Hand held appliance voltages

Henning said:
Do you plan to plug in a GPS, use the cigarette lighter, or plug in an electric heater? I think the limiting factor will be the socket fixture, typically they are 30amp if designed for a lighter. If it's designed as a power point I've seen them in 10 & 15 amp ratings. The fixture should be stamped.
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It must be nice to float along in a sea of ignorance regarding construction and maintenance.

Things are so easy when you don't have a clue what you are talking about.

Jim


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jesse said:
In every device I own there is a fuse before the chord running to the device (inside the plug).
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Not to be pedantic, folks, but chord runs from the leading edge to the trailing edge of a wing. A cord runs from the power supply to the electrical device.

Jim
 
kgruber said:
Light aircraft electrical systems are mostly 14V and 28V. Only the batteries are 12V and 24V.
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Oh, no, not this again.

A quiescent lead-acid wet cell is right at 2.1 volts when not being charged. Six of these in series yields roughly 12.6 volts. We SAY this is a 12 volt battery in common discussion, although it is closer to 13 than it is to 12.

In normal charge, the voltage regulator will give maximum battery life if it is set somewhere around 2.26 volts/cell or 13.6 volts. If the beanhead that set the voltage regulator thought that more was better, (s)he would have set the regulator to 14+ volts which is enough to boil water out of the battery. The lights may be brighter, but the battery is screaming for help.

Bogey design value for aircraft electronic devices is 13.6 volts but we design so that 15 (high) won't destroy the device and it must work down to a completely drained battery of 11.5 volts.

Jim

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Like Henning said, the appliances should be individually fused to protect themselves and their cords. The outlet can be fused up to its rating to protect itself and its wire. Put in whatever size that you want up to that size. If whatever size you pick turns out to be too small, put in the next size bigger, up to the max, until it quits blowing.
 
Henning said:
Do you plan to plug in a GPS, use the cigarette lighter, or plug in an electric heater? I think the limiting factor will be the socket fixture, typically they are 30amp if designed for a lighter. If it's designed as a power point I've seen them in 10 & 15 amp ratings. The fixture should be stamped.
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weirdjim said:
It must be nice to float along in a sea of ignorance regarding construction and maintenance.

Things are so easy when you don't have a clue what you are talking about.

Jim


.
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:rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
weirdjim said:
Oh, no, not this again.

A quiescent lead-acid wet cell is right at 2.1 volts when not being charged. Six of these in series yields roughly 12.6 volts. We SAY this is a 12 volt battery in common discussion, although it is closer to 13 than it is to 12.
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Nobody would want a 13 volt aircraft, that would be unlucky.:D
 
weirdjim said:
Oh, no, not this again.

A quiescent lead-acid wet cell is right at 2.1 volts when not being charged. Six of these in series yields roughly 12.6 volts. We SAY this is a 12 volt battery in common discussion, although it is closer to 13 than it is to 12.

In normal charge, the voltage regulator will give maximum battery life if it is set somewhere around 2.26 volts/cell or 13.6 volts. If the beanhead that set the voltage regulator thought that more was better, (s)he would have set the regulator to 14+ volts which is enough to boil water out of the battery. The lights may be brighter, but the battery is screaming for help.

Bogey design value for aircraft electronic devices is 13.6 volts but we design so that 15 (high) won't destroy the device and it must work down to a completely drained battery of 11.5 volts.

Jim

.
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Can you explain that again, in detail?
 
I tried a test today to see what the actual amp draw was with both my Bose head sets and the GPS connected to the bus.
I could not see any wiggle in the needle of my meter, with them on or off. The circuit will be connected to a 5 amp circuit breaker that has a 2 amp load from a different device.
 
Tom-D said:
I tried a test today to see what the actual amp draw was with both my Bose head sets and the GPS connected to the bus.
I could not see any wiggle in the needle of my meter, with them on or off. The circuit will be connected to a 5 amp circuit breaker that has a 2 amp load from a different device.
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Describe your connection method with the meter.
 
Tom-D said:
In series with the meter.
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K. If you get no meter reading, either the amperage is too low to indicate for that range or you may have the meter lead in the wrong socket on the meter. Many older MMs have a separate socket for measuring amps. If you are in the right socket, you might also want to check that the internal fuse for the meter isn't open. Most MMs have a small internal fuse to protect the meter movement from excess current. It will be near the connections on the back of the meter once the case is taken off. On the 2A scale, there will be a 2.5A micro barrel fuse, and on the 10A scale there will be a 10 or 12 Amp fuse inline with the sockets.

I'm guessing the amps draw with the headset and the GPS on will be around 30-90mA, so try a lower range on the meter.
 
docmirror said:
K. If you get no meter reading, either the amperage is too low to indicate for that range or you may have the meter lead in the wrong socket on the meter. Many older MMs have a separate socket for measuring amps. If you are in the right socket, you might also want to check that the internal fuse for the meter isn't open. Most MMs have a small internal fuse to protect the meter movement from excess current. It will be near the connections on the back of the meter once the case is taken off. On the 2A scale, there will be a 2.5A micro barrel fuse, and on the 10A scale there will be a 10 or 12 Amp fuse inline with the sockets.

I'm guessing the amps draw with the headset and the GPS on will be around 30-90mA, so try a lower range on the meter.
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When I can't read it on my meter (and yes I know how to use a multimeter) I'm not going to worry about the AMPS
 
Tom-D said:
When I can't read it on my meter (and yes I know how to use a multimeter) I'm not going to worry about the AMPS
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Tom-D said:
I tried a test today to see what the actual amp draw was with both my Bose head sets and the GPS connected to the bus.
I could not see any wiggle in the needle of my meter, with them on or off.
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Most multi meters will read mA, it's not that difficult to read, that is if you actually know how to use the meter.......:rolleyes:
 
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RotorAndWing said:
Most multi meters will read mA, it's not that difficult to read, that is if you actually know how to use the meter.......:rolleyes:
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Why do I need to know the exact milli amp reading?

Some things are worth doing some aren't,
 
Tom-D said:
When I can't read it on my meter (and yes I know how to use a multimeter) I'm not going to worry about the AMPS
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Alrighty. Just thought I would help you along. Put in a 10A fuse, appropriate wire and insulator and call it fixed.
 
docmirror said:
Alrighty. Just thought I would help you along. Put in a 10A fuse, appropriate wire and insulator and call it fixed.
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The other night I was wondering if any one here would actually know how much certain hand held devices would draw.

Now we have the resident Anon expert implying I don't know how to use a Multimeter.

So I'm gone
 
docmirror said:
K. If you get no meter reading, either the amperage is too low to indicate for that range or you may have the meter lead in the wrong socket on the meter.
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Jeezuuz krist ... the meter will read OL at that point. WHy don't you go back to Electronics 101 and take better notes?

Jim
..
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Tom-D said:
The other night I was wondering if any one here would actually know how much certain hand held devices would draw.

Now we have the resident Anon expert implying I don't know how to use a Multimeter.

So I'm gone
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Honest to gesundtheight I do know the answer Tom. phones draw less than half an amp. pads draw about two amps. most handhelds draw less than a tenth of an amp on receive and less than an amp on transmit.

That's why I told you to use a 5 amp fuse (although I'd much prefer you use a breaker at the battery).

But that's why I told you this, rather than run this thread all over Goshen and back ...

If you don't want my peaches, don't shake my tree.





Thanks,

Jim
..
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weirdjim said:
Jeezuuz krist ... the meter will read OL at that point. WHy don't you go back to Electronics 101 and take better notes?

Jim
..
.
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Why the abusive and arrogant response? Bad day at the office?
As far as I can tell he was trying to be helpful, much like you are. A simple correction is called for; the rest probably means you're having bad hair day.

Perhaps a fuse blew in Tom's multimeter; not enough info to rule that out. He didn't say whether the Bose headset or GPS unit had indications they were actually drawing power with the ammeter in series vs not.

As it stands, according to his report the appliances he experimented on draw no measurable current yet appear to run.
 
weirdjim said:
Jeezuuz krist ... the meter will read OL at that point. WHy don't you go back to Electronics 101 and take better notes?

Jim
..
.
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Yur funnie. It's an analog meter so reading OL will be a real challenge. Bending that meter needle into a pretzel the shape of OL is pretty exacting. Hey, while I'm at it, what part of the needle will be over the parallax mirror?

Oh, if you want a class in Elec 101, I teach it and will send you a link to the registration for it. :lol:

Now, back to cases. An analog or digital meter will read zero with no current flowing through it. A small current, on a high range of 2000mA or so will not show any deflection. I think you may be confused with a resistance measurement, which will have the needle(or OL in digital terms) pegged until the leads are across a resistive load that is lower than the scale on the meter, or in the case of an autoranging meter, it will gradually count down to the correct reading on the correct scale.

Thanks for playing along! Since the OP is out of here, I guess I'll take my ball and go home. :lol:
 
docmirror said:
Yur funnie. It's an analog meter so reading OL will be a real challenge. Bending that meter needle into a pretzel the shape of OL is pretty exacting. Hey, while I'm at it, what part of the needle will be over the parallax mirror?

I didn't see a picture of Tom's meter, so how you can assume (and I'm sure you understand the etymology of that word) that it is an analog meter is beyond me.

Oh, if you want a class in Elec 101, I teach it and will send you a link to the registration for it. :lol:

www.sierracollege.edu and I still have a seat in my "101" class that starts this Thursday if you need a refresher.

Now, back to cases. An analog or digital meter will read zero with no current flowing through it. A small current, on a high range of 2000mA or so will not show any deflection. I think you may be confused with a resistance measurement, which will have the needle(or OL in digital terms) pegged

The needle/OL will NOT be pegged on a resistance measurement with an open. It will be full scale, which is a far cry from pegged.

until the leads are across a resistive load that is lower than the scale on the meter, or in the case of an autoranging meter, it will gradually count down to the correct reading on the correct scale.

Thanks for playing along! Since the OP is out of here, I guess I'll take my ball and go home. :lol:

That's what a lot of folks do when they make a post full of bushwa and get tagged for it.

Be well

Jim
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.....
 
Jim - you couldn't teach a fat baby to fart. Your understanding of multimeters is so lacking it's criminal. What's more, you can't read people's posts.

buh-bye.
 
Tom-D said:
I tried a test today to see what the actual amp draw was with both my Bose head sets and the GPS connected to the bus.
I could not see any wiggle in the needle of my meter, with them on or off. The circuit will be connected to a 5 amp circuit breaker that has a 2 amp load from a different device.
Click to expand...

weirdjim said:
I didn't see a picture of Tom's meter, so how you can assume (and I'm sure you understand the etymology of that word) that it is an analog meter is beyond me.
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The nature of his multimeter is provided by a close reading of post 48, quoted above, where he states "wiggle in the needle of my meter."
 
While the ring girl struts around the ring with the placard showing the number of the next round...

Fuses have somewhat loose tolerances, and they also age. Allow a margin above the expected max current draw when picking a rating. A 10A fuse for running 2A worth of electronics is reasonable. A shorted cord will still blow it.

You don't want a short in your handheld GPS to take out the lighter socket fuse in flight, when you might need it later for your handheld radio. A 10A fuse on the socket will generally keep that from happening.

My Toyota Tundra uses a 15A fuse upstream of the lighter socket and two additional power points (all in parallel). My little 12V compressor, which pulls less than 10A, popped it recently. The fuse was 11 years old. The new 15A fuse I installed as a replacement has run it fine several times since.
 
Tom-D said:
Why do I need to know the exact milli amp reading? Some things are worth doing some aren't,
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If it was worth knowing the current draw, it's probably worth confirming the meter is actually working by using it on the correct range.

Even 100 mA on the 10A scale should wiggle the meter. It probably has a blown internal fuse if there was no indication whatsoever.
 
PW_Plack said:
If it was worth knowing the current draw, it's probably worth confirming the meter is actually working by using it on the correct range.

Even 100 mA on the 10A scale should wiggle the meter. It probably has a blown internal fuse if there was no indication whatsoever.
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It work fine today.
Do you really think I don't know when a meter isn't working?
My multimeter probably has leads older than you.
 
Tom-D said:
It work fine today.
Do you really think I don't know when a meter isn't working?
My multimeter probably has leads older than you.
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It is standard operating procedure in remote diagnostics to include checks for operator error. It isn't intended to be personal (well, not for most, though on this forum there are exceptions.) Just the nature of troubleshooting.

As to what you know - I doubt most here know anything about your level of expertise in electronics. When handling technical support it seems that assuming novice level is often better than assuming expert level. Again, nothing personal.

As an aside, I presume that the GPS you tested has a manual or spec sheet somewhere on line that lists typical current draw that you could have cross-checked your meter readings with.
 
Jim Logajan said:
It is standard operating procedure in remote diagnostics to include checks for operator error. It isn't intended to be personal (well, not for most, though on this forum there are exceptions.) Just the nature of troubleshooting.

As to what you know - I doubt most here know anything about your level of expertise in electronics. When handling technical support it seems that assuming novice level is often better than assuming expert level. Again, nothing personal.

As an aside, I presume that the GPS you tested has a manual or spec sheet somewhere on line that lists typical current draw that you could have cross-checked your meter readings with.
Click to expand...

You don't have to be a electronic engineer to operate a multimeter or to know that a 5 amp circuit breaker will hold a less than 1 amp draw.
 
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