Charging Timer?

Amazon has Intermatics by the railroad boxcar full. The OMRON electronic I used was pricey but could be fed with 12 volts to 480 volts AC or DC.

I have a drawerful of cheap timers that don't.

But I have a small box of Intermatics that will.
I guess my patience tolerance is quite low.

Gdetrailer wrote:


Otherwise, what would be the point of a timer that looses not only the time but the programming..

You can also opt for the simpler and cheaper "mechanical" versions that use a adjustable "pin" to trip on/off, those typically give you 30 minute increments and are "24hr" type which means the program repeats every 24 hrs.



Found HERE for about $8

Granted, the time will stop when you lose power, no big deal when it comes to charging a battery and you can leave it pickup anytime the power comes back on or adjust it.

Dirt cheap, simple and reliable.

My local Ham radio clubs used the simple timer method for 20 some yrs to maintain backup power (old car battery) for the clubs emergency communications shack.. Now days they use newer tech but idea is still the same.

As a note, you want one that is rated for appliances which uses relays or mechanical switches. Ones not rated for appliances can and often use solid state Triac devices to do the switching which may not work well with your converter or power supply.

The mechanical ones are currently at Dollerama in Canada for $4.

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Screwup Proofing is why I use a timer.
Infallible reliability is why I chose the Intermatic mechanical windup timer.

Saving a few dollars which destroys a few thousand fails the wisdom test utterly.

For example when I did battery cycle testing, I chose a 12-volt powered OMRON timer that over-rode the voltage limit switches. Destroying a pallet of L16s was not an option.

The fact that the wind up timers work in commercial restrooms is a testament of their reliability and ruggedness.

Are they accurate? Down to the minute? Hell no. Did I need resolution down to the minute? Hell no.

I just needed an absolutely reliable cutoff without being forced to learn c++ programming language.

Wind up timers used to be a pretty easy item to find, now days they are pretty rare to find in big box stores and are more of a electrical supply specialty warehouse item or Internet item.

Granted, they are reliable but now days reliability and availability are issues.

Does anyone "need" to the minute program ability for a battery charger?

No.

But it is a very nice "feature" on advanced digital timers like the DT206 I linked. Digital timers have come a long way from the first one I had bought which was a real bear to program.. The newer timers have made the programming a breeze and battery backup takes care of power outages for keeping time and program.

I used a DT206 to handle my gardening watering system this yr, worked flawless and because of the minute resolution I was able to keep my small roof top garden watered for one week at a time on less than 30 gallons of water per week..

Battery charging is a lot less demanding application, pretty much any timer that offers a one on/off cycle per day and does not lose the program setting if power goes out will easily suffice.. Time? Who cares if it turns on/off in the middle of the night..

pianotuna wrote:
Gdetrailer,

Does it retain it's "memory" if the power goes off?

Yes.

Uses a Lithium "CR" button style battery which should be pretty good even in extreme cold weather.

Example is a popular CR2032 HERE operating temp is -30C to +60C (note Celsius) and has a self discharge rate of about 1% per yr and typically you can expect 5 to 10 yrs from them.

Otherwise, what would be the point of a timer that looses not only the time but the programming..

You can also opt for the simpler and cheaper "mechanical" versions that use a adjustable "pin" to trip on/off, those typically give you 30 minute increments and are "24hr" type which means the program repeats every 24 hrs.



Found HERE for about $8

Granted, the time will stop when you lose power, no big deal when it comes to charging a battery and you can leave it pickup anytime the power comes back on or adjust it.

Dirt cheap, simple and reliable.

My local Ham radio clubs used the simple timer method for 20 some yrs to maintain backup power (old car battery) for the clubs emergency communications shack.. Now days they use newer tech but idea is still the same.

As a note, you want one that is rated for appliances which uses relays or mechanical switches. Ones not rated for appliances can and often use solid state Triac devices to do the switching which may not work well with your converter or power supply.

pianotuna wrote:
Gdetrailer,

Does it retain it's "memory" if the power goes off?

Similar models from Intermatic actually have a battery to run the clock.

Personally, I use an old fashioned mechanical lamp timer on my battery maintainer. I just set it for about 4 hours per day. Who cares which 4 hours.

Screwup Proofing is why I use a timer.
Infallible reliability is why I chose the Intermatic mechanical windup timer.

Saving a few dollars which destroys a few thousand fails the wisdom test utterly.

For example when I did battery cycle testing, I chose a 12-volt powered OMRON timer that over-rode the voltage limit switches. Destroying a pallet of L16s was not an option.

The fact that the wind up timers work in commercial restrooms is a testament of their reliability and ruggedness.

Are they accurate? Down to the minute? Hell no. Did I need resolution down to the minute? Hell no.

I just needed an absolutely reliable cutoff without being forced to learn c++ programming language.

Gdetrailer,

Does it retain it's "memory" if the power goes off?

Just buy a good quality digital appliance timer like this..



Intermatic DT620

HERE

Yeah, not cheap at $30 or so but fully programmable in one minute increments with 7 day a week program.

Plug your converter into it, program it for how much time you want it to run per day and then let it rip.

I know you are always searching for bargains, but if you want reliability, sometimes you must pay for it.

Myself, the Trimetric Monitor with its ammeter is what I go by using manual control of absorption time. When the amps get down to spec for "full" I manually stop the Absorption Voltage and go to Float.

I would like an "automatic" control that uses the low amps (set to my low) to do that sometime during the night when I am not there to watch it and switch over, but the nearest thing to that I have is my old Vector charger set to Equalize that shuts off by itself whenever it somehow decides it is done. I confirm that with an hydrometer, and the Vector is right. Gotta love that Vector --no longer made! :( Hope mine lasts me out.

The DC timer for the voltage using whatever means for time, means you have to guess how long it will be for the amps to taper to spec "full" or overshoot (where going longer for a little while won't hurt--as Mex has pointed out several times)

The idea is not to undershoot the time and leave the batts undercharged, which is where many chargers and three-stage ones too, will leave them.

I think the gizmo is actually for LFPs to not leave them at 14.6 overly long, but could be applied to all battery type charging if it were any good, and you knew the right time to set for your scenario.

If you lust for an electric timer. Use an OMRON. Japanese. And they last.