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Topic: Off grid advice please

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Hairywol

08/8/2016 at 8:31am
Location: Teesside
Outfit: Challenger Sport 524 + Volvo V90 D5

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I've always used my caravan with EHU until visiting a friend in France recently. The 'van was parked outside his rural cottage without being plugged in for three nights.

Problem is that the battery completely powered down before the end of the last night and I've understood that, with care, a battery should last much longer.

It's a two year old 105 Amp battery that was checked at service only a month ago, and has the added benefit of a 40 volt solar panel (lack of sunlight definitely not an issue). It certainly started off fully charged.

The fridge was used on gas setting and lights were all LED. We used a 12 volt charger throughout for phones and iPad. The TV signal booster was switched on though (but no TV)' and I had neglected to turn off the 230v switches for water, heat and charging. The radio/CD was also left on.

This is an area in which I'm a complete novice, so any explanations or advice are very welcome.

One relief is that I was able to charge the battery quickly after only a few hours discharged, and it appears to be ok.

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jim oldham

08/8/2016 at 9:43am
Location: Wigan
Outfit: VWSharan. Sport 442.

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I am far from being an expert with batteries, but as a starter, I would have the battery rechecked.

Without doing any sums, I cannot see a decent battery being flattened after three days. Nice caravan by the way.

Grampian91

08/8/2016 at 12:16pm
Location: Midlands
Outfit: Mondeo Avondale Gram

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None of your mains switches will affect the battery unless you have an inverter that takes 12 volts and ups that to 240v mains electricity.

Even though lights are LED they still draw a fair bit of power. My LEDs are approx 1/2 or 1/3 of the original fittings. But thats approx 0.5amp per strip.
The water heater although using gas to heat the water needs a 12v supply for the electrics. The fridge maybe the same.

Charging your devices can eat into the battery quite a bit. Best to charge them in the car on your trips out.

How many watts is the panel? I have gone 2 weeks with just a pair of 25w panels, In cornwall where the weather is a bit like it is now, some very good days and some fairly cloudy days.

Check the panel is actually charging the battery and not overcharging it which boils the water out of teh battery, checked the water level in the battery?

LlaniDavis

08/8/2016 at 2:46pm
Location: Llanidloes Powys
Outfit: Skoda Yeti SEL4x4 +Bailey Ranger 460-4

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Quote:
The fridge was used on gas setting and lights were all LED. We used a 12 volt charger throughout for phones and iPad. The TV signal booster was switched on though (but no TV)' and I had neglected to turn off the 230v switches for water, heat and charging. The radio/CD was also left on.

You need to do a power audit.
How much power was being used with all those things on?
I suspect that the 12v chargers and the signal booster used a lot more than you thought, as does the radio.

navver

08/8/2016 at 8:29pm
Location: West country
Outfit: Mondeo

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Things left on 24/7 use 24 times as much as something only used for an hour. These things often sound like they don't use much but 3 days is 108 hours. Sounds like you had a lot of small things all drawing 24/7.

How good is the solar panel controller. Is there any way it can be drawing power when dark.

The battery sounds as if it might be not so good as well.

Hairywol

09/8/2016 at 8:20am
Location: Teesside
Outfit: Challenger Sport 524 + Volvo V90 D5

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Thanks for the advice everyone, I think I've gotten to the bottom of things.

We did have stuff on that should have been turned off, and a charger working full time. But the culprit appears to be the Pioneer stereo with which I replaced the standard JVC unit. It's an all-singing double-din unit, uses more power than the JVC and only turns completely off when power is disconnected, otherwise it draws a significant current from the battery.

This isn't a problem on EHU, but if ever off-grid again the answer is to knock off the power when the caravan is unattended.

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Camping Gear expands so as to fill the space available for its transportation.

nellymcl

09/8/2016 at 8:54am
Location: Central Scotland
Outfit: Bailey Phoenixtreme 640

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I go 'off-grid' for 2 weeks every year. This year I have a new caravan and found it has a lot more electric controls to my previous 'vans. The Combi style hot water appears to have a recirculating pump which we didnt have previously. I also take the face off my stereo before I go.

This year I did buy a 60w folding solar panel and connected it with croc clips during the stay. Full battery every day. I only used the 12v to charge phones etc in the morning to allow the battery to be recharged during the day if required. (or if it was sunny I just left them in!)

Family of 4 showering every day too and we ate in the caravan every day so lots of water being pumped through.

Not much info I know but I think just being careful to what is switched on is the key.

geoff+emmy

09/8/2016 at 1:42pm
Location: Huddersfield
Outfit: swift conqueror 645+jeep commander

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A 40 watt panel will only give around 3 amps Also a modern fridge also requires 12 volts even if running on gas
Best advise as said is turn everything off if not being used.

DaveCoaches

09/8/2016 at 2:06pm
Location: None Entered
Outfit: Coachman Pastiche

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I have a radio in my caravan that will kill the battery quite quickly. The only way to switch mine off completely is to remove the face. Hard to believe that a radio can use twice as much power as a TV but the speakers are generally much more powerful in the radio and there are more often than not more of them. My radio has 4 50 watt speakers. The TV uses less power than one of the speakers.

Hairywol

11/8/2016 at 3:30pm
Location: Teesside
Outfit: Challenger Sport 524 + Volvo V90 D5

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Thanks again everyone. On a learning curve so all the points are appreciated. On a good note we spent all day off-grid again at Caen, waiting for the ferry, and the battery isn't ruined and held a full charge.

DaveCoaches - yes, the Pioneer stereo was the culprit, it's full-size unit with a big LED touch-screen and an interior fan like a PC for cooling, hadn't thought of taking the panel off.

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Camping Gear expands so as to fill the space available for its transportation.

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