Xantrex Prowatt 400 User Guide

PROwatt™ 400 Inverter

Owner’s Guide

About Xantrex

Xantrex Technology Inc. is a world-leading supplier of advanced power electronics and
controls with products from 50 watt mobile units to 1 MW utility-scale systems for wind,
solar, batteries, fuel cells, microturbines and backup power applications in both grid­connected and standalone systems. Xantrex products include inverters, battery chargers,
programmable power supplies, and variable speed drives that convert, supply, control,
clean, and distribute electrical power.

Trademarks

PROwatt is a trademark and Statpower is a registered trademark of Xantrex International.
Xantrex is a registered trademark of Xantrex Technology Inc.
Other trademarks, registered trademarks, and product names are the property of their
respective owners, and are used herein for identification purposes only.

Notice of Copyright

PROwatt 400 Owner’s Guide © January 2001 Xantrex International

Disclaimer

While every precaution has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the contents of this guide,
Xantrex International assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Note as well that
specifications and product functionality may change without notice.

Date and Revision

January 2001, Revision 1

Part Number

445-0122-01-01

Contact Information

Web: www.xantrex.com
Email: [e-mail]
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Contents

1. Introduction - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1

About the PROwatt 400 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1
About This Guide - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2

2. Important Safety Information- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3

Warnings and Cautions - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3
Additional Safety Guidelines - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4

3. PROwatt 400 Features - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5

AC (Front) Panel - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5
DC (Back) Panel - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 7

Lighter Plug Cable - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 8
Cable For Direct Connection to Battery - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 8

4. Connecting the PROwatt 400 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 9

Determining Power Requirements - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 9
Choosing a Location - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 10
Connecting the PROwatt 400 for Loads Under 150 Watts - - - 11
Connecting the PROwatt 400 for Loads Over 150 Watts - - - - 12

5. Operating the PROwatt 400 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 14

Operating Conditions and Guidelines - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 14

Manual Reset After Automatic Shutdown - - - - - - - - - - - - 15
Shutting the Inverter Off - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 15
Operating Normal Loads - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 15
Operating Loads With High Surge Requirements - - - - - - - 15

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6. Maintaining Battery Condition - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 17

7. Troubleshooting- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 18

Common Problems - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19

Buzz in Audio Systems - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19
Television Interference - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 19

Troubleshooting Reference - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 20

8. Specifications- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 24

9. Warranty Information - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 25

Returning a Product - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 27
Out of Warranty Service - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 29

10. Other Xantrex Products - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 30

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1 Introduction

Thank you for purchasing the PROwatt™ 400 Power Inverter. The
PROwatt 400 is part of a family of advanced high-performance power
inverters from Xantrex Technology Inc., the leader in high-frequency
inverter design.

About the PROwatt 400

Quality Power

or directly to your battery for loads over 150 watts, the PROwatt 400
efficiently and reliably powers a wide variety of household AC products
such as TVs, VCRs, laptop computers, camcorder and cell phone
chargers, compact fluorescent lights, soldering irons, and other similar
products.

Comprehensive Protection

state power electronics for years of safe, trouble-free operation, and
includes the following automatic features to ensure safe and trouble-free
operation:

• Low battery alarm

• Low voltage shutdown

• High voltage shutdown

• Overload shutdown

• Over temperature shutdown

Connected to the 12 volt outlet in your vehicle or boat

The PROwatt 400 employs reliable solid

About This Guide

To get the best performance from your PROwatt 400 inverter, Xantrex
recommends that you read this guide before connecting and using the
inverter, and save it for future reference.

This guide contains:

• Important safety information

• Instructions for connecting the inverter

• Operating guidelines

• Troubleshooting guidelines

• Warranty and service information

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2 Important Safety Information

Connecting the PROwatt 400 incorrectly or misusing it may damage the
equipment or create hazardous conditions for users. Read the following
safety instructions and pay special attention to all Caution and Warning
statements in the guide.

War ning s identify
of life.

Cautions identify conditions or practices that may damage the
PROwatt 400 or other equipment.

Warnings and Cautions

Warning! Shock Hazard

Keep children away from the PROwatt 400 inverter. The
inverter generates the same potentially lethal AC power as a
normal household wall outlet. Treat the outlet with respect!

Warning! Heated Surface

The PROwatt 400 housing may become uncomfortably
warm, reaching 140° F (60° C) under extended high power
operation. Ensure that at least 2 inches (5 cm) of air surround
the inverter. During operation, keep it away from materials
that may be affected by high temperatures.

conditions that may result in personal injury or loss

3

Caution!

Do not connect the PROwatt 400 to any AC wiring or AC
product in which the AC neutral is connected to the AC
ground.

Caution!

Some chargers for small nickel-cadmium batteries can be
damaged if connected to the PROwatt 400. Do not use the
inverter with the following appliances:

• Small battery-operated appliances like rechargeable
flashlights, some rechargeable shavers, and night lights
that are plugged directly into an AC receptacle to
recharge.

• Battery chargers used in hand power tools. These
chargers display a warning label stating that dangerous
voltages are present at the charger battery terminals.

Additional Safety Guidelines

• Do not insert foreign objects in the PROwatt 400 outlets.

• Never connect the inverter to power utility AC distribution wiring.

• Do not use the PROwatt 400 in temperatures over 100° F (40° C).

• Do not expose the PROwatt 400 to water, rain, snow, or spray.

Failure to follow these safety guidelines may cause personal injury and/
or damage to the PROwatt 400. It may also void your product warranty.

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3 PROwatt 400 Features

This section describes the main features of the PROwatt 400 inverter.

AC (Front) Panel

Figure 1 shows the AC panel of the PROwatt 400 inverter.

Ventilation

Openings

Figure 1 AC Panel of PROwatt 400

AC Outlets

Two AC receptacles are located on one end of the

Fault light

Power light

On/Off switch

AC Outlets

PROwatt 400. You can plug in any combination of 115 Vac appliances
with a total power consumption of 150 watts or less when the inverter is
plugged into a vehicle’s lighter socket. Or you can plug in appliances
with a total power consumption of 400 watts or less when the inverter is
hardwired to a battery.

5

On/Off Switch

When the On/Off switch is on, AC power is available at
the outlets. The switch also acts as a manual reset for overload, low
battery voltage, and over temperature conditions.

POWER

Light

The green

POWER

light indicates that AC power is

present at the outlets and that the PROwatt 400 is operating normally.

FAULT

Light

The red

light indicates that the inverter has shut

FAULT

down. Shutdown is caused by low or high battery voltage, overload, or
excessively high temperatures.

Audible Alarm

An audible alarm warns of an impending low voltage

shutdown.

Ventilation Openings

To prevent overheating, ensure that the

ventilation openings on the front and back panels are kept clear.

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DC (Back) Panel

Figure 2 shows the DC panel of the PROwatt 400 inverter.

Positive cabling terminal

Fan and ventilation openings

Figure 2 DC Panel of PROwatt 400

Fan and Ventilation Openings

The fan runs continuously while the

Negative cabling terminal

inverter is on. If the inverter overheats, let the fan run to cool it down.
However, if the inverter is in low-voltage shutdown mode as indicated
by the audible alarm, turn the inverter off to conserve battery capacity.

Positive and Negative Cabling Terminals

You connect the ring
terminals on the power cables to these terminals. To ensure correct
polarity, red must be connected to red and black must be connected to
black.

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Lighter Plug Cable

Figure 3 shows the lighter plug cable that you use when you are going to

power loads less than 150 watts.

Lighter Plug

Ring Terminals:
color-coded red (+)
and black (–)

Figure 3 Lighter Plug Cable

Cable For Direct Connection to Battery

Figure 4 shows the cable you install when the highest loads you are

going to power are greater than 150 watts.

Battery Clips: color-coded red (+) and black (–)

Ring Terminals:
color-coded red (+)
and black (–)

Figure 4 Cable for Direct Connection to 12 Volt Battery

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