Advice on 12v Invertors

[Devonian]

I'm looking to get another 12v inverter and some of them say modified sine wave; some are pure sine wave and others make no reference to sine waves at all.

So can anyone advise what the differences/restrictions are between them (if any?) as it all means very little to me.....

[Mortblanc]

Without going into a great deal of electronic talk, the pure sine wave uses less power from the battery for the same appliance than the modified, runs cooler and makes less noise in operation.

However, the modified wave inverters cost a good deal less than pure wave inverters.

It makes very little difference if all you are doing is running a couple of light bulbs or charging cordless power tools.

[Skean Dhude]

Remember A/C goes up to max voltage and then down through zero to -max voltage.
Pure sine wave is a smooth power curve over time and is like walking up and down a smooth hill.
Modified sine waves use steps to change voltage so are more like stairs and they also go up and down over time.

Some bits of kit don't like the 'lumpy' modified sine waves. However, as pointed out they are much cheaper to make.

If they are unmarked that usually means modified sine waves because some people look out for the pure sine waves and if you make them then market them.

I have mainly modified sine waves but a couple of pure sine waves for kit that insists on it.

[Devonian]

Thanks guys, that helps to clarify