battery charging

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pishta

pishta

I know I'm right....
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Not Mopar specific. I have switched 12V power recepticals in my work van that turn off after 10 minutes when key is removed. This does not fare well with my tablet as it almost needs to be charged on a constant basis due to the battery being very weak. My question is: can i safely install a 12V sealed alarm type battery between the tablet and the switched receptical? I understand the battery will charge while i am driving and will power my tablet for a while when i am parked when the switched outlet goes dark..Or will the small battery (8A/hrs) overcharge and blow up...? It will never charge for more than 40 minutes at a time.
 
If mgmt is as crazy picky about the inside of the vehicles on your coast they are on my coast, don't let them see the battery in the cab.... The fleet folks might have an issue with it because it is not a vehicle supplied piece of equipment... Personally I don't see why it wouldn't work as long as the tablet charger can supply enough current to keep the battery and the tablet going at the same time and the two together are. Not too much of a draw on the outlet circuit. My techs have done some creative things in their trucks for chargers and whatnot. Heck - I even helped a couple of them be creative. My area manager hates when I do that while the union thanks me. LoL
 
Btw - I didn't get to come to Cali because y'all eventually settled - maybe in a couple of years.... Who knows.
 
Couple of issues

Don't know what your vehicle wiring "is." Some of this new stuff is so "smart" that it's "stupid."

Second, gell / AGM and "other than lead acid" batteries MAY (and probably do) "like" a different running / charging voltage than do conventional auto batteries.

Check that out before you commit
 
Why not an inverter powered from a constant 12v source and plug in the tablet's charger there? How would you control the charging rate to the gel battery?
 
I'm assuming the tablet is already set up for a lighter connector. Why not just wire another in, direct to the car battery (no "smart" junk,) and fused?
 
Cant mess with van wiring, new tablet battery: $800 bucks as battery is not serviceable. The gel battery is between lighter and tablet powerlug (12v to 5v 1500ma charger via usb port) , inverter is out as it would involve van wire harness mod. My solution cost me 5 bucks...working so far, everything shuts down after 10 minutes anyway so nothing is hot after hours. i left enough wire to store battery behind bulkhead. Well see, it was so bad that when i started my van, the power gets cut to socket for a split second and my tablet would die, with a 2 minute reboot. Motorolla Xyboard, $800 piece of crap...
 
I'm with you on the tablet issue. For ours, its more of a charger issue than a battery issue. Then we have whole overheating issue with them closed up in the van during the day. Our construction techs are getting better tablets that we need for. Video stuff in fios while my techs get to keep the 1st issue tablets they gave us. I'm. Glad its not just a local issue here. Our older vans all had invertoers installed. Our new ones don't. Go figure.
 
We are getting new models in 4th quarter if the grapevine is correct. Charger issue didnt fix mine.
 
I think there are modern fuse taps that plug in to the fuse box. I installed one, but now cannot remember which vehicle or what for. It will get the job done without messing with wiring.

Adding on a 12V to 5V converter for USB socket will be a universal way to charge any device like tablets, phones....

A gel cell floats at 13.5V, so it will overcharge, dry out, with long term use in a normal flooded lead acid vehicle. A Schottkey diode 0.3V drop, in series will likely provide enough drop, and will prevent the little battery from trying to supply vehicle loads. Choose an amp rating sufficient for battery capacity.
 
I have an inverter that plugs into cig lighter. I keep drill and flashlight battery chargers plugged in all the time. Never had any problems.
 
KitCarlson said:
A gel cell floats at 13.5V, so it will overcharge, dry out, with long term use in a normal flooded lead acid vehicle.

A Schottkey diode 0.3V drop, in series will likely provide enough drop, and will prevent the little battery from trying to supply vehicle loads. Choose an amp rating sufficient for battery capacity.
Click to expand...

This was what I was getting to, earlier. Battery float voltage.
 
65cuda360 said:
I have an inverter that plugs into cig lighter. I keep drill and flashlight battery chargers plugged in all the time. Never had any problems.
Click to expand...
My lighter is on a switched circuit, it dies after 10 minutes, hence the battery. and the actual voltage of my 12V is 13.2 so.....we'll see. I had an inverter in my old van and I left it on for the weekend to charge my Makita drill, killed battery dead. Battery probably wasnt all that great to begin with.
 
Inverters take more than 10x the current at 12V to boost to 120V. That is if they are 100% efficient. Most built inverters have two output settings, the high is locked out unless the engine is running.
 
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