Simple External Battery Connector Needed

Hi all,

I need a recommendation on an external battery connector:

I own an RV-8 and the battery is located aft of the aft baggage compartment behind a bulkhead. There's an access door that allows me to attach charger clamps to the battery, if I need to recharge the battery from a charger. The door is held on by 5 screws and you have to remove the back seat to get at the door so it's a colossal pain.

What I'd like to do is attach a connector to the battery, run it forward and mount it to some convenient side bulkhead.

I've watched the EAA video "Alternate Power Source" where the fellow uses a simple outdoor extension cord to do this. He cuts the cord in two, crimps on some ring terminals and attaches that end to the battery. Then he solders two large alligator clamps to the other cut end and attaches that to his battery charger.

To use it, he plugs the male end of the extension cord into the female end which is inside the airplane.

It's a decent solution, and certainly inexpensive but I'd really rather mount a connector onto an interior bulkhead - ideally with a spring return door.

Can anyone suggest a connector I could use to do the job?

Thanks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saville

I need a recommendation on an external battery connector:

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Get:

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal.../piperplug.php

and:

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal.../pipersock.php

and hook it up per:

http://www.aeroelectric.com/articles/grndpwr.pdf

For what its worth, that's way more work than needed today. If you just want to charge the battery or run your radios on ground power. One of these

http://www.bestboatwire.com/anderson-sb50-10-12-awg-red

Attachment 5885

Is much easier to install.

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

Another vote for Powerpoles... although you could use much smaller ones for your plane, like 15 or 30 Amp. You're not going to use it to jump start, right? Just charge.

For that matter, a dirt cheap automotive 2-wire connector would work fine, and some chargers even come with the matching connectors. The PowerPoles can be mounted in a little panel if you really feel like fabricating something. The cheaper one could just be fed through the bulkhead with a grommet, and the plug held in place with a little strip of Velcro.

Battery charging. Like, trickle charging? Not jump-starting.

Wire in a cigarette lighter connected through a fuse directly from the battery, not through the master switch. Mount it where it's convenient to power your handheld radio or usb converter or whatever else you'd normally plug into your cigarette lighter. Yeah, I know, cigarette lighters are so old school, but some stuff still plugs into them. Like the plug from a battery charger.

https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2FACE.imageg.net%2Fgraphics%2Fproduc t_images%2FpACE3-9510419enh-z7.jpg&f=1

https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=...378_ts.jpg&f=1

If you're just connecting a battery tenderizer then a cable like the one shown in the previous post works fine. I've got those little things dangling out of all sorts of things around here (golf cart, lawn mower, infrequently used pickup truck, airplane). If you want to do a higher rate of charge or even to something that is going to allow you to "jump start" the plane, then you're going to need to go to a larger connector such as the traditional aircraft APU plugs.

Note the latter usually are connected after the battery contactor in planes so they aren't particularly useful for "charging" purposes (and if your battery is totally flat, jumpstarting it won't close the contactor and allow you to charge the battery with the alternator).

Note, that it's technically against most electrical codes to charge aircraft batteries in situ inside hangers.

X3 for Andersen Powerpoles. Ensure you add an in-line fuse near the battery.

FWIW: I cut the plug off this 150W DC to AC power inverter and connected it directly to the battery via a 10A fuse. Then I permanently installed it behind the seats for easy access even while in flight.

I then took the plug and made a connection cable that attaches to my battery charger. When I want to charge the battery I connect the cable/plug to the 12v power port on the inverter. The 12v power port works without having to turn the switch on/off so it is about as fool proof as you can get. Besides being able to easily "trickle charge" the battery up to 10A, it provides a 12v DC power port, three 120v AC outlets for small devices and has a 5v USB charger all without having to turn the master switch on. The best part is that it looks very professional.

:cool:

Thanks for all the ideas.


Yes this installation is only to connect the battery charger to the battery. Not interested in making a connection for jump starting.

But I would like to have a connector that can be fastened to the airplane and not flop around while I'm doing acro.

My airplane has a standard AC wall socket as a battery charging port (a 220V socket, with one blade turned sideways). I've got an adaptor using a matching plug to connect to the external charger.

This could be mounted flush to the skin, though best to use an offbeat socket like mine so folks don't try to recharge their phones at fly-ins.

However, it would be prone to pick up dirt and grease. I've got an unwired plug sticking in mine to keep the crud out. It's the round part at the top of this picture. The socket is surrounded by a rubber grommet, with the blank plug sticking out in the middle.

http://www.bowersflybaby.com/tech/belly_panel.JPG

Ron Wanttaja

I take a dim view of using 110 or 220 mains connectors for anything else, because sooner or later somebody is likely to connect the wrong thing to it (though using the odd 220 plug is better).

There are lots of industrial or automotive connectors that would be a better choice.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dana

I take a dim view of using 110 or 220 mains connectors for anything else, because sooner or later somebody is likely to connect the wrong thing to it (though using the odd 220 plug is better).

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When I was a kid, I had an electronics "erector set" with a bunch of parts that could be inserted into a multi-purpose breadboard using a template. I put a 120V jack on the battery to make it easier to connect and disconnect. Friend was fiddling with my latest project, picked up the plug and tried to insert it in the wall socket.

So, yes, it can be an issue.....My only defense on my (purchased) Fly Baby is Lady GaGa's: It was born that way.

Ron Wanttaja

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rwanttaja

When I was a kid, I had an electronics "erector set" with a bunch of parts that could be inserted into a multi-purpose breadboard using a template.

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That wasn't the Heathkit set that used the Lego style blocks, was it? I loved that thing.

My dad built a hot wire cutter for foam wings on R/C airplanes. He used a 110V line cord plug, with a matching socket on a 12V battery.

You can guess what I did one day, and what the results were. :( So, I also have avoided using AC power plugs and sockets for anything but AC power.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saville

Hi all,

I need a recommendation on an external battery connector:
.....
Can anyone suggest a connector I could use to do the job?

Thanks.

---

This is proven in service http://www.streetsideauto.com/p/batt...FY5ahgod36EKgA on a Pitts S-1S, and probably a thousand other homebuilts. Bring the connector to a convenient place for convenient access and tie it to some part of the structure. Put the cover on, and let it hang when not in use. No problem. You could hide it behind some upholstery.


BJC

Hi,
What I use on my Gardan Minicab is a surface mounted female 3 pin din micropohone connector wired direct to the battery. It is mounted on the cowling and is a simple job to wire or connect the male plug to the battery charger or a solar panel which works well. Just plug in when required. Nice and easy and inexpensive.
padrecolin

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DaleB

That wasn't the Heathkit set that used the Lego style blocks, was it? I loved that thing.

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No, actually, and brief look online didn't find what I had. It used paper templates put over a pegboard. The templates had holes at component junctions, at which point you inserted a little spring-loaded terminal that would hold wires. The template had the parts themselves printed on it, to the junctions they went, so all you had to do was click the specified components between the indicated terminals. Once it worked, to REALLY impress your friends, you could build it again without the template.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DaleB

My dad built a hot wire cutter for foam wings on R/C airplanes. He used a 110V line cord plug, with a matching socket on a 12V battery.

You can guess what I did one day, and what the results were. :( So, I also have avoided using AC power plugs and sockets for anything but AC power.

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When I was about eight years old, I built a 6-volt DC PA set once, that wasn't very loud. Dammit, I wanted a REAL bullhorn! Decided what it needed was 120 volts from ye olde Garrison Dam. Wired it up, plugged it in. All good so far.

Pressed the mike button, and the most gawdawful screeching/roaring/howling sound came from the speaker. I was halfway up the basement stairs, probably with a faint brown haze drifting behind me, before my conscious mind had a moment to think what had happened. I have never been so afraid in my life. I've been flying with myself for 45 years, so that says a lot.

By the time brain cells regained control of leg muscles, all was quiet. I went to the garage, grabbed a rake (6 foot wooden handle) went back downstairs and jerked the plug from the wall socket.

Since then, the gut has always been a bit fluttery where 120V wall power is concerned.

To return back to the OP's questions, I wonder if a cigarette lighter jack would be the right thing. They come with snap-on hinged covers so you don't have that big open hole in the breeze. Not only can you probably find a charger that's compatible, you'd be able to keep your cell phone topped off at fly-ins.

Ron "Sparky" Wanttaja

I expressed what I called "Ron's rule of connectors." If two connectors can be plugged in to one another, someone will. It should at least be benign if it doesn't actually work. I was lamenting that everybody was using RJ-11 connectors for things other than telephone lines. One of my employees made a short cord with a 110V plug on one side and a RJ-11 on the other as a joke. I still have it around here somewhere (it's not actually electrically connected inside the plug).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Byron J. Covey

This is proven in service http://www.streetsideauto.com/p/batt...FY5ahgod36EKgA on a Pitts S-1S, and probably a thousand other homebuilts. Bring the connector to a convenient place for convenient access and tie it to some part of the structure. Put the cover on, and let it hang when not in use. No problem. You could hide it behind some upholstery.


BJC

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Hi Byron,

1. I saw those but I have an Odyssey battery charger and not a Battery Tender. So I need some way of making the connection from the alligator clips on the charger to the connector at the opposite end of the ring terminals. So I need something with the mating connector that I can then connect to the alligator clips. I suppose I could buy one of their extension cords - one end will be what I need. I could cut off the end I don't need, strip the wires and attach them to posts which would be external to the airplane and onto which I could clamp the Battery Charger alligators.

2. Would you put a larger fuse in there?

thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saville

Hi Byron,

1. I saw those but I have an Odyssey battery charger and not a Battery Tender. So I need some way of making the connection from the alligator clips on the charger to the connector at the opposite end of the ring terminals. So I need something with the mating connector that I can then connect to the alligator clips. I suppose I could buy one of their extension cords - one end will be what I need. I could cut off the end I don't need, strip the wires and attach them to posts which would be external to the airplane and onto which I could clamp the Battery Charger alligators.

2. Would you put a larger fuse in there?

thanks!

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Sorry, I missed the fact that you want to use an Odyssey charger.

I looked at the Odyssey web site, and it appears that their lowest amperage charger is a 6 amp. That is more than I would put through the Battery Tinder connection.

Fuses are used to prevent damage to the conductor, so any fuse should be sized to protect the conductor.

Since I don't like to charge a battery that is not in the open, i.e., out of the airplane or FWF with the cowling removed, I do not have a recommendation for connecting the (assumed 6 amp or more) Odyssey charger to a battery in the fuselage.


BJC

http://www.batteryminders.com/batter...ied-aircrafts/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Byron J. Covey

Since I don't like to charge a battery that is not in the open, i.e., out of the airplane or FWF with the cowling removed, I do not have a recommendation for connecting the (assumed 6 amp or more) Odyssey charger to a battery in the fuselage.


BJC

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Darn straight. As I pointed out, there's good reason it's actually illegal by the electrical code in most places. I've had one battery explode on me outdoors (it was on my boat lift). I was just lucky I wasn't standing over it when it went. My jeans were sprayed with acid however and despite being washed fairly quickly there after ended up looking like swiss cheese. The thing was like having someone fire a gun next to my head (in fact, two of my neighbors thought that another was shooting at something...again).

Installation example:
https://www.audioauthority.com/downl...e_20150113.pdf

It should be noted that the installation example above assumes a battery "Maintainer" specifically designed for the battery being maintained will be used.
I too would not ever use a battery "Charger" in a confined space, as has been mentioned.
Bill B

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wbecker319

It should be noted that the installation example above assumes a battery "Maintainer" specifically designed for the battery being maintained will be used.
I too would not ever use a battery "Charger" in a confined space, as has been mentioned.
Bill B

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Mind
Yeah I have an Odyssey battery so I'm not sure a Battery Minder would be good for it.

The Odyssey charger goes into maintenance mode once the battery is charged. Not sure how that's different from a Battery Minder System.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rwanttaja

My airplane has a standard AC wall socket as a battery charging port (a 220V socket, with one blade turned sideways). I've got an adaptor using a matching plug to connect to the external charger.

This could be mounted flush to the skin, though best to use an offbeat socket like mine so folks don't try to recharge their phones at fly-ins.

However, it would be prone to pick up dirt and grease. I've got an unwired plug sticking in mine to keep the crud out. It's the round part at the top of this picture. The socket is surrounded by a rubber grommet, with the blank plug sticking out in the middle.

http://www.bowersflybaby.com/tech/belly_panel.JPG

Ron Wanttaja

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Hi Ron,

What is the wiring behind the connector? Wire directly to the battery? If so, what gauge did you use?

Thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saville

Hi Ron,

What is the wiring behind the connector? Wire directly to the battery? If so, what gauge did you use?

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Yep, directly to the battery. Don't know what gauge it is, but guessing 12 or 14. It's a very short run as the battery is above the big light-colored inspection panel. right near the front.

Ron Wanttaja

Use a male plug and a scocket with a spring loaded lid for a powerwinch. Get both at any good auto store or marine store. Made for 12 volts and polarity keyed and will easily handle the needed current.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by WLIU

For what its worth, that's way more work than needed today. If you just want to charge the battery or run your radios on ground power. One of these

http://www.bestboatwire.com/anderson-sb50-10-12-awg-red

Attachment 5885

Is much easier to install.

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

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Hello Wes,

These look good. One question:

There seems to be hold down the centerline. Are they to hold two halves together? Or can they be used to mount the connector on a bulkhead?

thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rwanttaja

Yep, directly to the battery. Don't know what gauge it is, but guessing 12 or 14. It's a very short run as the battery is above the big light-colored inspection panel. right near the front.

Ron Wanttaja

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Hi Ron,

Thanks for the reply. Did you put an inline fuse in the line to the battery?

Is your installation intended for battery top-off/maintenance charging? Or for full recharging?

Thanks!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Saville

Hi Ron,

Thanks for the reply. Did you put an inline fuse in the line to the battery?

Is your installation intended for battery top-off/maintenance charging? Or for full recharging?

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There's no fuse. I didn't build the airplane, so I don't know what the builder's intent was, but the existing wires should be good to the ~6 amps an automotive-type charger supplies. One year, my generator was bad, and I kept the battery charged via this port.

Ron Wanttaja