It seems that putting 4kW over a 12V DC circuit is unwise, given that this would exceed the maximum of 302A for which 0000-gauge wiring is rated for power transmission. However, is it safe to connect 2 2kW inverters to the same battery bank, running them both simultaneously? What about more than two inverters? Would 00-gauge wiring (rated to 190A, higher than the 166A max current for a 2000W 12V circuit) be sufficent for this setup?
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1\$\begingroup\$ Yes it is unwise! You can run multiple conductors in parallel (as long as everything is identical). But you need to backup a little. Application. Ah rating of batteries. Number of batteries. Wire length. All will factor into an answer. \$\endgroup\$– StainlessSteelRatCommented May 7, 2018 at 16:53
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\$\begingroup\$ Battery bank shouldn't be an issue — 4 100Ah 12V lithium batteries. Inverters will be located as close as possible to the batteries. System will be primarily used to power a cooking range, microwave, other kitchen-type stuff. \$\endgroup\$– intuitedCommented May 7, 2018 at 23:55
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When dealing with this high currents you'll also have to worry about the batteries themselves and the interconnections in your bank. If you make a mistake there you will end up in a lot of trouble.
For example if you connected both inverter feeds to the same battery as output then the interconnection to the next battery will be overloaded. If possible put that connection all the way at the other end.
However it's better to upgrade your battery bank voltage to 24V by putting pairs of series batteries all in parallel in your bank. That will drop the current by half for the same amount of power.
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\$\begingroup\$ Would doubling or tripling wires on the connections between batteries help with this? It's hard to find power efficient 24V inverters. \$\endgroup\$– intuitedCommented May 7, 2018 at 14:08
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1\$\begingroup\$ You can parallel up the large conductors, however you can run the risk of havign a bad connection (or getting interrupted) and sending all current through the other one. Though that's less likely when the conductors are larger which is why the NEC only allows it for gauge 0 and larger. \$\endgroup\$ Commented May 7, 2018 at 14:29