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I don't know Electricity, I confess, but i do WANT to learn, so excuse if this is stupid (wouldn't be the first time!), BUT:
Sort of. My understanding of "parasitic load" is that it's designed into the device and intentional. Like if you turn your TV off, it isn't completely off. Part of it is powered up and "listening" for your remote to tell it to turn back on.
jpg, your whole explanation here is completely understandable (which isn't always the case with electrical explanations):
I just hope it's correct. We have experts here on SS. They provide reliable information. I'm just a newbie.
still fixin
You are right, absolutely right. In fact, I picked up my welding at the local Community College (Northern Virginia Community College, NOVA).
Good man, make sure the foundation is solid before building the house...
If you plan on running any radios (UHF/VHF, WiFi), things that need to "listen" with (not just entertainment listening), the suppressors will cut the noise generated by the brushes in a motor as they slide from one contact to the next, or the rapid open close of a horn vibrator. These devices have rapid current draws followed by load dumps (in the multiple kHz range) usually coupled with a collapsing magnetic field that amplifies it. VERY noisy for RF.
If these wires in that bundle are not part of the same circuit (i.e. multiple parallel wires to-from the same two devices), you are likely seeing an error. You will need to separate them to isolate each circuit. Also, read up in the manual about the effect of wire location in the clamp on measurement error. If it's in the very center of the clamp loop, it's more accurate than if it's touching the side of the clamp. Also keep in mind that since the clamp is a hall effect device, external magnetic interference from things like permanent magnet motors within a few inches can skew the numbers.
I think you will find that if you planned to clean/lube these up you will learn as much about the wiring as you would by waiting to study and clean/lube later. If you are keeping the 24V NATO plug, why not keep the glow plugs/starter 24V?
Will do. That was my instinct. I read some articles that said the frame was a better ground than a dedicated wire. I'm reluctant to send 300A of 24VDC into a frame. I want to control exactly where that goes.
I guess I'll need to replace the horn suppressor then, and any others that have failed. The PO also removed a bunch of suppressors, like the one for the windshield wipers, and I think he removed 1 of the 3 between the 24DC distribution blocks. Once I get the system working properly, I can add known-good suppressors back in.
I did read the manual carefully, such as it is. It's quite thin. It only mentions centering regarding the flex sensor. I did notice that proximity to other things can impact the reading substantially. I get a reading of 0.2A if I set the meter down on the metal above the headlight. I bet the heater motor is just on the other side of the firewall from where I got the 2.7A reading. I guess I should make a habit of taking a reading with the wire outside the clam, to see if something will be throwing my reading off... Is there a good place to learn how to properly use these meters? The manual is far too thin...
It would be great if the current I'm detecting turned out to be a measurement error. I'm finding it very confusing. It varies from one day to the next. I was assuming that meant an intermittent problem, probably involving corrosion somewhere. Is there a reliable way to cross-check what the meter is telling me? I'm seeing current in the main battery cables. I don't see how measuring voltage would help me here. The Voltmeter does tell me what I expect to see, so the Fluke seems to be working OK... And I did zero the ammeter.
It turns out a PO did the GP Resistor bypass, presumably to avoid the cascading failure that can happen when one GP fails, and the resistor provides higher voltage to the others, causing more to fail, etc. Didn't you do a highly mathematical analysis of that failure?
I would recommend looking at non-GM specific potential solutions for RF suppression, once you broaded your view to things other than what the CUCV came with you will find many more options and sources. The most common method for reducing noise across (radiated energy) a fast "switching" device is to use a capacitor, to kill the RF noise which is carried away (conducted energy) the most common way to kill that is a choke (coil of wire around a ferrite). This article will echo what I just said, but you'll get a bit more depth than I have time for right now.
For very low current (<5amps) temporarily putting a current shunt in the circuit is safe - I mentioned via PM that I prefer to not use shunts in high current applications as they generate a good deal of heat as they approach their rating. If you don't want to go buy a retail shunt, just any resistor will do as long as it's power rating is sufficient: measure it's resistance outside of the circuit, then install it in series with the circuit being measured, then measure the voltage across it. Ohms law is what you use for figuring out how much current is flowing across the resistor:
E
---
I*R0.010Volts
---------- = 0.001 Amps or 1 milliamp
10OhmsI did - and if you don't use self regulating glow plugs the resistor system is fine. If you do use self regulating plugs (which have a variable resistance), I prefer to still keep the 24V supply but use something like 24V-to-12V DC/DC regulators for each plug (yes, 8x 25A regulators - takes about as much space as the two resistors, a little more). This way a standard 24V NATO jump plug can still be used to jump the truck (as glow plugs are needed to preheat the engine most of the time), but the energy efficiency of the glow system jumps immensely (from 50% to 90%+) and you can't have cascade failures since the voltage is limited.
Try to keep as much of the original split system the same, it helps with troubleshooting later even if you swap say a ballast resistor pack for glow plugs with voltage regulators the function and design of the system stays intact for easy help later. Big devices with big power draw do better at higher voltages, that also means your cable size for the specific power demand will be about half the size (roughly one AWG step higher).
That's the funny thing about learning though: