Charging leisure battery - onboard battery charger
I have recently purchased a 2005 sterling europa 600. It has a switch for battery charger, but I'm unsure if I need to leave that on constantly while on EHU or if I can switch it off once battery is charged?
Any advice would be appreiciated.
Thanks
Comments
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I can't answer re any specific charger you might have fitted in that van but the normal situation is that a charger remains on continuously. It self regulates when and the amount of charge it delivers to the battery and or to any users coupled to the battery. They are not in more recent times crude unregulated chargers so will not harm the battery if used as intended. Some non caravanning chargers if fitted as an after market replacement could do so.
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Have a look in the manual or take the code of the charger and google it.
Some chargers can be used as power supplies with out a battery for example, and my manual for the last caravan did recommend that the charger wasn't run permanently.
I would turn yours off once the battery is fully charged.
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Check handbook. But when I had an older caravan the battery switch had 3 settings; 'Car', used when towing to charge battery, 'Caravan' for use when not connected to car and when connected to EHU, and 'off'. So I think answer to your question is to switch
to battery/charger when on site.0 -
Actually, there are very few chargers, including trickle chargers, that can be left permanently connected to a battery. Charger and battery manufacturers plus the Club all state this. Whether you will actually notice any premature deterioration or not is
a different matter.Once you are off of EHU and at home, the best thing is to recharge the battery off of the van using a decent charger then leave it disconnected. Recharge about once a month.
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If you are on EHU and using the van, switch the charger on. It will keep your battery topped up while you use 12V power. If you have blown air heating, that can consume a lot, as can TV, then lights. I’d switch it off when not on EHU, just in case there
is a small discharge back from the battery (there shouldn’t be, but it’s possible).0 -
Thanks all, for your help. I have looked in my handbook but it doesn't appear to tell me one way or another. My first caravan when on ehu my battery voltage sat at 13.8v which as far as I'm aware thats normal? My new one sits at the same when I have the
switch for battery charger on but when I bought it, previous owner mentioned something about gases from the battery if left on which made me a little bit weary.0 -
As long as the voltage at the battery is NO MORE than 13.8v (measured with a decent meter you trust) I would be quite happy to leave it on charge continuously. Numerous batteries in industrial situations sit on continuous float charge for their entire life.
(ideally you would compensate the float charge voltage for temperature, but that is getting a bit fussy for our purpose).0 -
We have had 2 Sterlings, we always had/have the charger on.
If you have a 3-way switch on your control panel labelled car/off/caravan, put it on caravan and leave it there. If you have an electronic panel with only car and caravan symbols, select caravan, the rest is automatic.
The "car" position, in both scenarios, is only for use if your van battery is flat and you want to draw power from your car battery while stopped somewhere.
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"We have had 2 Sterlings, we always had/have the charger on."
For a minute, I thought you were refering to chargers/regulators from "Sterling Power Products". That would be a topic in itself
.I then realised you were refering to a brand of 'van
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AIUI, the "car" setting to which Kjell refers only provides power to the fridge and then only when the car engine is running. I wasn't aware it provided power to domestic 12v circuits.
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AIUI, the "car" setting to which Kjell refers only provides power to the fridge and then only when the car engine is running. I wasn't aware it provided power to domestic 12v circuits.
KJellNN is refering to when the car's engine is not running, when 'car' is selected you can power internal lighting, radio etc while parked up .... obviously not for long enough that you'd flatten the car battery. The car/off/caravan switch makes no difference
to the fridge while towing0 -
The 12V supply for the fridge should be separate from the other circuit that goes to the battery, so that each can be controlled separately. The fridge supply should only be live when the engine is running.
Write your comments here...Thats true for the 12 volt heating element, but some fridges require a seperate 12 volt supply even on 240 volts or gas.
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I was referring to the 12V supplies from a towing vehicle (through 7S or 13pin plug). The supply required to power the circuitry would come from the onboard battery. The power supply from the towcar should only be live for the heating element while the alternator
is able to provide it.0 -
Hi all,
What is an on-board battery charger? Is it a separate thing I need to buy? I ask only because, in the past, we have taken the battery out of the caravan and put it on charge in the house, before returning it to the 'van before our next outing. However,
at Christmas we had a large family gathering, and I wanted to use the caravan fridge for a few days, so bought an EHU adapter cable to plug the 'van into the ordinary outdoor socket. My OH now says there is no need to charge the battery indoors, as it will
stay charged because it is connected to the domestic power supply. Is this correct? BTW the fridge is now switched off, and the Master switch on the caravan control panel is also off. Whaddya think?0 -
I've just been into my van tonight, and as soon as I opened the door, the smell what appears to be gases from the battery hit me straight away. (which previous owner told me to watch for) Once turning the switch on the control panel for battery charger
off, all the lights went out and on the battey level it was down in the Red. The battery is really hot and i am convinced I've fried the battery.0 -
I’d agree that your battery has fried, and it ought to be replaced. Your charger is doubtless not a smart one and has overcharged the battery, causing it to gas. You could get a better charger, else stop charging once the battery has been recharged. If you
always use EHU, you could try refilling the dud battery with distilled water and see if it will take and hold a charge. If you’re lucky, it might just survive and be serviceable with mains to back it up but is unlikely to be any good at providing a prolonged
discharge.0 -
Hi all,
What is an on-board battery charger? Is it a separate thing I need to buy? I ask only because, in the past, we have taken the battery out of the caravan and put it on charge in the house, before returning it to the 'van before our next outing. However,
at Christmas we had a large family gathering, and I wanted to use the caravan fridge for a few days, so bought an EHU adapter cable to plug the 'van into the ordinary outdoor socket. My OH now says there is no need to charge the battery indoors, as it will
stay charged because it is connected to the domestic power supply. Is this correct? BTW the fridge is now switched off, and the Master switch on the caravan control panel is also off. Whaddya think?You almost certainly have a charger in your van, so you could use that to recharge the battery. It would be best to assume that it’s a basic one, so don’t leave the battery on charge any longer than necessary. One or two days a month should be all that’s
needed. You don’t want to ‘fry’ it, as above.0 -
I've just been into my van tonight, and as soon as I opened the door, the smell what appears to be gases from the battery hit me straight away. (which previous owner told me to watch for) Once turning the switch on the control panel for battery charger
off, all the lights went out and on the battey level it was down in the Red. The battery is really hot and i am convinced I've fried the battery.Write your comments here...You need to check that your charger isnt faulty.
Some swifts fitted with multi stage chargers have been know to give out the full voltage permanently, around 14.8 volts.
A faulty battery could also cause overheating if a cell shorts.
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Hi all,
What is an on-board battery charger? Is it a separate thing I need to buy? I ask only because, in the past, we have taken the battery out of the caravan and put it on charge in the house, before returning it to the 'van before our next outing. However,
at Christmas we had a large family gathering, and I wanted to use the caravan fridge for a few days, so bought an EHU adapter cable to plug the 'van into the ordinary outdoor socket. My OH now says there is no need to charge the battery indoors, as it will
stay charged because it is connected to the domestic power supply. Is this correct? BTW the fridge is now switched off, and the Master switch on the caravan control panel is also off. Whaddya think?Write your comments here...If you have a modern UK caravan it will usually have a decent charger fitted, which will charge your battery.
Mine never leaves the caravan except for an annual electrolyte level check, Last one was 9 years old before i ruined it by leaving the rear view camera powered up.
I usualy charge the battery once a month during winter in the caravan.
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How would I go about checking for a faulty charger?
Write your comments here...Put a voltmeter across the output, or ideally the battery.
13.8volts is normally the soak voltage, some multi stage chargers will give around 14.5 volts initially but should progressively reduce once the battery is charged down to 13.8 volts.
[url=http://www.amperorassociates.co.uk/c-battery_chargers/BatteryC-3_18A.html] Example[/url]
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I've just been into my van tonight, and as soon as I opened the door, the smell what appears to be gases from the battery hit me straight away. (which previous owner told me to watch for) Once turning the switch on the control panel for battery charger off, all the lights went out and on the battey level it was down in the Red. The battery is really hot and i am convinced I've fried the battery.
That year of van should have a smart charger, could be battery faulty or charger
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Last time I checked current makes of caravans there were few with smart chargers. Some Coachman and Swift on the top of range models.
Nearly all leisure batteries now are sealed for life and will not emit gas unless their is a charger fault. I can't recall seeing any open vented leisure batteries for a long time.
A proper charger will have a stepped charging regime with a maximum of 14.4 volts which is the highest voltage that a sealed battery can take (except for Ctek Chargers and similar which will pulse a bit higher especially in recon.
mode).A dumb caravan charger gives a steady 13.8 volts which is enough to keep a battery topped up but not enough to properly recharge and will cause damage it if left on permanently. The van manual will probably tell you this.
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