Sprinter Smart Alternator

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by booster

a Balmar does not do a full shutoff of charging like lithium is usually recommended to have, and that has to be done by separate controls.

The Balmar programming manual illustrates a dizzying array of parameters available to program. Full shut off or close to it is not included?

[booster]

Originally Posted by cruising7388

The Balmar programming manual illustrates a dizzying array of parameters available to program. Full shut off or close to it is not included?

When I have dug though it, unless I missed something which is totally possible in the pile of settings, there is no way to do a shut off of the alternator. About all you can do is reduce the float voltage to stop charging. The biggest issue for me with the Balmar is that it doesn't know what the battery state of charge is and guesses at how long it should be at various voltages while charging. In a well designed lithium system, the BMS would be capable of shutting down the alternator field when the batteries get full, and then probably use a contactor to disconnect completely. No such luck with lead acid charging unless you monitor the amps to the batteries on your battery monitor and shut down the alternator manually when the batteries are full.

[VER_1]

Davydd

My wife and I realized that we like to roll like you as after our class C at 29ft we downsized to 24ft recently plus lost 6 inches in width. We are not campers we realized but are travellers that will camp or move on at a whim.

We will see how this unit works out as we might like it or hate it as time will tell. But so far we only drove out a few times as I am in the process of adding my toys etc. The parking has been so easy plus with FWD the radius turning has been shocking.

Thanks for you feedback as I need to read your posts as I see you are very experienced along with some of the other fellows I see here. I am in my mid 40's so I still got alot to learn about the ultimate quality of life and RV driving.

[gregmchugh]

The upper charge limit on our lithium batteries is set to 95%...

The Mastervolt electrical system in our new vehicle is completely networked with all of the major components on the network. One of the two 360 AH lithium batteries is the master and controls all of the lithium chargers (4000 watt inverter with 200 amp charger, mppt solar charger connected to 1000 watts of panels, and a DC-DC converter charger connected to the chassis alternator). 30 amp shore power and an Onan 6000 watt diesel generator that is controlled by the Mastervolt network. It seems to be set up to not charge above 95% capacity and starts the generator at around 30% capacity. You can set up quiet hours to prevent the generator from auto starting. There is also a charge line from the inverter/charger to the chassis battery to charge it when on shore or generator power.

These marine lithium systems are pretty well tested and rugged and reliable and you do pay more but maybe not more than something like the Volta system.

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by gregmchugh

The upper charge limit on our lithium batteries is set to 95%...

The Mastervolt electrical system in our new vehicle is completely networked with all of the major components on the network. One of the two 360 AH lithium batteries is the master and controls all of the lithium chargers (4000 watt inverter with 200 amp charger, mppt solar charger connected to 1000 watts of panels, and a DC-DC converter charger connected to the chassis alternator). 30 amp shore power and an Onan 6000 watt diesel generator that is controlled by the Mastervolt network. It seems to be set up to not charge above 95% capacity and starts the generator at around 30% capacity. You can set up quiet hours to prevent the generator from auto starting. There is also a charge line from the inverter/charger to the chassis battery to charge it when on shore or generator power.

These marine lithium systems are pretty well tested and rugged and reliable and you do pay more but maybe not more than something like the Volta system.

It seems like every leap ahead in RV design has been previously implemented in the marine environment probably because while electrical failure in an RV might be an annoying inconvenience, a similiar failure in the marine environment might well include loss of life or limb. So there's no question that in the electrical end, RVs are well behind and have had little if any electrical networking, but at least it seems to be moving in that direction. The Balmar regulator does employ rudimentary bi-directional networking although as Booster points out it could use a lot more information from the batteries and loads to execute optimum settings. Also, the recent marketing by Xantrex of an engineered system that integrates and networks batteries, inverters, alternators and regulators seems to be a further move in this direction at a price that is practical for implementing in RVs.

Are earmuffs provided standard with the 6kw diesel Onan?

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by REV

Davydd

My wife and I realized that we like to roll like you as after our class C at 29ft we downsized to 24ft recently plus lost 6 inches in width. We are not campers we realized but are travellers that will camp or move on at a whim.

We will see how this unit works out as we might like it or hate it as time will tell. But so far we only drove out a few times as I am in the process of adding my toys etc. The parking has been so easy plus with FWD the radius turning has been shocking.

Thanks for you feedback as I need to read your posts as I see you are very experienced along with some of the other fellows I see here. I am in my mid 40's so I still got alot to learn about the ultimate quality of life and RV driving.

If you are in your mid 40's you will have many more RVs to hone your desires, that is if you don't buy a lot of time shares, a lake cabin or decide cruise ships are more your cup of tea.

[gregmchugh]

Originally Posted by cruising7388

It seems like every leap ahead in RV design has been previously implemented in the marine environment probably because while electrical failure in an RV might be an annoying inconvenience, a similiar failure in the marine environment might well include loss of life or limb. So there's no question that in the electrical end, RVs are well behind and have had little if any electrical networking, but at least it seems to be moving in that direction. The Balmar regulator does employ rudimentary bi-directional networking although as Booster points out it could use a lot more information from the batteries and loads to execute optimum settings. Also, the recent marketing by Xantrex of an engineered system that integrates and networks batteries, inverters, alternators and regulators seems to be a further move in this direction at a price that is practical for implementing in RVs.

Are earmuffs provided standard with the 6kw diesel Onan?

Actually, the Onan 6000/8000 watt diesel generators are quieter than the Onan 2500/2800 gas/propane generators used in Class B vans. Onan doesn’t seem to be interested in getting a low noise level in the low end generators.

Onan 6000/8000 watt diesel sound level is 66 dB at 10 ft at half load
Onan 2500/2800 watt gas/propane sound level is 70 dB at 10 ft at half load

So, the 6000 watt diesel is quieter producing 3000 watts than the gas/propane producing less than half the power. At the same power, it would be even quieter.

And the sound level inside the camper is significantly quieter in our truck than the propane Onan in our Roadtrek RS Sprinter for several reasons.

The Roadtrek has the generator mounted right under the rear couch so you get a lot of noice and vibration right where you are sitting or sleeping and there is virtually no sound deadening insulation between you and the generator.

In our truck the generator is mounted in the front under the bench seat but the camper is constructed of 2.5 inch foam filled panels so good sound insulation and the bed is in the back so if you are using the generator while sleeping you don’t hear it at all and especially with the roof air conditioner running which would be the only reason for running the generator while you were sleeping.

This is our truck...

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