The ALMOST perfect- Inexpensive Battery Monitor -Entry Level Upgrade - Page 3

Bookemdanno · 03-03-2018, 06:42 PM

It's someone definitely thinking outside the box!

01tundra · 03-04-2018, 11:19 AM

And done.

jasum · 03-04-2018, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bookemdanno

It's someone definitely thinking outside the box!

Looks like thinking INSIDE the box........

Vasquez Kid · 03-04-2018, 12:51 PM

Nice work tundra. I like your approach

01tundra · 03-04-2018, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vasquez Kid

Nice work tundra. I like your approach

Thanks.

I owe the electrical junction box idea to Mustang65. Worked out really good!

nighthawk87 · 03-04-2018, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 01tundra

Thanks.

I owe the electrical junction box idea to Mustang65. Worked out really good!

I’ve got two monitors ready to install and am also going to use the junction box idea for my shunt. Will post pics when done too.

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01tundra · 03-04-2018, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nighthawk87

I’ve got two monitors ready to install and am also going to use the junction box idea for my shunt. Will post pics when done too.

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Got mine at Lowe's, it's a 4" outdoor PVC junction box with no openings.

PlayersZ28 · 03-04-2018, 02:28 PM

I used one of those junction boxes for my rooftop solar connections. The corners of the cover cracked after one year. Have to be careful not to overtighten the screws as the seal allows the corners to be bent over when really tightened up.

hoppers4 · 03-04-2018, 02:32 PM

Nice job Tundra! If I had the ability to crawl around my MH, I could attach one of those critters to my frame rail.

01tundra · 03-04-2018, 03:07 PM

PVC will degrade if exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time, unless coated for UV protection.

With mine mounted on the inside frame rail it should be good for a very long while.

Made a quick cheat sheet that I'm going to have laminated and kept in the drawer.

PlayersZ28 · 03-04-2018, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 01tundra

PVC will degrade if exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time, unless coated for UV protection.

With mine mounted on the inside frame rail it should be good for a very long while.

Made a quick cheat sheet that I'm going to have laminated and kept in the drawer.

How many/type of batteries do you have installed?

I ordered and rcvd one of these monitors. I'll install it at some point to compare to my custom solution. If I cen hook it up with what I have with me then I can do if before I get home at the end of Apr. The shunt I have installed now is a high side setup (INA219).

**Mustang65** · 03-04-2018, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 01tundra

PVC will degrade if exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time, unless coated for UV protection.

With mine mounted on the inside frame rail it should be good for a very long while.

Made a quick cheat sheet that I'm going to have laminated and kept in the drawer.

VERY NICE JOB!!!

Since my 4x4 is mounted on the frame, exposed to a little more sunlight, I spray painted with gray primer and then spray painted the box/cover gloss black.

Don
My Registry

RVing with SOLAR

01tundra · 03-04-2018, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PlayersZ28

How many/type of batteries do you have installed?

I ordered and rcvd one of these monitors. I'll install it at some point to compare to my custom solution. If I cen hook it up with what I have with me then I can do if before I get home at the end of Apr. The shunt I have installed now is a high side setup (INA219).

We just have one Lifeline GPL-27T AGM (100 amp-hr). No room for anything else unfortunately.

nighthawk87 · 03-06-2018, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 01tundra

PVC will degrade if exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time, unless coated for UV protection.

With mine mounted on the inside frame rail it should be good for a very long while.

Made a quick cheat sheet that I'm going to have laminated and kept in the drawer.

Do you reset the discharge meter at night? How do you know your at 100% battery each day? When to you reset the charge meter.

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01tundra · 03-06-2018, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nighthawk87

Do you reset the discharge meter at night? How do you know your at 100% battery each day? When to you reset the charge meter.

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We're basically at 100% at the start of any of our trips since our TT is always connected to shore power when at home.

If we're on a trip I won't reset until we're home, that will keep our running total usage while we're away that I can compare to my chart.

If we're staying long enough to bring the generator with us, I would have to assume that we were close to 100% after recharging and reset the meter to start the process over again.

**Mustang65** · 03-06-2018, 12:48 PM

OK.... you knew it would only be a matter of time before I stumbled across my next ELECTRONICS TOY. Well, I ordered one of each of the below BATTERY CAPACITY meters. One meter only shows % left in battery, while the other shows % left in battery plus by pushing the button it changes to the voltage. For the most accurate readings, you will need too run a CAT5 or Quad telephone cable to the battery from the meter.

These displays use a VOLTAGE calculation, unlike the INEXPENSIVE BATTERY MONITOR which uses a shunt for ACTUAL IN/OUT readings that we have been discussing here.

I would bet that logic is built on the chart that 01tundra had in his post. For RVing needs this chart is good enough.

So, once I get them and head up to the TT April 1st, I will do a test and see how these NEW toys work out. Will probably do a video on it.

Sorry, if I sparked more interest. Soon our TT's will have a wall that looks like the MONITORING wall of a electric generating plant. Gauges, Electrical Displays from the ceiling to the floor, just so we know what our battery(s) are doing.

I will sell an MP3 that has a high voltage HUMMMMMM so you can impress anyone looking at it, maybe throw in a few ANALOG gauges that that are programmed to bounce around while 20 IDIOT lights of all different colors start flashing with buzzers going off, and a NUCLEAR reactor diagram on a digital display starts flashing over-temp warnings, "SHUT-DOWN", when the battery voltage hits 12.1VDC.

Don

My Registry

RVing with SOLAR

01tundra · 03-06-2018, 02:16 PM

If I add very much more my battery is going to die just from parasitic draw due to all the meters and gauges

I always get the same response from the wifey....."now what is "this" one going to tell us again?".....for some reason I think she's being a little fictitious with her questioning

Vasquez Kid · 03-06-2018, 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mustang65

OK.... you knew it would only be a matter of time before I stumbled across my next ELECTRONICS TOY. Well, I ordered one of each of the below BATTERY CAPACITY meters. One meter only shows % left in battery, while the other shows % left in battery plus by pushing the button it changes to the voltage. For the most accurate readings, you will need too run a CAT5 or Quad telephone cable to the battery from the meter.

These displays use a VOLTAGE calculation, unlike the INEXPENSIVE BATTERY MONITOR which uses a shunt for ACTUAL IN/OUT readings that we have been discussing here.

I would bet that logic is built on the chart that 01tundra had in his post. For RVing needs this chart is good enough.

So, once I get them and head up to the TT April 1st, I will do a test and see how these NEW toys work out. Will probably do a video on it.

Sorry, if I sparked more interest. Soon our TT's will have a wall that looks like the MONITORING wall of a electric generating plant. Gauges, Electrical Displays from the ceiling to the floor, just so we know what our battery(s) are doing.

I will sell an MP3 that has a high voltage HUMMMMMM so you can impress anyone looking at it, maybe throw in a few ANALOG gauges that that are programmed to bounce around while 20 IDIOT lights of all different colors start flashing with buzzers going off, and a NUCLEAR reactor diagram on a digital display starts flashing over-temp warnings, "SHUT-DOWN", when the battery voltage hits 12.1VDC.

Don

My Registry

RVing with SOLAR

I like that one for it's simplicity. Did you see this one too??

**Mustang65** · 03-06-2018, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vasquez Kid

I like that one for it's simplicity. Did you see this one too??

Yes, I looked at that one and a few more. This one had the temperature display, but the temp being displayed is inside the display from what I saw. Not that you could not pop out the temp sensor from inside and run a cable to the battery terminal and get that temperature.

Don

My Registry

RVing with SOLAR

nighthawk87 · 03-06-2018, 07:01 PM

These are all very interesting except I wonder about the ones in purchased since it will be difficult to know when to reset them (i.e. battery at 100%). Is there any other indication to know the battery is at 100% while using it on the TT?

Initially I thought I could reset it in the morning and monitor discharge from there but I’m not so sure.

Anyone have thoughts on how it would work best? I don’t mind baseline measurements. I’ll have one for charge and one setup for discharge.

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