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fwunder View Drop Down
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    Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 3:12pm
The ~30Ah reading comes from the Renogy controller. It starts @ zero in the AM (or after dark) and accumulates during the day. I have an inline meter (controller=>batteries) also. See pic. I have ordered a temperature probe. The PWM controller does have temperature compensation capability. There are no other adjustments. The gassing makes perfect sense !  I have been carefully watching electrolyte levels and haven't noticed a significant drop, but, man, that makes sense!

I assume there is no damage as long as batteries don't start boiling? I'm going to unplug solar this PM and go back to on board converter/charger. Thanks!!

This from a few minutes ago. 21.2Ah on controller. Meter shows 23.024Ah. For the day so far.
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 3:17pm
Originally posted by Olddawgsrule

Is the electric brake cable pulled? 

No, but good thinking.
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down
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Posts: 1014 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 4:10pm
Frig, brake cable, inverter are the big ones. 30ah a day is more than I draw normal with my Frig running (realize, I'm not in a rPod). Something is running you have not isolated.

Ghost in 'my' rPod was 3.264amps daily (over a 15 day trip). Ghost is not doing what is happening.

In my new unit, 12a with Frig running is typical. You need to isolate that draw. Shut off everything and take a reading. Possible short somewhere.
 
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 4:23pm
I think offgrid hit on it. It's not the pod or batteries. It's the controller thinking it's giving the batteries what they want. They are just farting out what's being pumped in and going about their business. As long as they are not boiling over and electrolyte level is good, it's OK.

Will be interesting to test side-by-side with new PWM controller and temperature probe I have coming.
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down
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Posts: 1014 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 4:39pm
Originally posted by fwunder

I think offgrid hit on it. It's not the pod or batteries. It's the controller thinking it's giving the batteries what they want. They are just farting out what's being pumped in and going about their business. As long as they are not boiling over and electrolyte level is good, it's OK.

Will be interesting to test side-by-side with new PWM controller and temperature probe I have coming.



Once again, OG and I have a different approach.. nothing new. That draw should not be taken lightly, no matter what I or anyone else states as 'okay'. Do your diligence and find the draw 

The stock rPod converter/charger has it's issues, yet haven't heard of this one till now. The battery will only take what it can, resistance comes into play. I'm of a belief that amperage is consumed, not distributed aimlessly. Current can not travel without an appliance to receive. 

I'd set all else down and start with just the batteries. Shall we see where the short is? 
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 4:46pm
Thanks Old Dawg! I'm going to disconnect solar shortly and just let everything sit for day or two without charger on and fridge on AC. Let's see how the batteries end up after 24-48 hours. If there is a phantom draw, it should show up.

Meanwhile, I just opened up the batteries and, sure enough, they are bubbling. Not boiling, but bubbling. Measured with IR they are currently @ 92.5 degrees.
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offgrid View Drop Down
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 5:39pm
Hold on a bit. I don't think charging at 14.7 is ok, especially in hot weather. The voltage should be lower. 

Read this: https://batteryuniversity.com/index.php/learn/article/charging_the_lead_acid_battery/subscribe_thx

I just said that is what I think is happening. If you look at the energy budget it takes a lot of energy to dissociate water, 51 MJ per Kg to be precise. 30AH at 14.7V is 441 WH which is 1.6 MJ. So one day's worth of overcharging would result in dissociation of 0.07 lbs of water. Not even noticeable. You'd have to go a couple  weeks like that or longer before you needed to add water. 

You will never get actual boiling of electrolyte in a battery, what you see is always just gassing. A little is good because it keeps the electrolyte mixing, too much is too much. 
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 6:22pm
Ok! Let's just step back a bit an let everything try to get back to some kind of baseline.

I've disconnected solar and converter/charger is disconnected. I'll monitor voltage and in a day or two I should have hydrometer and new controller. We'll go from there.

You guys are great! It will fun trying to figure this out! 
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 8:31pm
Just a late nite comment...

I have a friend who refuses to try solar. He says it's tooo much voodoo. He's not totally wrong. We still need more standards and understandings. That said, I'm gonna figure this out, ....
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Jul 2020 at 5:18am
Originally posted by fwunder

Just a late nite comment...

I have a friend who refuses to try solar. He says it's tooo much voodoo. He's not totally wrong. We still need more standards and understandings. That said, I'm gonna figure this out, ....

Not at all. Solar is the simplest energy source you can have, Aim it at the sun and it makes electricity. That's it. Lasts forever. No fuel or maintenance. 

Try that with anything else. I'm rebuilding an old Black and Decker wood chipper right now. Magneto coil, ground connections, spark plug gap, carb with a choke, throttile and an air vane governor. Tiny little carby and it has about 8-10 mechanical connections coming off it with springs and levers and cams. Can't remember where they all go and can't find an assembly diagram. StarAnd that's without even going into the engine itself. Talk about voodoo.

Solar has tons of codes, regs, and standards. It's has its own whole article in the national electric code. Its own UL listing standards. And a whole array of international reliability and safety standards. I know them well and was a co-author on many of them. Solar is pretty much regulated to death actually. New technologies generally are. Do you think Thomas Edison could get the light bulb socket approved for residential use if he invented it today? Way too big a safety hazard, it would have to be redesigned to pass the UL articulated finger test.  LOL


The issue you're having right now is a battery issue not a solar issue. Lead acid batteries do contain a bit of voodoo for sure. I don't think there is anything actually wrong with your system other than you should see if you can reset the charge voltage cutoff lower, 14.7 is too high. I have the same problem with my WFCO converter, it overcharges my batteries as well. 
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