Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2011 08:18:57 -0700
Reply-To: Steve Williams <sbw@SBW.ORG>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Steve Williams <sbw@SBW.ORG>
Subject: Re: Follow-Up: Under-Sink Battery Installation
In-Reply-To: <4E429A2F.5020604@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed
At 07:48 AM 8/10/2011, Rocket J Squirrel wrote:
>I am surprised that you cannot see the refrigerator, though ... What
>is the current consumption spec for your Engle reefer?
I wasn't looking very closely. GoWesty says 0.7-3.6 amps. Engel
says 0.7-2.5 amps. They don't say whether that's average or
continuous, but I assume it's continuous, in which case I'm not sure
why it should vary so much. The compressor works harder at first,
when the refrigerant is warm?
http://www.engel-usa.com/mt45_u1.html
>>I bought a fusible link kit from B&C Specialty Products, but I
>>haven't put it together yet.
>
>My aux battery monitor's ammeter shunt is connected between the
>battery - terminal and van frame, so no fusing is needed ... if the
>ammeter portion of the meter has its own two dedicated wires for
>connecting to the shunt you may want to move it to the ground leg.
Yeah, good point. I'm not sure why we put the shunt in the positive
leg in aircraft. That's just how I was taught to do it. I'll ask
some of my avionics guru buddies.
Here's that fusible link kit, by the way:
http://www.bandc.biz/fusiblelinkkit24-20awg.aspx
>>The voltmeter is powered at all times. I welcome your comments on
>>whether it should be switched ...
>
>That's going to be difficult for anyone to answer without a link to
>the specs for the meter.
Westach doesn't have a lot of tech info on their web site. They
provide great tech support by phone. Or I can just measure the
current directly.
>>It shows the alternator dumping about 9 amps into the battery. The
>>voltage is relatively low, about 12.3 volts ...
>
>Yeah, you'll never get a full charge into the aux battery with
>voltage that low. But have you checked the accuracy of the new
>voltmeter by sticking a good voltmeter across the aux battery's terminals?
I have. And I'll go back and carefully measure the voltage at the
starter battery and the aux battery again. There's always room for
improvement.
>>I wonder whether there's a way to run a big honkin' wire from the
>>starter battery over to the aux battery relay?
>
>I did, so yes.
OK, so tell me more. I don't have a schematic, and the diagrams in
the service manual are impenetrable. And I didn't completely
understand the changes made by the GoWesty aux battery kit. They
certainly didn't add any wires as large or direct as I'd like to see:
I'd like 6 gauge, minimum, connected directly to the starter
battery. (The starter battery's connection to the alternator was
recently cleaned up by Van Cafe.)
So can I just run a 6 gauge wire from the starter battery to the
terminal on the aux battery contactor added as part of the GoWesty kit?
And, yes, I'd still like to know whether I can drill into the low
floor between the two battery compartments and fish wires through
there. If so, I'd also fish the Pro-Sport's leads to the starter
battery and the Engel's 12-volt leads through there. Those are
currently out in the open, just waiting to get snagged.
Thanks!
