I've been noticing my headlight would dim at a stop light but when I rev the engine a little it gets brighter. It also does it when I have my heated gear on. The Gerbings thermostat will blink since I have it turned down and my headlight will dim every time the thermostat blinks. I'm about to install my DDM HID kit and not sure how it will deal with this. I'm thinking my battery is the cause but I could be wrong. Any ideas?
This is normal behaviour as the alternator is not able to produce as many watts at Idle speed. A tired battery will make this worse. A HID will not fire up at all at low voltage, but once its going they tend to work OK at Idle. K
So, you're gonna argue with an engineer? (my wife does all the time). The Watt is a unit of work. The volt is the force or EMF and the ampere is the unit of electrical current. When the load consumes more current than the system is delivering (alternator), the battery supplies the difference. When this happens in the typical automotive electrical system, the voltage is reduced unless the alternator delivers more current (amperes) to offset the loss. So, when the lights dim, it is due to more current (amperes) being called for than is being delivered.
Don't start with the Engineer stuff. I work with them all the time. I am a certified Industrial Electrician. Pissing contests achieve nothing. The only way current will flow out of the alternator is if its output voltage is higher than the battery voltage. So the term watts is not incorrect
Not incorrect. Now your English is in question as well as your electrical knowledge. Watts don't flow anywhere....current does. And this is no contest...however, it is useful to use correct terminology and references when attempting to cite fact. That's how we learn, communicate and pass knowledge. I understand the relationship between watts, volts and current. Also, our alternators are rated in both watts and amperes. However, in an automotive electrical system, the voltage is usually considered to be constant (and regulated electronically in the alternator) with load and current being the variable. Remember also, current is the measure of coulombs, which are ampere seconds, or the measure of how many electrons flow in the circuit.
In the end it's either the the battery or the alternator doing the work depending on RPM. Work = HP = Watts I am not arguing anymore, and stop with the insults about my knowledge.
Generators are measured in wattage not amperage. The voltage can vary which will vary the amperage so wattage is a better term to use... it is constant.
Wow, just trying to help here... I am also an engineer, albeit mechanical. I believe we are both correct, I just used watts in my description because I thought power output would be more easy to understand.
Pissing contests are fun, no? I say it's voltage that drops. C'mon guys, voltage, current, and power are all down at low RPM.
