Battery monitor: useful tool or toy?
Hello all. As we prepare for FT (mostly boondocking) I am working through the 12v upgrades. Got the 600 AH of Lifelines in place. Two banks of 6v pairs; 4 batts in all. Upgraded the converter to 80, p...
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A lot of good answers above IMHO.
Having solar voltaic panels in my opinion belongs in a wholly different category because different charger methodology has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with correct battery management AWARENESS.
By utilizing an amp hour meter, total amp hour transactions can be monitored and analyzed by the simplest of methods "Stare & Compare". A voltmeter especially with an AGM battery cannot do this.
An anology - Keep an accurate record of a checking account, versus advice to simply deposit a few extra dollars and forget about account reconciliation.
One of the gifts of an ampere hour meter is to notice and react to "Trends % Tendencies". T&T is generated and permutated automatically by your brain as you watch the ampere hour meter in operation. "I subtract X number of ampere hours, then allow X number of ampere hours to charge the batteries. What happens if I start the generator with otherwise fully charged batteries, apply (a voltage number, let's call it 14.4) and run the generator for a half hour. How many ampere hours will the bank gain?" The answer should be "How many amp hours SHOULD the bank gain" The answer, is "close to 0". Devise your own simple cross-check schemes. Just do not permit yourself to be mesmerized by a simple voltmeter - ammeter meter arrangement.
But don't fall for the "I don't want to be surprised and run out of gas question be answered with a "buy gas more often or get a bigger tank" off-the-wall analysis. The correct answer is "Install a gas gauge".
Ampere hours meters are easy to use, and fun. You'll learn a lot and the batteries will not take the brunt of guesswork operation and maintenance.
Having solar voltaic panels in my opinion belongs in a wholly different category because different charger methodology has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with correct battery management AWARENESS.
By utilizing an amp hour meter, total amp hour transactions can be monitored and analyzed by the simplest of methods "Stare & Compare". A voltmeter especially with an AGM battery cannot do this.
An anology - Keep an accurate record of a checking account, versus advice to simply deposit a few extra dollars and forget about account reconciliation.
One of the gifts of an ampere hour meter is to notice and react to "Trends % Tendencies". T&T is generated and permutated automatically by your brain as you watch the ampere hour meter in operation. "I subtract X number of ampere hours, then allow X number of ampere hours to charge the batteries. What happens if I start the generator with otherwise fully charged batteries, apply (a voltage number, let's call it 14.4) and run the generator for a half hour. How many ampere hours will the bank gain?" The answer should be "How many amp hours SHOULD the bank gain" The answer, is "close to 0". Devise your own simple cross-check schemes. Just do not permit yourself to be mesmerized by a simple voltmeter - ammeter meter arrangement.
But don't fall for the "I don't want to be surprised and run out of gas question be answered with a "buy gas more often or get a bigger tank" off-the-wall analysis. The correct answer is "Install a gas gauge".
Ampere hours meters are easy to use, and fun. You'll learn a lot and the batteries will not take the brunt of guesswork operation and maintenance.
