26-09-2017, 12:36 PM
(22-09-2017, 10:46 AM)Tattybogle Wrote:(21-09-2017, 07:02 PM)Jack in the Box Wrote: When we were new to A7's, we had an RN with a tired battery and tended to run in "Winter Charge" mode as we only undertook short runs. When we did the 2015 London to Brighton run, we drove up in the dark on Winter Charge and for some reason kept it their on the way to Brighton in the daylight. Coming through the Ashdown Forest, both my wife and I experienced stinging eyes and irritation in our throats. Turns out we were over charging the battery. I think you ony do this once ......
Just a thought.
Alan
Gosh Alan, I think you may have put your finger on it!
During the past year or so I have changed all lights to LEDs and keep the battery connected to an Accumate conditioner when in the garage. I always start the car on the handle from cold. Therefore not only are my current demands low but the battery is always fully charged when I leave home.
But, of course, I haven't adjusted the dynamo output with the 3rd brush so even on the summer setting it pumps out about 3 to 4 amps.
I shall adjust the dynamo to give minimal output on summer setting and report back.
And thanks to the others who replied with helpful suggestions. I shall double check those too.
Well, I went for a 50 mile round trip yesterday with the dynamo giving the lowest output possible and the fumes seemed to be negligible now. Although at the end of it the battery cells were gassing, indicating that they had been taking a significant charge.
Next time I shall check the battery voltage before, during and after the trip to see what is happening there.
I think it would be preferable for the battery not to receive a charge from the dynamo when it is fully charged. Now that I have LED lights the current requirements are virtually nothing when the engine is running. So I am pondering what the best solution would be.
I wonder how easy it would be to make the charging switch turn the dynamo 'off' in the summer setting and only charge the battery in the winter setting. This would give me manual control over things. Any suggestions???
Alternatively I could convert to a later Seven set up with a regulator, or even go over to one of the new Accuspark Stealth alternators which are a direct replacement for the dynamo but has built-in regulation.