Portable battery charger

Wet Coast wrote:
One can POO POO the Progressive Dynamics converter. Since I have installed it, I have been able to bring my batteries back up faster and see a 100% charge indicated on my solar panel display for the first time.

I work with technology all day, last thing i want to do is babysit more technology at home or or instead of being able to sit on the beach when camping.

A digital device doesn't determine when your batteries are 100% state of charge. Battery chemistry, in particular, Specific gravity, cell by cell does. The weak sister with lower specific gravity than the surroundng cells tells all, that your battery is not 100% State of Charge, despite what a voltage reading might tell you.

There is no substitute for a specific gravity reading, the battery chemistry doesn't lie on how dense the acid levels are. When the battery was new, the specific gravity was equal in all cells. Missing sulfur clinging on lead plates when it shouldn't tells all about state of charge, cell by cell.

Feel free to disagree with me, go argue with a chemist, or Einstein, who said that mass is never lost, a most basic chemists / physics law.

One can POO POO the Progressive Dynamics converter. Since I have installed it, I have been able to bring my batteries back up faster and see a 100% charge indicated on my solar panel display for the first time.

I work with technology all day, last thing i want to do is babysit more technology at home or or instead of being able to sit on the beach when camping.

I was thinking about the timer and absorption charging as it could be a pain to run 12 to 24 hours with the rig shutting off every 4 hours. Makes sense to have a timer when hitting the battery hard but would be nice to have an extended timer or bypass when absorption or float charging.

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
The wizard's hat is a cone. It has something written on it...

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When I recharge a battery it is to 100% state of charge, not 76 or 82 or "almost 90"

The 'Wizard' attached to the Progressive Dynamics converter has frequently been known to have batteries last over ten years and still perform very well. The PD Wizard may not be perfect but it does not wear a cone hat either. If your battery is in desperate need of reconditioning or equalization it is more likely you do not have a Wizard... not because of the poor performance of the Wizard.

(If MEX is talking about some other device then my apologies.)

Here is a link to Mexicowanderer's most informative post on the care, charging and equalizing lead acid batteries

Copy it and save it somewhere. You will want to refer to it again.

I have one that has me on the ropes. Before ot takes me to the floor I'll rip its lid off and take some images.I'll send the images to Niner and he can post them. Gotta put that pot in anyway. Better keep this short and single syllable for the individual in Uranus Florida.

Does anyone know where a depiction of the Megawatt circuit board exists? A diagram would be nice but a picture would be awesome.

The only time I need a timer for the Megawatt is for conditioning charges. All I have as a timer is the basic plug in type that use pins to turn them on and off. Turn it on and put the off pin where you want it to turn off. No muss, no fuss. I use a analog amp meter for top charging, no little wires to heat up and the meter can take 50a all day long.

I found using a offset screwdriver can really take the sensitivity out of the pot when adjusting the voltage.

NinerBikes
I found a link at the Megawatt web site that linked back to RV.net and listed over 300 posts that had something to do with the Megawatt power supply. I skimmed through the posts and read quite a few from you, Mexicowanderer and landyacht318. Needless to say I believed you to start with but after looking at 8 pages of post all from this year about charging this way I really believe you.

Another bonus is this system can be built for around $100 which is the cost of most any big name battery charger.

Muddydogs wrote:
Thanks for the links Niner.

So putting it all together I need:
36 amp Megawatt
RC watt meter
Timer
Jumper cables or 10ga wire with clips on one side

Yep, that's the way I go about it, and you can charge any type of battery with that unit, if you go to the manufacturers website, and read the recommendations for Bulk, absorb, and float charge voltages.

Nothing beats doing it manually this way, once you figure out your routine. If you doubt me, ask mexicowanderer or landyacht318. Anyone that is the least bit serious about 100% SOC and being a dry camper or boondocker since this development became known has been a happy camper with about as good a battery life as can be expected with proper care and maintenance being priority numero uno... store it 100% charged, get the sulfur off the plates with a 100% SOC before storage. Give it a top charge shortly before going camping with it too.

intermatic spring wound. search on google for best price, or trip to home depot