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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / RVs / June 2005Battery Follow Up
Well, I got the new 6v. batteries in the rig. Checked the motor battery, and installed a new one as that one was weak. Put new computer module on charger that will help switch charging modes. Got it all back together and working. Short of just boondocking, is there a way I can test this now that it is fully charged and get an idea how long these new batteries will last? Our old ones used to go from 12+ v. down to 9.6 in one night. Guess I can leave the lights on overnight, and read the voltage after 12 hours. Is that an accurate way to do things? We are going out this coming week for a few days of fishing, and I am just curious as to how it will do. Steve The most accurate way is a bit more time consuming -- 1 - Charge for 24 hours 2 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time 3 - Recharge for 24 hours 4 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time 5 - Average the run times Have fun, Mark > Well, I got the new 6v. batteries in the rig. Checked the motor battery, > and installed a new one as that one was weak. Put new computer module on [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Steve > The most accurate way is a bit more time consuming -- > 1 - Charge for 24 hours > 2 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time > 3 - Recharge for 24 hours > 4 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time > 5 - Average the run times Uh, do NOT do this at home. In fact, do NOT do this ANYWHERE. Fully discharging a flooded, lead acid battery is usually VERY damaging and will shorten its life considerably. Virtually all storage batteries have a finite number of "cycles" (charge and discharge). Why waste even ONE of those cycles TESTING your new setup? Just go camping and be VERY conservative. Keep an eye on the voltage and stop using the battery or recharge it when the charge dips below 50%. Good luck! :) JR > > The most accurate way is a bit more time consuming -- > > 1 - Charge for 24 hours [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > :) > JR ------------------------------------------------- Whether you do this at home or not is certainly your option, but the method described is the accepted method for testing uninterruptible power supply battery back-up capacity. We use it as a matter of course during development test and evaluation. As usual, YMMV Mark > > > 1 - Charge for 24 hours > > > 2 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time > > > 3 - Recharge for 24 hours > > > 4 - Run on batteries until fully discharged & check the time > > > 5 - Average the run times > > Uh, do NOT do this at home. In fact, do NOT do this ANYWHERE. > Whether you do this at home or not is certainly your option, but the > method described is the accepted method for testing uninterruptible > power supply battery back-up capacity. Accepted or not, it is not necessary to waste charge cycles and damage a battery to test its capacity. Battery capacity is (for some) easily calculated as is intended load. > We use it as a matter of course > during development test and evaluation. I believe you. I'm sure those that are PAYING for the battery are even less aware of the unnecessary damage being done than those actually doing it. > As usual, YMMV No doubt. As a >32-year employee of the industry that INVENTED the UPS (telephone), we would (and have) never run the battery DEAD. I stand by my claim that doing so is very damaging to the battery. In one case, during a "grid power" failure, the standby generator failed. After several hours on the battery, the Central Office Technician shut down the switch BEFORE the battery was fully discharged. This prevented further damage to the battery and still allowed for some restart capability when recharging capability was restored. FWIW - In the telco biz, the switch is powered by the battery full-time while rectified grid power continually recharges the battery. There is NO "switchover" to the battery during a grid failure: The battery simply no longer receives its recharge - hence the standby generator. JR > ------------------------------------------------- > Whether you do this at home or not is certainly your option, but the [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > As usual, YMMV > Mark That might very well be the way you test batteries, if you cannot avail yourself of the appropriate equipment. OTOH, the dry cell batteries used in UPS are entirely different in that they are designed to totally discharge and will not sulfite as wet cells do. However, each time that battery is totally discharged its life cycle is also shortened. Wade >Well, I got the new 6v. batteries in the rig. Checked the motor battery, >and installed a new one as that one was weak. Put new computer module on [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > >Steve Hi, Try this site for some information on how to measure state of charge. http://www.solarseller.com/battery_information_page_.htm#battery_state_of_charge _measurement Take care and Happy Campin... RichA "We Get Too Soon Olde and Too Late Smart" > Our > old ones used to go from 12+ v. down to 9.6 in one night. Guess I can leave > the lights on overnight, and read the voltage after 12 hours. I would think a better test would be to use electricity in your driveway just as you would when on a campsite... ie, run the fridge, furnace (biggest draw of all), TV, lights as long as you usually would while camping...and see how it lasts. If you leave lights on all night while camped and not plugged in, we can suggest one area in which you could reduce your electrical demand. :-) Make sure you do not have things like storage area lights or outside porch lights turned on unknowingly. While boondocking we keep light usage to a minimum. We prefer to use our available electricity for the TV and computer. Boondocking does require a mind set that recognizes electricity and water as scarce resources, to be conserved whenever possible. HTH, Barrie B > I would think a better test would be to use electricity in your driveway > just as you would when on a campsite... ie, run the fridge, furnace [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > HTH, > Barrie B We are going to do so tonight. We will be leaving Tuesday for a few days, and just want to try it first. I agree with you on the conservation aspect. But, we have left on bay lights, and outdoor lights, and awakened to the chirp of our CO detector caused by low volts. Steve > We are going to do so tonight. We will be leaving Tuesday for a few days, > and just want to try it first. I agree with you on the conservation aspect. > But, we have left on bay lights, and outdoor lights, and awakened to the > chirp of our CO detector caused by low volts. Good luck....we've made the mistakes, and when boondocking you do pay a price for them... the lost resources are not as easily replaced. :-( ENJOY, Barrie B |
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