House batteries not up to ah rating
Bought 2 new Interstate SRM-24 group 24 RV/Marine batteries a few months ago. I have used the MH 4 times on trips lasting from 3-6 days. Never going below 40 amps before recharging. The rating is 85...
Forum Discussion
Put a Small voltmeter on your dash with the voltage sense wire running to the house battery (+).
This one is able to be calibrated:
http://www.amazon.com/SMAKN-Voltmeter-Digital-Display-Detector/dp/B00CTJIH5U/ref=sr_1_68?ie=UTF8&qid=1428280712&sr=8-68&keywords=digital+voltmeter
You will be surprised how low their voltage is while underway. Don't trust any stock dash gauges. They dummed all them down on newer vehicles lest the driver see a slightly abnormal reading and freak out.
Vehicle voltage regulators are even more timid than 'smart' chargers. They have no Idea a set of depleted batteries is at the end of a long thin circuit hungry for higher volts. Thicker cabling to house battery and taking power for them directly from alt(+) instead of engine starting battery (+) helps reduce this premature floating.
Testing battery voltage when idling after first starting the engine is nearly useless. A constant reading of voltage while underway, is illuminating.
I wish I could safely read amps into my batteries from the driver's seat. I can do so at a red light looking over my shoulder and revving the engine. Never an impressive number when all that the VR is allowing is 13.7v.
But driving for 5.5 hours, as you have seen, is no indicator the battery is fully charged. Think about the general public who thinks the alternator is a Magical instant battery charger that also yields free energy.
This one is able to be calibrated:
http://www.amazon.com/SMAKN-Voltmeter-Digital-Display-Detector/dp/B00CTJIH5U/ref=sr_1_68?ie=UTF8&qid=1428280712&sr=8-68&keywords=digital+voltmeter
You will be surprised how low their voltage is while underway. Don't trust any stock dash gauges. They dummed all them down on newer vehicles lest the driver see a slightly abnormal reading and freak out.
Vehicle voltage regulators are even more timid than 'smart' chargers. They have no Idea a set of depleted batteries is at the end of a long thin circuit hungry for higher volts. Thicker cabling to house battery and taking power for them directly from alt(+) instead of engine starting battery (+) helps reduce this premature floating.
Testing battery voltage when idling after first starting the engine is nearly useless. A constant reading of voltage while underway, is illuminating.
I wish I could safely read amps into my batteries from the driver's seat. I can do so at a red light looking over my shoulder and revving the engine. Never an impressive number when all that the VR is allowing is 13.7v.
But driving for 5.5 hours, as you have seen, is no indicator the battery is fully charged. Think about the general public who thinks the alternator is a Magical instant battery charger that also yields free energy.
