The vehicle powered inverter is a pure sine 1000 watt Samlex SA-1000K-112 with a S-R8 remote control.  Inverter is installed behind the driver seat on the outside of the shower enclosure wall.  The inverter is powered by the three Ford 60 amp CCP terminals that are on the back of the seat pedestal.  The CCP terminals are metric and use 5 mm nuts.  There are three # 6 AWG cables from the 3/16" CCP terminals to a four stud Blue Sea # 2307 positive bus bar with 1/4" studs.  A # 2 AWG cable is bolted to the fourth stud and goes to a FB-a fuse holder with 3/8" studs that holds the 150 amp class T fuse.  A # 2 cable goes from the fuse to a Blue Sea # 6006 on/off battery switch that has 3/8" studs.  From the switch to the inverter positive post there is a # 2 AWG cable.  Inverter positive post is 5/16" dia.  The inverter 5/16" negative post has a # 2 AWG cable from the inverter to a 3/8" grounding bolt hole on the emergency brake bracket.  Negative cable goes down to the floor from inverter then across the floor behind the driver seat and under the emergency brake plastic cover to the ground.  Had to modify the cover for cable entry.

    

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The cables were made by the local Interstate battery store.  First step is to measure the diameter of all the studs and determine if a straight or 90 degree cable end is required.  Second step is to cut a small cotton rope to the length required from eyelet to eyelet.  Put a red or black tape on the rope to denote the color and a tag for the cable size.  Added a tag at each end to give the eyelet diameter and if it needs to be a straight or 90 degree fitting.  Took the ropes to Interstate to have the cables made.

The S-R8 remote is mounted on the side of the driver seat pedestal between the pedestal and the emergency brake handle.  Raised the driver seat 13/16" so I could use existing holes for the remote mounting bracket.  The S-R8 remote has a pushbutton to start/stop the inverter manually and also has a spade terminal that can automatically start/stop the inverter when 12 volts is applied to the terminal.  Used one of the Ford four "user defined" dash switches to supply the 12 volt signal.  The dash switches are powered when key is in accessory position and with engine running.  Using the 12 volts to the remote terminal starts/stops the inverter each time the engine starts/stops.  The connector for the four switches on the 2015 Transit is under the driver seat.  Bought Ford part # WPT-1408 which is the male connector for the under the seat female connector.  I bought a four position Blue Sea part # 2504 terminal block and mounted the block under the emergency brake cover at the back of the emergency brake.  The four wires from the under the seat connector go out an existing slot on the back of the seat pedestal down to the terminal block.  Put a rubber grommet around the four wires where they go through the slot.  Ford wires were the correct length to reach the terminal block.  The terminal block is parallel to the dash switches.  Used the # 1 "user defined" switch so used the terminal closest to the seat base.

 From the terminal block the wire goes to a time delay relay mounted under the emergency brake cover in front of the brake.  Wanted to delay the start of the vehicle inverter so engine is running before the inverter starts.  Wanted to avoid the inverter electrical load on the batteries when engine was trying to start.  Tried a Dayton # 2A562 time delay between the terminal block and the S-R8 terminal.  That did not work because a solid state time delay has enough leakage current to trigger the Samlex remote "ROF" terminal.  Had to change to a time delay relay with mechanical contact points.  The new relay that worked was a Dayton 21EP67.  The manufacture of the Dayton relay is Macromatic and their part # is THR-3816U.  When the "user defined" switch is on, then there is a 30 second time delay before the inverter starts.  If the "user defined" switch is off, then the inverter can be manually started/stopped with the remote pushbutton.  If "user defined" switch is on then the remote pushbutton is inactive.

The cost of the vehicle powered inverter was:
Inverter and remote:  $406.25
4 position terminal block:  $18.45
Class T fuse and holder:  $45.07
Blue Sea battery switch:  $24.81
Cables:  $97.43
Time delay relay:  $33.65
Total cost about $660.00

The vehicle powered inverter can be used for three purposes when the Transit engine is running.  A four position selector switch is used to select the 120 volt AC power for house battery charging or to heat shower water or to power a baseboard air heater or off.  When power is sent to the house 1000 watt Magnum inverter/charger/transfer switch the duplex outlets are also powered.  Using vehicle powered Samlex inverter to power the Magnum charger provides 3 stage charging for the house battery.  Three stage charging does not happen when you directly connect your house battery to the vehicle battery for charging with a ACR relay.  The advantage of a vehicle powered inverter compared to a B2B charger is having 120 volt AC power available as you drive.

The Transit with a vehicle powered inverter minimizes the need to carry a generator.  Not very efficient to use a large engine to replace a small engine generator but it does work.  Having a gas engine allows idling the engine.
 

 

 

Vehicle Inverter Installation Drawing # ODJ127-56                                            

 

If you want more PDF menu choices the drawing can be saved to your computer and then reopened with Adobe PDF Reader.  The Adobe PDF Reader is a better program to use for viewing.