022, 05:55 AM

Originally Posted by Ynot4me2

Inrush or LRA is a real thing and pain in the... When ever we have a Data Center that crashes and comes back up, some of our safety breakers will trip. Especially in the high density computing racks. Grrr. Just to much current at once from multiple devices.
My question which is kind of spinning off is, is the Bluetooth feature worth it? I was hoping to get my Microair with BT before my next trip but they are still back ordered unless I pay a hefty fee. I can however get a softstart for a little less. But the geek in me wants to see the numbers. Lol

Well, the bluetooth version is only worth if you are a geek.

I have issues with checking my Victron app, EasyStart app, One Control app, etc... What I like about the EasyStart app is that you can see the numbers as it is running and during the learn process. Without it, I wouldn't have understood what it is doing. Otherwise, it certainly is not critical. I wish it had more data in the app and I wish it could be viewed while the compressor is not running. So that's one thing to be aware of, the only time you can view it is when the compressor is active. And it displays amperage such as "last start amps" and current "run amperage", but it doesn't list voltage, which is odd. I would prefer to have one with it than not, but it won't blow your socks off.