Since there is no shunt required for amperage measurements with the Balmar Smartgauge an entire step in the installation process is eliminated. Without a doubt, the Balmar unit is the simplest of all the units we have tested when it comes to installation. What is interesting about the Balmar Smartgauge is that it relies on smart algorithms that don’t require either a temperature gauge or operator calibration to be accurate. Why is calibration so important? As your batteries age, a re-adjustment of the charging parameters is really quite necessary in order to maximize the accuracy of your monitor. In the case of battery monitors that essentially present a voltage reading, monitoring temperature in real time can more accurately depict voltage, and therefore, state of charge. We know from Ohms Law that as resistance changes (mathematically) both voltage and current will change. As batteries heat and cool due to both ambient temperature variations and electro-chemical reactions in each cell of the battery, their internal electrical resistances also vary. There is a direct correlation between temperature, current (amperage), and voltage.
Why does temperature matter? Monitoring battery temperature and building that data into a micro-processor that is sending out a voltage reading is useful for those seeking extreme accuracy. Some of the vendors did not offer any guidance for calibration, presumably because calibration is limited, if at all possible. Victron, for example, offers an optional temperature sender to provide that data input to their monitors. Several of the vendors in our group have given these matters considerable attention and make recommendations to periodically synchronize or calibrate the monitor with the batteries being monitored. (See accompanying How We Tested on right for details on the testing.)īattery chemistry and internal construction, age, temperature, and rate of discharge and recharge efficiency all play into the degree of accuracy we can expect from a battery monitor. This is something our testers had to take into account as well when they established a protocol. But when it comes to determining state of charge or hours of use remaining, there are many factors that can introduce some margin of error. These devices are quite good at monitoring amperage and voltage and keeping track of these values down to 0.1 volts in either case. Its important for readers to understand the limitations of any battery monitoring system. From what we could determine, the other vendors have not really tested their products with lithium ion battery chemistry in mind. Of all our test units, the Victron monitors were the only ones to even mention lithium iron technology and make a recommendation for adjusting the units profiling to fit lithium technology and discharge/recharge regimens. At the high end was very sophisticated monitor from Victron that can work well with lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery technologies.
Xantrex battery monitor generator#
At the low end was a simple, red warning-light voltage monitor from Scad that automatically shuts down heavy electrical loads or turns on a generator before the battery goes dead. Thanks to our readers input we got our hands on one of these recently and ran it through the same test regimen we applied to the other eight monitors.Ī brief recap of where we stand: For this report, Practical Sailor studied and compared monitoring systems from five different suppliers: Blue Sea Systems, CruzPro, Scad Technologies, Victron Energy, and Xantrex. Unfortunately, we overlooked the Smartgauge made by Balmar. It is equipped with an internal programmable alarm relay, to run a generator when needed or to turn off devices when the battery voltage exceeds programmable boundaries.Back in our October 2016 issue we looked at eight battery monitors and compared features, installation needs and overall usability. A second battery input is also provided to monitor voltage on a second battery. Using a clear backlit LCD Display and an intuitive user interface, all parameters can be recalled with just a button press.
The LinkPRO selectively displays voltage, charge and discharge current, consumed amp hours, remaining battery capacity and the time remaining of your battery bank. A new shunt selection feature enables the LinkPRO to measure currents up to 10,000 Amps.
Xantrex battery monitor software#
High performance measuring circuits, along with complex software algorithms, are used to exactly determine the remaining battery capacity. Defining the amount of energy available in a battery is a complex task since battery age, discharge current and temperature all influence the actual battery capacity.
0 kommentar(er)
