Powerlab 8 first time user

[ferrari458italian]

Hi,

So I have the Powerlab 8 and also a eFuel 24v 60A power supply. I also have the MPA board.

I would like to parallell charge four 6s 3700mAh lipos at one C. What voltage do I set on the power supply and what settings on the Powerlab 8? I have no clue about this stuff, sometimes I wonder why I got it but hope you guys can help.

Also, what would be the seetings for power supply (volts) and charger if I would like to charge the four packs at 2C. Any calculations on how I figure this out depending on packs and C charge would be great.

Thank you

M

[spackermen]

You've got a lot to learn about batteries and your new very capable charger!

Firstly, in order to get the most out of your power supply. If it's the same EFuel I have, 1200W 14.4-24V supply, at 20v you will get the full 1200W output. So, if you are going for maximum output, at 24v you will only have 50Amps output, and at 20V you will have the full 60A, or 1200W.

The powerlab will not have a problem accepting any voltage the efuel will output under normal circumstances. (if the power supply is functioning properly) I believe the V2 PL8 is rated up to 30V input.

In order to charge the 4 x 6s 3700 MaH batteries at 1c, you will need to have charge rate output of 14.8A, which I believe you will have to use the high power setting to charge at above 10Amps,( or 6A if using the AUTO 1C, 2C etc..)

The easiest thing to do will be to power your charger on, plug the batteries into the MPA board, then select "high power" charge, and select the auto 1c charge rate for safe 1C Charging, or alternatively you can scroll through and select the amperage to charge manually, and with the 6s 3700MaH packs, for a 1c you will need to set the amperage to 14.8A.

Charge rates are easy to identify and calculate. Example

2200MaH battery. 2200(Pack capacity) / 1000 = 2.2 (gives you a 1c charge rate)

2200MaH battery charging 4 packs parallel. (2.2 X 4 = 8.8A charge rate for 1C)

Download and read the manual if you haven't already.

http://revolectrix.com/support_docs/item_1377.pdf

[ferrari458italian]

Thank you. Yes, I have the eFuel 1200w power supply. So lets say I want to charge the batteries at 1C, what do I set the power supply voltage? 20v? Can I set it lower? How will that affect charging time?

Also, do I need to have any particular setting set in the charger manually or is it just plug and play if I do it as above?

Thanks

M

[Tim Marks]

Originally Posted by ferrari458italian

Thank you. Yes, I have the eFuel 1200w power supply. So lets say I want to charge the batteries at 1C, what do I set the power supply voltage? 20v? Can I set it lower? How will that affect charging time?

Also, do I need to have any particular setting set in the charger manually or is it just plug and play if I do it as above?

Thanks

M

Hi:

The PowerLab doesn't care what the input voltage is. Follow the other customer's advice and set it to 24VDC output. Then set the input low voltage to around 20V to protect the PSU. Then set the input current limit to just under the max current output of the power supply. Again, this will protect the power supply. What these settings do for you is allow you to max out the PowerLab no matter what battery you are charging. The PowerLab will step up or down the input voltage so that it always outputs the selected charge current, regardless of what input voltage you supply.

Hope you understand.

[ferrari458italian]

Thank you for your advice on this charger. As I understand if I want to charge four 6s lipos at 1C (3700mAh each) I set the PSU at 24VDC. Then I set input low voltage to around 20V in the charger. Then set the input current limit in the charger to just under the max current output of the power supply (around 45A?). Have I understood this right?

Do I set the 1C charging manually ( 14,8A) or is this set automatically by the charger?

Thanks
Milad

[spackermen]

You may set the volts on the eFuel to whatever you wish. The charger will not care what voltage is being supplied. As Tim said, it will automatically step the voltage up or down depending on what battery charged voltage you need to achieve.

You may set 1c charging option, or also manually set to 14.8A. If I read the manual correctly however, the maximum output of AUTO 1c, 2c, etc. is 6Amps (unless you have changed this setting) If you would like to charge faster than 6A, you will need to select charge amps manually instead of using AUTO ,or change the setting for max. Auto Amps.

[ferrari458italian]

Thanks. Why put the 60A on the PSU if the charger only can handle 40A? Why not put 40A on the PSU?

[jdd1]

Originally Posted by ferrari458italian

Thanks. Why put the 60A on the PSU if the charger only can handle 40A? Why not put 40A on the PSU?

Hi Ferrari,
The PL8 can handle or accept 60A input current, not 40A. Ideally you would want to set the PS max amps to slightly less than the max output of the PS.
Jack

[CageyH]

And don't forget to change the node setting to XH Wiring before connecting the MPA.

[CyprusFlyer]

I have the PL8 and PL6, great chargers and they look a lot more complicated at first than they need be. One factor to bear in mind is that the automatic 1C, 2C charge settings take quite a while longer. The reason is that the charger cannot know what capacity your battery is. It therefore compares voltage change over time and uses the fuel table to deduce the capacity.
Because I only use Lipos, I have only 4 of the Menus visible, the rest are hidden, of those I only really use 3, High Power Charge, Storage charge and Acurate Charge. Mostly I charge at 5A (1C ish), so that is the default setting.
I have a 24v input and ability to charge from a large 24v lead acid 200Ah UPS system that is also great at bulk discharge (Rainy day!). I can disconnect the mains to the UPS and make it run off baterries and pump large amount of current into the system! My "Green" contribution.
So its quite simple, static 24v in, set the charge current and number of parallel packs, charger works out the voltage, confirm a few times and monitor progress, it really is difficult to mess it up!
Of course to hide menus and change defaults you need the USB/Serial gizmo, well worth having but for the price of these, shame it wasnt built in.