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Didn't know about the chromium, but it makes sense for a hard-wearing protective layer that specifically must be non-wetting. anyways thank you all for once again directing electronicsthread back to Metals Discussion, my favourite thing in the world to post about at length e: yeah the tin area at the tip is prolly not permanent, more of a 'pre-tinning'- most solder melts at a lower temp than pure tin but not by much, and every soldering iron can be turned up high enough to liquefy that tin, so i can't see it hanging around for that long with typical use. i've tinned large areas of bare metal before (made a copper flask and then food-safetied + soldered it together the old fashioned way, by sloshing molten tin around the hot n fluxed interior + wiping it where it's needed before it cools) and it's actually really tricky to do 100% with no voids. i couldn't do it, there were still a few spots of copper in my flask after a few attempts. it makes sense to pre-tin the tip for people, and it also makes sense why ~~tip thinner~~ is only for when you treat the iron badly- overheating will melt the pre-tinned tip and open up areas of unwetted oxidized metal which gentle electronics fluxes cannot sufficiently remove to produce a wettable surface. so you reach for an unusually-aggressive (for electronics) product that fluxes badly-oxidized iron down to the reduced elemental [and readily-wetting] iron. the electronics soldering realm of meticulously- engineered assemblies of solder + copper + precious metals gets away w incredibly gentle fluxes that just don't cut it for gnarlier stuff or higher temperatures Ambrose Burnside fucked around with this message at 00:29 on Mar 8, 2020 |
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Mar 7, 2020 23:58
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Tip tinner is cheap and not bulky so you might as well have some in any event.
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Mar 8, 2020 00:09
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yeah the only reason i'm not amazoning it is b/c someone i know is gonna give me their Past Electronics Phase soldering crap (minus the iron, which i already have) for free to get it off their bench, tip tinner's prolly in there with the other stuff i suppose i could get rid of that stuff for ya, i said, way too casually
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Mar 8, 2020 00:14
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this is why I like pace tools, their tips are designed to be manhandled by production soldering techs and are also cheaper than equivalent ones from metcal (curie point = expensive) and JBC
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Mar 8, 2020 00:30
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this popped up on google and seems excellent + v thorough, and confirms what's been said and then some https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/datasheets/hakkotips.pdf
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Mar 8, 2020 00:38
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I don't know how we feel about inexpensive 30v/10a DC bench supplies but *man* it's nice having a bench supply.
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Mar 8, 2020 05:56
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Hypnolobster posted:I don't know how we feel about inexpensive 30v/10a DC bench supplies but *man* it's nice having a bench supply. Don't leave them on for hours unattended and they're totally fine. If it's a decent one, then you can also leave it on for hours unattended.
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Mar 8, 2020 07:50
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csammis posted:I mean...this is the kind of pronouncement with no followup doesn't fill me with a lot of confidence that it's the Right Thing. Don't use tip tinner because it's bad for the tips? It's not necessary? I'm really looking for the why. Do whatever you want. I've been soldering as a hobbyist for 30 years, and professionally for 15. I've literally never used tip tinner. Don't use your iron to cut/burn plastic/wood, don't push hard, and don't overheat the tip. Use good quality solder... like I said, my tips last 12+ months, and I do a LOT of soldering/rework. sharkytm fucked around with this message at 18:55 on Mar 8, 2020 |
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Mar 8, 2020 18:53
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Splode posted:Don't leave them on for hours unattended and they're totally fine. I do a bunch of battery stuff, from 6-32V. Most is <3A, but sometimes I want to give 10A or more. Lots of parallel packs, too. Is there some kind of single-channel 3-30V 0-3A controllable power supply that will auto-sync voltage for parallel operation with more of its kind? I desperately need constant-current below 3A, and constant voltage above, but it would be super nice to have both on the full range. I currently have a "4-channel" bench supply that will begrudgingly allow 2-channel use somewhat, sometimes. It's been well-abused and the 2nd channel side (ch 2/4) barely works, and hardly tracks. The other side is single-channel only, since channel 3 is totally burned out. Even a single 0-32V 0-10A controllable would work.
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Mar 8, 2020 20:26
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babyeatingpsychopath posted:I do a bunch of battery stuff, from 6-32V. Most is <3A, but sometimes I want to give 10A or more. Lots of parallel packs, too. Is there some kind of single-channel 3-30V 0-3A controllable power supply that will auto-sync voltage for parallel operation with more of its kind? I desperately need constant-current below 3A, and constant voltage above, but it would be super nice to have both on the full range. I've had good luck with BK Precision supplies. Extech makes a couple of reasonably-priced ones too.
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Mar 8, 2020 21:12
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Hypnolobster posted:I don't know how we feel about inexpensive 30v/10a DC bench supplies but *man* it's nice having a bench supply. Back in my day, we cobbled together whatever batteries and holders we hand on hand with alligator clips. And we liked it!
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Mar 8, 2020 22:10
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has anyone made a usb-pd based power supply
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Mar 9, 2020 05:07
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Malcolm XML posted:has anyone made a usb-pd based power supply Yea https://hackaday.com/2019/11/04/a-usb-c-bench-power-supply/ Hack a day has a filter on USB-PD projects https://hackaday.com/tag/usb-pd/
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Mar 9, 2020 15:23
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Malcolm XML posted:this is why I like pace tools, their tips are designed to be manhandled by production soldering techs and are also cheaper than equivalent ones from metcal (curie point = expensive) and JBC I like my JBC because 1. it heats up really fast and my normal tip is fine enough that fine-ish smt work isn't an issue, but i usually have enough power for larger stuff 2. it has an auto shutoff that isn't finicky 3. it has a lockout code so i can effectively make it unusable for other people by setting the selectable temps below the melting point of solder this means production or support engineering people can't use my lab bench (instead of the one I set up for them literally next to it!) and crank the heat up to 850F and leave the iron just sitting there afterwards with the tip on and burn through tips like crazy, and occasionally burn out the core of the iron, or burn out the solder station, or light something on my bench on fire, all of which happened sometimes with my previous station. Also, I'm not paying for the tips sooooooooooo [img-guy_throwing_money_in_air.gif]
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Mar 10, 2020 14:01
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I have few questions about a project I am working on for you fine folks. Well, maybe asking for some advice. About a year or so ago I got into playing around quite a bit with solar panels and wind turbines. It's been a fun learning experience in addition to being quite useful at times. But I think I've hit rock bottom because I am a glutton for punishment, so since christmas I have been messing with TEGs in my energy generation adventure. Actual high temperature TEGs, not coolers. I love these things, but I do also have realistic expectations as to what I can expect to see. Nevertheless I know I can do better. I am using a flat top wood stove as my heat source. The top surface, on average can get around 500-600 degrees F, though on average it's probably less. The specific TEGs are rated for 630 degrees continuous operation. I also have an active water cooling system. My first working prototype used 4 TEGs in series, bolted to a 1/4 inch aluminum plate. They produced a max open circuit voltage of 21V (slightly over 5V individually, and the modules are rated at 7V). So I wired this into a solar charge controller. The charge controller requires incoming voltage to be +5vbat to start charging and the requirement drops to +1 afterward. This produced a steady 6-7 watts, peaking at 10-11 briefly. I was chuffed, it actually works! But I need more. So gently caress aluminum, right? Get a copper plate! So I got a 1/2 inch think copper plate. I need more TEGs too. If I got 4 more and 4 series/2 parallel them, that should in theory automatically double any output... I got a steady 8 watts. The hell? This new and improved second prototype only did so after wiring in a boost converter to bump it up to 17.5V because the open circuit voltage never rose above 10V. Can resistance losses really be that bad? Or perhaps the thinner aluminum is more thermally conductive than the thicker copper? I'm really scratching my head on this one.
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Mar 14, 2020 19:07
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ante posted:
The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > DIY > Learning electronics: Just Wet The Tip or You'll Wear Out Your Iron
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Mar 14, 2020 19:39
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A while back I made a bunch of compost temperature probes and now I am starting to realize I have underestimated the challenge of warm humid environments. I just started packing all my connectors with dielectric grease, but I am getting a lot of corrosion on my pcbs and a few of my supposedly waterproof DS18b20 probes are starting to fail. I'm not exactly thrilled with the idea of potting 16 of these because I still need access to the programming header for changing module IDs. Have any of you tried conformal coating while masking off areas? 
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Mar 14, 2020 19:49
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i’ve CC’ed flight controller PCBs after sticking a micro usb plug in them and a piece of clue tack on the button and altimeter. Works a treat.
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Mar 14, 2020 19:52
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Another option might be to break out your programming header into a weatherproof connector or something similar to allow you access while also allowing you to use potting.
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Mar 14, 2020 19:57
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Would hot glue work for covering the pins? Poking at it with alcohol and cotton swaps allows you to remove it to access the pins and then just glob more on when you're done.
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Mar 14, 2020 20:17
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If you've got pins anyway you can literally plug your programming cable, CC the whole drat thing and voila.
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Mar 14, 2020 21:56
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I'm restoring this old radio from the late 50s and I found something really cool. It has a timer for the radio and it works without a motor! It uses the electricity off the tube heater line, just standard 6.3V AC, to heat a bimetallic strip. The strip heats up and bends, it's enough to click a gear one tooth, the strip breaks contact, cools down, goes straight again and the whole thing repeats. I never imagined that a bimetallic strip could be used to do electromechanical work.
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Mar 15, 2020 01:15
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kid sinister posted:I'm restoring this old radio from the late 50s and I found something really cool. It has a timer for the radio and it works without a motor! It uses the electricity off the tube heater line, just standard 6.3V AC, to heat a bimetallic strip. The strip heats up and bends, it's enough to click a gear one tooth, the strip breaks contact, cools down, goes straight again and the whole thing repeats. If you like that kinda stuff check out the Sunbeam Radiant Control Toaster some time, or watch this Technology Connections video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfxlSG6q5Y
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Mar 15, 2020 02:32
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Shame Boy posted:If you like that kinda stuff check out the Sunbeam Radiant Control Toaster some time, or watch this Technology Connections video: This really is how all toasters should work. This is an AMAZING technology, and I love it in every possible way.
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Mar 15, 2020 12:06
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I'm looking for a PISO shift register that wont lose an output cycle for the parallel load. What's the magical 7400 number?
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Mar 15, 2020 15:01
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Is that even possible? If you load in data while it is shifting out, you'll just lose the old data and get right side of the new data.
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Mar 15, 2020 17:47
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Shame Boy posted:If you like that kinda stuff check out the Sunbeam Radiant Control Toaster some time, or watch this Technology Connections video: Oooh, using the thermal expansion and contraction of the heating element to actuate toast. Very clever! Using a non-polarized plug that has a 50% chance of making the case hot, not so clever. That thing could definitely use those upgrades he was talking about. Wouldn't giving that thing a 3 prong cord like he was talking about make it trip a GFCI, which have been standard on kitchen countertops for decades now?
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Mar 15, 2020 17:58
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karoshi posted:I'm looking for a PISO shift register that wont lose an output cycle for the parallel load. What's the magical 7400 number? Looks like the 74x166 will do an asynchronous parallel load. based on the quick datasheet skim I did, if you strobe load after the clock is high, the output will change on the next low-to-high clock. The setup time for loading is 20ns minimum, but the minimum clock pulse width is 25ns. I guess as long as you're not clocking the register at 40MHz or whatever, you'll be fine. kid sinister posted:Oooh, using the thermal expansion and contraction of the heating element to actuate toast. Very clever! Not if it's wired right. Hot going into the switch-> elements. Neutral going to the bottoms of the elements. Ground going to the case. The only way a GFCI would trip is if there's a mild element-to-case connection. babyeatingpsychopath fucked around with this message at 18:03 on Mar 15, 2020 |
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Mar 15, 2020 17:58
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babyeatingpsychopath posted:Looks like the 74x166 will do an asynchronous parallel load. based on the quick datasheet skim I did, if you strobe load after the clock is high, the output will change on the next low-to-high clock. The setup time for loading is 20ns minimum, but the minimum clock pulse width is 25ns. I guess as long as you're not clocking the register at 40MHz or whatever, you'll be fine. Thank you, will take a look.
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Mar 15, 2020 19:17
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This is probably a dumb idea but I just want to ask about it because it involves some things I'm not overly familiar with. I've been thinking it'd be interesting to add a solar cell (like from dead solar string lights. I have a few) to a garden watering timer along with a couple of low capacity NiMH batteries. I know the actual open circuit voltage of the cells are well over 3v but generally I'm totally clueless on if they will work and what extra I need. is it a dumb idea, and if not, what would I need (Ie diode etc)? I should point out the string lights are usually 1.5v and the garden timers are 3v. General_Failure fucked around with this message at 05:13 on Mar 21, 2020 |
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Mar 21, 2020 03:44
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General_Failure posted:This is probably a dumb idea but I just want to ask about it because it involves some things I'm not overly familiar with. Nah it's not a bad idea, BigClive does stuff like this sometimes on his channel. NiMH batteries are really forgiving about charge conditions, especially with low currents like you'd get from a solar panel, so the worst that would happen if you over-charge them with it is they warm up slightly. However you probably want to measure the garden timer to see how much current it uses, to see if the solar panel could even run it plus charge the battery enough during the daylight to keep it running all night. The only other thing you need for the circuit is a diode to keep the battery from pushing voltage backwards through the solar cell when the sun goes down and burning it out.
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Mar 21, 2020 10:56
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Shame Boy posted:Nah it's not a bad idea, BigClive does stuff like this sometimes on his channel. quote:NiMH batteries are really forgiving about charge conditions, especially with low currents like you'd get from a solar panel, so the worst that would happen if you over-charge them with it is they warm up slightly. However you probably want to measure the garden timer to see how much current it uses, to see if the solar panel could even run it plus charge the battery enough during the daylight to keep it running all night. The only other thing you need for the circuit is a diode to keep the battery from pushing voltage backwards through the solar cell when the sun goes down and burning it out. Would a signal diode be enough, or would a power diode be needed? I'm sure I have a supply of both somewehere. Just not sure what to use. Or I guess I could just strip one from a dead garden light. e: I did it. Took the power diode from the light control board. Tried it out on the timer. Didn't quite work. The NiMH batteries were flat. I could hear a cyclical tick of it trying to do a POST valve test. So I've got the batteries on the charger. Hopefully the batteries will be kept topped up. e again: batteries recharged. Working. Only time will tell how well this works. General_Failure fucked around with this message at 03:57 on Mar 22, 2020 |
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Mar 22, 2020 01:22
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I have a Kohler touchless toilet flush mechanism (do not recommend) that uses a DC motor to flush a toilet. The motor stopped working a few days ago. I took it apart and seems like the entire shaft is corroded and stuck. The cost to replace the flush mechanism is quite expensive, seems to be in the $100 range. This text is printed on the side of the motor: KM-25A370-109-0678. Searching online it seemed like it was for sale from alibaba. I messaged the manufacturer for a quote but they responded asking for what specs I want (I guess the model number isn't specific enough)? Anyways, any recommendations on how to get replacement motors? Thanks!
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Mar 22, 2020 13:51
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Hey dudes. I'm trying to built a circuit on a PCB, and need an ADC. I found one that looks like it'll work, but I can't figure out how to put it in Eagle. The datasheet doesn't have the info I think I'm looking for. It has a schematic, but no footprint, other than overall product dims. How do I know how big and spaced to put the feet?
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Mar 22, 2020 16:16
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Mr. Bubbles posted:I have a Kohler touchless toilet flush mechanism (do not recommend) that uses a DC motor to flush a toilet. The motor stopped working a few days ago. I took it apart and seems like the entire shaft is corroded and stuck. The cost to replace the flush mechanism is quite expensive, seems to be in the $100 range. This text is printed on the side of the motor: KM-25A370-109-0678. Searching online it seemed like it was for sale from alibaba. I messaged the manufacturer for a quote but they responded asking for what specs I want (I guess the model number isn't specific enough)? Anyways, any recommendations on how to get replacement motors? https://www.amazon.com/BestTong-Torque-Electric-Reduction-Centric/dp/B07QJSX9TR ?
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Mar 22, 2020 16:37
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Dominoes posted:Hey dudes. I'm trying to built a circuit on a PCB, and need an ADC. I found one that looks like it'll work, but I can't figure out how to put it in Eagle. The datasheet doesn't have the info I think I'm looking for. It has a schematic, but no footprint, other than overall product dims. How do I know how big and spaced to put the feet? Um... footprint is on the third and second-to-last pages. Plus, it's a TSSOP-16, not exactly an exotic footprint. 
sharkytm fucked around with this message at 16:58 on Mar 22, 2020 |
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Mar 22, 2020 16:56
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Oops - thanks dude! edit: Got the Eagle thing built. Don't know how I missed those pages. I think I was ctrl+Fing `mm` or something. Dominoes fucked around with this message at 22:04 on Mar 22, 2020 |
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Mar 22, 2020 17:15
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Shame Boy posted:The only other thing you need for the circuit is a diode to keep the battery from pushing voltage backwards through the solar cell when the sun goes down and burning it out.
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Mar 22, 2020 18:16
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CopperHound posted:Keep in mind the voltage drop across the diode. It is kind of a big deal for low voltage projects. With the diode the open circuit voltage was something like 5 or 6v. I don't really remember. Hopefully it'll be able to maintain the batteries. Like I said earlier the biggest drain is maybe 4 seconds a day of a small geared motor operating.
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Mar 22, 2020 22:23
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General_Failure posted:With the diode the open circuit voltage was something like 5 or 6v. I don't really remember. Hopefully it'll be able to maintain the batteries. Like I said earlier the biggest drain is maybe 4 seconds a day of a small geared motor operating. Yeah that's fine then. You might try a Schottky diode instead if you really want since those have lower forward voltages, but eh. The 4 seconds a day of motor isn't gonna drain it but the cumulative quiescent current of running all night miiight, depends on how good the circuit design is. If it's meant to be plugged in all the time it's very possible they didn't give two fucks about power conservation and the thing is just constantly sucking down a few tens of mA, but if it was a battery-operated one to begin with (which it sounded like?) you're probably fine.
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Mar 22, 2020 22:35
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