Drok DC monitor

i think this one is easier to understand and hook up

baylite 100 amp & volt meter





the donut aka "hall effect sensor" does around main power cable either positive or negative

plug cable into meter, then connect power leads

Not sure if it indicates PLUS/minus flow on amps,

these have a switch, to choose mode, amps, volts OR alternating amps/volts
switch in on the back, set the mode before you mount the meter in the wall

To measure energy usage for the whole trailer, look for a module that handles at least 100amps.

Consider something like a Tri Metric.

Something like this might work, a lot less expensive than the Tri Metric:

eBay 100A meter

Essentially, you connect it in series between your battery's (+) positive terminal and everything else. For safety's sake, leave your break-away switch connected to the battery (+).

Maybe I bought the wrong device. What I want to do is a simple volt meter function to measure battery status and amps the 12 volt systems are using from the battery. What I want is for the load to be the entire trailer. Does this make since?

So this is the gizmo?

Drok

This picture shows what connections are needed:



The middle two screws are your +/- for the battery connection... connect these to any fused circuit that is handy. + to positive, and - to either ground or the rv's frame

The outside two screws are for the ammeter. Since it's only 20a, you won't be able to monitor your entire DC system, but you can measure any single circuit with up to a 15 amp fuse. Maybe your water pump, or your interior lights, or a small solar panel system.

The meter needs to be IN SERIES with the "load", which is what you want to monitor. This part gets tricky, since every model RV is a little different inside.

My KZ uses a WFCO fuse box and converter all in one unit. Each fuse is labeled with a color, that corresponds to a colored wire coming out the back. The fuse for my pump is a brown wire as I recall. So if I wanted to put this meter in to monitor energy usage by the pump, I would disconnect the brown wire from the wire that disappears into the rv (the wire going to the pump). The brown wire, from the fuse box, would connect to the (+) load terminal on the meter. The wire leading off into the RV, going to the pump, would connect to the (-) load terminal of the meter.

Your fuse box could be completely different. If you're uncomfortable messing with the wires, find an electrician to help you.

Please post a link to what you bought.

The voltage meter part is easy enough, the ammeter a bit trickier especially only 20amps.

Is this for a solar system?