Heated Gear Draining my Battery

[Pvt. Donut]

Finally got some heated gloves to keep me riding into the winter and today was the first sub 40F weather so I had my heated jacket, gloves and grips going. Seems like after I stopped for gas my bike was a little sluggish to start and my grips wouldn't turn on due to the battery being near dead. I have Oxford grips and I don't recall what they pull, Gerbing gloves which pull something like 22 to 25 watts, and my jacket was pulling 105 watts but I switched it down to 60. Any suggestions to staying warm but keeping my battery charged? I'm probably due for a new battery but I would assume if I'm running full blast again even a new battery would drain. Thanks.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I would turn off the grips if you have heated gloves, just a waste of power.

I run an older Widder VEST and Widder gauntlet gloves I run W/O issue. And that's with the BD43 mod.

With that said, when I have to stop at light/stop sign, etc (low RPM's), I turn them off.


I don't know off hand what the vest pulls, probably less than a jacket..

If you have the BD43 mod, disconnecting that would give you another 55 watts...


And as you posted, a borderline battery isn't helping any...

 

[MattR302]

I installed a cheap $5 ebay China waterproof voltmeter in the inner fairing to keep an eye on the voltage when running heated gear. Also, my dual-headlight mod also had a switch on the inner fairing to shut off the 2nd lowbeam and save 55 watts. Switching to LED turn signals and tail lights will save you a few more watts as well, but I haven't seen any drop-in bulbs that I believe are bright enough.

 

[Pvt. Donut]

No dual headlight mod but I do usually ride with my brights on unless its dark out. So that saves me 65w right there. My gloves keep my hands warm but the grips help get me some heat from the inside of my hand where there doesn't seem to be any glove heat. Does anyone know offhand how much power is left outside of normal operation? Looks like the stator creates 310w, I calculated about 100-135 watts used for normal operation even with High beams. I'm not sure how much is needed to keep the battery charging but I assume I don't want to use more than 100-130 watts for accessories correct?

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I don't know the specific figures but here's something to try and get an idea.

Get a volt meter and hook up directly to the battery. A fully charged battery is 12.8 volts.

Plug in all your heated gear, start the bike, turn on your gear as usual. Watch the voltage at varying RPM's. If your dropping below 13 volts, the bike obviously cannot keep up with the demand/load.

Here's a video of my my cold start up showing running voltages from a cold start up(with BD43 mod). Just to give you an idea, see how much your gear/grips are pulling at say idle, 4k, etc..

https://www.flickr.com/photos/127092600@N08/

 

[Cali rider]

....Does anyone know offhand how much power is left outside of normal operation? Looks like the stator creates 310w, I calculated about 100-135 watts used for normal operation even with High beams. I'm not sure how much is needed to keep the battery charging but I assume I don't want to use more than 100-130 watts for accessories correct?

My efforts from long ago.... Help. I dont understand why FZ6 died. - Page 2 - Sportbikes.net

 

[FinalImpact]

My efforts from long ago.... Help. I dont understand why FZ6 died. - Page 2 - Sportbikes.net

^^ Great info and thanks for sharing! That is roughly what i calculated so its good to see actual and theoretical values jive.

Of those 310 watts, you really have less the 50w (~4.0Amps) to play with.
It sounds like you have exceeded the system capacity and the battery will be drained from the jacket.

I say this as the system does need some wiggle room to make up for stops and idling/variance is load & output. Once the RPM climbs it is current which charges the battery and if its too much is going to heated gear the battery will loose the battle. and be drained.

Can you stay warm enough by cycling sone gear on while others are turned off?

 

[Pvt. Donut]

I was expecting more headroom than that. Just for anyone else that may be looking, here is the info I found:

Stator makes 310 watts
Headlights consume: 55w low/120w high beam
License Plate Light: 5w
Each turn signal pulls 21w, plus maybe 4w for the relay?
Running lights pull 5w each, or 10 all together (just front I think)
Brake light pulls 21w when used, 5w as a running light

So normal usage on low beams uses about 75 watts, 135 with High Beams. Not really counting turn signals as those are intermittent. So I can probably get away with heated jacket (on low setting, 65w) and heated gloves (22-25w) but the grips most likely push it too far. I may be able to use the jacket at full power but its pretty close. Better not need to use a turn signal or honk my horn!

 

[FinalImpact]

Lets not forget the ECU, fuel pump, injectors, and ignition... Some of these are constant, others like spark and fuel increase with load/rpm.


Moderation is the key!!!

 

[VEGASRIDER]

When it comes to cold weather riding, I've become an expert. I ride through the winter regardless of how low the temps are and I can stay relatively warm with my heated jacket and gloves. I do not have heated grips, but I do have mittens that cover my hands which cuts out the wind from the cold and makes a huge difference. The trick is to turn off your heated gear about a mile out so your bike has a chance to recharge. Your battery is actually draining at anything less than 4k rpm, so whenever you're stopped at a light, be sure to keep a steady throttle and bring up your rpms up, don't just let it idle at 1300.

 

[patrickb37]

I just installed a set of Oxford grips on my FZ-07. Box says they draw <4A, which would be <48W.

 

[Pvt. Donut]

UPDATE: I've been running the bike with just heated gloves and the jacket liner. So something like 90 watts. No drain so far but I literally can't add any additional draw. At night the headlights will pulse slightly if I'm drawing too much, like if I turn on the brights or turn signals. Luckily just having the heated jacket and gloves keeps me warm down to 30F or better.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

How healthy is the battery??? If its borderline, that won't help.

If the BD43 mod equipped, disconnecting it may be worth it for winter...

 

[VEGASRIDER]

UPDATE: I've been running the bike with just heated gloves and the jacket liner. So something like 90 watts. No drain so far but I literally can't add any additional draw. At night the headlights will pulse slightly if I'm drawing too much, like if I turn on the brights or turn signals. Luckily just having the heated jacket and gloves keeps me warm down to 30F or better.

Heated jacket and gloves is pretty much the max for the stock set up. And like I said, if you're at a stop light, I have my engine reved up at a steady 4000 rpm. And I always turn my controllers off about a mile out from my destination, unless you have a batter tender that you can hook up.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

.
Just curious, why the cover on the windshield or is that just for parking overnight??

 

[[email protected]]

Finally got some heated gloves to keep me riding into the winter and today was the first sub 40F weather so I had my heated jacket, gloves and grips going. Seems like after I stopped for gas my bike was a little sluggish to start and my grips wouldn't turn on due to the battery being near dead. I have Oxford grips and I don't recall what they pull, Gerbing gloves which pull something like 22 to 25 watts, and my jacket was pulling 105 watts but I switched it down to 60. Any suggestions to staying warm but keeping my battery charged? I'm probably due for a new battery but I would assume if I'm running full blast again even a new battery would drain. Thanks.

i installed a relay off the battery which is switched buy the head lamps and all my heated gear runs through it and i have no problems with my battery

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

i installed a relay off the battery which is switched buy the head lamps and all my heated gear runs through it and i have no problems with my battery

Do you a heat adjuster of some sort?

Switching it on thru a relay(connected to the headlights) pulls the same as if plugged into the battery, SAE connector etc, EXCEPT you can't turn it off... ???