what size ammeter will i need for my defender to monitor the batterys?
Is 30amp enough?
To "monitor" your battery your better off with a voltmeter.
I you fit an ammeter you need to split the wiring so that the battery and starter are connected to one side of the guage and the alternator and the rest of the vehicle is on the otherside...
This could get messy if you have a winch as some winch's draw about 450 Amps on full stall.......
As a guideline, headlight mainbeams are 65W so between them, they draw just over 10 amps
add to that 4 sidelights at 5w, giving about 2amps, heater fan 1 - 3 amps, radio 2 amps
So for a "standard" series vehicle (how many Landies fall into that catagory?) 30A is not to bad but the ammeter does need to be wired correctly to be of any use and to be safe..
If your motor is a diesel, you will also have to allow for the draw of heater plugs which I THINK may draw abou 30 A on their own....
Electric fans can draw 17A running with a startup current of 30 'ish amps....
And just to cap it all, the alternator most vehicles can generate more than that, P38 4.6 R/R 140A,
300 tdi 75 - 90 A
Hope this is of some help and if you need clarification or any further help, just ask.
Bob
