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Correct me if I'm wrong... (new Gen1 owner)

Discussion in 'Generation 1 Prius Discussion' started by S Keith, Sep 11, 2015.

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  1. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Next time I'm in PHX, I'm gonna stop by and check her out. I am partial to the Gen I's because it was my first Toyota Hybrid. It eventually became my son's first car but, now he has a Gen II (he's never had anything but a Prius lol).

    Anyway, very glad to hear you got her going. What's the plan for her? Daily driver? Toy? The downfall of the Gen I's is safety. They were safe for the time but so many safety advances have been made since then that leaves them in the dust. The HSD has also been greatly improved upon since then. They are fun though.
     
    #81 usnavystgc, Dec 22, 2015
  2. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    You're more than welcome. She got a car wash yesterday, and I'm impressed how well she cleaned up. Her interior needs a deep cleaning. Previous owner was very utilitarian in nature. Didn't believe in cleaning much. He was also very "grippy" at the 12 o'clock position on the wheel. It is literally eroded to the hard material beneath and appears to be about 1/2 the cross sectional area of the unworn parts.

    I'll keep her for a while, and she'll be a mostly-daily driver. I have a few too many hybrids, so making sure they get enough run time can be an issue... :)

    If for nothing else, I want to keep her as a "fleet leader" to see how the battery refurbishment/conversion lasts over time.

    Steve
     
    #82 S Keith, Dec 22, 2015
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  3. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    What do you use to deal with things like dog odors, etc.
    I have a Prius that smells like it was used on the farm. Especially noticeable in damp weather.
    Sure would like to eliminate the odor.
     
    #83 ericbecky, Dec 22, 2015
  4. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    I'm not sure with this one. I will likely be shampooing the interior. I have found the "Auto" formulation of Febreeze to be fairly effective at neutralizing odors, but it can take several applications.
     
    #84 S Keith, Dec 22, 2015
  5. Jeff F

    Jeff F Member

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    Great thread, sorry to come late. I have a couple of points for future reference. 1) I plopped my dirty/corroded bus bars in a cup of vinegar and let them soak for a few days, they cleaned up perfectly. 2) I use a TP1430c charger, which has a max 1000w charge, but more importantly a max 100w discharge rate, which makes logged cycling much faster.

    Currently putting together a reconditioned gen2 pack as the warning signs are there on my current car, and it's pretty smooth based on my learnings and experimentation from rebuilding my gen1 pack a couple of years ago, which was an unqualified success.

    I missed my gen1 when I replaced it with a gen2, but on reflection it felt like an exciting science experience, whereas the gen2 is kind of boring but gets the job done very well.
     
    #85 Jeff F, Dec 22, 2015
  6. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    The TP is nice, but it's very spendy.

    I used a pair of Turnigy Reaktor 300W units at about $70 each, and a $90 Walmart deep cycle marine battery. They have a 300W/20A regenerative discharge rate. All my discharges were done at 20A. They also log data, so I have discharge curves too. Took a while to chew threw the gen2 packs experimenting with different reconditioning techniques, but the final discharge capacity less took less than 3.5 hours @ 20A x 2 dischargers for a single pack.

    The number of cells the TP can handle is impressive though.
     
    #86 S Keith, Dec 22, 2015
  7. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Jeff F,
    What are you using as a power supply?
    Also, are you able to export data with your charger? Doesn't look like it but maybe I missed something.
     
    #87 ericbecky, Dec 23, 2015
    Last edited: Dec 23, 2015
  8. Jeff F

    Jeff F Member

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    Don't think I can export. I have a big power supply I inherited from my father, who was an amateur radio guy. Not sure it can supply 1000w, but several hundred is no problem. I have the capacity to cycle blocks of modules with this gear as Keith S points out, but have so far only used it on individual modules. Any small charger can handle the single module charging, but I got impatient with the 10-20w max discharge rate of the small chargers.
     
    #88 Jeff F, Dec 23, 2015
  9. Jeff F

    Jeff F Member

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    You mean 20 watts discharge, right?
     
    #89 Jeff F, Dec 23, 2015
  10. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    No. Lesser of 20A, 300W. The internal discharge is limited to lesser of 20W/20A, but it can discharge the module into its power source (marine battery) at 300W/20A provided the marine battery has enough capacity. In the case it doesn't, one can set the regenerative discharge threshold to a target voltage. If the marine battery hits 15V during a discharge, it will taper the discharge current to hold the marine battery at 15V.

    I also bought a 500A load tester to scrub off capacity of the marine battery if I haven't planned my regenerative discharges well. :)

    Steve
     
    #90 S Keith, Dec 23, 2015
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  11. Jeff F

    Jeff F Member

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    I should also add that I've got dozens of rejected gen2 modules kicking around, and maybe the old gen1s as well - can't remember whether I disposed of them. If anyone local (SW Ontario) has a use for them I'm happy to pass them on cheap. I was thinking of building a big 14.4v pack for my boat, but realistically it's probably never going to happen :)
     
    #91 Jeff F, Dec 23, 2015
  12. Jeff F

    Jeff F Member

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    Thanks, that makes sense. Good reason for using the battery rather than a power supply. I wasn't aware of that capability, sounds like maybe I wasted my money on the big unit :)
     
    #92 Jeff F, Dec 23, 2015
  13. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    These chargers are clones of the iCharger 206B for about 1/2 the price. I'm very happy with them.

    When you tally it all up, I'm sitting at about the same cost as a single TP vs. 2X Reaktors and a marine battery. The charge/discharge inefficiencies necessitate a 1-2A charger to keep the 12V from getting discharged too far when running several cycles with 2X Reaktors.

    The 12V can also become imbalanced, so I periodically need to top it off and subject it to a trickle charge @ 15-16V.

    Yours is much closer to "easy mode." :)
     
    #93 S Keith, Dec 23, 2015
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  14. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Thanks for sharing guys.
    Always looking for more toys.
    Was digging through some of my tools and was reminded of a Powerlab 6 used in conjunction a 120ah marine battery.
    Fun stuff.
     
    #94 ericbecky, Dec 23, 2015
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  15. S Keith

    S Keith Senior Member

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    Erik,

    Thank you for that... I was trying to think of the other regenerative discharge unit I ran across... it was the powerlab.
     
    #95 S Keith, Dec 23, 2015
  16. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    I will take Dog Hair and Interior Smell anytime over a CEL (y)(y)(y)

    Try fabric softner sheets to pickup the dog hair and place the softner at the air intake for the HVAC system, especially the Re-circulation intake. Wifey likes sitting in my old 911 now and when I turn on the AC, we get a nice fresh scent :p
     
    #96 DRACO, Dec 26, 2015
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  17. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    Brother Steve,

    Quick Question and Sorry if you answered this already.

    While I have her apart should I attempt to trickle charge some of the lower modules with my C-tek 3300 on it's lowest setting. I like the C-tek because it has a maintenance cycle to de-sulfate a battery to lengthen it's life. I have a car battery that is 10+ years old, using the C-tek has kept it healthy all these years.

    [​IMG]

    Maybe connect 2 at a time to keep it at around 14-16 volts max using a bus copper connector in series +/- +/- then connect the C-tek to charge and maintain it while I am working on the replacement. Maybe my thinking is not valid, huh?

    TIA,

    Jim
     
    #97 DRACO, Dec 26, 2015
  18. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    Oh snap

    That is cheap

    I think I will go ahead and pull the trigger
     
    #98 DRACO, Dec 26, 2015
  19. ericbecky

    ericbecky Hybrid Battery Hero

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    Draco,
    As S Keith points out... Be very, very careful.
    Watch the polarity of your connections!
    You do not want to reverse things.
    Making a mistake with this level of voltage would really suck.
    Adding a diode, fuse, or switch into the mix is an idea as well.
     
    #99 ericbecky, Dec 27, 2015
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  20. DRACO

    DRACO Member

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    Noted, always better to be safe than sorry :cool:
     
    #100 DRACO, Dec 30, 2015
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