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©2021 Kimberley Kampers Manufacturing Pty Ltd
Energy System | Battery Capacity Level Notes
A voltmeter can give a rough indication of the battery condition only when there has been no load on the
battery for some time, or when the battery has not been charged for some time.
As part fo the Smart Touch system, the Kimberley features a Battery Monitoring display. This shows battery
voltage and amps owing into and out of a battery. Most importantly, it will calculate the amp-hours used
during discharging and during charging it will compute the amp-hours returned to the batteries. At any time,
you can read on the display the net state of charge of the batteries in amp-hours.
This system measures the nett current ow into the batteries. If the Fridge and other power sources are on
and solar panels are connected, the Smart Touch will display the nett difference between the positive current
coming from the panels less the current going to the fridge and devices.
The Smart Touch displays the percentage of battery life remaining and the amp-hours remaining - see State
Of Charge (SOC) on the display. In addition, you will know if your solar panels and engine alternator is working
as the monitor reads these currents. So, the battery monitoring gives an indication should any of the charging
sources fail, or if there is a problem with associated wiring and solenoids.
The battery monitoring has one “catch” that you need to really understand. It will reset the battery capacity to
the “full” value (that we set in the factory) when 2 conditions occur.
1. the current in ow (note not out ow) is equal or less than a particular value (we set at 3 Amps)
2. more than 5 minutes has elapsed at that value
The reason for this is that the batteries would be fully charged if both these conditions are met and the voltage
condition is acceptable. For the AC and solar charging this will always be the case. But for vehicle charging
it may not be and this is why the 14V at the vehicle is so crucial. If the supply voltage from the vehicle is less
than 14V, the batteries are at a much lower capacity and you do not realise it.
For this reason, we require that you check the vehicle connecting plug output voltage and ensure it is 14V+.
If it is less than this voltage then the warranty on the battery system is void.
The life of batteries is reduced considerably when they are fully discharged or discharged to a low level
frequently. Then, when batteries are charged from a vehicle with less than 14V at the plug, the capacity level is
progressively reduced. If you nd that the life of the batteries is slowly getting less and less, the batteries have
not been fully charged by the vehicle and may be being discharged to a low voltage level.
Testing the vehicle charge voltage
Kimberley Warranty Policy on Charging & Batteries
If a customer does not have 14V at the connecting plug or their vehicle is not wired up at the time of handover
then Kimberley Kampers can’t warrant the battery system in the trailer.
You must use a digital multimeter that shows at least one and preferable 2 decimal points.
Please do the check and record results as follows:
Voltage Vehicle Idling
Vehicle revs increased
above idle
(not very much generally)
Vehicle revs increased
above idle
(not very much generally)
and the LIGHTS are on
HIGH BEAM
Voltage Reading
IMPORTANT:
If any condition results in the reading of less then 14V (ie: 13.9V is not acceptable) then the vehicle will not
charge correctly and may damage the batteries
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