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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down
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    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 3:17pm
Originally posted by Olddawgsrule

Is the electric brake cable pulled? 

No, but good thinking.
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 3:12pm
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.
2014 RPod 178 => MyMods and Buying Habits
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Yes, those are wild ponies dining on grass while dumping tanks!
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offgrid View Drop Down
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 2:57pm
One question first:  how do you know you are delivering 30 AH per day to the batteries? 

If you're getting up to 14.7V and 30AH is really getting pushed into the batteries then the charge limit on your controller is too high, at least for the current hot weather. You might look into temp compensation for the controller, or see if you can adjust the setpoints. Put another way, the AH are going into battery gassing, using energy to create hydrogen and oxygen from the water in the battery. 
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down
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Posts: 1014 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 2:55pm
Is the electric brake cable pulled? 
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 2:12pm
I did order a hydrometer.
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 2:10pm
Monitor is a great idea and I will probably install shortly.

But...the mystery here is that if there is that much of a phantom draw ~30Ah/day, why would my batteries hold a charge (showing > 12.4v) with no charge over a week? Remember, I said the Pod sat for a week with no charge before I started these tests. It then sat for another week with converter on. And...just overnight with now charge, I would think the bank would draw down to less than the 12.9v it's been showing.

Unless I killed the batteries the last few days, I don't understand the PWM readings I'm seeing.
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StephenH View Drop Down
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Posts: 6289 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 1:46pm
Having a monitor will help. You can use it in conjunction with pulling fuses from the panel to isolate which circuit is using the power. An alternative would be a clamp-on meter which can read DC amperage. I have a Southwire meter that has come in handy. I had that before I put in the monitor. The monitor is good in that it acts like a fuel gauge for the battery, letting you know state of charge by monitoring amperage in and out. It is much better than the idiot lights on the panel.
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 1:44pm
No.  Fridge on propane.
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Olddawgsrule View Drop Down
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Posts: 1014 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Jul 2020 at 1:38pm
If I'm reading this right.. You're running the Frig on battery? If so, there's where the amps are going..
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