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  #1  
Old 04-08-2017, 01:02 PM
APACHE 56 APACHE 56 is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: MERRITT ISLAND, FL
Posts: 360
Default High amp draw

Installed earthx ETX680 bat in my RV8. It replaced a B&C bat of comparable size but of half of the performance. The "X" is simply spectacular.
But here is, perhaps, an issue. With the previous bats i would see around -3 or so amps (never really paid a lot of attention however. Today was the maiden flight with the "X" and i saw -11 to -18 throughout the flight. It is about a factor of 10 higher. No warning/caution lights tetc.
My elec system is a B&C 40 amp alt with their attendent regulators erc.

I don't have much of an electrical load, GRT EFIS, LED lites and seat heaters which I turned on and off but didn't get much of a response.

What do hou make of this.
Thx,
Don
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RV8 "Little Pill" N6371S, Merritt Island, Fl.
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  #2  
Old 04-08-2017, 05:27 PM
rv7charlie rv7charlie is offline
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Pocahontas MS
Posts: 3,884
Default

not enough info provided to give a real answer, but if nothing moved except the battery, it's either it, or something got inadvertently altered during installation.
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  #3  
Old 04-08-2017, 06:19 PM
Fred.Stucklen's Avatar
Fred.Stucklen Fred.Stucklen is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Brooksville, FL
Posts: 356
Default High amp draw

It might also be the voltage regulator voltage setting being too high. measure the buss voltage while the engine is running and make sure that voltage is compatible with the battery.
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  #4  
Old 04-09-2017, 12:02 PM
lr172 lr172 is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Schaumburg, IL
Posts: 5,297
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If you noticed this relatively early in the flight, I would attribute this to to the higher C ratings on the Lithium batteries. They will discharge more current and accept a higher charge current than Lead Acid batteries. Your old battery, after start would only take a large charge for a few minutes then slowly charge over an hour or more. The Lithium will charge at a much higher current and for a shorter time. All of this is to recharge after the starting drain. If this charge rate continued for an hour, I would start looking for a cause other than the battery, unless you really drained it during the start.

This response is somewhat speculative, based upon the limited data in teh post.

Larry
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  #5  
Old 05-07-2017, 12:45 AM
bardample bardample is offline
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Mansfield Australia
Posts: 19
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Don,
I have a recently new EarthX ETX 680 battery. My ammeter just measures my Plane Power 60A Alternator output.
Even when the Bus voltage is 13.1v the ammeter often reads +25-45Amps for a few mins to 10 mins. Kathy at EarthX says this is normal for lithium batteries. This may help.
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