Battery Charge and Discharge Monitor

Yep, I'm the type who needs to know what's going on all the time. When it comes to batteries there is no exception. Knowing what the state of charge is, is good. Being able to predict when the battery needs to be re-charged and for how long, is better. 

A voltage/amp meter combo is my next project. Reading the voltage is no big deal, providing a fair indication of the capacity of your battery. But better still, is to be able to see the amount of current flowing in the system. To do this the circuit must be broken and a current measuring device put in circuit, in series.

I have combined breaking the circuit and inserting the meters in one small box. Two Anderson connectors and the meter mounted on a small box. Inside is a shunt that permits the current to be read. It's done using Ohms Law, in that, the shunt is a know resistance, in my case 0.5 ohms. The meter reads the voltage across the shunt and displays that voltage as a current value. The meter has duel displays. 

The alloy cast box from Jaycar was the most expensive bit. So yeah no big outlay.

Interesting: Found that the Dometic PLB-40 that I'm using has a very stable control over the rate of charge by controlling the current it accepts regardless of the voltage applied. Hence, when charging, you can plug it into the car cig lighter or straight into a solar panel without any other voltage control device. This is part of the reason I went with PLB-40 rather than mucking with a controller and separate batteries. I suppose the only downfall, as far as it and me are concerned, is that I like knowing more of what's going on. Hence my new box.

The gizzards.

12.9 volts and 3.5 amps.

Miriam Vale BA

Miriam Vale is about 375km north of Maroochydore. New BA camp opened and needed volunteers so for just a couple of days I went north.

Large farms and small 'blockers' been hit by a fast moving hot fire. Nothing new here more blackened paddocks some somewhat inaccessible and a dozer needed to clean access first.

Walking the track first is always a good idea. Down the gully, up the other side, then stop before a sharp 3-point left turn at the top of the next incline or it's abandoning the car and trailer in the bush and walking home.

Camera shot never looks as steep ;(

Cotton Tree to Adelong

 After 3 weeks at Lismore returned to Cotton Tree to catch up with things. Two weeks later and I'm good to go again. A quick trip back to Lismore. This time 3 days in the paddock doing some fence repairs rather than doing the tool guy thing. Then on to Adelong.

Adelong involved mowing the lawns around the house, slashing areas of paddocks near fences and general cleaning up fallen timber along the fence line. A broken drive belt had me packing up and heading back north.

The orchid that's travelled with me since 2018, in the MH and VW, is now calling Cotton Tree permanent home. It started life as tube stock and has been planted out in larger pots several times. Finally it flowered, now that its in the garden. Must be a home body and not a traveller. The display: worth the wait.

Things at Cotton Tree are always changing. Yet another crane going up. A BIGGER mobile crane lifts this BIG crane into position and three blokes climb about like its on the ground and bolt it together. More inconvenience for the locals with road closures and construction noise for the next few years. The price of progress. From the balcony I can see 6 cranes. That's just the skyline out front. When will it stop?

Cotton Tree another crane

Lismore BlazeAid

September 2023

February-March 2022 flooding Lismore. 

This link leads to a good explanation of the flood.

VISUAL STORY - Anatomy of the Lismore disaster

https://www.smh.com.au/interactive/2022/lismore-flooding/

On the 20th of September BlazeAid set up a camp at the Lismore Greyhound Racing Track to assist farmers yet to re-establish their fences. The Lismore Council arranged for the camp at the track and is supporting BlazeAid. 

Initially just a small group of us got the camp up and running before 2 teams of 4 started fencing the next week. Since then a good deal of fence line has been either repaired or replaced.

Volunteers are needed and the camp is expected to go for many months. Backpackers seeking 462 visa extension can qualify volunteering and working at this camp. Contact BlazeAid via their website. 

Driving around the district and especially the town it is a real eye opener to see the highwater marks on the building that have not been cleaned and are abandoned. Truly incredible!

The building at the Greyhound track is a fair indicator. The track will not operate again and the future the the 3 story building has not been determined. The water reached the top of the second floor trashing everything. But in the meantime its a good location as any for a BA camp.

Was once the betting ring at the track.

The track and buildings
 note the lights in the foreground

Assembling accommodation pods for backpackers

Funny Dunny

 Late in June I had to return home for boring but necessary stuff. All done. All good.

Being free to go again, I did. 

The last weeks of July and first few of August I was back up north pretty much covering the same ground as the May/June trip. 

The highlight was stumbling across the Funny Dunny Campground. I'd heard of this place several times over the years but never actually knew where it was. So there I was enjoying the view of the impending sunrise from my mountain top perch and wondered what was actual over there on the coast... Wunjunga and the Funny Dunny Campground.

Now I'm back in Cotton Tree yet again and celebrating the second full moon of August. A supermoon, some say, as the moon is in perigee. Means the closest to earth in it's elliptical orbit around our planet earth. So a super blue moon.

Wunjunga over there somewhere.

Wunjunga
Some houses right on the beach!

Expecting to see at least a tinge of blue?
But alas a blue moon in name only.

https://spaceweather.com/