I have a 2KW Honda. Is it better and /or faster to charge a battery with the the 12 volt cord that comes with the generator or hook a charger to the
120v side of the generator and then to the battery?wiltonh - 1-30-2008 at 09:34 PM
It is more energy efficient to use the 12 Volt output of the generator to charge the battery.
If you use a battery charger there is power loss in the transformer going from 120 Volts AC back to 12 Volts DC.
WiltonBajaWarrior - 1-30-2008 at 10:01 PM
Ditto, your Honda puts out 8.3 amps and that is a good charge rate.Hook - 1-31-2008 at 01:32 AM
Yes, but you can run a smart charger with the 110 side, if you have one. They will supply a bulk charge and then taper off to an absorption charge
which is technically the best way to charge your typical flooded cell battery.
As far as the 8 amp rate being the best, that depends on the ah capacity of the battery/batteries you are charging. If you're charging a battery with
105 to 120 ah capacity, you can safely go up to a rate of 10-12 amps............which would be faster than the 8 amp rate.
I would venture to say the the possible increased efficiency of using the 12v charger over a 110v charger running at 8 amps would be minuscule, in
terms of gasoline consumption.
I'd go with the smart charger, if you have one. Less time listening to the genny and theoretically a more thorough charge.
If all you have is a conventional car charger that puts out 10 amps max, it probably doesnt make much difference.Roberto - 1-31-2008 at 05:54 AM
Correct, Hook, gold star for you!
I would only add that I believe (though I am not certain), that the 12V output from the generator is unregulated, and that pretty much wipes out any
effifiency gains there may be.
As you said, the smart charger's ability to tailor the charge to the battery state makes it the superior choice.Santiago - 1-31-2008 at 07:14 AM
Hook y Roberto: this was my thought exactly - the 12 volts are unregulated so you would have to be constantly checking to make sure you didn't over
charge. I'm going the solar panel route anyway but was just curious.Bob and Susan - 1-31-2008 at 07:44 AM
walmart has a 40 amp "smart charger" for ~$90Santiago - 1-31-2008 at 03:48 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by soulpatch
Mo' betta and faster.
Boy - I haven't heard that in a while.... Wonder why?
there's a hot sauce you can get called
capt. mike - 2-1-2008 at 07:44 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by Santiago
Quote:
Originally posted by soulpatch
Mo' betta and faster.
Boy - I haven't heard that in a while.... Wonder why?
mo hotta, mo betta.
really, my A & P has it.
it will also charge batteries, therefore valid to this thread. I belive the Professor used some on Maynerd's island.
