Trying to reset your inverter after an overload?
An overload fault on an inverter is a very common problem.
And it’s usually very easy to fix an inverter overload.
While there can be a number of different causes for the issue, the way to reset inverter overloads is to follow the steps in this article.
Following the steps below will help you to quickly identify the problem and then fix it immediately.
Don’t worry, before long we’ll reset your inverter overload and have you back up and running.
7 Steps to Reset Inverter Overload
To fix your inverter overload it is best to follow the 7 steps below. This is because they will help you to identify any problems for a successful reset. Plus it will help it stop happening in the future.
1. Blinking Green Lights
You can spot an approaching overload on your inverter by regularly monitoring the LED lights or digital display. Quite often, you will be alerted to a potential problem before your inverter starts to shut down. Many inverters will show a blinking green light to signify that excess or peak power is being drawn. This means the inverter can only sustain this level of power output for a few more seconds. It’s time to act!
If you have a digital display you can also keep an eye on the total output wattage to know whether you are getting near to overload.
2. Inverter Shutdown – Red Light
If your inverter has shut down and is showing a red light then this means you have overloaded your system. Don’t worry, the inverter is designed to do this. It will shut down to protect itself from damage.
When your inverter reaches this stage you will need to investigate further and reset the overload.
3. Switch Off
The first thing to do is switch off your inverter. Although it automatically powers down you still need to manually turn it off using the power switch. This will kill all power to the inverter and the LED lights should turn off after a few seconds.
With the inverter turned off you can safely work on it and assess the problem.
4. Remove All Appliances
Next, you need to remove all the appliances plugged into the inverter. This is the likely reason for the overload. The appliances running from the inverter were probably drawing too much power for the inverter to cope with. This means we need to reduce the load.
5. Leave to Cool Down
When an inverter becomes overloaded it will start to overheat. This is one of the main reasons it shuts down, if the inverter continues to run with an overload the circuits can melt and even catch fire. Not good!
Leave the inverter for at least 10 minutes to completely cool down.
6. Switch On with No Load
If you have a reset button press and hold this for a few seconds to reset the system.
If you don’t have a reset button, just switch the inverter back on with no appliances connected. At this stage, we just want to check that the inverter works correctly on its own. You should get a green light and everything is working correctly.
At this stage, if you get another overload then your inverter is faulty. It is likely that there is an issue with the operation of your equipment such as a short circuit. You need to investigate this problem further.
7. Plugin and Run Your Appliances
When step 6 is successful and your inverter works with no load, you can start to plug appliances back in to make sure they run correctly.
At this point, you must make sure not to overload the system again by trying to draw too much power. This means you must not exceed the continuous wattage and peak wattage of your inverter.
The maximum wattage of an inverter should be clearly written on the front. For example, 100 watts, 500 watts, 1000 watts.
What if this Doesn’t Fix My Inverter Overload?
Have you followed the steps above but you still can’t reset your inverter? There are a few common reasons for this. Let’s go through them.
- Exceeding continuous wattage – If you try to draw more power than the maximum continuous capacity you will overload your inverter. You should compare the total wattage of your appliance(s) to the inverter capacity.
- Exceeding peak wattage – If at any time you go beyond the peak capacity of an inverter you will instantly overload it. Read more about peak power here.
- Appliance could be faulty – If everything is working ok with the inverter then your appliance could be faulty.
- Check Inverter is not faulty – You need to ensure your inverter is working correctly. Make sure to include step 6 above to make sure the inverter works when drawing no load
If you want to find out more in-depth on the reasons for inverter overload then read my guide to What Causes Inverter Overload?
Final Words on How to Reset Inverter Overload
It should be very straightforward to reset an overloaded inverter.
The steps above will help you to fix your inverter overload plus identify the problem.
If you run into this issue the main thing to do is to switch off your inverter and unplug all appliances before turning your inverter on again.
And remember, don’t try to run more devices than your inverter can handle. I always recommend staying at least 20% below the inverter continuous wattage as they are not 100% efficient.
