Voltmeter / Charging indicator - What are you using and how is it wire

[danl]

Hi All,

 

I just replaced my voltage regulator because my last one was intermittently overcharging.  Without an actual voltmeter, my only indication of when this was happening was that the headlight and instrument lights would get very bright.

 

One of my winter projects will be installing a voltmeter or other method of monitoring the battery and charging system.  

 

I'm curious what you folks are using / have tried, and how you like them.  

 

I'd also be interested to hear how you have them wired (where you picked up the reference signal).  My first thought was to put a Superseal connector on the end of the voltmeter wires and pick up switched power at the now unused electronic petcock connector.  Unfortunately, there is a .9v drop between the battery and this connector.  It seems like the only way to get a good switched reference might be to add a dedicated relay?  Seems a bit overkill.

 

I'm considering this:

 

http://www.kuryakyn.com/products/872/led-battery-gauge

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzSySJafoIE

 

which seems like it might fit nicely on the dash between/below the gauges, or on top of the frame ahead of the tank.

 

Or this:

 

http://www.twistedthrottle.com/electrical-connection-led-motorcycle-battery-voltage-monitor-flush-mount-kit

 

which only provides basic info but is discrete

 

Or this:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Waterproof-Digital-Voltmeter-Motorcycle-Battery/dp/B009XQKCQY/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1422066991&sr=8-7&keywords=digital+voltmeter

 

Or even an analog gauge

 

Any pictures would be appreciated!

 

Thanks,

Dan

 

[moto fugazzi]

I just took off the Kuryakyn from my V7C, and installed a cheap version ( blue LCD, from ebay) of the version you can buy on ADV Monster. The Kuryakyn is just way too bright at night. The ADV Monster version is impossible to read in direct sunlight, but not too bright at night. 

The VM on my V7C is wired to the battery via a Fuzeblock, and the VM on my V11 is tapped into the ECU relay so I can read what voltage is going to the ECU.

http://stores.advmonster.com/accessories/

Ken

 

[moto fugazzi]

I just took off the Kuryakyn from my V7C, and installed a cheap version (from ebay) of the version you can buy on ADV Monster. The Kuryakyn is just way too bright at night. The ADV Monster version is impossible to read in direct sunlight, but not too bright at night. 

The VM on my V7C is wired to the battery via a Fuzeblock, and the VM on my V11 is tapped into the ECU relay so I can read what voltage is going to the ECU.

ADV Monster VM: http://stores.advmonster.com/accessories/

Attached is a pic of the ADV Monster VM (red), and the cheap VM from ebay. They're fairly close in rating:

Ken

 

 

[Kiwi_Roy]

Having a Voltmeter is a great reassurance especially if you're running heated gear.

 

Pin 87 of the ECU relay would be a good spot, it's direct from the battery via a fuse and very little load to cause Voltage drop.

I think I would add a resistor (100-470 Ohms) 0r small fuse close to the relay to protect the ECU circuit in case the meter got accidentally shorted.

(oooppps I just noticed Moto Fugazzi suggested that)

 

http://www.thisoldtractor.com/guzzi007/schematics/1999_V11_sport.gif

 

BTW, I often tell guys the petcock fuse is a great place to monitor, if you are having an intermittent rough running, If the bike won't start or is cutting out that's the first thing I check, Is the ECU relay getting good clean power to it's coil?

Suppose you lose your key, look where the petcock fuse is connected.

 

It would be interesting to see what happens to your observed 0.9V drop at the petcock fuse/connector, try it several times opening and closing the ignition switch, operating the stand switch, operating the kill switch.

The V11 Sport is a lot more forgiving than most other Guzzis because the start relay is not powered through the ignition switch, just the coil is.

We don't get many "Startus Interuptus" discussions on here.

[Cabernet]

With the odometer being unreliable, the rev counter misting up, I changed out the lot for a TransLogic micro dash which has a voltmeter and temperature gauge.

[Trevini]

I have a voltage sensing LED which I built into the original dash. Similar to this  http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/6v-12v-24v-LED-Battery-level-voltage-monitor-meter-J-/200627678428?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2eb6576cdc

 

 

Amber for 11.8 - 12.8 volts

 

 

Green for 12.8 - 15 Volts

[moto fugazzi]

I need to give Kiwi Roy credit for telling me to tap into pin 87 on the ECU a while back when I was having issues. Thanks again, Kiwi Roy!

Ken

[danl]

Thanks for all the replies guys.

 

I see a fairing makes it much easier to add little extras like this without having them look awkward and out of place.

 

Trevini - I like how you installed that LED.  Did you have to modify the plastic light housing to mount that or were you able to slide it right in place?

 

How do you guys prefer to tap into the ecu relay circuit?  I've always been a little leery of the insulation displacement/piercing type connectors.    I liked the non invasive idea of using the petcock connector, but I guess there's no way around some sort of splice.

[Scud]

Isn't the original problem about over charging? It seems that some of these products only indicate under and correct charging, while the Küryakyn unit shows under, correct, and over charging.

 

If the Küryakyn is too bright, you could just spray the LED area with lens tint until it no longer offends. 

[danl]

That's true, and definitely a consideration. My instrument lights did noticeably indicate the overcharging, but that's not really ideal!! There is something to be said for reducing the feedback resolution to just Good or Bad (keeps me from overthinking tiny voltage changes and enjoy the ride).

 

The kuryakyn one is going to be the one I try first. I'm also going to get one of these to check out:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Voltmeter-2-7~30v-Digital-Display-Detector/dp/B00M6KZ4CG

 

I think I could have a little housing made up for it that would fit in the same location on the dash where I'm hoping to put the kuryakyn.

[moto fugazzi]

I'd recommend some waterproof VM's.

This would be cool, if you have room for it:

 http://www.amazon.com/Charger-Voltmeter-Digital-Marine-Carvan/dp/B00JUI7VW8/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1422741483&sr=8-5&keywords=waterproof+voltmeter

Ken

[Trevini]

Danl - I did have to chop things about a little inside to get it to fit, but I wanted to retain the original appearance, so it was worth it for me.  I have it wired to an ignition switched relay that I've added to completely isolate the Electrex reg/rec unit (to prevent battery drain when switched off due to the internal voltage sensing on the unit) and earthed directly to the battery.  That way it shows accurately what the charging is doing.  It will also indicate overcharging by flashing green and then red depending how high the voltage goes.

[Kiwi_Roy]

Thanks for all the replies guys.

 

I see a fairing makes it much easier to add little extras like this without having them look awkward and out of place.

 

Trevini - I like how you installed that LED.  Did you have to modify the plastic light housing to mount that or were you able to slide it right in place?

 

How do you guys prefer to tap into the ecu relay circuit?  I've always been a little leery of the insulation displacement/piercing type connectors.    I liked the non invasive idea of using the petcock connector, but I guess there's no way around some sort of splice.

I also like Trevini's solution to re-use the charge light.

Tap into the wire between Relay 4 / 87 and Relay 5 coil, If you slide the little connector out you can solder a small wire to it,

[Scud]

I got this Battery Tender unit.

 

Advantage: it's on and off with a quick disconnect plug and works on my other bikes too. The display shows the actual voltage at rest (12.5 on mine) and while running (13.6 at 4,000 rpm on mine).

Disadvantage: it's not a full-time monitor, because it turns itself off after a few seconds of display.

 

Moto Fugazzi kindly sold me his Kuryakyn take-off, which I think I can permanently mount (with a little custom bracket) on a turn indicator stalk. If so, it will be hidden behind the fairing, but still give me a little glow-warning if there's an under- or over-charging problem.

[docc]

Looks promising. Is the unit backlighted? Looks like a "button" and three indicator lights (what do they do?)

 

BTW, Scud - your voltages are on the marginal side. Look at conditioning your AGM (12.5v is 75%) and make efforts to get your charging voltage  above 13.8, ideally 14.2.