Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

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Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

January 29, 2013, 02:16:56 pm

Hello Everyone,

Looks like I need to replace my Xantrex ProSine 2.5 Inverter/charger. It continues to give me a fault/warning and I've tried everything to fix. No luck. So has anyone had to replace theirs and if so , with what brand. Any recommendations would be appreciated. I have a 2002 40 ft. U320. I know that Nag. goes with the Xantrex 3012, but it is a much physically larger unit and needs to be mounted in a bay, flat on the floor. Not sure I want to do that, but may not have a choice.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks, Ralph

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #1 – January 29, 2013, 02:24:16 pm

Ralph,
That is an interesting thought about the floor vs hung on bulkhead, Since removing the LP tank, I now have a choice of installing two 8D Gell Cell batteries or just installing one and the newer Prosine floor model. So wondering if a total of 4 of the 8D batteries and the updated inverter would be a good choice. Thinking etc..
Dave M

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #2 – January 29, 2013, 02:51:47 pm

Dave,

All sorts of ideas can be floated. Some who remove their propane tank and/or go with a residential refrigerator...install six 8D batteries and sometimes with two inverter/chargers (as the factory does). If you like to dry camp, I like solar and like to say there "isn't such a thing as too much solar" (or batteries, for that matter). Well, maybe the wallet is a factor.

Sadly the Prosine 2500 has been deemed by many to be prone to failure and unrepairable. There was a thread on the forum recently that praised a certain band(s) of inverter/charger. Maybe you have searched for that.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #3 – January 29, 2013, 03:08:17 pm

Mine gave me faults and shut off when my batteries were low on charge. Have you checked you battery condition?

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #4 – January 29, 2013, 06:00:37 pm

That is very interesting idea Dave. I am pulling my propane tank in April in fact.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #5 – January 29, 2013, 06:05:55 pm

Folks, I laugh alot, all these ideas, weather good or bad, in the end is why my education seems to always come directly from my hip pocket.

MHO
Dave M

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #6 – January 29, 2013, 06:07:01 pm

You might check with Mr Omel. He has on occasion been a pack rat.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #7 – January 29, 2013, 06:59:49 pm

I rec'd a notice from FT that my Prosine failed while my coach had been left there for repairs.

Rec'd a quote with price and equipment choice of xantrex.

NO! I refuse Xantrex equipement......{{.long boating related story.}}

Bought Magnum equipment online from imarine and had it shipped to FOT. All seems to be working well.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #8 – January 29, 2013, 07:23:53 pm

What about an outback system

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #9 – January 29, 2013, 07:28:00 pm

In the boating world here in the Northwest the replacement inverter of choice today is a Outback.. OutBack Power / Home . I am not sure why they are the choice but they are what most everyone is using. One story around here is the owners are the original engineers who started Trace.

Cheers

Ted

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #10 – January 29, 2013, 08:17:58 pm

We have the Xantrex Prosine 2.0 and it will hang on the wall like your old 2.5. The 2.0 is a completely different inverter charger than your 2.5, and comes with its own higher functioning inside monitor. It has a 2,000 watt true sine wave inverter.
http://www.xantrex.com/power-products/inverter-chargers/prosine-2.aspx

A highly recommended inverter charger is a ceiling mounted Magnum MS2812 that has a true sine wave 2,800 watt inverter. Many have installed this unit upside down or on a new ceiling/wall mounted shelf. It offers extra-cost high function inside monitor, automatic generator start & battery state-of-charge meter, integrated to operate from monitor. Magnum is probably first choice for all.
MS Series Inverter/Chargers

Xantrex 3012 3000 watt inverter charger can probably be ceiling/wall mounted.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #11 – January 29, 2013, 09:34:32 pm

When given the notice that my Prosine 2.5 had a problem FOT ONLY gave me the choice of the Xantrex unit, which I quickly said "boaters throw them overoard and I will ot use another one."

I asked for an Outback or Magnum but they would not comply...therefore I ordered online from iMarine.com /had it sent and paid for labor at FOT.

The unit ordered and installed was done well by them. Magnum MS2812

quite happy! passed on my Prosine and remote monitor to another FT owner who might wish to try a repair on it.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #12 – January 29, 2013, 10:05:50 pm

Outback has been around for a long time with the 'off the grid' group. Their Solar controller is top of the line for the high output voltage multiple pv panel crowd. The only one I would consider for a Heart 2500VA unit would be the VFX2812M which has a 125A bulk charge rate. But at 1700 plus with no idea what controls/panels are included or extra cost its what I would consider high end.
I would agree the Magnum seems to be a bit better for an integrated replacement.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #13 – January 29, 2013, 10:15:49 pm

The Outback 2,800 watt inverter model VFX2812M looks like it could work for our motorhome. Interesting that the number 2812 is the same number used by Magnum.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #14 – January 29, 2013, 11:18:53 pm

The model number 2812 is derived from the 2800 watt output from a 12 volt battery bank.

There was a question asked at the start of this thread about the choice between a combo inverter/charger and two seperate units: a charger and an inverter. My choice is definitely two seperate units: a converter and an inverter. Notice I indicated a converter, not a battery charger. A converter typically outputs 13.8 volts while a battery charger will start at 16 volts for equalize, 14.6 volts for bulk, and float at 13.6 volts. Because I live on solar, I never charge batteries with the generator, so have no need for a charger.

Why two seperate units? Because I can run them both at the same time and power the microwave from the inverter, while trickle charging batteries from the converter when solar power is not available. This allows my coach to appear to have 30 amp service, while only 15 amp service is available (common in Canada).

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #15 – January 29, 2013, 11:27:25 pm

A new inverter is definitely high on our list of coach upgrades. A leading contender for that slot is the Magnum 2812. The best price I was able to find on a Magnum 2812 is at a place local to San Diego, but they also ship from their Internet store. Their price on a Novakool Marine DC refrigerator was also far better than anywhere else I've seen so far. I haven't done any business with them as yet, but I did call and talk to the proprietor and was impressed with his willingness to answer questions. Here is a link to the Magnum 2812 on their website, you have to click on the price in order to see what it is Magnum Energy MS2812 inverter and charger for marine, RV, and solar applications. Spoiler alert... the current price is $1565. I have no affiliation with this business, but am just a potential customer who, when the time is right may purchase from them.
Don

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #16 – January 30, 2013, 01:23:01 am

When our Xantrex Prosine 2kw failed, I replaced it with a Magnum 2012 from Boat Supplies, Marine Electronics & Sailing Gear | iMarine USA
Magnum 2012 - $1208, Magnum ME-ARC50 Advanced Remote Control - $174

Very happy with the Magnum so far. It's been in for 7 months and trouble-free.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #17 – January 30, 2013, 06:49:49 am

Why not ask the question, What causes the Prosine 2500 to fail, clearly some like mine is over 12 yrs old, no issues so far, some have failed much sooner. So WHY ?

I am aware the condition of voltage & frequency from the genset have an effect of the life span of many items, Microwave is a good example.

Just asking for ideas - opinions I guess, seems there is a connection to some condition that causes the early demise.

Dave M

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #18 – January 30, 2013, 11:51:52 am

Thanks for all your replays. Dave I wish I knew what caused it to go bad. Xantrex says,' they just go bad, can't repair, buy a new one." I'm just wondering if it is actually dead or possibly something I did or failed to do. But I have tried everything to make it work, but just get fault,fault on the panel.

Well there are several Inverters to choose from, but which ones will be the easiest to hook up to the existing cables in the bay. At this point I don't know, but I'll find out. I did find a new ProSine 2500 for sale, but why buy it if it goes bad and cannot be repaired.

Again, thanks for the info.

Ralph

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #19 – January 30, 2013, 11:57:30 am

Quote from: Barry & Cindy – January 29, 2013, 08:17:58 pm

Xantrex 3012 3000 watt inverter charger can probably be ceiling/wall mounted.

My Xantrex 3000 is wall mounted.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #20 – January 30, 2013, 12:08:50 pm

The reason I bring up this question, we only know what we know, a friend and I each bought identical microwaves, he had several go bad, I never had any issues, however I started thinking about the generator power source, I made up a home brew genset, Perkins engine, pancake generator end, made the mounting structure and build my own control circuit, verified voltage and frequency consistency, from no load to full load. All worked great for many years, still does per new owner. The friend built a goofy combination using a engine from a trucking refer trailer, connected to an unheard of generator using belt drive. For some reason he had plenty of generator problems including everything that it powered. So why the interest in WHAT causes some inverter systems to go dead, while some seem to just keep on ticking just fine.
Should mention this friend is your typical "Engineer", with all the sheep skin claiming it.
Maybe why I take some "Engineers" with a little smile.
MO]
Dave M

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #21 – January 30, 2013, 12:10:26 pm

After we purchased our coach I replaced the original Taytronics inverter with a Xantrex 2500 watt True sine wave inverter charger that I removed from our fifth wheel. The Xantrex went "intermittent" (mostly not working) on us and I replaced it with a Xantrex 2000 watt true sine wave inverter. The original converter on my coach also crapped out and I replaced that with a Xantrex battery charger. The combined price of both units was less than a new converter/charger and about equal to the cost of shipping and repair of the intermittent Xantrex. The new units are less than half the weight of our old inverter/charger and are mounted on a bulkhead. I believe separate units are simpler, and I am all for simpler. A failure of one does not affect the other. They are also much easier to remove and replace if the need arises. I did stay with Xantrex as I have not had any major issues with their products in the last ten years of full timing. That was my solution and I'm sticking to it.

Roland

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #22 – January 30, 2013, 12:16:43 pm

My 1800 watt Xantrax drowned, under 3 feet of water, It was made in China by the way,

So I bought a new one to replace it, Also from China, But I updated it,

My new one is 5000 Watt with a 10,000 watt surge, Full sine, I ran a 5 inch grinder and 500 watt Drill on it at the same time under full load on two batterys, It didnt miss a beat,

It was $500-00 USD Delivered in my hand to OZ, It can be installed in any position,

Its for my 34 foot Catamaran, which sank on the beach and killed all the electrics under 3 foot from the bottom of the Hulls,
I am very impressed with it, If my Bus one dies, it will be replaced with one of these as well,

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #23 – January 30, 2013, 01:01:54 pm

My Prosine is still alive and well, but I am curious to know how they die. Does just the inverter function go bad, or just the charger?

I wonder if the design is flawed, basically a time bomb waiting to go off.

Re: Prosine 2500 Inverter needs replacement,,,What Brand??

Reply #24 – January 30, 2013, 01:23:03 pm

RE: Xantrex 3012 3000 watt inverter charger can probably be ceiling/wall mounted.

RE: My Xantrex 3000 is wall mounted.

Kent,

Xantrex 3012 is newer & heavy, cube shaped and probably cannot be wall mounted. Xantrex 3000 is an older completely different shaped and is mostly wall mounted.

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