Sorry for the stupid question but I’m a first time owner.
The battery appears to be dead and so we bought a charger but can’t work out how to remover the battery from the van and remove the charge casings in order to charge it. We live in a flat so can’t do it from our home to the van.
Also, which switch do we turn on to activate charging as we drive?
No such thing as a stupid question, we were all first timers once.
If the problem is removing the battery clamps, they usually just lift up at the opposite end to where the cable attaches. They are on quite strong springs. Once the clamps are removed the battery should just lift out.
How have you checked that the battery is dead, did you use a multimeter or are you just relying on the indicator in the van? If the battery really is dead, the concern would be how long has it been that way? Batteries left fully discharged for long periods often can't be recharged and need replacing.
I would have thought that the leisure battery should recharge automatically once the engine is running but I am not familiar with your particular vehicle so that may not be the case. The battery selector switch probably has a centre-off position, which from the pictures it could well be in. You need to have it in the opposite position to "car", I can't quite make out what that says. In that position you should be able to draw power from it. If you switch it to "car" you are probably drawing power from the starter battery.
As Colin says, there is a tab evident there which you lift up (furthest away from terminal in your picture) that you lift upwards. Many French car manufacturers use that method and it does confuse. Just prise it up with your fingers.
If your battery is dead, and I can't see the type of battery from your picture, and it has been left discharged for a long period, it is likely proper dead but too hard to say...
I don't know your system but the "Battery selector" switch is not relevant when charging. It merely selects from which battery the output to the 12volt comes i.e. the leisure battery or the vehicle battery. Use in the vehicle position obviously should be limited otherwise you will exhaust the vehicle battery and unable to start the vehicle.
DaveS1
A bit of judicious googling suggests your battery is this:
EXIDE ER550 MARINE LEISURE DUAL BATTERY 115AH (PORTA POWER PP115) and looks pretty new (£128 from Tanya Batteries)
Colin’s suggestion of a multmeter is a good one, they are quite cheap, about an tenner, and very useful once you get your head around it. Switch it to the 20v battery range, (marked with a sign a bit like = for DC rather than a wavy line which is AC, like mains) and apply the probes to the two terminals, red to red and black to blue. You should get a reading, albeit small if the battery is dead. Now turn the engine on and take another reading. This will tell you if the battery is being charged from the vehicle, and you should get a reading of around 13-14v. Lastly, plug up the mains input and do the same thing. This will tell you whether your mains charger is working.
Voila! You’ve just done your own charging checks!
If the battery is exhausted ( below say 8v) a garage might be able to use a specialist charger to resurrect it
Sorry if I’ve oversimplified, but I tried to assume no prior knowledge.
Quote: Originally posted by morepints on 02/5/2024
A bit of judicious googling suggests your battery is this:
EXIDE ER550 MARINE LEISURE DUAL BATTERY 115AH (PORTA POWER PP115) and looks pretty new (£128 from Tanya Batteries)
Colin’s suggestion of a multmeter is a good one, they are quite cheap, about an tenner, and very useful once you get your head around it. Switch it to the 20v battery range, (marked with a sign a bit like = for DC rather than a wavy line which is AC, like mains) and apply the probes to the two terminals, red to red and black to blue. You should get a reading, albeit small if the battery is dead. Now turn the engine on and take another reading. This will tell you if the battery is being charged from the vehicle, and you should get a reading of around 13-14v. Lastly, plug up the mains input and do the same thing. This will tell you whether your mains charger is working.
Voila! You’ve just done your own charging checks!
If the battery is exhausted ( below say 8v) a garage might be able to use a specialist charger to resurrect it
Sorry if I’ve oversimplified, but I tried to assume no prior knowledge.
You can actually buy a pretty affordable multi stage battery charger with a 'resurrection' mode but lead acids that have been left a long time at a stage where they would require being resurrected is not pointless but maybe a little desperate IMO.
Where possible, and specifically for people with a solar panel attached to their chosen camping wagon and who use Lead Acid batteries, keeping them topped up with a constant charge, from a proper solar charge controller or trickle capable mains charger will enjoy a much longer battery life. Not so with Lithium if you are storing for longer periods of time sadly. A kind of short coming of Lithium vs wet.
We have a little 15watt solar panel that plugs in to our cigarette lighter socket in our van that keeps the starter battery in a better place when not used for months.
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Topic: How do I charge the leisure battery ?
via mobile 25/4/2024 at 1:55pm
