Generator questions!
We are looking at buying either a 3000W Honda inverter generator, or the 3000W Predator brand inverter from Harbor Freight. Will be using these to intermittently charge 2X 6V Trojan golf cart battery...
Forum Discussion
K.I.S.S. reigns supreme. I'm retired, but have plenty of other things to take up my time besides figuring out how to supply external control signals to that power supply in order to set it's voltage and current outputs. I read it's .pdf manual ... and couldn't see where any readout meters or control knobs were located on it's chassis.
It has DEFAULT controls EXACTLY the same as any Meanwell or Megawatt. Exterior potentiometer. Using the OPTIONAL current, voltage and sense lead is exactly that, OPTIONAL. It's all discussed in the online nomenclature.
Mr. Wizard's greatly appreciated link to an INDUCTIVE panel ammeter would be a simple to add aid. No one who Boondocks should be without an accurate ammeter and voltmeter.
The last thing I expect to do when boondocking is sit on my --- watching television and controlling my environment with a remote. I have to force myself to actually arise out of a chair to perform chores. Toss the "campfire light and adjust flame" remote into a drawer and walk around - it's good for the heart.
The nice thing about manual (voltage limited) battery charging is the process is not a Gyro Gearloose lab experiment where a bit too long equals a mushroom cloud. Having a battery sit for a half hour after minimum amps is achieved isn't going to hurt the battery at a 14.8 volt charging limit. But who in the world starts a generator to recharge batteries forgets about it? The ergonomics is absurdly simple. If it took three hours the last time to recharge them from 50% what would make the "next time different if the same hotel parasitic draw was reasonably the same? Set an audio timer on a cell phone or any other type of timer. For especially stubborn cases rig up a dog shock collar with a timer.
Having actually done this and being with folks who charge batteries with a manual power supply I can say the process is absurdly simple and unobtrusive. The key is the generator. Who ignores s generator? Who will forget that it is running? Connecting a power supply to a pedestal is infinitely more important to insure automatic charging shutdown.
When pistons are going up and down, and money is flying out of my wallet for fuel and wear and tear, the last thing I need to do is waste my time listening to a generator run endlessly doing nothing. Adding 10 - 20% more ampere hours into the batteries in the same amount of time is important to me........especially on the way back from the gas station with a far lighter wallet. When I start any of my generators, they are going to work and not play games. And I am not going to use excess effort or personal energy in the process.
My batteries cost way too much to abuse. Personally, I use a Samsung cellphone's timer to remind me of ANY time important event taking place. The alarm even reminds me to take medicine on time.
Choosing to do stuff manually reminds me of my personal joke about whether to perform all the effort to prepare a meal or simply run down to the Golden Arches a McSlider. After all the syntho burger is a no brainer, eliminates hunger pangs, and well dying young from cardiac infarction is, well it is EASIER than doing stuff manually.
Charging with a power supply and generator pales in comparison to to actually HAVING TO COOK and wash dishes. How could I ever survive camping without a McSlider and push button dishwasher?
It has DEFAULT controls EXACTLY the same as any Meanwell or Megawatt. Exterior potentiometer. Using the OPTIONAL current, voltage and sense lead is exactly that, OPTIONAL. It's all discussed in the online nomenclature.
Mr. Wizard's greatly appreciated link to an INDUCTIVE panel ammeter would be a simple to add aid. No one who Boondocks should be without an accurate ammeter and voltmeter.
The last thing I expect to do when boondocking is sit on my --- watching television and controlling my environment with a remote. I have to force myself to actually arise out of a chair to perform chores. Toss the "campfire light and adjust flame" remote into a drawer and walk around - it's good for the heart.
The nice thing about manual (voltage limited) battery charging is the process is not a Gyro Gearloose lab experiment where a bit too long equals a mushroom cloud. Having a battery sit for a half hour after minimum amps is achieved isn't going to hurt the battery at a 14.8 volt charging limit. But who in the world starts a generator to recharge batteries forgets about it? The ergonomics is absurdly simple. If it took three hours the last time to recharge them from 50% what would make the "next time different if the same hotel parasitic draw was reasonably the same? Set an audio timer on a cell phone or any other type of timer. For especially stubborn cases rig up a dog shock collar with a timer.
Having actually done this and being with folks who charge batteries with a manual power supply I can say the process is absurdly simple and unobtrusive. The key is the generator. Who ignores s generator? Who will forget that it is running? Connecting a power supply to a pedestal is infinitely more important to insure automatic charging shutdown.
When pistons are going up and down, and money is flying out of my wallet for fuel and wear and tear, the last thing I need to do is waste my time listening to a generator run endlessly doing nothing. Adding 10 - 20% more ampere hours into the batteries in the same amount of time is important to me........especially on the way back from the gas station with a far lighter wallet. When I start any of my generators, they are going to work and not play games. And I am not going to use excess effort or personal energy in the process.
My batteries cost way too much to abuse. Personally, I use a Samsung cellphone's timer to remind me of ANY time important event taking place. The alarm even reminds me to take medicine on time.
Choosing to do stuff manually reminds me of my personal joke about whether to perform all the effort to prepare a meal or simply run down to the Golden Arches a McSlider. After all the syntho burger is a no brainer, eliminates hunger pangs, and well dying young from cardiac infarction is, well it is EASIER than doing stuff manually.
Charging with a power supply and generator pales in comparison to to actually HAVING TO COOK and wash dishes. How could I ever survive camping without a McSlider and push button dishwasher?
