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Old 09-21-2011, 12:19 AM   #15 (permalink)
California98Civic
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Coastal Southern California
Posts: 6,299

Black and Green - '98 Honda Civic DX Coupe
Team Honda
90 day: 66.42 mpg (US)

Black and Red - '00 Nashbar Custom built eBike
90 day: 3671.43 mpg (US)
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It seems possibly to work

64.09mpg on my fill tonight is a new high--slightly better than 63.83 mpg on my last tank. But I only implemented this battery/alternator mod in the last 150 miles. For those last 150 miles the trip mpg was 64.5 (adjusted for UG over count). And half of that driving was in far less than ideal stop and go traffic that is highly unusual for me to have to deal with. I think the next tank could score at least 67 mpg and maybe 70 in my normal driving routine.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Tele man View Post
...what "brand" deep-cycle battery are you using? And, what do *they* say about low-voltage "threshhold" under load? Typically, the manufacturer will specify a MAX-MIN cycling voltage that will optimize the battery "longivity/life."
Great questions. I have an Odyssey PC625 deep cycle 13.2lbs battery. I bought it because it had slightly better reserve and cranking than the slightly heavier PC680. I made an odd choice, I know. Most guys go for bigger and heavier deep cycles. It is an experiment. I am willing to risk the cost of the battery.

Odyssey says 12.8 volts is full charge, that 12.5 is 75%, 12.2 is 50%, and 11.9 is 25%. "To get long life" from the battery, Odyssey says, it should be kept near full charge. Yesterday I ran it way down to 11 volts. Odyssey says a small charger like my 1.5 amp unit will not be able to fully recharge the battery after a full discharge. Was 11.0 a full discharge? Maybe not since the car was still running. What do you think?

Tips on how to get it back to a full charge if my charger can't do it tonight? Just reconnect the alt and idle the engine a while? Other options short of buying a bigger charger?

I'd much appreciate constructive suggestions. EDIT: AFTER CHARGING ALL NIGHT, 7pm until now, 438am, the battery is fully recharged, 100%+ ... so I may conclude that depletion to 11.0 was not full discharge.
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See my car's mod & maintenance thread and my electric bicycle's thread for ongoing projects. I will rebuild Black and Green over decades as parts die, until it becomes a different car of roughly the same shape and color. My minimum fuel economy goal is 55 mpg while averaging posted speed limits. I generally top 60 mpg. See also my Honda manual transmission specs thread.




Last edited by California98Civic; 09-21-2011 at 08:40 AM..
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