New batteries and converter

[hdwg]

Great forum, have gotten lots of great info here. Have a little issue with my 2000 pds. We have it our seasonal campsite during camping season, garaged over the winter so, use it on weekends/ 2-4 days a week. Bought some new 6v Trojans and a Madjax 36-12v converter, put it all together last weeked. Got thru the weekend, charged it up Sunday afternoon and left for the week. Came out last night, batts pretty low. Metered everything, no power coming out of the converter unless turned on, voltage good across and individually with the batts..?

I have everything wired to switches I put in, one to turn on the converter, one for lights, one for radio. Lights and radio will not come on without the converter switch being on. As well to the converter switch, wired a state of charge meter from Madjax. I do have the radio memory wired, constant 12vdc, radio was wired just last night and was not thru the week.

Had it out this morning and the meter dropped a notch for the little we rode around, seemed to much for 10 min ride. Any help, opinion etc, much appreciated!

[JohnnieB]

For starters, new batteries do not obtain their rated storage capacity until they are broken in.
Typical about 75% of rated AH when new, so a T-105 would effectively be a 170AH battery when new and grow into a 225AH battery as it is broken in.

Here is how to break in new batteries: http://www.cartsunlimited.net/battery-break-in-.html

Also sounds like you have some things using some power.
As long as the controller is connected to the battery pack, it draws a few milliamps of current keeping the filter capacitors charged.
If the Run/Tow switch is in the Run position, the controller's electronics are alive and drawing power, again just a few milliamps.
The MadJax converter's constant 12V supply will draw a few milliamps of power whether anything is connected to always on 12V supply or not and it will draw more now that the radio memory is connected to it.
Also, the batteries themselves, self-discharge at about 1% SoC per day.

Add all of those "few milliamps" and the self discharging and you likely had a 170AH (or so) battery pack that was only about 85%-90% charged when you started your 10 minute trip.

Since the cart sits three to five days a week, a DPI Accusense charger would be a good investment.
It float charges after the regular charge cycle finishes, which compensates for the parasitic loads and self-discharge, so you start out the day with a battery pack that is 100% charged. no matter how long the cart has be sitting.

[hdwg]

Yeah, just ordered a dpi from amazon yesterday. I have been metering trying to find power output when all is off, not finding anything. I have 36v constant going to my state of charge, 36v constant going to my switch that turns on meter/converter, switch is there in place of wiring to key switch, not getting any voltage on key switch maybe the issue... get a new key switch.

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by hdwg

Yeah, just ordered a dpi from amazon yesterday. I have been metering trying to find power output when all is off, not finding anything. I have 36v constant going to my state of charge, 36v constant going to my switch that turns on meter/converter, switch is there in place of wiring to key switch, not getting any voltage on key switch maybe the issue... get a new key switch.

If the cart runs, the keyswitch isn't defective, so no need to replace it.

The power drains I mentioned exist and are normal. If you want to find out exactly how much power is being drained from the battery pack, you'll have to look at the Inputs to the controller and converter rather than the Outputs. To do that you need to use an ammeter in series with the input, or measure the voltage drop across a resistor that is in series with the input.

There is already a resistor across the solenoid's large terminal and its Ohmic value should be marked on it. Measure the voltage on the battery pack side of the resistor and then the controller side of the resistor. The difference between those two voltage is the voltage drop cause by the amps flowing through the resistance.

For example, the resistor is 250Ω and there is 5V of deference, there is 0.02A of current flowing. (20 Milliamps)

The battery pack is connected to the controller in two more places. J1 Pins 4 & 5. Both can be measured with an ammeter inserted at the other end of the wires attached to the pins.

J1 Pin-4 is feed by the reed switch in the charge receptacle. Disconnect the inline quick-connect on the smaller of the three wires coming out of the charge receptacle and reconnect using an ammeter in series. (This feeds the controller's electronics, so there will be a current flow except when the Run/Tow switch is in Tow.)

J1 Pin-5 is feed by the red wire on the solenoid's battery side large terminal. Disconnect the red wire and reconnect using an ammeter in series. (The feeds the external switches connected to controller and has voltage on it 100% of the time, but no current flow unless the contacts of an external switch is closed.)

For the converter, insert an ammeter in the Positive 36V wire feeding the converter.

Of course, what the value of these unavoidable amp drains actually are is immaterial once you start using your DPI charger. It float chargers at a constant voltage (about 39.40V in Mode-2) and adjusts the amps needed to maintain that voltage.

[270Handiman]

Amazon is usually high on that charger....how much you give for it?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

[hdwg]

Hey handiman...I was able to get it for $281, thru prime, think that just gives me 2 day shipping.

[hdwg]

I am just gonna try hooking the meter up to the key switch instead of the switch i made, think that may be an issue.
Mine is the pds with just 2 wires going to the keyswitch. Not finding constant or, switched 36v coming to it, is it possible to put it on that keyswitch? It is a madjax, 3 pins, batt and the on switch.

[JohnnieB]

Here are the installation instructions for both.

[hdwg]

Took my DPI charger out to the camp ground today after the cart has not been on charge since Sunday. When we left Sunday had the batts fully charged. Get there today, threw the DPI on and within 5 min or so the charger says the batts are full. Sunday I did disco all my wiring/switches put in for the lights, radio and state of charge meter, just batts and control wires and it kept basically a full charge. So, have something wrong in my wiring...gonna just have to redo it.

[Clemsoncartguy]

Are you saying you left all that stuff on all week and it didn't drain the batteries much so you have something wired wrong sun e it should of drained more power than that??? I couldn't follow that?