Should my inverters be providing AC power without generator

[Pootdy]

I have a 30' 91' sunstream 2000 on a ford chassis.......I have dual inverters but I have NO AC power anywhere in the rig until I turn on my generator........then I have full power to everything............everything in the rig seems to work except for anything that requires AC..........shouldn't there be AC power from the inverters as soon as I turn on the batteries or is that not true....?

[Dennis4809]

Inverter are there to provide AC power. They typically have to be turned on as needed so they don't run the batteries down unintentionally. However, having two is somewhat abnormal. Perhaps they were installed for a specific purpose and are not connected to the coach AC system. Suspect that you'll have to physically follow the wiring to see where it goes. Could start by insuring that you have 12vdc coming into the inverter and 110vac coming out. If so, then follow the AC lines to see where they go.
Good luck,

[Chuck v]

In a typical RV there is always a CONVERTER that provides 12 volts to the lighting and other low voltage loads when connected to shore power, and to charge the house batteries. Many coaches also have an optional INVERTER which electronically converts 12 volt battery power to 120 v AC to allow domestic loads to operate (microwave, large TVs, etc...)

Because inverters draw a very large load from the batteries, they usually have a switch somewhere to allow an owner to use batteries in that way only when they intend to do so. Please excuse a little math here: a small microwave may draw 850 watts or more when operating on 120 v -- and that represents 7 amps. If an inverter were 100% efficient (which it is not, typically 90% or lower...) then the battery drain would be 10 times that current or 70 amps. On my coach the refrigerator is a residential unit of 23 cu ft and only operates on 120 volts, so my rig has a very large inverter and 4 each golf cart batteries that supply it (separate from the 'house' batteries.) It also has a diesel generator set up to start if AC power is not present from either shore power or the inverter.

Smaller coaches may have simpler systems -- but as Dennis said above if there are actually two inverters on your rig it may be an owner modification for a specific need (medical equipment comes to mind...)

Chuck