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-   -   What killed this PC680? (https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?t=99810)

Walt 05-22-2013 06:02 PM

Measuring the amperage supplied from a battery charger "may" be a bit more complex than simply using a DC amp meter as there is usually a large AC component involved in DC battery chargers. So perhaps this is a Peak current figure rather than an average current figure which the meter is measuring.

BobTurner 05-22-2013 06:57 PM

I think the charger is operating properly. Was it at 14.7 volts?
The charging curve you show is for a completely discharged battery. Since yours is only about half discharged, the charger sensed this and started in the middle of the 8 hour cycle - at 3 amps, half of 6.

Nevertheless, you might ask Odyssee why they recommend a 6 amp charger when they say a minimum of 6.4 amps is needed.

Brantel 05-22-2013 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobTurner (Post 773149)
I think the charger is operating properly. Was it at 14.7 volts?
The charging curve you show is for a completely discharged battery. Since yours is only about half discharged, the charger sensed this and started in the middle of the 8 hour cycle - at 3 amps, half of 6.

Nevertheless, you might ask Odyssee why they recommend a 6 amp charger when they say a minimum of 6.4 amps is needed.

Nope,

The OCV at the start of the charge was ~12.1 volts.

Take another look at the charging curve. It is declaring the need for constant current of .4C10min which is 6.4 amps up to 4.7v. They call this the BULK CHARGE PHASE. Then the charger switches to the ABSORPTION PHASE.

The charger has LED's to tell you where it is in the cycle. I was also monitoring the battery voltage with a high quality volt meter. It was definitely in the BULK CHARGE PHASE....

I still say this charger is too small for the job or not working correctly. I am almost certain this is what killed my battery since I used the charger a bunch during my panel upgrade and during testing. The manual and technical literature warns many times to never perform the BULK CHARGE PHASE at less than .4C10min or it will damage the battery. Mine died in 6 months (with 3 of those months being panel upgrades and tests) so this seems like a good indication that something is wrong with the picture.

Brantel 05-22-2013 08:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walt (Post 773138)
Measuring the amperage supplied from a battery charger "may" be a bit more complex than simply using a DC amp meter as there is usually a large AC component involved in DC battery chargers. So perhaps this is a Peak current figure rather than an average current figure which the meter is measuring.

Very true Walt. I imagine that the makers of this charger are just like the makers of cheap audio power amps. Most of them claim high power but it is in P2P instead of the real RMS rating. I imagine the same goes for this charger. However, the battery folks are clear that they must be charged with .4C10min amps and since the RMS current is what does the work, that's what we need to be seeing on the meter. I am using a true RMS meter.

I happen to have a digital O'scope I can put on the charger output to see what the true output is. It will be interesting to know for several reasons. I will post the results when I get a chance to test it.

Brantel 05-24-2013 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brantel (Post 773165)
Very true Walt. I imagine that the makers of this charger are just like the makers of cheap audio power amps. Most of them claim high power but it is in P2P instead of the real RMS rating. I imagine the same goes for this charger. However, the battery folks are clear that they must be charged with .4C10min amps and since the RMS current is what does the work, that's what we need to be seeing on the meter. I am using a true RMS meter.

I happen to have a digital O'scope I can put on the charger output to see what the true output is. It will be interesting to know for several reasons. I will post the results when I get a chance to test it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walt (Post 773138)
Measuring the amperage supplied from a battery charger "may" be a bit more complex than simply using a DC amp meter as there is usually a large AC component involved in DC battery chargers. So perhaps this is a Peak current figure rather than an average current figure which the meter is measuring.

Walt,

I measured the output of the Ultimizer charger last night with a scope while performing some more test and it has a very stable DC output. Very little AC component and what is there is at a very high frequency. I opened the charger up and it has a switching type power supply not just a big transformer and a rectifier.

Brantel 05-24-2013 07:43 AM

I have an update:

I have been in contact with the folks at the Odyssey battery headquarters. They are very helpful folks. They have instructed batterymart.com to give me credit under warranty for the 6 month old battery.

They tell me that the primary reason for an Odyssey battery to have the symptoms that my 6 month old and 3 year old battery had was sulfation.

They also gave me a special procedure to follow to desulfate the battery if it can be saved. The prodedure is to discharge the battery at the 5hr rate maximum down to ~10v OCV. For the PC680, that is 3 amps max. And then to use the 6 amp Ultimizer to recharge the battery till it goes into trickle mode and to do this as many times as needed as long as the discharge time keeps taking longer than the last cycle.

I found my oldest battery (never threw it out) with a date code of July 09. It was replaced back in the fall of last year due to the same symptoms. I wanted to see if the special procedure could bring this thing back to life. So far I have completed 3 cycles on the battery. The first lasted about 5 minutes, the second almost 2 hours, and the third was well over 4 hours and tonight I plan to try another one. The bottom line is that this procedure seems to be working to revive this battery.

The only thing the support from Odyssey cannot explain is why these batteries are getting sulfated so quickly or at all in this application and with the continuous use of the Ultimizer charger.

I am a bunch more educated about these batteries now and I think the new one is going to last a long time even if I have to perform regular desulfating procedures on it. I still do not plan to keep it on the Ultimizer continuously.

larrynew 05-24-2013 08:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brantel (Post 773537)
The prodedure is to discharge the battery at the 5hr rate maximum down to ~10v OCV. For the PC680, that is 3 amps max.

Brian - how do you do that? If it's as simple as leaving the master on overnight, I already know how. :o

Mike S 05-24-2013 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by larrynew (Post 773559)
Brian - how do you do that? If it's as simple as leaving the master on overnight, I already know how. :o

You need to work it out with the formula for wattage, Watts=Volts x Amps.

A load of 36 watts should do just fine----------although as the voltage drops the amperage will go up slightly. I suspect probably a 12v light bulb rated at 30--35 W should do the job.

Brantel 05-24-2013 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by larrynew (Post 773559)
Brian - how do you do that? If it's as simple as leaving the master on overnight, I already know how. :o

In the aircraft, I just turn stuff on till I get the current I want as measured by the VP-X Pro.

Out of the aircraft, I have an old car headlamp that I use for that purpose. Works great.

Sam Buchanan 05-24-2013 05:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brantel (Post 773609)
In the aircraft, I just turn stuff on till I get the current I want as measured by the VP-X Pro.

Out of the aircraft, I have an old car headlamp that I use for that purpose. Works great.

Sure does sound complicated....why not just fly the battery?

Do the owners of the thousands of motorcycles and watercraft that use this battery obsess over this stuff? ;)

Brantel 05-24-2013 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sam Buchanan (Post 773708)
Sure does sound complicated....why not just fly the battery?

Do the owners of the thousands of motorcycles and watercraft that use this battery obsess over this stuff? ;)

Sam,

Your absolutely correct...

This procedure is for an Odyssey battery that is already failed (with this failure mode) not for one that is working good.

I plan to follow your's and other advice in this thread for the new one (fly it and not use the charger full time) and see how it goes. Hopefully the new one never needs this procedure.

There is one caveat to my particular situation and that is that I spend more than the average amount of time on the ground without the engine running with the panel fired up. It is the nature of being a techno geek. I will have to use the charger often in order to replenish what I drain out during ground ops of the panel.

Russ McCutcheon 06-07-2013 03:29 PM

One more data point. I decided to replace my heavy Concord 25 battery with the PC-680, I kept it plugged into a battery Tender when on the ground, after 9 months it was done, I replaced it with a new PC-680 and never plugged it on to a charger, after 9 months it was done, I though I?ll try it one more time, I bought a new PC-680 and a new Odyssey 6A charger and kept it plugged into the Odyssey charger, after about 11 months it was starting to seem weak, after reading this thread I ran it down with the landing lights to 10 volts and recharged, I did this twice and it cranks like new again. I bet I have two good PC-680s sitting on the bench that just need rejuvenating.

The landing lights get a little on the warm side running them on the ground, Is it ok to fly with the alternator shut off? Fly to lunch and return with the alternator shut off to run the battery down once in a while? What do you guys think of that idea?

Brantel 06-07-2013 04:11 PM

Russ,

Looks like you and I have had similar results.

I was also able to revive the first battery that I replaced back in the fall of last year. It had been sitting on a bench since then. I ran it down per the directions given to me from Odyssey and charged it up about 10 times with the 6 amp Ultimizer and it seems good enough to be used again. Should make a good lawnmower battery or one to plug into the airplane for ground ops. Not sure I would trust it for use on the airplane since I have a new one now.

Each time I would run it down and recharge, it would take longer and longer to complete the cycle.

PS...the Odyssey has a 2 year non-prorated warranty!

Bill.Peyton 06-08-2013 08:49 PM

Brian,
What voltage do you have your aircraft regulator set to? When I spoke with the Odyssy tech rep, he told me that a charge rate of 14.6 volts was ideal. This unfortunately, is a lot higher than the preset voltage regulators on the plane power and various other alternators with a built in regulator. My normal alt output "running" voltage is around 14.5 volts, and thus far have not had any issues with my 680 or 925.

Brantel 06-08-2013 08:51 PM

14.3-14.4 volts per the VP-X Pro.

It is a PP alternator.

Bill.Peyton 06-09-2013 08:48 AM

I too have the PP alt. using the Vertical Power system. I used a #20 gauge wire to from the VPX to the field to cause a voltage drop which increases the output voltage of the alt. That way I maintain at least a 14.5 volt output. The higher voltage will not bother any of the avionics.

Bavafa 06-09-2013 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike S (Post 771705)
My aversion to keeping a battery on long term charge comes from 50 years of real world experience with batteries in cars, motorcycles, boats, and planes. Not to mention R/C stuff.

While it is impossible to both charge occasionally as needed a battery, and also continuously charge the same battery, and thus determine positively which works best, I have tried each with batteries of the same type/usage/manufacture etc. And in my experience, the batteries that have been on long term continuous charge do not last as long.

I have only my opinion as to why, no training or engineering degree etc. but I am suspecting that the batteries just slowly cook themselves to death if left on charge too long------even the "trickle" chargers. I used to keep a trickle charger on the battery in my standby generator so it would always be ready to start if the power went out------and every winter when I checked the generator prior to the weather turning bad, the battery was gone. Good thing I had a warranty on them. Finally after 3 or 4 years of this, the guy at the NAPA store told me to stop with the 24/7 trickle charges, and only give it an overnight trickle charge every month or so. The last battery I treated this way lasted 4 years until I sold the house.

YMMV as they say..........

I have been connecting my plane to a trickle charger that is made for small batteries and I believe shuts itself when the battery is at full charge. I have been using it for the last 4+ years and the battery has not degraded any (that I can tell) since day one.

Mike S 06-09-2013 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bavafa (Post 777943)
I believe shuts itself when the battery is at full charge.

That sounds like a good thing.

Wayne Gillispie 06-09-2013 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Russ McCutcheon (Post 777568)
One more data point. I decided to replace my heavy Concord 25 battery with the PC-680, I kept it plugged into a battery Tender when on the ground, after 9 months it was done, I replaced it with a new PC-680 and never plugged it on to a charger, after 9 months it was done, I though I’ll try it one more time, I bought a new PC-680 and a new Odyssey 6A charger and kept it plugged into the Odyssey charger, after about 11 months it was starting to seem weak, after reading this thread I ran it down with the landing lights to 10 volts and recharged, I did this twice and it cranks like new again.

I am on my second weak 680 in two years. My GRT has a keep alive circuit. I have to use the 12A Odyssey charger before every flight where the plane sits for 3 weeks. I do not leave it connected continuously. I will try to rejuvenate them. There is something wrong with Odyssey when my farm tractor can sit for two months and crank right up with a std automotive battery that cost half as much.

Looking around the net on car racing/motorcycle/other aircraft forums it seems most problems with these batteries have been occuring in the last two years. Cars, motorcycles and airplanes have not changed. If the battery business is like most now, profits are more important than quality.

APACHE 56 06-19-2013 01:55 PM

It is an epidemic...
 
What a timely series of posts. This AM my PC680 refused to start my IO-390. I?d get about two blades then the solenoid would start its death rattle. The battery was purchased in March of this year. It was on the recommended Odyssey Ultimizer charger all last night. We put a multi-meter on the battery then engaged the starter. Although it showed a full charge it dropped to 7.1 volts. Took the battery AutoZone and asked them to check it out. They said the battery was perfect. Well perfect it ain?t. I, like some others in this post had an old PC680 and it spun my engine like a new battery.

Called Battery Mart in Winchester, VA and they told me ?well these batteries are for ATV?s and the like not aircraft.? I explained that a battery does not possess sentience in that it is not aware of its surroundings. It just needs to be treated with electrical respect. One thing I?ve learned from this is to buy your battery locally to avoid the UPS/FEDEX shuffle.

As an aside they did give me an RMA but said the shipping is on me.

Brantel 06-19-2013 02:02 PM

If they give you any trouble call Odyssey direct. They were very responsive. They even have a Facebook page and they monitor it.

They had absolutely no issues with the battery being used on an experimental aircraft. They were aware that Van's actually designed it into some of the models.

It is marketed as a Motorsports battery. My airplane has a motor and it is a sport plane so that makes it OK to me!

By the way, you might want to try the rejuvenation procedure before sending it in. Most likely this will fix it!

Walt 06-19-2013 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill.Peyton (Post 777928)
I too have the PP alt. using the Vertical Power system. I used a #20 gauge wire to from the VPX to the field to cause a voltage drop which increases the output voltage of the alt. That way I maintain at least a 14.5 volt output. The higher voltage will not bother any of the avionics.

The field terminal of the PP alternator is strickly an enable/disable input, varying the voltage on it will have no effect on alternator voltage output.

Most externally regulated alternators have a 'sense' input which does control voltage output.

APACHE 56 06-19-2013 04:23 PM

Maybe it was my fault...
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Brantel (Post 781025)

By the way, you might want to try the rejuvenation procedure before sending it in. Most likely this will fix it!

I'm going to do just that Brian. I talked with Bill Bainbridge (of B&C) a few minutes ago about this issue. Even though I didn't buy my batt from him he, as is typical of him, spent time with me. Here's a summary of what he said:
He has sold "thousands of Odyssey batts" and thinks they are nearly perfect.
He performs a load test on them before shipping and has never seen a bad one.
He asked me about the connections saying that the ring terminal to batt terminal is critical as I told him that I may have had the charger ring terminals positioned between the #2 wire ring terminal and the batt. That, he replied, is not good. He also added that stainless machine screws/bolts screwed into the tapped receptacle are lousy conductors.

Don

Captain Avgas 06-19-2013 06:26 PM

Oversized lightening holes in battery jacket
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Brantel (Post 771626)

So what killed these batteries that are suppose to have a long life cycle?

Brian, An Odyssey battery distributor once told me that lack of metal jacket support can cause the Odyssey PC680 to fail prematurely. He suggested that many RV builders are cutting such large "lightening holes" in their battery cases that the battery lacks sufficient metal wall support. He said that when the battery heats up under rapid recharge in the high heat aircraft firewall forward environment the plastic walls can get soft and move outwards fractionally if they are not adequately supported, which can damage the battery internals.

The Vans RV firewall forward kit comes with a battery holder that is actually just a stock Odyssey PC680 metal jacket. The distributor says that metal jacket is an integral and necessary component of the battery for high heat environments but that RV builders are often modifying them by cutting out most of the front wall. I thought his comments were interesting and that I would pass them on. I have never seen this discussed on VansAirforce before.

Is it possible in this particular instance that too much metal has been removed from the PC680 jacket in an attempt to "lighten" it. Just a possibility and certainly food for thought for other builders keen on taking out the last gram of weight from their aircraft.

Bill.Peyton 06-19-2013 06:49 PM

Walt,
I have to disagree with you.
The field of any alternator is what is used to regulate the output. The field line on the PP alternator is used for two things, one is to energize the field and the second is to sense the "output" voltage. If the voltage drop across the field wire running from the power source to the alternator is such that at the alternator end of the wire, it is less than the actual bus voltage, then the internal regulator will continue to increase the field current until the output of the alternator drives the voltage at the field terminal to whatever the regulator has been programmed. In the case of the PP alternator, it is 14.2 volts. So until 14.2 volts appears on the field terminal, the internal alternator regulator will continue to drive the field until the voltage is 14.2v.
With an externally regulated alternator, the sense line is different than the field line in that the sense line is connected to the bus and the field current is varied through the regulator. This is not to say that you can't trick an externally regulated alternator that does not have an adjustable output, to output a higher voltage by simply dropping the voltage to the sense line.

PCHunt 06-19-2013 10:30 PM

Foir Apache56: See this thread.

http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...ad.php?t=90977

Starting issues caused by faulty starter solenoid.

Brantel 06-20-2013 05:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PCHunt (Post 781161)
Foir Apache56: See this thread.

http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...ad.php?t=90977

Starting issues caused by faulty starter solenoid.

I thought the same thing at first but he said he switched batteries and it worked like a charm.

Brantel 06-20-2013 05:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain Avgas (Post 781104)
Brian, An Odyssey battery distributor once told me that lack of metal jacket support can cause the Odyssey PC680 to fail prematurely. He suggested that many RV builders are cutting such large "lightening holes" in their battery cases that the battery lacks sufficient metal wall support. He said that when the battery heats up under rapid recharge in the high heat aircraft firewall forward environment the plastic walls can get soft and move outwards fractionally if they are not adequately supported, which can damage the battery internals.

The Vans RV firewall forward kit comes with a battery holder that is actually just a stock Odyssey PC680 metal jacket. The distributor says that metal jacket is an integral and necessary component of the battery for high heat environments but that RV builders are often modifying them by cutting out most of the front wall. I thought his comments were interesting and that I would pass them on. I have never seen this discussed on VansAirforce before.

Is it possible in this particular instance that too much metal has been removed from the PC680 jacket in an attempt to "lighten" it. Just a possibility and certainly food for thought for other builders keen on taking out the last gram of weight from their aircraft.

Bob,

I have seen no evidence of this with my batteries. I have seen some posted here that have swelled up but most of those have been abused in some manner. Mine look and slide in and out of the case just as if they were new.

APACHE 56 06-20-2013 11:19 AM

PC680 CCA????
 
RE: My earlier post.
I "read the battery fine print" today and was surprised to see that my Battery Mart March 2013 PC680 had a CCA OF 170 and if I recall a PHCA of 580 while my old PC680 had a label showing 220 CCA and PHCA of 680.

Somewhere I recall reading that we need (for our 4 cyl engines) a CCA of at least 220. I am guessing that this may be part of my problem.

I charged the "new" battery last night, cleaned the terminals and it performed as it should. But now I'm gun shy with the 170 vice 220 CCA issue.

Don

Brantel 06-20-2013 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by APACHE 56 (Post 781290)
RE: My earlier post.
I "read the battery fine print" today and was surprised to see that my Battery Mart March 2013 PC680 had a CCA OF 170 and if I recall a PHCA of 580 while my old PC680 had a label showing 220 CCA and PHCA of 680.

Somewhere I recall reading that we need (for our 4 cyl engines) a CCA of at least 220. I am guessing that this may be part of my problem.

I charged the "new" battery last night, cleaned the terminals and it performed as it should. But now I'm gun shy with the 170 vice 220 CCA issue.

Don

When I contacted Odyssey about this change to 170CCA vs the original rating of 220CCA, here is what they said:

"Why were the CCA, PHCA, MCA, HCA etc. ratings changed to much lower values on the PC680? The production of the product hasn?t changed in many years except to make design improvements but the original published specs were based on calculations derived from other TPPL technology products and once the testing was done it was determined that the published stats would be minimum required ratings for each rating and not the average.

Kathy Mitchell
ODYSSEY Sales/Support Representative"

Bottom line is that it is the same battery it always was, they just reduced its rating after they actually tested it. The prior rating was an estimate.

APACHE 56 06-20-2013 12:26 PM

Bottom line is that it is the same battery it always was, they just reduced its rating after they actually tested it. The prior rating was an estimate.[/quote]

Thanks Brian.

blueflyer 06-20-2013 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by APACHE 56 (Post 781072)
....... I told him that I may have had the charger ring terminals positioned between the #2 wire ring terminal and the batt. That, he replied, is not good. .......
Don

Don
Do you recall why he said this is a bad idea? It would seem that Odyssey makes these quick connectors to be used in just that manner. I will admit I have never read through the Odyssey battery literature to see what they say regarding this issue and there is no doubt Bill Bainbridge is much more knowledgeable than I.

APACHE 56 06-20-2013 04:02 PM

Good connections...
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by blueflyer (Post 781307)
Don
Do you recall why he said this is a bad idea? It would seem that Odyssey makes these quick connectors to be used in just that manner. I will admit I have never read through the Odyssey battery literature to see what they say regarding this issue and there is no doubt Bill Bainbridge is much more knowledgeable than I.

He was responding to my comment that I may have placed the charger pigtail below the cable ring terminal. His concern was insuring a good contact. I will continue to keep my charger cable permanently installed on the battery.

Walt 06-20-2013 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill.Peyton (Post 781119)
Walt,
I have to disagree with you.
The field of any alternator is what is used to regulate the output. The field line on the PP alternator is used for two things, one is to energize the field and the second is to sense the "output" voltage. If the voltage drop across the field wire running from the power source to the alternator is such that at the alternator end of the wire, it is less than the actual bus voltage, then the internal regulator will continue to increase the field current until the output of the alternator drives the voltage at the field terminal to whatever the regulator has been programmed. In the case of the PP alternator, it is 14.2 volts. So until 14.2 volts appears on the field terminal, the internal alternator regulator will continue to drive the field until the voltage is 14.2v.
With an externally regulated alternator, the sense line is different than the field line in that the sense line is connected to the bus and the field current is varied through the regulator. This is not to say that you can't trick an externally regulated alternator that does not have an adjustable output, to output a higher voltage by simply dropping the voltage to the sense line.

Bill,
Thanks for bringing this up and I stand corrected. I contacted PP and they confirmed they did indeed tap off the field terminal for the internal regulator sense functlion. However the problem I see with regulating the alternator by increasing the resistance of the field wire (same as installing a resistor in the field supply) is that as the voltage drops on the bus and the field draws more current there will be an additional voltage drop at the field, so the alterator will overcompensate. So the higher the field current the higher the bus voltage will be. At least thats my theory, I would be very interested to know how it actually works though in the real world.

Russ McCutcheon 07-05-2013 08:04 PM

It died on the 4th
 
I installed a new Concorde battery and flew with a good volt meter, I'm only charging at 13.90 volts. could this be cutting the battery life short? I am/was using the Odyssey charger between flights.

Bill.Peyton 07-06-2013 07:05 AM

Russ,
The normal charging voltage for a lead acid battery is 13.8 -14.2 volts. This is where most regulators are set. If it is not a sealed battery and you charge it with too high of a voltage, you will overheat it during the charge cycle and boil the water out which will require you to frequently check the level of the battery. I don't believe that charging it with the 13.9 volts you are seeing, will damage or shorten the life of your battery. What I question is the need to continually trickle charge your battery. Rarely do I see aircraft trickle charged during inactivity. The only instance you may need to do this is if the aircraft is rarely flown. I would contact Concorde and see what they recommend for both the charging voltage and the maintenance voltage.

Russ McCutcheon 07-06-2013 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Russ McCutcheon (Post 777568)
One more data point. I decided to replace my heavy Concord 25 battery with the PC-680, I kept it plugged into a battery Tender when on the ground, after 9 months it was done, I replaced it with a new PC-680 and never plugged it on to a charger, after 9 months it was done, I though I?ll try it one more time, I bought a new PC-680 and a new Odyssey 6A charger and kept it plugged into the Odyssey charger, after about 11 months it was starting to seem weak, after reading this thread I ran it down with the landing lights to 10 volts and recharged, I did this twice and it cranks like new again. I bet I have two good PC-680s sitting on the bench that just need rejuvenating.

Just to refresh it was the most recent Odyssey battery that died on the 4th; it lasted about a year using the Odyssey charger, a little better than the first two. If 13.9v is ok then I don?t know why I?m having problems using the Odyssey batteries, for now I have given up and bought and installed a new Concorde RG-25XC like the one that lasted the 7 previous years before trying the Odyssey.

Sam Buchanan 07-06-2013 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Russ McCutcheon (Post 785562)
Just to refresh it was the most recent Odyssey battery that died on the 4th; it lasted about a year using the Odyssey charger, a little better than the first two. If 13.9v is ok then I don’t know why I’m having problems using the Odyssey batteries, for now I have given up and bought and installed a new Concorde RG-25XC like the one that lasted the 7 previous years before trying the Odyssey.

Russ, 13.9v is low for an Odyssey, if I recall correctly they should be charged at about 14.5v. I doubt a PC680 will ever achieve full charge at 13.9v. But I don't know if undercharging will shorten the lifespan.

If you have an emergency bus with a diode in the circuit, voltage will vary depending on where you take the reading. The diode will absorb about 0.5v and make your system appear to be undercharging if you read voltage downstream from the diode. But you need ~14.5v going to the battery.

Bill.Peyton 07-06-2013 02:28 PM

What Sam said. Odyssey recommends charging there batteries at at least 14.5V.

Russ McCutcheon 07-06-2013 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sam Buchanan (Post 785609)
Russ, 13.9v is low for an Odyssey, if I recall correctly they should be charged at about 14.5v. I doubt a PC680 will ever achieve full charge at 13.9v. But I don't know if undercharging will shorten the lifespan.

If you have an emergency bus with a diode in the circuit, voltage will vary depending on where you take the reading. The diode will absorb about 0.5v and make your system appear to be undercharging if you read voltage downstream from the diode. But you need ~14.5v going to the battery.

I was getting the 13.9 reading directly off the battery. I wonder how it would affect it since it only is in this under charged state for an hour or two each week, the rest of the time it was on their charger fully charged.

So I just put this battery in http://www.concordebattery.com/flyer.php?id=36
what?s the recommended charging voltage for it? I believe I can adjust my B&C regulator, I?ll be calling Bill (B&C) Monday.


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