When I tried measuring in the negative lead, I found zero amps.
The problem is that the grounding system in my station setup
bypasses the negative lead, probably in several ways, letting me
power the K3 up with no connection to the negative power supply
lead at all.
Cheers - Bill, AE6JV
On
My Fluke 73 reads 4.3mA on the 300mA range and 40mA on the 10A range, which
just goes to show that you can't trust the reading on an instrument when
the 'full scale' value is so very much higher than the current that you are
trying to measure.
73 Stephen G4SJP
On 19 October 2013 07:45, Bill
G'morning, all:
To correct my previous posting, I re-measured the current in
the pos(+) lead again... correctly this time. On a Triplett
2200 DMM, a Radio Shack 22-174B, and a Fluke 77, the reading
is 40-42ma. This is with the KPA3 installed and connected. I
have not opened up the K3 to
G'morning, Dave:
My purpose in the posting below was to
correct an error I had made earlier.
You are probably not missing anything,
but IMHO this subject is far more
germane to the purpose of this reflector
than many postings which result in
extraordinarily long lives here.
73, Ken K3IU
On 10/18/2013 11:45 PM, Bill Frantz wrote:
When I tried measuring in the negative lead, I found zero amps. The
problem is that the grounding system in my station setup bypasses the
negative lead, probably in several ways, letting me power the K3 up
with no connection to the negative power
Dave,
The reason this matters is that because Wayne comes from the world of
QRP and backpacking, he has always worked very hard to minimize the
current drain on a battery that you have lugged up a mountain (or
charged from solar panels at home). That's one benefit of owning an
Elecraft
Of course there are car battery terminal switches which can handle
100+ amps. They are not expensive. They have insignificant voltage
drop. They draw zero current on or off.
It used to be that having a master power switch for a station was
considered a necessity.
Low voltage stuff these
, 2013 4:52 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
On 10/18/2013 2:57 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:
That only explains the apparent drain of several amperes Jim noticed.
If you're talking about me, the false readings I was getting from the Watts
Up meter
: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Jim Brown
Sent: Friday, October 18, 2013 4:52 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
On 10/18/2013 2:57 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:
That only explains the apparent
Stephen, when I wrote my mistake I meant it was my mistake, not Jim's. I
was responding to Jim whose message I appended to my reply.
FYI, my test setup:
1) K3 disconnected from *everything* including the station ground.
2) Plugged in the two wires from my power supply with the DMM inserted in
On 10/19/2013 1:40 AM, Stephen Prior wrote:
My Fluke 73 reads 4.3mA on the 300mA range and 40mA on the 10A range, which
just goes to show that you can't trust the reading on an instrument when
the 'full scale' value is so very much higher than the current that you are
trying to measure.
U.S.
I would suspect a display problem with the Watts Up ...
I pulled out my Fluke and an adapter I had made years ago for a current probe
and measured both radios. Both are drawing 4 mA when off...
I had a 'current drawn when off' incident a few years ago myself.
K3 'current when off' was over 1 amp
...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Ralph Parker
Sent: Friday, October 18, 2013 12:41 PM
To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
I would suspect a display problem with the Watts Up ...
I pulled out my Fluke and an adapter I
On 10/18/2013 2:57 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:
That only explains the apparent drain of several amperes Jim noticed.
If you're talking about me, the false readings I was getting from the
Watts Up meter were in the range of 40 mA, and a Fluke measured 4 mA in
the positive lead. There may,
With my old Fluke 97 in series with the PowerPole input to my
K3/10 (#6299), I saw 0 as the parasitic current. I couldn't even
measure anything on the microamp scale.
When I turned the K3 and P3/SVGA on, the current readings were
much higher on the meter than on the K3 internal meter. (On the
Hi Jim,
A couple of thoughts I have a Kill A Watt meter for measuring line
power consumption and discovered it is VERY inaccurate at the low end of
its range. I was measuring an unloaded DC linear supply and at values of
a few mA it was high by a factor of 10 (!) compared to a Fluke 87V.
Re Wayne's possible explanation: My K3 (#266) draws around 39ma when it's
off and the 13.8v psu is on. It seems to be working normally in all
respects. Of course when my K3 is turned off the psu still delivers 13.8v
unless it, too, is turned off so if K3s do not turn off all the way when
On 10/16/2013 6:35 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote:
I would suspect a display problem with the Watts Up ... like showing
the wrong range. I *measure* 4.4 mA and 4.2 mA respectively on my K3s
- s/n 622 and 1450 - with my trusty Fluke 85.
You're right, Joe. I pulled out my Fluke and an adapter I
] On Behalf Of Jim Brown
Sent: Thursday, October 17, 2013 3:16 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
On 10/16/2013 6:35 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote:
I would suspect a display problem with the Watts Up ... like showing
the wrong range. I *measure* 4.4 mA
I recently set up four solar panels and a pair of 6V golf cart batteries
to run my station. When I first set it up 6-8 weeks ago I was getting 35
Ah per day. Now with the sun lower in the sky and the panels shaded by
my tall trees, it's more like 25 Ah/day.
The batteries didn't seem to be
I just measured my fully-loaded K3/P3. They draw 1.94A on and 4.3 mA off.
Alan N1AL
On 10/16/2013 10:07 AM, Jim Brown wrote:
I recently set up four solar panels and a pair of 6V golf cart batteries
to run my station. When I first set it up 6-8 weeks ago I was getting 35
Ah per day. Now with
I turn my Astron P/S off after turning off my K3 for the night. Should I be
leaving the P/S on?
73, Jim N7US
-Original Message-
I just measured my fully-loaded K3/P3. They draw 1.94A on and 4.3 mA off.
Alan N1AL
__
On 10/16/2013 10:50 AM, Jim N7US wrote:
I turn my Astron P/S off after turning off my K3 for the night. Should I be
leaving the P/S on?
That depends on how rich you feel. :) Differential cost of power (that
is, at the highest rate I'm paying here in CA) is $.35/kWh. At that
rate, leaving
Hi Jim - you must be misreading the meter by several decimal points :-)
We just measured several K3s in the lab and they both draw less than 5 mA when
off.
Eric
elecraft.com
On 10/16/2013 10:37 AM, Alan Bloom wrote:
I just measured my fully-loaded K3/P3. They draw 1.94A on and 4.3 mA off.
Jim,
I turn off all the power to the Ham equipment when it is not going to be
used in the next several hours.
I have a single switch for power feeding the equipment.
I lived in South Florida so protecting electronic equipment is built-in!
73
George
AI4VZ
-Original Message-
From: Jim
-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of George Danner
Sent: Wednesday, October 16, 2013 2:26 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
Jim,
I turn off all the power to the Ham
Nope. I measured both units several times, and just now repeated the
measurements.
73, Jim
On 10/16/2013 11:23 AM, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote:
Hi Jim - you must be misreading the meter by several decimal points :-)
We just measured several K3s in the lab and they both draw less
K3 #642 measures just over 4mA when off. FT-847 reads 12mA. However,
with both those loads on the FP-1030A power supply, it appears to be
consuming about 3wH [72 watt-days/26.28 kw-years], apparently just to
light the little LED on the panel. In fact, it's very close to 3wH with
all the
Be careful. The power is on to the finals even when the K3 is turned
off. Therefore, if the finals short, they can overheat leading to all
sorts of issues. Trust me, I found out the hard way. Mine was drawing
2 amps with the K3 turned off.
I make it a habit now to turn off the power supply
12:16 PM
To: Reflector Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
Nope. I measured both units several times, and just now repeated the
measurements.
73, Jim
On 10/16/2013 11:23 AM, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote:
Hi Jim - you must be misreading the meter by several decimal
My K3 (about 2 years old) is pulling under 5 mA when powered off. I
usually turn off the power supply that feeds it to avoid wasted power.
You would be shocked to find out how much power things can pull. It adds
up (after all there are 8760 hours in a year) . My original cable box
consumed 68
My electric bill from ComEd in Chicago charges the same rate per kWh
regardless of usage. Adding in all costs, the cost per kWh is 9.3 cents.
Other costs of living here are high, but I guess I can afford to keep the K3
powered up if I wanted to.
73, Jim N7US
-Original Message-
K3 #642
Jim,
Here's one possible explanation:
The external power supply must drop all the way to zero V, as must any all K3
I/O signals. This may have implications for attached equipment.
If there's any residual voltage on the supply or I/O lines, even 1 V, the K3
may not turn off all the way. It
] K3 Current Drain When Off
Jim,
Here's one possible explanation:
The external power supply must drop all the way to zero V, as must any all
K3 I/O signals. This may have implications for attached equipment.
If there's any residual voltage on the supply or I/O lines, even 1 V, the K3
may not turn
] On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick
Sent: Wednesday, October 16, 2013 1:34 PM
To: j...@audiosystemsgroup.com
Cc: Reflector Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
Jim,
Here's one possible explanation:
The external power supply must drop all the way to zero V, as must any all
K3 I/O
...@mailman.qth.**netelecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces@**mailman.qth.netelecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]
On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick
Sent: Wednesday, October 16, 2013 1:34 PM
To: j...@audiosystemsgroup.com
Cc: Reflector Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
Ur right, probably an auto-ranging Ammeter (???)
73, Chas
- Original Message -
From: Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft e...@elecraft.com
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Sent: Wednesday, October 16, 2013 2:23 PM
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
Hi Jim - you must
FWIW #345 draws 39mA. No change when pulling the plug on the PR6 and RS232.
Regards,
Mike VP8NO
On 16/10/2013 18:05, Ken K3IU wrote:
Same here but only about 31ma on a Triplett 2202 DMM on K3 s/n 202.
73, Ken K3IU
~~~
On 10/16/2013 5:01 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:
I
On 10/16/2013 2:46 PM, Mike Harris wrote:
FWIW #345 draws 39mA.
The two radios I measured are s/n 935 and 1606. They've got a lot of
good miles on them. :)
I'm measuring with a cute little inline meter that looks at volts, amps,
Ah, etc. Called Watts Up. Several ham vendors, including
On 10/16/2013 5:42 PM, Jim Brown wrote:
I'm measuring with a cute little inline meter that looks at volts, amps,
Ah, etc. Called Watts Up.
That's what I have, really cool!
73,
Fred K6DGW
- Northern California Contest Club
- CU in the 2014 Cal QSO Party 4-5 Oct 2014
- www.cqp.org
I'm measuring with a cute little inline meter that looks at volts,
amps, Ah, etc. Called Watts Up. Several ham vendors, including Power
Werx, sell it, in the range of $65, with Power Poles on both ends.
I would suspect a display problem with the Watts Up ... like showing
the wrong range. I
Another data point:
K3 1417 measures 4.0 mA when turned off.
Rob
NV5E
Date: Wed, 16 Oct 2013 21:35:37 -0400
From: li...@subich.com
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
I'm measuring with a cute little inline meter that looks at volts,
amps
On 10/16/2013 1:33 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote:
Here's one possible explanation:
Thanks Wayne. Battery voltage is in the range of 12 - 13.8 V, depending
on what the solar panels are doing.
As to residual on accessories -- I've got I/O for the Yankee Clipper
SO2R box plugged into both radios.
From: j...@audiosystemsgroup.com
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Current Drain When Off
On 10/16/2013 2:46 PM, Mike Harris wrote:
FWIW #345 draws 39mA.
The two radios I measured are s/n 935 and 1606. They've got a lot of
good miles on them. :)
I'm measuring
I disconnected the PA in my K3 at the circuit breaker and the parasitic
current from the 13.8V supply dropped from 38mA to nearly zero.
There's no sign of unusual behavior of the amp. No errors. Full output. All
operation suggests that it's quite normal.
73, Ron AC7AC
-Original
45 matches
Mail list logo
