Using to much power?

[57_Panhead]

Prior to purchasing the Winegard carry out antenna we would watch DVDs when not having a TV connection. We would be able to watch 3 or 4 hours before turning it off and going to bed with battery to spare. This last trip was our first with the new Carry Out. After only 2 to 2.5 hours the inverter shut itself off and that was it. We have 2 Interstate 6 volt batteries with rated at 232AH and a Samlex SA1500-12 inverter and a Samlex transfer switch. I didn't think the Direct TV would use any more juice than the Blue Ray player we watch movies on. Any ideas where I may be coming up short here?

The carry out worked great by the way.

Steve

[mena661]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Lots of advice here if you ask for it.

X200

[MEXICOWANDERER]

IMHO you are starting in the middle then working toward three ends.

1. Take the batteries to a genuine BATTERY SHOP. A real one. Not Wal Mart and have them charged and checked.

2. My satellite system gulped SEVEN AMPERES of power from the batteries. So it is nowhere in hell as economical powerwise as a DVD player.

3. You NEED a wall mounted amp hour meter to keep tabs on where your battery charge is or isn't. Guessing or using simple voltage just does not cut it.

4. Got a regular TV? Put your hand over top. It serves as a modest heater as well. An LCD television is the way to go. Folks here on this forum will guide you well.

5. Forget about switching inverters. Save your money. Like fitting new tires to a burning car. Use your money for something useful.

6. When you start your generator you want it to charge batteries QUICKLY not sit there, vibrate, roar, empty your wallet and play with itself. Again fellow forum members will help steer you right.

START WITH THE BATTERIES. Go to the yellow pages and find a battery shop. Interstate DISTRIBUTORS (not retailers) used to offer this service or recommend a shop whom they trust.

With ten seconds if I dwaddle, I can tell how much power I used overnight, how much charging I am going to need to bring up my batteries, and whether what I believe to be a charge taking place, really is. It is that amp hour meter I mentioned earlier. Lots of advice here if you ask for it.

[full_mosey]

Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want.

Let's skip past the obvious that your batteries likely shot and focus on your maintenance and charging.

Do you know the SOC% or capacity at any given time?

What procedures have you tried to recover the batteries back to full capacity?

Do you stir the acid after topping off with water?, How?

HTH;
John

[mena661]

MrWizard wrote:
do the math
the inverter beeps at the low battery alarm 11v ? the instructions & specs tell you what the low voltage set point alarm is
LED lights .. very little power
sat receiver 25w aka 2amps at 12v ..TV power needs ? how big is the TV, is there a home theater sound system .. where is the power going ?

2.5 hrs !! you should be good for at least 6 hrs of TV maybe even 10hrs

i'm sorry you don't like our opinions
but unless you can show some huge power use
you have to face the facts, the batteries are not supplying what they should be capable of

to give you an 'Analogy' your batteries are like a milk jug full of rocks
you can pour in water but it takes less to reach the full line, maybe 1/2 gallon
so when you pour it back out (aka use power) you can only get 1/2 volume

you are the only one who thinks they are good

X2

[MrWizard]

moving to tech issues

[MrWizard]

The batteries are only about 1.5 years old and have been kept charged over that time. I run the generator about 3-4 hours each day and check the water level regularly.

YES....BUT what converter/charger do you have, how big, how many amps

that 3 hrs should be good for doing 50%~90% recharge, if you have a 40amp smart charge converter

an old 'magtec converter' doing a 6 amp charge would takes days to recharge your batteries

using the charge function built into some portable gensets does not produce a full charge, they have a very low charge rate approx 8amps

[YC_1]

One never really "buys" a battery, we basically just rent them. I have seen new ones fail. They fail at any age. Use a hydrometer on them. Make sure your connections are taken off, cleaned, and tight when you put them back on. Use a voltmeter at the battery and then at the inverter. A long run of light wire with a poor connection will drop a volt easily. Can you unplug the dish after it locks on? Twelve volts part that is of course. Of course you could measure the actual DC current being used and then do the math. End of story doing it that way.

[Bill_Satellite]

Do Dish Network receivers (non-DVD) use less power than Direct TV receivers?

Steve

No, they are about the same.

[MrWizard]

do the math
the inverter beeps at the low battery alarm 11v ? the instructions & specs tell you what the low voltage set point alarm is
LED lights .. very little power
sat receiver 25w aka 2amps at 12v ..TV power needs ? how big is the TV, is there a home theater sound system .. where is the power going ?

2.5 hrs !! you should be good for at least 6 hrs of TV maybe even 10hrs

i'm sorry you don't like our opinions
but unless you can show some huge power use
you have to face the facts, the batteries are not supplying what they should be capable of

to give you an 'Analogy' your batteries are like a milk jug full of rocks
you can pour in water but it takes less to reach the full line, maybe 1/2 gallon
so when you pour it back out (aka use power) you can only get 1/2 volume

you are the only one who thinks they are good

[57_Panhead]

MrWizard wrote:
the antenna is not the problem

you have added more 'power use' to 'weak batteries'

and still haven't listed the TV's power use, to get an idea of TOTAL power drain per hour for entertainment

The only other things drawing power are 2 to 3 LED light fixtures,water pump and that's about it. Why do you keep saying my batteries are weak? They are only a year and a half old and have been well cared for.

Do Dish Network receivers (non-DVD) use less power than Direct TV receivers?

Steve

[MrWizard]

the antenna is not the problem

you have added more 'power use' to 'weak batteries'

and still haven't listed the TV's power use, to get an idea of TOTAL power drain per hour for entertainment

[fpresto]

I agree with Bill. DirecTV receivers are notorious power hogs especially the DVRs. When you turn them off all you are killing are the lights on the front. The hard drive and the rest of the components are still drawing power. The only way to stop it is to unplug when not in use. Then, of course it will have to go through the set-up while you watch the just a few minutes more scroll for at least ten or 15 minutes when you restart.

[Bill_Satellite]

The DirecTV receiver uses about 25 watts at all times that it is in use and also uses 5-10 watts at all times that it is plugged in whether being used or not.
As mentioned above, the antenna does not use any unless it is moving and the receiver sends power to the antenna to activate the LNB.

[57_Panhead]

MrWizard wrote:
has to use a few watts to power the receiver
you might be surprised, it might be 5amps/60watts continuous

I didn't make myself clear in my previous post. Not sure what the receiver draw is but the ANTENNA only draws 5 amps off the 12 volt hookup WHILE it is auto seeking the satellite. The receivers power consumption is another issue.
Steve