Yes, I'm impressed - to make 1150W 240VAC the inverter is pulling 102A from the van & the shunt says the alternator is contributing 96A to the mix. Not bad for an idling engine! Worth noting that the van engine's max power is at 3500rpm so I expect the alternator is geared-up quite a lot...
Got some numbers!
Wired a 200A 75mV shunt resistor in between the van's electrics & the battery positive terminal. 1mV drop across the shunt with engine idling & no extra electrical load (14.3V at battery).
With a 1150W 240VAC load on the 85% efficient inverter wired to the battery, the drop...
Thanks guys, really handy info. Peukert's coefficient is a new one for me. I don't want to load test the battery for long (without the alternator) for fear of battery damage, & I realise that kind of current draw will ultimately deplete the battery unless the engine idles all the time (the 115...
Thanks for that IRStuff, good advice.
'RC 190' on the battery means it's rated to deliver 25A for 190 minutes, so let's say it can do 50A for 60 minutes & let's say the alternator can make 50A at idle revs, that means I've got a stable situation for an hour.
That's a lot of guessing & I...
The van's alternator is rated at 125A.
The battery is 130Ah (RC 190 mins 1000CCA).
I think in theory the battery should be able to deliver 115A for 40 mins (less in reality due to heat build-up). When I ask it to do that the voltage drops to 11.7V & it holds there for at least a few mins (I...
