FALCON'S Aventuremobile conversion thread.

[SternWake]

Lifeline's float setting is 13.2 to 13.4, lower than other AGM's


If one charge controller option allowed one to choose 14.4v absorption and program it to hold until amps taper to 0.5% of capacity, but then had to deal with too high a float voltage, I'd deal with too high a float voltage.

But if the Van sits for a week and the battery is not cycled, then a 13.6 or .8v is too high.

Finding the happy medium in charge profile settings really depends on how you use the battery.  Days at float voltage, without a deep cycle, then The float voltage is much more important.  Day after day of cycling to 80% charged or less and the Absorption voltage and its duration are much more important, and the battery might not even get to spend any time at the too high Unideal float voltage.

If the charge controller will not allow one to hold ABSVoltage for the time needed for amps to taper to 0.5% of capacity, then the higher than recommended float voltage is beneficial as it will allow the last few % to fill the battery faster than a lower 13.2 to 13.4v.  AGMS are nice in this regard.  A flooded battery really needs the higher voltage to top charge the battery in the minimum time.  the lower voltage will take days, but the AGM battery accepts more current at the premature float voltage.

Often when I use my manual adjustable voltage power supply, and can not be there when amps taper to 0.5% of capacity at 14.46v( Northstar AGM), I lower the voltage to 13.8v, and walk away.  While the amps might have tapered to 9 at 14.46 at that point, lowering the voltage to 13.8 still allows 7.8 amps to flow.

If this was a flooded/wet battery that needed 9 amps to be held at 14.4, lowering the voltage to 13.8 the amps would drop to 2 or 3 and time to full would be much longer.

One other thing to consider, which does not sound likely, is low float voltages, like 13.2v held while there is still a load on the battery, can actually allow the battery to discharge slightly.  I noticed this on my previous group31 flooded battery, that after hours at 13.06v float as specified by USbattery, if I bumped up voltage to the 14.9v this battery needed more amperage than it should of to get there and be held there, indicating the battery was being slightly discharged at this low float voltage, and the Hydrometer later confirmed it.  When I bumped float voltage up a bit higher this did not occur.  So while a battery should not be able to discharge when held at a voltage slightly higher than its fully charged resting voltage, in theory, my observations have shown otherwise when there are still loads on the battery, but the solar or other charging source holds it at float voltage.

I would not like the laptop factor in changing of the CC settings.  My Bluesky 2512i with ipn pro remote has kind of a clunky interface, but i can push a series of buttons and choose absorption voltage and duration and threshold, and float voltage.

The Shunt you broke, was it the Deltec 500 amp 50MV shunt?  These are pretty burly, and one can get a bigger wrench on the flats to hold it while tightening the brass bolt.

The Lifeline has so little self discharge, that if one is not cycling the battery at all, and one cannot set their solar controller profile to Lifeline's 'ideal' float voltage, then once the battery is full, flip the switch on the charge controller turning it off, turn off all parasitic loads and let it sit uncharged.

As far as the ECM goes, having to resolder the pins inside due to the weight of the wires fracturing the solder joints is the only difficult part.  On a functioning ECM/PCM, Cleaning out the contacts of the old crusty dielectric grease, and then letting the DeoXit clean the electrical contacts within, will only promote a better running more efficient engine.  Taking the weight of the wires off the ECM so it cannot fracture the solder joints is simply preventative maintenance.  ECM/PCM replacement is stressful as when the symptoms begin it can mean random stalling and no restart, and one can wind up chasing the wrong clues and throwing parts at it, and random stalling is simply dangerous.

It does not help that chrysler in their ultimate wisdom, mounted the PCM in the hottest part of the engine bay, but I'll guess most of their failures are from poor connectors in combination with the weight of the wire bundles, hot and cold cycles, stressing the solder/pin connections on the circuit board.

Also the location, can allow rainwater to run under the hood, and along the firewall where the ECM is mounted.  It could then run down a wire right into the connector, bridging contacts which should not be bridged.

Diverting rainwater so it cannot hug the firewall is wise, something chrysler decided cost too much money apparently.

 

[FALCON]

I had the Deltec 100amp shunt. The studs are smaller than the 500. (I think the 500 has 3/8 and the 100 has 1/4 or so)

 

[FALCON]

Ok, I got the shunt in the mail this evening. I was hoping I'd get it early enough to install it and watch some charging, but it came too late for that.

So I made the last connection and threw on the switch between the battery and bus bar. And it worked! I reinstalled fuses in the load junction one by one.
- The lights - they work!
- The USB outlets - they work!
- The cigarette outlets - they work!
- The battery meter - it works!
- The fridge - IT WORKS!!
- The inverter IT WORKSS!!!! WOOO!!

Ok, I already tested everything but the fridge and inverter, but it feels much more meaningful running them off the real house battery. I drafted up all the custom settings for the Morningstar charge controller and emailed it to Lifeline and Morningstar. They said it looks good (The Lifeline guy said to lower my Absorption time from the 3 hours I had to 2 hours).

I also got the RS-232 to USB cord that I need to connect a computer to the CC. So once I can borrow my girlfriend's laptop, I'll see if I can connect to the CC and input those settings. I'm going to try it out on one of the factory default choices in the mean time.

I'll upload some pictures of the finished system soon. It's looking beautiful. At least, according to me it is. As I wrap up the electrical system (I'm assuming that the charging will go ok.. who knows, I may end up spending another month on it   ) I'm going to just do a couple smaller things on the van and transition to getting my house and car ready to sell.

 

[highdesertranger]

good for you Falcon. boy, RS 232 I haven't heard that term since the 80's. highdesertranger

 

[rvpopeye]

Got er done !

 

[SternWake]

Sweet.

About the time at absorption, this is dependent on the charge rate at which absorption voltage was attained. the higher the charge rate, the longer it needs to be held. The slower the charge trate, the less time it needs to be held.

It is all about WHEN amps taper to 0.5% of capacity at 14.4v at 77F.

There is not time set in stone as to how long to hold absorption voltage until a true 1005 is reached. It can vary with the charge rate, the health of the battery, the temperature of the battery, the depth of the discharge, the amount of accumulated cycles since the last 100% charge, and the time since the last high amp recharge.

I've seen Absorption take 2 hours, I've seen it take 10 hours, on the same battery.

Hold Absv until amps taper to 0.5% of capacity at 14.4v. Will 2 hours be enough? ONLY your ammeter can tell you.

 

[FALCON]

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM PICTURES (Nearly finished)


It was very cloudy all this weekend so I didn’t get to do a full charge cycle.

I will probably be building something around the battery to try to hold it in place in case of a crash/rollover. The non-slip mat under it will prevent it from moving during any kind of driving the van is capable of. I will also put something in front of the electrical area. I haven't decided how to do that yet. I probably want something more easily removed than one board that's screwed in place. Hinging it on the bike box side might be the way to go. I might also have enough of the brown fabric left (that I used for some of the curtains) to make a cloth/curtain cover for it.

I have next week off work and so does my girlfriend. We may take the van on a quick 2-3 day trip.

 

[rvpopeye]

That's a clean looking rig , quite a bit like the way I built some of mine !

I used a couple pieces of threaded rod (bridged with some heavy plastic) right through the floor for a battery hold down , think with that setup you might be able to use some ply to box it in a bit?
Almost ready to install.....YOU!

 

[SternWake]

Looks great, other than the wire insulation resting on the sharp edges of metal of the box on the charge controller. Some chafe protection would be wise.

The wires from the USB/inverter, sticking straight out into the aisle might allow one to unintentionally stress the sockets/ plugs. I have had issues with this when i leave my USB plugs in place and move from front to back, but mine are a bit more exposed being inline with driver's seat arm rest.

The Non slip mat under the battery is a good idea, but I'd want the battery secured much better. If the worst happens and a rollover occurs, that unsecured battery could make a bad situation into a fatal one.

 

[FALCON]

- I added some grommets to the CC holes.
- I don't think I'll hit the wires sticking out of the plugs. There is enough space to get by without doing so. But, we'll see.
- I do plan on securing the battery. I still need to decide exactly how to do this.

 

[FALCON]

Well, my girlfriend broke up with me recently. I already had last week scheduled for vacation, so I spent the week working on my house to get it ready to sell. I'm also taking this week off, and continuing work on the house. I aim to have it mostly ready to list by the end of this week.

I've also been moving into the van. I have everything moved in except bathroom stuff and tools. I've been a bit unorganized about where I put things. I'll have to improve my storage locations and methods over time. So far it looks like everything will fit ok. But there will be stuff that I add over time - hobby items (more outdoor gear, fishing equipment, snorkeling gear?, etc.) and ~tools (mainly off-road equipment, also having space to carry 2 weeks worth of water). I've started doing all my eating, sleeping, computer use, etc. out in the van (on the street in front of my house). It's going well so far. I'm up to about 15 nights sleeping in the van (including prior trips)

It's a bittersweet time for me, the breakup has me sad so I haven't been able to enjoy my recent progress like I normally would.

 

[ascii_man]

Well that is sad. Was vandwelling a factor, or did she just think she could upgrade?

You seem intelligent, financially independent, physically fit, and resourceful. Where have all the good men gone?

 

[FALCON]

Vandwelling was THE factor - well, not Vandwelling itself, but the issue is that I'm going to leave St Louis. I was already working on the van when I met her last July, and told her I was going to leave St Louis when I finish it and sell my house (which at the time I told her might only take a few months). So while we got along very well, my impending leave was a weight/stress on our relationship and, as you would expect, was hard for her to handle. As I was getting closer to and actually finishing the van, she was getting more stressed and was feeling resentful and jealous. It's hard to end a relationship when we both still love eachother and there are no "I don't like you anymore" type of feelings. :-( :-(

Edit - thank you ascii_man. Oh, and I'm also good looking and charming

 

[Every Road Leads Home]

Sounds like you were going to leave her regardless? Good relationships are hard to find, shame to let it just end like that.

 

[FALCON]

Sounds like you were going to leave her regardless? Good relationships are hard to find, shame to let it just end like that.

Yes, I most likely was. I've wondered to myself repeatedly if I shouldn't leave or should wait more before leaving. I've already delayed leaving by at least a few months by deciding I'd rather spend time with her than get done and leave quickly. This delay hasn't really bothered me other than feeling like I was still working a lot on the van and making slow progress during all the electrical research and design. I'm not very experienced with relationships and I have little certainty making a decision like staying or not. When I told her I was wondering if I should be deciding to stay, she insisted that I need to go, because it had been a conviction of mine to go, and I've been working very hard to prepare (both are sunk cost fallacies), and that it would put too much pressure on our relationship, that I might be dreaming about going and feel sort of dis-satisfied about not, and that whenever things are a little rough between us, each of us would have in the back of our minds that it might cause me to take off. Her main reason was about the pressure it would put on the relationship.

I was trying to convince her before to come along with me this summer (she doesn't work during the summers) and it seemed like she was going to. But a couple months or so ago she told me that she couldn't/wasn't going to come with me. She said that if she did, we may get much much more attached and then at the end of the summer she would have to go back home to work and I'd still be off on the van, so it would be sort of a big ramp up of the relationship and then an abrupt end. I was pretty quiet when she told me that and didn't think of or say that if we got to that point there would be other options and if we really wanted we could figure something out. There is another reason that I didn't really want to bring up the subject again after that, which I won't go into here.

I'm going to talk to her this weekend, about the above paragraph and a number of other things. I don't expect our situation to change. I think this is basically the end of the road for us for the time being. I may try to get her to come along with me for a week or two sometime in the future, after I've been out traveling for a while and things have cooled down a bit.

That's about everything I can share at this point. I don't want to go on and on an turn this into a relationship journal.

 

[SternWake]

- I do plan on securing the battery. I still need to decide exactly how to do this.

How about several pad eyes and a ratcheting strap, or even a well cinched rope considering one does not have to worry about acid fumes eating it with an AGM battery.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...s=aps&field-keywords=stainless+steel+pad+eyes



Sorry to hear about the breakup.  A life devoid of immediate security is far too much for many to handle, even if everything is temporary anyway.  The appearance of permanence is appealing, if misleading and untrue.

Her man living in/from a van is not going to impress her friends or make them jealous, and this, for many women, is a top consideration.

 

[FALCON]

Ahh yeah, I might even have extra door handles that I could use

 

[Dust-In-the-Wind]

Hmmm.... not sure door handles would compare favorably to the pad eyes Sternwake suggests, at least for strength and suitability for a job like this.

 

[FALCON]

Ah good point, thanks

 

[FALCON]

Ok I suppose now is a good time for an update.

This is one of the nicer neighborhoods in St Louis. I've been hanging out here during the week as it's very close to where I work. I'm parked next to the oldest park west of the Mississippi!

VAN LIVING
I've been living in the van for over a month now. It's working out great. I still have a list of projects to do later, but I haven't added anything significant to the list since moving into the van.  It's been interesting living in the city. I've been exploring St Louis more and learning about the city quicker than I ever did while I was living in my house. St Louis has many different interesting neighborhoods and I've spent a few days in many different ones. St Louis is a very easy place to van-dwell when you know the city. The residential areas inside the city are dense, and many people park on the streets, so the van stands out very little. Also, people have enough other things to worry about that they aren't very likely to call the cops or bother me. Even if they do call the police, the police here would probably do nothing. Even if they do come to check on me, it make take them many hours or days to actually come out (and I probably won't be there anymore).

I do still hang out at my house sometimes - mainly when I need to be there to take care of the lawn or something. The only thing I actually do/use in the house while I'm there is the bathroom and the laundry. One day I brought my computer and stuff inside and used a desk I still have there and it was annoying to haul that stuff in and out and all that, so I won't do that any more.


HOUSE SALE
I listed my house for sale. It went on the market around 4/16, and was available for viewings 4/20. There were 6 viewings scheduled for 4/20. I got TWO offers from that first day. One was for $5k over the list price so I accepted that one. The buyer did inspections and found normal things, plus a break in the sewer line under my yard. I was worried the pipe would cost a ton to fix. The estimate was only $2,300 though. The buyer has agreed to my offer of me fixing the sewer pipe and a little bit of other stuff. So now I just need to get that stuff fixed and wait until closing, which is scheduled for 5/31.



QUITTING WORK / "RETIRING"
I have a Retirement target number. I expected that after selling the house I'd have to keep working a while to hit it. But it took me longer to actually get to this point than I planned, and it looks like I'll be getting more money from the house than I expected. As soon as we close and I actually get the money, I will end up being RIGHT AT my retirement target. The stars are aligning! So I'm thinking about quitting my job right after the house sells.

There are a few things that I feel I should probably sort out first:
- Go to Dentist for cleaning and inspection/X-rays. Maybe get some work done.
- Go to Doctor for an extensive physical.
- I was thinking about getting a Vasectomy, but I don't think I'll do that before quitting now. I guess I should check how much they cost and if/how much my current insurance would cover vs what ACA insurance would. I'm not in a hurry to get it done so I'm all but certain I won't before quitting.
- Get a cell-phone or data hotspot. (I currently have a phone that my employer provides and I also use that as a personal phone and data hotspot)

Ideally, I'll feel ready to give my boss a letter of resignation immediately after my house closing. Then my last day of work would be June 10. I'd head out to Nebraska the first weekend of June. I spoke with my friend who lives in NW Nebraska about camping together in the Black Hills. I need to go up to South Dakota to get a driver's license there. I got my Van registration/plates and my mail forwarding service set up with a company up in South Dakota already, so I want a Driver's license from the same state.