Solenoid as Battery Disconnect?
Instead of a manual disconnect, can one use something like an older Ford starter solenoid as the disconnect? I have a single battery and typically do not boondock. I would put a 12V key operated s...
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I assume you're talking about a battery disconnect for e.g. storage use.
One difficulty with a solenoid like a starter solenoid (or a continuous duty variant) is that the coil remains energized whenever the solenoid is on, so you're consuming power continually. This would probably add up to at least a few Ah per day. The disconnect solenoids typically used for this application in RVs are latching ones, where the coil only serves to throw the switch one way or the other and so is only energized briefly when switching.
I'm not sure why a key switch to control vs. a plain ordinary toggle switch of some sort, but that part really doesn't matter in the overall design.
One difficulty with a solenoid like a starter solenoid (or a continuous duty variant) is that the coil remains energized whenever the solenoid is on, so you're consuming power continually. This would probably add up to at least a few Ah per day. The disconnect solenoids typically used for this application in RVs are latching ones, where the coil only serves to throw the switch one way or the other and so is only energized briefly when switching.
I'm not sure why a key switch to control vs. a plain ordinary toggle switch of some sort, but that part really doesn't matter in the overall design.
