Ammeter on Converter

[BFL13]

I know nothing about this converter, but just seeing that it has an ammeter, which is what IMO all converters should have. (Not much info on its specs provided in the ad--it is not a particular bargain for price for a 55amper when you add shipping, note.)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-55-Amp-RV-Camper-Power-Converter-REPLACES-powermax-PM3-55-wfco-9855-PD92...

I have complained about this for years. Almost any simple portable charger has an amps read- out, so why not converters? You should not have to buy a separate ammeter (can be expensive for one that can read over the 10a a multimeter can do)

While doing a 50-90 recharge you want to know when you are at 90 so you can stop the generator. Voltage tells you nothing much about that, but later in the recharge amps do taper down as SOC goes up.

If you learn what the amps are down to when you are at 90% with your particular set-up, it is so easy. But you need the amps read-out so you can see that.

[road-runner]

I think the ammeter is a good common-sense addition. However, I'm holding out for "power factor corrected".

[GordonThree]

I notice under features it lists duel fans

Do the fans support pistol duels, bare fist boxing, sword duels, etc?

[BFL13]

The ad says it is American. Might be a new start-up. Anyway, the ad has a place you can ask questions. If anybody does, it would be interesting if you post more info here. We do know he can't spell "dual" , but it is his engineering that matters. 🙂

[Bend]

2oldman wrote:
Well, I'm confused. I thought batteries' voltage rose as they approached full charge.

Absorption Charge: The 2nd stage of 3-stage battery charging. Voltage remains constant and current gradually tapers off as internal resistance increases during charging. It is during this stage that the charger puts out maximum voltage. Voltages at this stage are typically around 14.2 to 15.5 volts. (The internal resistance gradually goes up because there is less and less to be converted back to normal full charge).

https://www.solar-electric.com/learning-center/batteries-and-charging/deep-cycle-battery-faq.html#Ba...

[CJW8]

Looks like a Chinese INverter. Same type of case. The DC connectors they give you look to be about #10. No info on charging voltages makes me wonder.

[BFL13]

2oldman wrote:
Well, I'm confused. I thought batteries' voltage rose as they approached full charge.

It is hard to tell what the battery voltage is compared with the charger's voltage. You see voltage rise to Vabs, which can happen when the batts are only 65-70% SOC if you use a higher sort of charging rate. Then you have the Absorption stage with a fairly steady charger voltage and a slowly rising battery voltage if you can even observe the two voltages with your set-up. What you can use is the amps as your indicator.

Also, not so much for a 50-90 compared with Flooded, but AGMs need an ammeter to know when they are full. So having an ammeter on the converter would be handy for that too.

[2oldman]

Well, I'm confused. I thought batteries' voltage rose as they approached full charge.