Quote:
Originally Posted by travis_slim
To be honest with you I'm happy this thread is going this way. I think these conversations needed to happen and I hope this thread gets read many times in the future so that way people like myself can learn from it all. I think a lot of the previous threads didn't get to the heart of the conversation like this one has and I think that is important.
stang99 if you were installing on my cart would you install the lights on one battery and install the radio on another? This seems to make the most sense to me but maybe I'm wrong. Would it even be worth considering alternating the power feeds of the lights and the radio to the free unused batteries to help wear there life span down more evenly? Say move them once a month? Note: I live in North Dakota so my cart will only be used from April till October and that's if I'm lucky.
Second question I have is what LED voltmeter do you use? I like the Curtis 906 model but having a hard time finding it. I am having to call around to electrical distribution centers and my luck is not good so far. When I read about these voltmeters / battery meters they don't read correctly when you buy the cheap ones, so I am nervous to buy one. I know looked up the data sheets on my batteries and know what the discharge profile is for the batteries volts per cell empty and full.
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That's really up to you travis. Most of the carts I've had in the last 6-8 months have been the 6 x 8 configuration and for those I use the provided factory ground from the controller panel and the 5th battery to achieve 16v. On the 4 x 12 I use the number 4 battery most of the time, as it is the last one in the series. There is no particular reason, it's just what I've always done. As to using different batteries to spread out the load, you can do that if you like. When you put a set of batteries in a series the current flows through the set during operation. Most all batteries in the series will measure within .1 volts of each other at all times other than the end of their lifespan where any one could fail before another.......the one that fails could be any one, or there might not be one that fails. It's something that is simply unpredictable by anyone, except maybe mrs cleo for 9.99 a minute.
All of that is depending on you keeping the water levels in check and keeping corrosion off the posts. Corrosion or low water can cause a battery to charge and operate below threshold values.
As to the LED voltmeters, the opinions will again vary to the same degree. I don't waste my money or my customers money on those $50+ priced meters. I find it completely unnecessary and nothing more than a profit center for the seller. I use the cheap chinese meters everyday. Sure, occasionally one will fail, probably a little more often than the high dollar ones. But for $10 you could get 5 of them and never worry about it again. I have noted in the past that the cheaper ones tend to have a higher failure rate if wired into an "always on" circuit. If wired to the ignition on wire, they will last quite a long time. They've always been within .1V when I have measured them against a multimeter. I have installed hundreds of them in the last year and only two have had to be replaced. A fail rate of about 1% in my experience......maybe 2%. I had some extras and I even got one for a forum member so he didn't have to wait for it to ship from China. The choice of meters however, is personal and whatever you like. If you don't mind spending a wad on it, feel free. I'm sure there are site vendors selling the high dollar ones somewhere. I'm just here trying to help you save some cash to do more mods and enjoy your cart to the fullest!
