Hi, could one of you electrical experts please help with something obvious? If I am wild camping and using my leisure battery, how long will it last? Do the amp hour rating by the total power being consumed?
ie if I am running a 12V telly that consumes 15W and have a fully charged 85amphour battery, should it last 85/15 hours , i.e 5 and a bit.
i would not try to run my battery down to less than 50%, lights, 8w over the cooker/sink is normal. 8-10w main lights. spot lights are 15-21w. they use lots of power.
to work out what your using:
15w tv = 1.4 amp, aprox so 10 hours of tv 14 amp from your battery.
dont forget pump for water and light you use in the loo.
i am changing over to LED blubs, 18w output = 150mili amp with LED.
I would suggest a battery-condition or volt-meter to monitor the leisure battery state, is a wise investment.
It`s interesting to note others` replies. I.E..."I dont discharge my battery to less than 50%"
50% of what? and "my battery is fully charged".
There are many variables, like the weather.
A fully-charged naff battery, might give a reading of 12.5V or less in cold weather---off load.
As a `rule of thumb`, you can halve the Ah rating.
Measure the voltage (on load), 11.8V??? needs charging.
The only practical method of assessing the capacity of your own battery is to test it, by connecting a known load and measuring the time it takes to discharge.
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Topic: How to Calculate Battery Usage
