Due to the servere weather of late all layed up vehicles suffer from loss of power in the battery region , if you've got a battery charger connect up and switch on if it has amp meter this will show how much charge is going in som eshow 5-7amps this is high charge then pionter will drop to 0amps when fully charged. Taking your vehicle for a short run will NOT topup the batteries you need to RECHARGE the batteries. all the alternator does is keep the battery at 12volts it will not charge the battery. You can also drop test the batteries before replacement.
if you have bright sky or sunshine you could purchase a solar battery charger to place on the dashboard and plug inti 12volt/cig ligter to charge the batteries.
all the alternator does is keep the battery at 12volts it will not charge the battery.
I'm sorry, but I don't think you really understand the subject. Typically a van will be fitted with a "split charge relay" and the clue is in the second word.
When the vehicle battery is adequately charged then the system should ~charge~ the leisure battery.
[BTW, IIRC "Euston, we have a problem" is a joke paraphrase used in the lyrics of a song of a few years ago.]
Evening,
If you go onto e-bay you can buy a fully automatic motorhome charger called streewize accessories.I've got one and all I do before I pack up for winter to to take both batteries out and leave them on charge over this period. The charger will keep the batteries at the right level you dont have to do anything.
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thats not quite correct!. the alternator does recharge the battery(ies). when you start most engines a significant draw of electrical energy is taken from the battery. once the engine is running, the alternator replaces that energy back into the battery as you drive so that the battery can be ready for the next time the engine needs to be started. or put another way, it recharges the battery.
if it didnt, each time you start your engine, the battery charge level would drop lower and lower until the battery didnt hold enough energy to be able to start the engine.
and hybrid cars Recharge their main battery both from the alternator/starter ( different type from non hybrid cars ) and from re-generative braking when slowing down so they have the energy to get the car moving again after a stop.
a battery needs recharging whenever a draw is made from it so it can continue to provide energy when its needed.
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I am quite like most of the previous 'posters' to your question. Familar with the characteristics of 'my' van, and any others I previusly owned. That does not make us experts, and we all try to give suggestions of help, and advice.
HOWEVER....This may be of help to us all, I know that I found it more than enlightening. ....Along with this months MMM came the annual 'RoadPro' brochure 'practical products on the move'. Page 2 is Tech Tips, Power from your battery. Page 3, is about batteries, and page 4 thro 9, is all about battery charging, chargers etc etc. Its one hell of a lot of reading, and very comprehensive ( so may take me a few days to read!) But as far as I have read, this is advice at its best, and well worth trying, if you don't take MMM, of getting your hands on a copy. When the rest of you have read and understand...maybe you could tell me.
I believe the original poster has found the problem to his battery drain i.e. the camera was left on. I have done the same thing on my previous Autotrail on a couple of occassions and I know that it will drain a battery in a couple of days.
Cold weather as already stated will knock a battery for six also. I generally trickle charge batteries prior to layup and then once more before re commissioning.
we had a similar problem last year after draining the fresh water tank, I left the pump switched on and and it kept trying to pump air for several hours draining the battery.Once the problem was identified, the battery took charge & kept it fine.
I had a problem with my MH last year and despite being a qualified air electronics officer albeit retired I was baffled. In the end I had to get help and it turned out that the control panel, wiring, rectifier had a fault which in turn affected the batteries - they drained down flatter than a pancake! The rectifier, control panel had to be repaired, the connecting cable replaced and then the leisure batteries had to be replaced. We never found out why the system went down. In all it cost £500 to havethe units repaired and two new 110 AHr batteries.
The alternator will always - once the engine is running above idle speed (about 900 RPM) recharge the vehicle battery first and the leisure battery or batteries next. Running an engine for a few minutes does no good, it causes more problems further down the road - cat blacked, turbo choked, battery not recharging properly and the engine not heating properly.
I have a question mainly for those who design MH's - why do you place mains switches in places that make them difficult to monitor - water heater switch UNDER a bed!!! I moved it so it is on the panel in the walkway using a flat switch complete with neon. ALL and every switch should be positioned where they can be seen at all times. Try looking for the switch that operates the radar set if it was in an awkward position or even hidden. Try looking at the ergonomics from the users point of view and for goodness sake fit climate control in the cab with a feed into the habitation cabin - why climate control? Easy try running air con in winter and you freeze, climate control you adjust the temperature and hey presto you have warm dry air in winter and in summer you can have cool dry air. Fantastic.
full to flat in one day, something is switched on.
the chances of the 2 batteries going flat in one gives you a clue
Something is drawing power from the batteries.
Or your just unlucky
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Topic: We have a problem.
....Along with this months MMM came the annual 'RoadPro' brochure 'practical products on the move'. Page 2 is Tech Tips, Power from your battery. Page 3, is about batteries, and page 4 thro 9, is all about battery charging, chargers etc etc. Its one hell of a lot of reading, and very comprehensive ( so may take me a few days to read!) But as far as I have read, this is advice at its best, and well worth trying, if you don't take MMM, of getting your hands on a copy. When the rest of you have read and understand...maybe you could tell me.
