Magnum Energy Battery Monitor Kit ME-BMK - Manual (Page 24)

© 2010 Magnum Energy, Inc. 20
Using the ME-ARC50 Remote with the BMK
4.5 Operating the BMK using the ME-ARC50
This section explains how the ME-BMK battery monitor works, and how to use
the Magnum Energy ARC50 remote control to obtain battery bank informa-
tion. It also covers the various LCD displays that are related to the battery
monitor and the status of the Sense Module’s LED indicator.
Info: For additional information on navigating the ARC50 remote
control, see the ME-ARC50 (PN: 64-0030) Owner’s Manual.
4.5.1 How does the Battery Monitor (ME-BMK) Operate? The
ME-BMK battery monitor uses a precision resistor known as a shunt to measure
current fl ow into and out of the battery. The shunt provides a small voltage
to the Sense Module that is proportional to the current fl ow. When current
starts fl owing into or out of the battery, the Sense Module measures the cur-
rent fl ow and determines the amount of current removed from and returned
to the battery. The amount of current (or amp-hours) removed or returned
is displayed on the remote control as the AH I/O (Amp-Hours In/Out). The
AH I/O number is compensated by a charging effi ciency value that accounts
for energy loses while charging, and is one of the factors used to determine
the battery’s State Of Charge (SOC).
The battery’s state of charge — which is the best indicator of the condition
of the batteries — is indicated on the SOC display. This display will show that
the batteries are fully charged (i.e., SOC = 100%) once the following three
conditions have been met:
The charging voltage has stabilized over a period of time.
The charging current has decreased to a low percentage of the amp-
hour capacity – normally less than 2%.
The amp-hours that were removed from the battery are within 1% of
fully being returned.
After the batteries have reached 100% SOC and have discharged ≥ 0.5% of
the battery capacity setting, the charge effi ciency value will be recalculated
and the AH I/O read-out will reset to the recalculated value.
Info: To help maintain the accuracy of the SOC display and to keep
the batteries in good condition, they must on occasion be 100%
charged (approximately once a week).
Info: Charging from a generator (non-inverter topology) adds some
concern about the cost of fuel. A balance should be considered
between the use of fuel and the need to charge your batteries to
100% SOC – to maintain the full service life of a battery. Batteries
discharged to 50% SOC and then normally recharged to 85-90%
SOC would be an effi cient compromise between fuel cost and bat-
tery life.Trying to restore the last 10-15% of a full battery charge
requires a long time – typically several hours.
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