we bought a new battery last year which we thought the lights and water pump run off after 2 days of being hooked up on site it went dead .Can anybody explain how to keep the battery charged and if it as normal to have the lights and pump running off it.it seems that only the sockets and fridge run off the mains much advice needed cheers
Unrestricted use of lights and water pump could flatten a battery in two days, depends on the size of the battery and its state of charge when first installed.
You probably have an on board battery charger which will only work when you are connected to an electric hook up (EHU). If your car's towbar is fitted with twin electrics (one black socket and one white socket) you can also charge your battery as you are towing. If you leave your van in storage then it is best to take the battery home and keep it on a trickle charger. Don't let it run dead flat, it's hard to recover.
The sockets and the fridge will only work form 230V, again when your van is connected to a EHU. Most fridges can be powered by gas when on site and by 12v from the car when towing.
depends how long it's been on the shelf ..as tykey says they should be charged up at home first for at least an overnight 10 hour period before setting off
another thing ..sure the fridge was on electric position on the dial ..if it was left on transit 12v ..the caravan in-built charger would have a job to catch up with drawn off current did you check the freezer chips thawed out as battery power will not freeze stuff ..just a thought ..
Quote: Originally posted by clanjones on 01/7/2008
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another thing ..sure the fridge was on electric position on the dial ..if it was left on transit 12v ..the caravan in-built charger would have a job to catch up with drawn off current
Post last edited on 01/07/2008 10:14:58
I'm not sure that's the general case. The only 12v fridge circuits I've seen are powered directly from the car battery when the engine is running. There is no connection to the on board battery charger, that's 230V.
There is also a separate 12v charging circuit to the caravan battery from the car when the 12s socket is connected.
I'd try it elsewhere - it might just be possible that your hook-up had tripped sometime during your stay leading to the battery charge not being replaced once the electric supply was not working. Generally you don't even need to think about charging your battery if you're hooked-up - it does it automatically. If the hook-up was working then your fridge should run on electricity from the hook-up. It only runs on 12v when there is no hook-up connection, or when running from the car when travelling. If your hook-up was not working then the fridge would run on 12v and soon run down the battery.
hi,please check that the battery charger switch is in the on position, i found out the hardway,the switch was in the off position,so the battery run flat,after buying new battery,hope this might help you.
------------- its easy enough to be pleasant when the world rolls along like a song.but a man is worth while if he can smile when every thing goes f------ wrong.
How old is your caravan? Older caravans did not always have a charger, so it is possible if the battery wasn't fully charged when you bought it that using lights and water pump for a couple of days flattened it as it wasn't being re-charged. It could also be that there is a charger but it is not working.
The fridge can't be run from 12v on any van I've ever known of, it is only designed to work on 12v directly from the car when the engine is running.
------------- Caz
If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, just keep going till you go round the bend.
Hello Andy and Rach , I am afraid some contributors are giving you some misinformation in their advice on you question . Bordercaz and Crypto are perfectly correct in saying that your fridge DOES NOT work off 12volts when on site connected to the EHU , the ONLY time your fridge can work of 12 volts is when its powered from your tow vehicle , unless someone has tampered with the standard caravan electrics . As you say , your fridge and 240/230v sockets worked OK during your time away but your battery ran down after 2 days of use , using internal lights and water pump . If you don't have 230v lights ( or at least some ) it sounds like your caravan could be a few years old . So please check to ensure you actually have a battery charger installed and working correctly in your caravan . if one is installed , and switched on AND working then you should be getting approx 13.5 v across your battery , if you get only 12.5 or below then suspect your battery charger ( if fitted ) .
If the battery is in good condition , you do not say battery output ( 110amp/ 75 amp ) or battery type ( car/ leisure ) then you would under normal usage to last maybe 7 days if only using water pump and say 2 flourescent tube 12v lights for say 1 hour /night . Really you have to furnish further imformation for contributors to help you more with your problems , but first get your battery checked out by a repitable source , fully charged and caravan electrical system looked over . --- Steve .
Thanks for all your advice there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel
we are going to test the battery charger unit to see if it is in working order .we are also fully charging the new leisure battery as we did not do this when we bought it.
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Topic: leisure battery
