Voltmeter...

seen a few voltmeters on ebay, some for landies some not. are they all pretty much the same and are they easy to fit? they all seem to be the same size as the landy ones (52mm) so i could hopefully fit it where the clock used to be. are they easy to wire up?

reason for asking is i got a lecy winch cheap and want to keep an eye on the batt. would an amp meter thingy be better?

cheers.

G

Griffdowg said:

seen a few voltmeters on ebay, some for landies some not. are they all pretty much the same and are they easy to fit? they all seem to be the same size as the landy ones (52mm) so i could hopefully fit it where the clock used to be. are they easy to wire up?

reason for asking is i got a lecy winch cheap and want to keep an eye on the batt. would an amp meter thingy be better?

cheers.

G

Click to expand...

Voltmeter tells you how many volts your alternators pushing out. and is easy to fit one wire goes to earth and the other goes to the alternator.

think amp meter is wired in line on the live to battery and records the ampage been sent to the battery.

yes it will fit and work on any motta. fit it across the battery.
Do not use an Ammeter - it will go fsd when yu use a winch (bad).

The Mad Hat Man said:

it will go fsd when yu use a winch (bad).

Click to expand...

ok wont be doing that then. so if i wire it into the alt. wont that just give me a reading of how much my alt is pushing out and not the batt? or do they work in harmony... so to speak.

Griffdowg said:

ok wont be doing that then. so if i wire it into the alt. wont that just give me a reading of how much my alt is pushing out and not the batt? or do they work in harmony... so to speak.

Click to expand...

Auto Meter

Here you go the answers out there.

that is awesome, cheers redhand i will not be dealing with fiddling an ampmeter. i like the sound of a volty its simple electrics, right up my street!

i just want to monitor the batt situation when i use me new winch

thanks again.

G

Voltmeter won't tell you anything much useful. Nor an ammeter either.
That's why they don't fit them these days, basically since alternators took over from dynamos.

If you fit a voltmeter across your battery it will eventually flatten the battery - fit it some where switched by the IGN.

You alternator will never shove more than 13.8 volts "pressure", and it will do that whether it is making 1 amp "power" or 60 amps. That's what alternators are good at - making HEAPS of Amps (amps = power) at a steady voltage.

The one useful thing a voltmeter will show you is when the engine is NOT running, what voltage does your battery have. 12 to 14 is probably good enough the start the engine from cold .... less than 12 volts is decidedly dodgy, and 11 or less you're likely needing a push or tow to get her running.

So, if you use the winch with the motor not running, take care to not allow the volts to get too low. BUT ignore low volts while the winch is operating! The winch will drop battery volts right down when it goes on load and starts to draw lots of AMPS power.

Watch the volts across the battery when there is no load being taken - that gives some idea of the state of charge left.

Smart winchers use a separate battery for the winch, charged through a caravan battery relay thing. This way the engine's battery don't go flat due to winching.

CharlesY

yeah - i shud have made it clearer - not actually across the battery! As Charles says after the ignition switch or a cutout switch is best.

aw, there was me getting all excited about fitting a new piece of kit! i like the sound of being able to monitor it during winching and making sure its ok.

not planning on doing much winching and when i do i was planning on giving it loads of revs.

another batt and split charge system would be good but i dont want to spend out too much on this 90 at the mo as im planning on buying a newer one in a year or 2.

as a second batt, would i need a leisure batt or will an ordinary one do? i dont want to spend over a ton on an optima.

G

Hi Griffdowg......don't intend to hijack your tread, but need to ask a similar question too....

I am currently still studying on the best way to install a few items to the electrical system on my classic....am looking to put in a cut off switch, ammeter, voltmeter, split charge and 2nd battery....please correct me if anyone spotted anything thats wrong..

1) connect the ammeter between alternator to main battery to monitor flow
2) connect a cut off switch between main battery to ignition/distributor & everything else
3) connect a split charge unit between main battery and 2nd battery
4) connect a volt meter to main battery after ignition switch
5) connect a voltmeter to 2nd battery with a switch that can be off when the car is not in use
6) all stereo etc are connected to main battery
7) winch, cb and all aux 12v & 240v supply for camping lights, fridge etc to connect to 2nd battery
8) 5W solar panel to connect to 2nd battery while on camp ground

Please tell me if there is anything that should be done differently.

Thanks.

kingson

an ordinary battery will do just fine but not brilliant.......optima's and those deep cycle battery are better for winching purposes cos they can discharge at a faster rate, hence will supply to the winch with higher flow of electricity

without sufficient flow of electricity to the winch solenoid, the solenoid will heat up quite fast and get burnt out easily.....most of the time during winching itself

but then of course, you have to look at if you are doing extreme winching up a vertical hill or just out of a sticky situation..

Just a note on ammeter and voltmeter...

ammeter tells you at what status your alternator is working

voltmeter tells you what voltage/charge your battery/system is at

However, voltmeter doesn't tell you much if your bettery is on the last leg. As voltmeter is connected after the ignition switch, when a car is started, the alternator starts to work and will display a healthy 14 - 14.5v. But then the alternator may be charging at 60A even after 1 hours of driving. If so, the battery is not holding charge and will be at its last legs. Conversely, if the ammeter shows that flows reduce from say 50A to 20A after sometime driving, and the voltmeter is holding charge at 14 - 14.5v, then the system is working fine.

So, by combining an ammeter and voltmeter, I can monitor both the alternator and battery status at the same time.

1) ammeter showing high amp, voltmeter showing high voltage......okay
2) ammeter showing low amp, voltmeter showing high voltage...okay
3) ammeter showing low amp, voltage on voltmeter decreasing.......alternator problem
4) ammeter showing high amp, voltage on voltmeter decreasing.......battery problem
5) ammeter showing high amp on prolonged period, voltage on voltmeter decreasing.......battery problem

Reason for this is, often while greelaning/off roading, the alternator may get 'contaminated' by debris or mud and not functioning as it should. At this time, you are draining the battery while continuing the journey and will eventually come to a hault where the battery has insufficient charge. If known earlier, a quick service/wash to the alternator can prevent unnecessary breakdown.

Hope it make sense..!!

kingsonlim said:

Reason for this is, often while greelaning/off roading, the alternator may get 'contaminated' by debris or mud and not functioning as it should. At this time, you are draining the battery while continuing the journey and will eventually come to a hault where the battery has insufficient charge. If known earlier, a quick service/wash to the alternator can prevent unnecessary breakdown.

Hope it make sense..!!

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surely if your not using any lights/winch etc then your batt cant "drain" whilst you are still driving.

juist picked up a 95ah 640cca batt from work for free... will charge it tonight and see how it is. hope this batt will be ok as a 2nd.

G

G

yes it can.....

i once thought a diesel engine uses no battery power while on drive...but i was wrong....mud got through the alternator and without charge...the battery died after 2 hours...

petrol engine needs electricity to provide sparks.....hence the battery die even faster....

a simple test will show........after started the car......disconnect the battery....the engine shut off.....its the same scenerio if your alternator is not charging the battery and the battery eventually has insufficient or no charge left...

heres agoodun that happened to me a few years ago. thurs a prize fer who ever comes up with the correct solution and reason why.

drove all day through desert sand, up to 7 or 8 hours aday.. alternator and battery wur fine.. next morning vehicle starts ok but charge light stayed on... each day i had to perform a quick fix for it.

what wur the fix and what was happening?

there was sand in yer eyes... you stopped for a wash?

G

and that affected the charging how?

Sand in yer undies

Sounds like either a loose wire or slack belt. But could have bin a heavy dew in dessert, fixed by good ole WD40 or drying with a rag?

wrong

sand got between the alternator rod and its carbon......brush the sand away...

battery water boiled and dry up half way.......refill water and or asid/water....

a short circuit to the charge light......remove bulb or fuse.....re-place at night..