How Long Will A 12 volt Battery Run A TV? + Calculator

How Long Will A 12 volt Battery Run A TV

Whether you're thinking about going on an RV trip this weekend or for whatever reason you wanna run your TV with a 12v battery. And wondering about how long will a 12-volt battery run a tv.

You're in the right place, you can use the calculator given below to know how long your 12v battery will last with running a TV.

And also I'm gonna explain some other important tips about running a TV on your 12v battery.

How Long Will A 12-volt Battery Run A TV? in short, a 12v battery will last between 10-30 hours while running a TV. The exact value will depend on the capacity of a battery, its Depth of discharge limit, and the size of a Tv.

The runtime will depend on the size of the battery and the wattage consumption by the TV.

Calculate how long will 12v battery last on tv

Battery Capacity
Ah
Battery Volts
V
Select Battery Type
Load Connected with inverter?
Total Load (watts)
Wh

How to use this calculator?

  • Battery Ah: Enter the capacity of your battery in Amp-hours (50Ah, 100Ah, 200Ah).
  • Battery Volts: Enter the voltage of your battery (12v, 24v, 48v) in this case 12.
  • Battery Type: is it a lead-acid, lithium (LiFePO4), AGM, or Gel type battery?
  • Load connected with inverter: are you using an inverter or gonna connect the TV directly to the battery (BTW connecting any load directly to the battery is not recommended).
  • Total Load (Watts): Enter the total wattage input of your TV (Which you can usually find on the back side of your TV or use the below-given chart to figure it out).
  • After entering all the information click " CALCULATE BUTTON " to get the answer.

calculator Assumptions

  • Lead-acid, & AGM battery with 50% & lithium battery 100% depth of discharge limit.
  • If you're using an inverter (which is the way to go to keep the system safe) there will be a power loss and it's included (15%) I'll discuss this in detail later in this post.

What Size Inverter Do I Need To Run A Tv?

In short, A 300-watt inverter would be enough to run any size tv.

I have covered this topic in detail but the key point is to add an extra 20% to your Tv power consumption rating to calculate the size of an inverter. Also, I have explained some key points when buying an inverter and what size cable should you use.

Must Read: What Size Inverter Do I Need To Run A Tv?

How much power does a 12-volt TV use?

Most LED TVs use 12 volts (DC power) but some of them required 110-220V (AC power).

So if your TV is a 12v you can run it directly from the battery and the runtime will be higher (but can cause damage) for AC power required TV you would need an inverter.

There are different sizes and types (LED, & plasma) of TVs available. So here's a chart for you to better understand how much power will your TV be required.

TV size (inches)TV typePower Consumption (watts)
18-inchLED18-22 W
LCD25-32 W
Plasma50-75 W
24-inchLED24-28 W
LCD36-44 W
Plasma75-95 W
32-inchLED35-40 W
LCD50-60 W
Plasma100-130 W
40-inchLED40-50 W
LCD60-70 W
Plasma120-160 W
50-inchLED50-60 W
LCD75-90 W
Plasma150-200 W
60-inchLED60-75 W
LCD90-110 W
Plasma200-250 W

Disclaimer: For more accurate wattage consumption please read the description part of your TV. If the capacity is measured in amps (A) then use this formula (watts = volts x amps)

Can you run a 240v TV off 12V? yes, you can run a 240V TV off a 12v battery with the help of an inverter.

How Long Will a 12v 100Ah Battery Run a TV?

How long will a 12v 100Ah battery run a TV?

A 12v 100Ah battery with a 50% depth of discharge limit will run a 32-inch LED TV (40W) for around 12 hours.

This is how you can put the information to get the runtime of your battery while running a TV. Also, you can use this calculator to calculate the runtime of any size battery with any size load.

In-depth Answer: How Long Will A 100Ah Battery Run A Tv?

How Long Will A 12-volt Battery Run A TV? - Chart

Here's a chart of different capacity 12v batteries and how long will they last running a TV

LED TV (size) 12V Battery
Capacity (Ah)
Est. Battery Runtime with
50% DOD limit
18-inch (22W) 50Ah11 hrs
18-inch (22W)100Ah23 hrs
18-inch (22W)150Ah34 hrs
18-inch (22W)200Ah46 hrs
24-inch (28W)50Ah9 hrs
24-inch (28W)100Ah18 hrs
24-inch (28W)150Ah27 hrs
24-inch (28W)200Ah36 hrs
32-inch (40W)50Ah6 hrs
32-inch (40W)100Ah12 hrs
32-inch (40W)150Ah18 hrs
32-inch (40W)200Ah24 hrs
40-inch (50W)50Ah5 hrs
40-inch (50W)100Ah10 hrs
40-inch (50W)150Ah15 hrs
40-inch (50W)200Ah20 hrs
50-inch (60W)50Ah4 hrs
50-inch (60W)100Ah8 hrs
50-inch (60W)150Ah12 hrs
50-inch (60W)200Ah16 hrs
How long will a 12v battery run a Tv - chart

Summary

  • 12v 50ah lead-acid battery will run a 24-inch LED Tv for about 9 hours and a 12v 50ah lithium (liFePO4) battery will run 32-inch LED Tv for about 18 hours.
  • 12v 200ah lead-acid battery will run a 32-inch LED Tv for about 24 hours and 12v 200ah lithium (liFePO4) battery will run 32-inch LED Tv for about 48 hours.

Note! These values are based on a 50% depth of discharge limit like if you're using lead-acid, AGM, or GEL batteries. But if it's lithium-ion (LiFePO4) you can discharge it 100% and the runtime will be doubled

Related: Amps To Watts Calculator: How Many Watts In A 12-volt Battery?

Must watch this video to increase the runtime of your 12v battery while running a TV

How Long Can a Car Battery Power a Tv?

12v 50Ah car battery can power a 24-inch LED TV for around 9 hours with a 50% depth of discharge limit.

But should you use a car battery to run a tv? Yes, you can use a car battery as a deep cycle battery to run your appliances or Tv but it's not the best idea. Using a car battery as a deep-cycle battery will decrease the charge-holding capacity of your battery in the long term.

Difference Between Car Battery and Deep Cycle Battery? The main difference between a car battery and a deep-cycle battery is that car batteries are designed to produce a short burst of power. On the other hand, deep-cycle batteries are designed to be discharged at a small amount of constant power for a longer period of time.

I would suggest buying a 12v 50Ah or 100Ah deep cycle battery to run a tv or any other appliances.

Budget Friendly
Renogy 12v 100ah AGM Battery (1.2 kWh)
  • Maintenance-free, no water refilling
  • Leak-proof and non-gassing for safety charge
  • 3% self-discharge rate at 77°F (25℃) per month
  • Excellent discharge performance
  • 1100A (5 seconds) max. discharge current
  • Discharge temperature range: 5°F~122°F
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
Best Overall
Ampere Time LiFePO4 12v 100ah Battery
  • Providing 4000+ Cycles, 10 times longer than lead acid battery with only 200~500 cycles
  • Can be fully discharged up to 100%
  • Maximum Continuous Charging Current: 100A
  • Maximum Continuous Discharging Current: 100A
  • Maximum Permanent Discharging Current: 280A 5Sec.
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

If you're on a budget AGM 100Ah battery will be a good option but if you can afford a lithium 100Ah battery so this investment will last for the rest of your life.

Related Post: How Long To Charge 12v Battery With Solar Panel?

How to connect a TV to the battery?

I would suggest you watch the above video which I have embedded. In short, if want to run a tv in your RV I would suggest you use the method mentioned in the video and use these DC-DC converters from Amazon to run your TV on 12v (DC).

Or the easiest or most secure method to run your TV with a battery is by using an inverter. Which will converter the DC into AC to power your TV.

How to connect a battery to an inverter?

Related FAQ's

Can you run a TV off a 12V battery?

With the help of an inverter or DC-DC converter, you can run a tv off a 12v battery.

What size battery to run TV?

A 50Ah battery will be the best option to power your TV which will last a few hours while running a TV.

Can a 12-volt battery run a TV?

a 12v battery can run a tv with the help of an inverter or DC-DC converter.

Can I run a TV off a leisure battery?

Yes, you can run a TV off a leisure battery.

Other Related Posts

I hope this short guide was helpful to you. still, have any confusion? LEAVE A COMMENT or contact us. Thank You!

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Chris Tsitouris is a renewable energy professional with 10+ years of experience as Director of Engineering at Solar Spectrum, previously working as Project Manager at SunPower and Energy Analyst at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. As a thought leader, Chris has authored numerous articles and research papers.

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