Maintenance; Preventing Water From Entering The Enclosures; Battery Life; Table 6 - Battery Life - Geokon 8800-2-1A Instruction Manual

20

6. MAINTENANCE

All GeoNet devices are designed to operate in field environments with minimal upkeep;
nevertheless, there are some basic maintenance procedures that should be followed to ensure
maximum reliability and functionality.

6.1 Preventing Water from Entering the Enclosures

GeoNet devices are designed to be splash proof and rain proof, but are not submersible. Devices
are sealed by a gasket, which will prevent water entry, so long as the screws that hold the lid in
place are properly tightened and the gasket inside the lid is properly aligned. It is also very
important to make sure that all the cable fittings are securely tightened. Models that feature a 10-
pin connector are equipped with a watertight cap, which must be installed when the connector is
not in use.
Despite all these precautions, the Nodes may encounter leakage along the cable if the cable is
cut, or if the unit is installed in an especially humid environment. In this type of environment, it
is recommended that the internal desiccant packs be replaced at the necessary intervals in order
to prevent condensation from corroding or shorting out the internal electronics.

6.2 Battery Life

Estimating the life of batteries in a system with as many factors, the GeoNet wireless network is
difficult. Battery life is affected by temperature extremes, the radio environment (as related to
retries), and the physical configuration of the Nodes. Nodes that are the only communication link
between other Nodes and the Supervisor will have a shorter battery life than those that have no
routing responsibility.
Table 6 is a conservative estimate of battery life based on the number of readings collected and
sent to the Supervisor. At a one-hour scan rate or higher, with only one hop, over 1,000 days of
battery life can be expected. If greater battery life is needed, a 12-volt nominal input is available.
Contact Geokon technical support for help utilizing this feature.
Battery Life Estimates
Alkaline
Readings
25,000
Transmitted
Radio
500,000
Cycles
Scan Rates
Days
(minutes)
12 208
20 347
30 521
60 1042

Table 6 - Battery Life

Lithium
70,000
1,400,000
Days
583
972
1458
2915