I would agree, the motor mover task can be handled by any reasonable battery as it is not a challenging duty. Actually starter batteries are as good as any for that job. A leisure battery is needed for the more challenging duty of providing lower but extended duration amounts of power, that occur if your caravanning is done away from an electrical hook up [EHU].
If you are one that never needs to camp off an EHU then a cheaper starter technology battery is fine; it should never get depleted very much and this is a healthy state of affairs not demanding the more expensive technology that batteries that get drained deeper require.
If you on the other hand require a battery good for camping off an EHU, which means it gets depleted deeper then to get any reasonable life you need a true leisure battery. Unfortunately there is a world of mis labelled batteries out there and simply writing leisure on it does not make it the right technology.
The NCC [caravan industry association] has a simple guide on the batteries needed that is well worth refering to :
I only need true leisure batteries and have been pleased with those made by Exide, Banner[their Energy Bull] and Varta. These are not budget batteries but medium priced quality products.
Buying is IMO important, I recommend not a caravan dealer or a factor that "also sells batteries" etc but a battery specialist; Online, Tayna and Alpha are ones I can personally recommend.
To keep any battery of our type healthy follow the rule: deplete it as little as possible and recharge it as promptly after use as you can, but not at too quick a rate.
Thanks folks, it seems that those who have responded have echoed my own thoughts. Movers are relatively high current drain, but used for relatively short periods, a bit like a car starter motor, so maybe an ordinary battery would be just as good as a leisure battery there.
We don't often go "off-grid" either so it doesn't sound like we need anything particularly special. I just thought I would check as I have never had a caravan with movers on it before.
Thanks JTQU for those makes. I have heard they are among the best. I will probably visit Bush Batteries in Enfield, North London, as I have known of them for decades. I can remember when they used to build their own batteries on the premises! Something they haven't done for years though.
Quote: Originally posted by welshwyn on 03/8/2017
Have you bought new caravan then Colin
Yes, a newer one. The other one served us well for 4 years, but it was time for a change. We now have a 1994 Elddis Wisp 450. Quite good nick considering its age, and it has motor movers.
Quote: Originally posted by Colin21 on 03/8/2017
Thanks folks, it seems that those who have responded have echoed my own thoughts. Movers are relatively high current drain ....
Actually they are not that high, certainly nothing like a starter motor. Usually about 20amps max, thus an 80Ah battery should give plenty of motor mover running time.
Quote: Originally posted by freeatlast on 04/8/2017
Quote: Originally posted by Colin21 on 03/8/2017
Thanks folks, it seems that those who have responded have echoed my own thoughts. Movers are relatively high current drain ....
Actually they are not that high, certainly nothing like a starter motor. Usually about 20amps max, thus an 80Ah battery should give plenty of motor mover running time.
Yes I would agree, they are not anywhere near as high as a starter motor, which can draw 400 amps, but they are still much higher than lights, water pumps etc. Are they really only 20 amps? Sounds a bit low for something that can move a caravan weighing over a ton.
Anyway, I decided to buy a 110ah battery and fitted it this afternoon. Everything seems to work so far, but I haven't tried the movers yet.
When I had my Powrtouch Evolution mover fitted last year, the engineer told me that a mover draws around 80 amps which the minimum requirement is a 100 ah. leisure battery which is what mine is and I don't have any issues so you're above the minimum requirement anyway with a 110 ah. battery.
Quote: Originally posted by tango55 on 04/8/2017
When I had my Powrtouch Evolution mover fitted last year, the engineer told me that a mover draws around 80 amps which the minimum requirement is a 100 ah. leisure battery which is what mine is and I don't have any issues so you're above the minimum requirement anyway with a 110 ah. battery.
That sounds about right to me, Tango. It's why I went with 110ah. Always better to have a bit extra and not need it.
Quote: Originally posted by tango55 on 04/8/2017
When I had my Powrtouch Evolution mover fitted last year, the engineer told me that a mover draws around 80 amps which the minimum requirement is a 100 ah. leisure battery which is what mine is and I don't have any issues so you're above the minimum requirement anyway with a 110 ah. battery.
That sounds about right to me, Tango. It's why I went with 110ah. Always better to have a bit extra and not need it.
The 100ah. battery was transferred from my old caravan (which didn't have a mover) last year to which the battery was still functioning okay so didn't need to change it for one with a higher amp capacity but when it's time to renew then I will also opt for a 110 ah. as well. I couldn't see the point in spending money on a new battery at the time when the old one was still working satisfactorily especially when I was told that 100 ah. was sufficient to power the motor mover.
My van is 1991 Elddis Wisp 450 dealer special. I've just installed an Emove motor mover and replaced my 75 Ah leisure battery with a 110 Ah one. Yes, the 75 Ah would (and did) work fine, but I just don't want to take chances.
------------- The Sun always shines on TV.(and not on my caravan!)
Quote: Originally posted by Rob Johns on 05/8/2017
My van is 1991 Elddis Wisp 450 dealer special. I've just installed an Emove motor mover and replaced my 75 Ah leisure battery with a 110 Ah one. Yes, the 75 Ah would (and did) work fine, but I just don't want to take chances.
I think that's the same mover as on mine. Are they good? I've never used one before.
It's always better to have a bit more power available than you actually need, so 110ah is definitely better than 75ah, even though 75ah may work.
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Topic: Leisure battery
