writes:

: shut down for real... Also, forget the current meter - it's close to
: worthless... What you want is a voltage meter... On my plane the port
: engine regulator is adjusted to 14.1 volts and the starboard to 13.8
: volts...

Not sure if you're talking of an ammeter or a loadmeter. What one really
needs to know the health of the system is *both* a voltmeter and loadmeter. If I
could only have one or the other, however, I'd agree that a voltmeter is more useful.
Anything under 13 and the alternator is maxing out (for a given RPM). Anything
under 12.5 and the battery is discharging. Anything over 14.4-ish and the battery is
boiling.


But with dual generators/alternators; voltmeters alone will do you
little good diagnosing problems. You will need an ammeter on each
source, and a bus voltmeter. Someone should make a panel display
with LED's for all three, and a small digital meter that will cycle
between them.


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