Powerwise charger problem

[simple man]

Originally Posted by JohnnieB

Yes.

However, I believe it only applies to JAN (Joint Army/Navy) Nomenclature. (IE: Diodes whose part numbers start with "1N")

When in doubt, use an ohmmeter to determine polarity and doubt everything.

Excellent advice!!! I've had parts marked wrong before!

[busman9]

Johnnie,I have another Powerwise charger here that works on these carts. I have turned this project over to my mechanic because it is driving me crazy. He says the currant flow is opposite on these two chargers and the Ezgo diodes are also backward flow. Is this possible and he thinks if we change the wires in the plug it will charge but maybe the amp meter might go backwards????????????????????????????????????????? ??????

[JohnnieB]

From what I could tell in the last set of pictures posted, the diodes are correct and the white and black wires inside charger that go to the output cable are correct, so reversing the positions of the Radsoks in the plug that plugs into the cart won't make the Ammeter go backwards.

With the Rounded side up, as shown in attached drawing, the black wire goes to the top Radsok (terminal) and the white wire to the bottom one.

Having the White and black wire reversed in the plug would definitely cause some sparks when the charge came on.

Hopefully, that is the problem.

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by simple man

Excellent advice!!! I've had parts marked wrong before!

You've got that right!

International Rectifier used to have something that looked very much like a diode symbol in their logo and it caused some confusion at times. They've changed their logo.

I've also ran across parts that are assembled wrong.
The NVRAM battery in an EEG machine I was working on was a solder-in 1/3AA NiCad cell with polarizing tabs spot welded on both ends. The tab on one end had one protrusion the went through the PCB and the tab on the other end had two, so the battery could not be installed backwards. Only problem was the tabs on the replacement battery were installed on the wrong ends and it would have blown a board that cost several grand if it had been inserted.

[busman9]

Johnnie,Charger update: Repair 1-installed diodes that were mentioned earlier in a post and sparks everywhere
repair 2-Bought diodes from Ezgo and installed-sparks everywhere
repair 3--found diodes on the heat sink,installed. IT WORK!
Thanks for the Help!

[busman9]

If the charger does not shut-off after the pack is charged what senses the pack voltage?

[JohnnieB]

Originally Posted by busman9

If the charger does not shut-off after the pack is charged what senses the pack voltage?

The pack voltage is sensed by the Auxiliary contact in the charger plug touching the outside of the positive Radsok (terminal) in the cart's charge receptacle.
The sensed voltage is fed to the control board in the charger, which closes the charger's relay initiating the charge and when the voltage climbs to about 45V, the control board opens the relay.

The charger doesn't actually know if the battery pack is fully charged or not, it just shuts off when the sensed on-charge voltage of 45V is reached.
If 45V isn't reached, the control board has a safety timer that opens the relay after 16 hours of continuous charging.

[mikdeb33]

I know this thread is a little on the old side (2013) however, The original symptoms mentioned with the gauge not going above 5 amps when charging is exactly my charger's problem also. However, My charger is the older version of the EZ Go charger. So I guess, I would ask is there a thread perhaps that would cover these older model chargers. I am currently using my cart on a camping trip and the more I read about the batteries and maintaining/ charging them the more I really suspect something is wrong with my charger. And have for the last 2 years owning it. It does charge, but I will be honest with you I think I am never getting quite a full charge, so I would like to try some troubleshooting on this charger and could use some guidance. Oh and if there is a PDF version of the manual that would be great also. Thank you

Mike

[JohnnieB]

Welcome to BGW!

It would have been best to start a new thread, but since we are here.

Contrary to what is written on the faceplate, that is not an automatic charger. It is turned on and turned off by a timer.
(It was labeled that way because it predates what we now call automatic chargers, and to a degree, there is some automation built into it)

If it is not putting out above 5A when it is first plugged into the cart, the capacitor might be bad, or you may have one of the two diodes blown, or the transformer is bad. Except for the timer and ammeter, that is about all there is in the box.

Here is a Schematic for it.

I'd check the diodes first. 1N1184 diodes will work - replace both if one is bad.

Also attached is how to check capacitor and transformer.
Your charger is turned on by the timer, so disregard the bypassing the relay stuff.

If the capacitor is bad, a Motor Run capacitor for a local electrical supply will work.

[mikdeb33]

Johnnie B

Thank you for the reply, I apologize I now have this going in two different threads. This one and I opened a new one. I will comment in the new one but have saved your attachments to print out and see where this takes me. I assume in the pic showing the jumper wire installed that when testing the output the unit should be plugged in, turned on and not connected to cart correct?