Thread: low voltage warning with landing light

Hi Dick,

I wouldn't just put dielectric grease on everything, but yes it is ok to use and in 1-2 areas might be a good idea.

I also get the oil pressure warning when the voltage warning is very low. BTW, Progold is not a grease, but a contact restoring and preserving sort of oil. It's something of a best kept secret among EEs that deal with power connections and such.

BTW, it is NOT an MR16 bulb. This thing uses a GZ6.35 base so it is a bulb like this:
http://www.prismaecat.lighting.phili...35_12V_1CT.pdf

Di- electric grease is fine for all applications when used properly. Di- electric grease is essentially an insulator. When ever you have ring terminal contacts like the grounds on our CT it's a good idea to use some. You need to remeber that "di- electri" means that it doesn't readily conduct eletricity but that's not a big deal anyways when were talking about the kind of pressure those termials are under since any grease between then will be squeezed out. The major benefit of the grease is corrosion and moisture protection.

There have been alot of regulator issues out in the field lately and we have seen a steady increase in regulator problems over the last 3yrs as mfgs and customers try to stuff more and more electronics into there panel. The fact that the voltage drops when at low rpms is normal as the AC generator bases it's output engine speed. The regulator is also a rectifier and the voltage leaving the stator is anywhere from 15- 130vac before it hits the regulator. The two big problems we have been running accross are landing llights and Stobes. I strongly recommend being more familier with your elctrical load managment and be careful when having your strobes on at the same time as your landing light when your taxing. The regulator is rated to 22 amps max but we have been finding that 18 is recommended and under 16 you will never have any issues. Checking ground is not a bad idea but may not solve the problem, it's just a cost effective thing to check first.

Good info Jeremy. I didn't see much info in the forum on current draw doing a quick search. In order to manage our current draw, some quick noodling. I get about 8.3 amp draw for the 100w landing light. Anyone know what the current draw is for:
Strobes? Position lights? Combined draw for engine, radio, xponder and gages? Draw for Dynon glass panels? Draw for Auto Pilot?

I solved my problems with current draw when using the landing light.
I fitted the BLTC MR16 type LED light. It’s what they now call 4th generation led from CREE, incredibly bright, blue white light (6000K colour temp), draws .23 amps when on ( 230ma ) and no worries about forgetting to switch it off when on the ground. You certainly won’t stare at it when it’s on.There are several companies out there now with this new technology and it’s the way to go.
http://www.bltc.com.tw/en.htm

Besides, it makes me feel warm all over knowing that every time I switch it on I’m reducing my carbon footprint by using less electricity and saving the planet …. Blaah…. Blaah … blaah… hmm ‘I really must get out more’

Mac

Originally Posted by ctcw

I solved my problems with current draw when using the landing light.
I fitted the BLTC MR16 type LED light. It’s what they now call 4th generation led from CREE, incredibly bright, blue white light (6000K colour temp), draws .23 amps when on ( 230ma ) and no worries about forgetting to switch it off when on the ground. You certainly won’t stare at it when it’s on.There are several companies out there now with this new technology and it’s the way to go.
http://www.bltc.com.tw/en.htm

Besides, it makes me feel warm all over knowing that every time I switch it on I’m reducing my carbon footprint by using less electricity and saving the planet …. Blaah…. Blaah … blaah… hmm ‘I really must get out more’

Mac

This is only a 3W LED, equivalent to 20W halogen. And it is unfocused. Is this really enough for you? In that vein, there are much better options, like this 9W, 405Lm device modestly focused to 60deg
http://www.ledliquidatorsinc.com/MR1...light_bulb.php
At least this is 60W halogen equivalent

Chanik,
My point is that we really only want to announce to those on the ground of our intentions to land and that Tungsten/ halogen bulbs are dinosaurs considering their huge power requirements.
Now that bulb you show is the way to go.... 410 lumens at 9 watts! .... must get myself one of those ..... thanks for the link.

Mac

Update: Tightening the bolts didn't help, but I realized, staring at the Engine monitor, that the battery is anemically charged. It barely cranks the engine then sits below 12V at idle, triggering the damn oil pressure warning at idle even without the landing light. I dug into the precise battery specifications for the PC310 battery from Odyssey and realized something:

(Technical stuff)
The rotax's little 100W alternator will not recover an over discharged or sulphated battery. With lights and transponder, radio and Dynon stuff turned on, I only get ~1.5Amps charging the battery at 4800RPM. And for a 1-2hr flight at these RPMs, the battery will not charge well.
http://www.odysseyfactory.com/docume...09_rev_000.pdf

Note, this battery went almost unused for 6 months before I bought the plane. The long legs back to CA from IA helped but now that I've been making 1-2hr flights, the battery was showing low performance. What it wants is to be charged with a DC source at 14.7Volts and a constant current setting of 2.8Amps for 8hrs or until the charge current drops to 0.14Amps. Something like this could do it:
http://www.amazon.com/MASTECH-VARIAB.../dp/B000CSQK5E
I used a Motech pps-1200 since it can source and sink current but this is overkill.
Most Pb battery chargers won’t charge this way, it should be noted.
The CT can't do it as this high current for long adsorption time is essential to battery recovery. Forget all this special desulphating chargers with RF resonant magnetic moment mumbo jumbo; unless you also believe copper bracelets and smoky quartz can filter your blood and align your life energy, etc. No reputable battery maker vouches for these things. Anyway, now the battery works great. Doing a calibrated drain to 10.4V showed it had only 35% capacity sitting in the plane. The discharge and then 8hr charge brought it up to the full rated 6.8Ahrs at 3 Amp drain (.5C) As an electrical load, the CTSW platform itself measured negligible parasitic drain which is good. The CT should be able to keep the battery fully charged now; we’ll see. But once this battery is allowed to sit too long; it will NEVER perform well again without this sort of triage. I wonder how many CT owners have sprung for new $160 batteries thinking theirs was shot.

I use a CTEK 3300 charger. It pulse charges at a higher voltage than standard chargers and adapts to cold weather. It was recommended for the Odyssey PC310 and seems to work well. Just leave it connected whenever the plane is in the hanger and forget it.

I see that FD is now offering a higher capacity battery as an option on their pricing list. I'm wondering if this can be retro fitted to older CT's? Maybe we now have the ability to replace the PC310 battery with one that is higer A/H?