Re: [T3] Rust Survey Results! (sort of long)

["Jim Adney" <jadney@vwtype3.org>]

On 23 Mar 00, at 16:16, Keith Park wrote:

> Dont you have problems with currents passing between the 2 since the
> voltages will always be somewhat different and one battery will drain
> itself trying to trickle charge the other.

When the charging system is working the VR sets the system voltage. 
When the car is shut down I'm sure that the 2 batteries can't help 
but have different equlibrium voltages, but one just discharges a bit 
into the other and they automatically settle into equal voltage 
status. This means that one of them is not charged to its max, but 
there's little loss.

I've been doing this on and off for 30 years, so I think that proves 
that it's possible. The only problem I ever had was in 74 when one of 
my batteries developed a shorted cell. This discharged the other one 
completely and left me dead, but, then again, that's exactly where I 
would have been if I had just 1 battery and it developed a shorted 
cell.

With this method, however, you can get enough years out of your 
batteries that your chances of actually seeing a shorted cell go way 
up. That's the only "drawback" that I have seen.

-
*******************************
Jim Adney, jadney@vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
*******************************

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Search old messages on the Web!  Visit http://www.vwtype3.org/list/