Newbie to MH - advice please
we have acquired a MH Autocruise Starfire 2006 - we have been through the books and need clarification on a few bits (may be obvious to some). When connected to mains power, does this charge the leisure and vehicle battery whether or not the control box in MH is on/off. There is a double battery symbol on the control box - when pressed and illuminated does this mean it draws power from the vehicle battery? Just a bit concerned as we had not used for a few weeks and when loaded and ready to go we had a flat battery and had to jump start. When we finished up yesterday both batteries said they were 13.7/13.8 and today they have both dropped to 12.6/12.7 just wondered if this is normal or if we are leaving something on in error. Thanks in advance for any help
Comments
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Firstly, I can't say how your MH is wired re the charger...however, a couple of things...
the 13.7/13.8 readings were there as a result of a previous charging stint, either EHU or from the alternator when driving the van...
after a rest period, they have dropped back to their fully charged state of 12.6/12.7
you can do this test...put the van on hook up at home and with a voltmeter test the levels on the cab and leisure battery....if the charger is charging each then they should present a raised charge well above 12.7 closer to 13.8 to 14.1
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Agree with BB battery voltages are entirely normal and indicate both are fully charged. You don’t say anything about the circumstances leading to the flat battery. Was this after the van hadn’t been used for an extended period and was just starter or leisure battery also involved? It’s not unknown on some vans for EHU to charge the leisure battery only.
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re the flat battery - we hadn't used the MH for 3/4 weeks although we had the mains electric connected for a period as we were testing TVs. So I suppose it is best practice to take it for a ride every 3/4 weeks? The leisure battery levels were normal. I am just a bit worried that we may have somehow set to use the vehicle battery which I would never want to do. Will check as BB has suggested. Thanks both for help
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Sounds like EHU only charges your leisure battery. You might want to buy a solar panel to maintain the starter battery? You can get a small one that will sit on the top of your dashboard and connect to the starter battery with a couple of crocodile clips. If you can get the correct angle with a southerly facing aspect out of shade that will do the job. Other more elaborate (and expensive) solutions are available.
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Agree with Bill....if you had the van on hook up but the cab battery went down, it isn't charging...my test above will confirm.
re solutions...we have plenty of solar but a fairly simple solution is to fit something called a Battery Master. It takes charge from a full leisure battery and trickle charges the cab battery from there...this means you can use the hookup at home (or on site) and the cab battery will receive a charge.
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Dependent on your monitoring of the batteries and if your LV is wired to charge only the leisure battery on EHU (hopefully you are able to do this easily) then personally I wouldn’t rely on a small solar panel to charge the vehicle battery especially at this time of year in the UK. It would probably be best to take the LV for a run, maybe every couple of weeks or so dependent on your monitoring. There was a similar discussion not too long ago on here but I can't see it just now. Good Luck and enjoy.
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A Battery Master cost about £60 from Vanbitz or £30+ from Votronic and is easy to fit and work really well. This way, just plugging the EHU in periodically as before will then charge both batteries not just the leisure battery. A simple remedy to a common problem.
agree, taking the van for a run periodically is good for warming the oily bits through but you have to take it for a pretty long drive to put much charge in, especially as starting the van takes a good chunk from the cab battery.
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“…..I wouldn’t rely on a small solar panel to charge the vehicle battery especially at this time of year in the UK…..”
Why not? UK average sunshine hours in winter is about 1.5 hours. A 10A solar panel is capable of maintaining a 100Ah battery on a trickle charge basis assuming the panel is properly located. In summer that figure increases to about 4.5 hours. Added bonus is a battery charged on that basis will likely last longer than one subject to frequent deep discharge/charging.
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Meant to say 10W solar panel
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Out of preference I would fit the Battery Master, the reliablity is better. In the winter it is very hit and miss as to whether a solar panel will keep a battery fully charged. I have two solar panels, a 120w one on the motorhome and a 10w one trying to keep an electric fence battery charged. At the moment in the gloom I am lucky if I can get a 0.3A charge out of the motorhome panel and when the sun shines, it is so low in the sky, it is not much better. The 10w one is not keeping its battery charged either but that is not helped by the battery being past its use by date and not in prime condition.
A 10 w panel can cost as much as a battery master, possibly more if you fit a regulator (recommended) to help keep the battery safe. The choice is yours.
Another plus for the battery master is if ever you decide to fit a solar panel to your motorhome both batteries can be maintained by it.
peedee
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My van is stored at home and is plugged into the mains for at least part of the day. Quite a few years ago Peedee recommended the Battery Master to me and I have had them fitted to both motorhomes as the internal 230v system does not charge the vehicle battery and they just take away the worry about keeping both batteries in good condition. They seem to be a fit an forget solution.
David
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Obviously if you had a 120W solar panel on the MH you’d use that to charge the leisure/starter battery. The Battery Master requires a power source so it’s either EHU, solar or frequent alternator charging. My preference would be a solar panel (min 150W) on a split charger. I like the idea of free electricity unconstrained by grid supply and, in my case, it works fine 100% of the time irrespective of whatever the climate in SW England delivers. Just checked the sensor on my tracker this morning (sunny intervals) and starter battery is getting 14.99V
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The amount of charge allocated to a battery by a controller will depend on a number of factors but the biggest must be the current state of charge (is it low or nearly full), the load on that battery (are devices running against it) and the available power.
With the van on the drive, my batteries are nearly full all the time (no habitation electrics and just the draw of the alarm/immobiliser) so the requirement is small (but enough to flatten a starter battery in a few weeks without support) and there fore the input from the 300w solar appears to be small.
turn on loads of lights or an inverter with a bike charger attached and only then will you see what your solar system can (or can't) do.
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Hi,
Our vehicle battery will trickle charge once the leisure batteries are full, but only on EHU. When not "Plugged In" The solar regulator will keep the leisure batteries topped up only.
I guess its down to if your van is on the drive or away in storage, but rather than spend a few quid, If its possible I'd just take it a run round for 30 mins once a week.
Ours is kept in storage, but I'm lucky that its only five mins away so Its easy for me. I have a regular circuit that's 15 miles, with a mix of urban/national speed limit roads and I don't have any problems.
As per comments from the other guys, your voltage readings are perfectly normal. Our vehicle battery is normally 12.2/12.7V after its been stood for a week to ten days.
Matt
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Matt, with fuel prices as they are, you're definitely 'spending a few quid' every time you hake it out for that 30 min run...
if you off grid, it might be worth the small investment to add a Battery Master to ensure your cab battery is fine after a few days....or more...where your leisure batteries are fed by the solar regulator....you could even swap the regulator for a dual output version.
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“…..Matt, with fuel prices as they are, you're definitely 'spending a few quid' every time you take it out for that 30 min run...”
With a gallon of diesel around £6.75 a gallon, a 30min run each week is probably costing upwards of £13.50 a month or £162 pa just to charge the battery. That’s quite expensive when you consider solar is free.
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Its a bright day today, the sun is out but still quite low in the sky (probably about 10 o'clock). My 120w panel was only just maintaining float voltage of 13.6v. It should be between 13.5 to 13.8v to maintain a full battery. Yesterday was a gloomy day and it was showing only 13.3 volts. I use a NASA Marine BM1 meter to keep any eye on my leisure battery. You can see whether it is charging or dischrging amd to what degree plus the voltage across the termals and what capacity is available.
peedee
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At this time of the year a portable solar panel has significant advantages over shallow angled (or flat) roof mounted panels as you can achieve a much better orientation and inclination. In winter when the sun is low in relation to the horizon, a steep angle of about 65 degrees is best in Bedford.
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I cleaned it today but it doesn't look as good as in the photo because all I did was wash it. Too cold to be out there for long. The photo was taken after a wash and a polish.
I didn't have enough roof space for anything larger than a 120w panel.
peedee
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Could you not could put another one in front of skylight and join them up?
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Connecting panels in a string, whether series or parallel, works best when panels are of the same spec...voltage, wattage etc...
As are yours, my three are all identical which makes the way the panels combine more straightforward...
adding a different sized panel to an existing one 'can' result in a system that's not what you think it is.....
much reading available re benefits of seizes v parallel and how mis matched panels change the overall set up.
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I ruled out putting another panel on the roof mainly because it would make it too cluttered and difficult to access for cleaning and any repairs that become necessary. You certainly cannot get another 120w panel in the space available.
peedee
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