Balmar SG-200 Battery Monitor

[sailinglegend]

Originally Posted by sailinglegend

....it doesn't seem to count Ah.....

Originally Posted by john61ct

Sure it does. Both for live ammeter and AH counting

It might count Ah but it doesn’t display them!!!!

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by sailinglegend

It might count Ah but it doesn’t display them!!!!

If it doesn’t, then they are very foolish not to.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by sailinglegend

It might count Ah but it doesn’t display them!!!!

Wow, you're right!

Maybe trying to get you to buy the "Bluetooth Gateway" 8-)

______
Converting Reserve Capacity to Amp Hours

The following formula converts Reserve capacity, typically expressed in minutes drawing a 25 amp load, to Amp hours at the 20/HR rate.

RC(60)*25/3600

Multiply Reserve Capacity to 60 to convert to seconds
Multiply by 25 to convert to coulombs
Divide by 3600 to convert coulombs to amp/hours

Example: We have a battery showing reserve minutes of 130

130 * 60 = 7800
7800 * 25 = 195,000
195,000 / 3600 = 54.16

[john61ct]

I guess since it's not **just** an AH counting meter,

they just use the AHC to give feedback / temporary stand-in as correction for the AIC weaknesses,

there is no simple number to display.

[sailinglegend]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Wow, you're right!

Maybe trying to get you to buy the "Bluetooth Gateway" 8-)

So you think the Bluetooth Gateway will give you Ah?????

Originally Posted by john61ct

Converting Reserve Capacity to Amp Hours

The following formula converts Reserve capacity, typically expressed in minutes drawing a 25 amp load, to Amp hours at the 20/HR rate.

RC(60)*25/3600

Multiply Reserve Capacity to 60 to convert to seconds
Multiply by 25 to convert to coulombs
Divide by 3600 to convert coulombs to amp/hours

Example: We have a battery showing reserve minutes of 130

130 * 60 = 7800
7800 * 25 = 195,000
195,000 / 3600 = 54.16

What is the point of just copying this from the Balmar Manual - it has nothing to do with helping us get an Ah reading from the SG 200????

[sailinglegend]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

If it doesn’t, then they are very foolish not to.

The problem is Ah counting is so inaccurate as the batteries age - which is exactly why the Smartgauge was developed. Why display something that is wrong and therefore useless - it will just confuse everybody.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by sailinglegend

The problem is Ah counting is so inaccurate as the batteries age - which is exactly why the Smartgauge was developed. Why display something that is wrong and therefore useless - it will just confuse everybody.

AH counting is not inaccurate. The inaccuracy only creep info when you use it to determine state of charge. It has many other uses on a cruising boat.

[john61ct]

So yes, makes sense to say, this is a SoC meter.

And no, the SG200's BT+app apparently does not add that functionality.

A $50 AH counter can give you that if you want it. Anderson plugs in strategic spots around the system makes it portable.

[Paul L]

A fundamental part of managing the electrical system on a cruising boat is knowing consumption over a period in different conditions. An AH counter is the best tool for this. How much did I use overnight? What's the daily consumption when offshore with the chartplotter and autopilot running? Any battery monitor worth it's salt will give you this type of info.
Saying you used 25% of the current, unspecified, battery capacity is opaque and not useful to me.

[john61ct]

Again, a $50 AH counter can give you that.

The original SmartGauge is (maybe was?) the most accurate **battery monitor**,

no one claims it is not a BM, yet it does not even count AH internally.

If you want a coulomb-counting BM that also displays its AH info, maybe a BMV-712 would suit you better.

[Paul L]

The new SG200 includes a shunt. It therefore has the info needed and should display it. I don't want to install two shunts. It is dumb to have to install two different battery monitors, when one can give you the info required.

[john61ct]

> If you want a coulomb-counting BM that also displays its AH info, maybe a BMV-712 would suit you better

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by john61ct

> If you want a coulomb-counting BM that also displays its AH info, maybe a BMV-712 would suit you better

We are discussing the new sg200. I already have an ah counter on my boat that I've cruised with for many years, so don't need your recommendations.

[rgleason]

Johnct wrote:

If you want a coulomb-counting BM that also displays its AH info, maybe a BMV-712 would suit you better

Also if you want a coulomb counting BM that will also provide some simple alerts and Connects/Disconnects for High/Low voltage and amps you'll want the BM-712, not the SG-200. The SG-200 is a very good Battery Monitor only, no controls.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by sailinglegend

The problem is Ah counting is so inaccurate as the batteries age - which is exactly why the Smartgauge was developed. Why display something that is wrong and therefore useless - it will just confuse everybody.

No, an amp is an amp is an amp, regardless of how many batteries or how old they are.
AH counting is very useful in determining just how much power your actually using.
The SG can tell me in a percentage of what I used in my bank, but not how much power was actually used. Using an amp counter in tandem with the SG can tell me if my bank is losing capacity, or I’m just using more power, without the AH counter, I won’t know, I’ll just be waking up to a lower SOC.

Now if I understand the new SG, you can maybe interpolate with the health read out, but I think it’s nice to know exactly how much power you use from day to day, that way if you change something, you can see immediately what is costs.