Amps at Rest

[SloPoke]

Originally Posted by Mark S

I just took my new Handy-Dandy clamp on Amp meter and took readings off the positive battery cable.

With the inverter switched off, the reading was 0.71 amps.

With the inverter switched on and everything else in standby, the reading was 1.75 amps. Inverter is using about 1 amp per hour.

So after 48 hours I have used about 85 amps (1.75 amps x 48 hours)and my voltage is 12.4-12.5.

Does this sound about right?

I think of it this way... If your batteries have a total of 400AH capacity, that is actually 200AH of usable power as you don't want to discharge them any further.

At your current consumption rate, the 85A you have is about 85AH taken from the 200AH you have available (for the Inverter alone) What are the other loads that may be contributing to additional load? Our batteries have 4 cables attaching to the + terminals going back to the Seneca. Have you tested each of the others too? Can you provide those readings?

[Mark S]

Steve, The other cable has a reading of 0.01 and 0.04 amps with inverter off and on respectively and I included those numbers in the total.

[SloPoke]

Originally Posted by Mark S

Steve, The other cable has a reading of 0.01 and 0.04 amps with inverter off and on respectively and I included those numbers in the total.

Oh... Ok, maybe I misread that earlier. If I remember, you are running 4 6V cells? Most likely around 400-450AH in capacity total?

If you are between 12.4v and 12.5v at rest, that is about 75%-80% state of charge after 85AH of discharge - that sounds well within the parameters to me.

This thread makes me think of all the various loads that are always running our batteries down. (most call them parasitic loads) Just in OUR Seneca:

Refrigerator control board
Co2 / Propane Alarm
Water Heater control board
TV Antenna
Radio Standby Circuit
Radio #2 Standby Circuit
PAC amplifier (in the dash)
Rear Camera
Generator power control module
Coleman Thermostat F
Coleman Thermostat R
TPMS Repeater

These all add up fast.... I am amazed that you only have the draw that you have...

[Mark S]

If you say I am within parameters than I am done with this issue. I’m tired of worrying if my batteries are working like they are supposed to. No more wooring about this. Now let me check the list for the next thing to worry about. 😂 Thanks.

BTW Steve, the KOA has your spot open. Just sayin.

[Robbbyr]

Originally Posted by Mark S

If you say I am within parameters than I am done with this issue. I’m tired of worrying if my batteries are working like they are supposed to. No more wooring about this. Now let me check the list for the next thing to worry about. 😂 Thanks.

BTW Steve, the KOA has your spot open. Just sayin.

Mark,
Your recorded amp draw was with the coach main battery switch in the "on" position wasn't it? My earlier response was when mine was off, I leave my unit in storage (no AC power) and it will sit for weeks and only lose a few tenths of a volt until I come back and run it for several hours.
I wasn't sure if yours was on or off.

[Mark S]

Good morning Rob. Yes, measurements were with batteries on. If i remember correctly, the amps were very close to zero with the batteries off.

[Robbbyr]

Originally Posted by Mark S

Good morning Rob. Yes, measurements were with batteries on. If i remember correctly, the amps were very close to zero with the batteries off.

Good morning to you too! I think my primary, yet miniscule, batteries "off" draw is my LP/CO alarm. Less than 1 amp. I know my generator control panel is also always on since its LCD is always active. But I can live with those!

Snowblower service day today, expecting big storm this weekend. But I would rather be tinkering on the Seneca!

[Mark S]

Originally Posted by Robbbyr

Snowblower service day today, expecting big storm this weekend. But I would rather be tinkering on the Seneca!

Mountain biking this morning. Our January-February weather is the only reason I can tolerate living in Florida. I keep telling you, we have room for you.

[Pointerdog]

All of the tests listed in this string are good to determine basic draw from your devices by actually unplugging them. When I purchased my 318RETS I had a custom system installed. Four 245 amp hour 6 volt Exide batteries in two sets of series wired parallel, powered by 500 Watts of commercial solar panels. Driving a Morningstar MPPT controller with a Magnum 2000 watt inverter I noticed the same serious discharge with nothing on.

It turned out that the on board, factory battery charger was sensing the battery drainage and trying to re charge the batteries, creating an endless loop which slowly drained them. I put a switch between the wires from the onboard charger to the batteries, which I turn off when using the inverter. Problem solved. My inverter itself draws less than 0.5 amp.

[SloPoke]

Originally Posted by Pointerdog

All of the tests listed in this string are good to determine basic draw from your devices by actually unplugging them. When I purchased my 318RETS I had a custom system installed. Four 245 amp hour 6 volt Exide batteries in two sets of series wired parallel, powered by 500 Watts of commercial solar panels. Driving a Morningstar MPPT controller with a Magnum 2000 watt inverter I noticed the same serious discharge with nothing on.

It turned out that the on board, factory battery charger was sensing the battery drainage and trying to re charge the batteries, creating an endless loop which slowly drained them. I put a switch between the wires from the onboard charger to the batteries, which I turn off when using the inverter. Problem solved. My inverter itself draws less than 0.5 amp.

Do I understand this correctly?? How they wired up your "on board factory battery charger".... was so the 120v power created by your inverter - was powering the charger? They had the battery charger plugged into the Inverter powered outlet?

[Mark S]

Wow! Jayco has come up with a perpetual energy machine. A battery powering an inverter that powers a charger that recharges the battery. Brilliant! 😎

[SloPoke]

Originally Posted by Mark S

Wow! Jayco has come up with a perpetual energy machine. A battery powering an inverter that powers a charger that recharges the battery. Brilliant! 😎

Yep... making more power than the Windmill Farm at the mouth of the canyon right now!

Originally Posted by Mark S

Mountain biking this morning. Our January-February weather is the only reason I can tolerate living in Florida. I keep telling you, we have room for you.

Robbby, You should try it... Quite the setup!

Originally Posted by Mark S

BTW Steve, the KOA has your spot open. Just sayin.

Oh that is just too hard to pass up! like a root-canal or colonoscpy!

[Sam]

Mark, I keep my inverter off until I need 120V for TV or something like that. Then it is off. I have done this with my last three RVs. I know you probably know this, however, thought I would throw this in. All had four sixV batteries with inverters from 1800V to 2000V. Batteries would go 3/4 days before I needed to recharge. Now I don't need to worry, I recently added 490 watts of solar. Sam

[Pointerdog]

Not quite, Slopoke.

The inverter was wired to the main electrical panel bus. The on board battery charger is also wired to the same bus. When you are connected to shore power and the bus has power, the onboard charger is always on and charges the batteries until they have about 13.8 volts or so. So every time the inverter was turned on the voltage would drop slightly and the onboard charger would try to recharge the batteries back to the float voltage. This created an endless loop. The easiest and least expensive solution was to add a simple switch on the trailer tongue breaking the connection between the onboard charger and the batteries (on the 12 volt side).