Have new FWC Hawk, with the dual 6V batteries and a 12V DC voltmeter. Have the 160W solar panel plus the 130W portable solar panel for charging. Primary electrical appliances are an 85-liter compressor fridge, two roof fans, and the reefer fan.
Was boondocking over the weekend, it was hot. Batteries were well charged during the day. Ran the fridge at a high setting overnight, plus the fans. In the early morning (before any solar energy was coming through), I glanced at the voltmeter and it was like 12.30V. That seemed OK, since the FWC manual says:
"Never let a 12-volt deep cycle camper battery, or your Dual 6 Volt Batteries, discharge below 12.2 volts."
Then the fridge cycled on, and suddenly the voltmeter dropped to like 12.15V. Uh-oh. Turned off the fridge and the voltmeter went back up to around 12.3V.
Can I assume that the 12.2V discharge guideline means *resting* voltage? Is it OK to dip below that level if the batteries are under load, and then recover above that level when the load is removed?
Was boondocking over the weekend, it was hot. Batteries were well charged during the day. Ran the fridge at a high setting overnight, plus the fans. In the early morning (before any solar energy was coming through), I glanced at the voltmeter and it was like 12.30V. That seemed OK, since the FWC manual says:
"Never let a 12-volt deep cycle camper battery, or your Dual 6 Volt Batteries, discharge below 12.2 volts."
Then the fridge cycled on, and suddenly the voltmeter dropped to like 12.15V. Uh-oh. Turned off the fridge and the voltmeter went back up to around 12.3V.
Can I assume that the 12.2V discharge guideline means *resting* voltage? Is it OK to dip below that level if the batteries are under load, and then recover above that level when the load is removed?