Help - Battery charger not working
We have a Lunar Ariva 2009 and today discovered that the battery charger is not working. A bit inconvenient as we are off on holiday on Tuesday or at least we were. We discovered it as we had to move the caravan this morning and the motor mover wouldn't work because the caravan battery was flat. It has been plugged into the mains for a couple of weeks now since we got back from our last trip. My husband has done some checks, fuses etc., but cannot find the fault. The handbook is about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Anybody any ideas what he could also check?
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firstly, check the voltage across the battery terminals with the charger turned on....if its working, the charge should be raised well above 12.6v, nearer 14v...
this test is to ensure its definitely the charger that's failed....
you could also check the 13a sockets in the van as these should be live if the distribution part of the charger is working correctly ...
if the voltage is correct 14v+ then the issue must be downstream of the charger and may be a fuse or break in the circuitry....
good luck.
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The charger also provides power to the caravan 12 volt systems (some lights, hob ignition, refrigerator, a 12 volt socket outlet etc.) so have they all failed or just the battery charging? Alternatively, has the battery simply failed? If it has never been replaced it’s quite likely to have given up. Take it out and recharge it separately using a decent leisure battery charger and see if it holds its charge. A caravan of that age is unlikely to have a good enough charger to fully restore the battery.
We had a charger failure once on holiday and we managed to survive by borrowing a battery charger to connect to the mains and charge the battery periodically. Obviously you need to disconnect one side of the battery from the caravan connection before charging it up in situ, or take it out to recharge. Seems a pity to cancel a holiday so you might be able to get by taking a charger and extension lead with you.
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I leave my car's battery connected while I charge it .... Ctek provide a connecter to do it. I charge my caravan's battery with its supplied charger connected, so why is it "obvious" that I disconnect the caravan battery if I'm charging via AN Other charger?
I was in exactly the same situation as the OP a few years ago when the charger packed in on my last caravan. Bought another battery charger, connected across the battery and charged in situ. I just knocked it off charge through the day so it wasn't expected to take more draw than it could deliver. Worked fine till we got the original repaired.
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Likewise 'MM', my caravan charger packed up near Limoges France in June. Whilst Red Pennant sourced and sent one out to me I bought a cheap charger from the local Supermarket, ran the lead out of the window and clipped it onto the battery, topped it up for a few hours each day until the new charger arrived.
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A caravan charger is set to a compromise voltage which is high enough to keep the battery topped up but low enough not to damage 12 volt electrical equipment. Usually this is about 13.8 volts. A stand-alone battery charger will start at 14.4 volts or higher so if you leave the battery connected you are backfeeding your 12 volt system with a higher voltage than it is designed for unless you isolate the system in some way. Disconnecting one terminal is simplest although you might be able to switch off the rest of the system depending on the caravan wiring.
Will it damage anything? Probably not but it is bad practice so why do it?
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Our caravan charger unit stopped working at Chester site in January. I sourced a replacement online which was delivered 3 days later and was easy to fit having a mains "kettle" connection and a push fit 12v connection.
I bought a cheap battery charger to give the battery a few hours charge each day until the new unit arrived. If it is the charger unit that has failed make sure you get a compatible replacement as there are several different types.
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Get the battery checked. Assuming the charger is at fault is premature, the battery is far more likely to be the issue.
Get the charger checked, a probable cause of a pooped battery is a bad charger. Important if you get a new battery, you don't want it damaged.
Using a cheap charger across the battery is a perfectly acceptable solution if you don't get it sorted before you go.
Do not try to run the van off a charger, i.e. with a bad battery, this could overheat the battery.
A charger only delivers the maximum current output it is rated to regardless of the state of charge of the battery so it can be left connected to a good battery.
A charge rate of up to 13.8v constant is fine, up to 14.4v for a day is fine. Even a cheap charger will meet these parameters.
Charging up to 14v will not harm any of the items in your van.
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aandacaravans (who are specialist charger repairers) regularly report that chargers can fail as a direct result of battery faults....
so, the battery may well have been failing and ended up taking the charger down with it....
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Which is why I recommend disconnecting one side of the battery otherwise you are running the 12 volt system off of your cheap charger which may or may not be suitable both in voltage and current capability plus you may still be feeding through your EHU connection, plus you might have a dodgy battery in the first place. It is bad to leave a battery on charge for extended periods unless you have a smart charger on your outfit (which the OP doesn’t have) or you are charging with, say, a Ctek. The battery will deteriorate. I nearly bought a cheap trickle charger and in the small print it said not to leave permanently connected for more than a week or two (so, about as much use as a chocolate teapot).
You could run with a separate charger paralleled across your battery as long as you know what you are doing, hence avoiding all the above issues but it is far better to charge the battery and then run without the charger connected which is what I did last time it happened to me.
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Thanks for all the advice everyone. OH and his brother worked on it today and it is the battery charger itself that has broken down. He is picking up a new one tomorrow morning, so hopefully holiday will be salvaged although a few days late in starting.
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Thanks for the feedback.
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