Specifications

Section 1. Installation and Maintenance
1-4
10 D-TYPE ALKALINE BATTERIES
FIGURE 1.3-1. Alkaline Battery Orientation
While the CR3000 has a wide operating temperature range (-40 TO +80°C),
the battery bases have more limited operating ranges. Exceeding this range
will degrade battery capacity and lifetime and could also cause permanent
damage.
1.3.1 CR3000 Alkaline Battery Base (Part Number 10519)
Install alkaline batteries as shown in Figure 1.3-1.
Suggested temperature range: -25° to +50°C (Table 1.3-1).
The CR3000 utilizes 10 alkaline D cells. After battery installation, the power
switch on the side of the CR3000 will turn the datalogger on and off.
A fresh set of ten high-quality alkaline D cells can be expected to have about
10 amp hours at 20°C.
Voltage with ten new D cells is about 15.5 V. If external power is connected
to the CR3000 with the alkaline power supply, power will be drawn from the
source of highest voltage. In a typical configuration using an external lead-
acid battery, the D cell voltage will discharge from 15 V to about 12 V before
the lead-acid battery starts to supply current. This means the D cells will lose
approximately 35% (15 Ah - 9.8 Ahr = 5.2 Ah) of their capacity before the
external power takes over.
The amp-hour rating decreases with temperature as shown in Table 1.3-1.
CRBasic keyword Battery can be used to monitor battery voltage (See section
7.6). Replace the alkaline cells before the CR3000 battery voltage drops below
11.0 V.
A thermal fuse in the alkaline base will allow a current drain of 1.85 A at 20°C
(1.3 A at 50°C). In event of a short, the thermal fuse will cut power after about
40 seconds.