Travelling Tyke Posted November 10, 2010 Share Posted November 10, 2010 Hello Derek, I wasn't going to bother about Pascals Wager etc. but as things can go wrong whilst on site and hooked-up, whilst sight-seeing or asleep - a risk (?) that we take, I will continue to carry on as I do. I could of course regret it, technology can be fickle But hey, that's life. (Which is in the lap of the God/s) :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casey Posted November 10, 2010 Share Posted November 10, 2010 Hi Keith, thanks for your reply. Had the van a couple of months now, autotrail book very vague & never been able to work out the sargent control panel. Had a bit fiddle about today & got it sorted, turned out to be a blown 20amp fuse next to the engine battery. Finding out new things every day. Thank you again for your reply casey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted November 10, 2010 Share Posted November 10, 2010 Travelling Tyke - 2010-11-10 3:19 PM Hello Derek, I wasn't going to bother about Pascals Wager etc. but as things can go wrong whilst on site and hooked-up, whilst sight-seeing or asleep - a risk (?) that we take, I will continue to carry on as I do. I could of course regret it, technology can be fickle But hey, that's life. (Which is in the lap of the God/s) :-D And, if it *is* going to go wrong, then if it is hooked-up at home, then there is more of a chance that it will do so here, where it is easier to resolve, and less disruptive. B-) Derek is, of course, correct. There *is* a chance that the charger won't function as designed. In fact, the CBE unit in my previous 'van was faulty from new - it wouldn't re-awaken automatically once it dropped into standby, despite the battery being discharged (it had to be switched on and off to resynchronise everything). It was replaced under warranty. If it hadn't been on permanent hook-up at home, it would have taken me much longer to diagnose and resolve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 Clive writes :- The output of your GEC (General Electric Company ?) charger is a fixed 13.8 volts with a current limiting feature that stops the charger being loaded beyond its maximum capability of 162 watts. Its characteristics are very similar to that from the vehicle alternator and if left on for a long time will maintain the battery at about 80% charged. The voltage limit means that the battery should not excessively gas although it will consume a small amount of de-ionised water over time if left on continuously if it is a conventional wet cell battery. The Sargent EC200 charger is very similar in characteristics to the GEC charger. However the Sargent EC325 charger used on later motorhomes has a clever algorithm which will charge the battery fully then reduce the charge voltage to a lower value to maintain it in that condition. The CTEK range have a similar algorithm to the Sargent EC325. If your wet battery has “re-combination caps” and is as such a no maintenance battery it should tolerate many days of continuous charging using your charger. The CTEK and later Sargent chargers will be better as they maintain the battery at a slightly lower voltage to ensure they do not gas, this after first fully charging them. Regarding charging the starter battery as well as the leisure battery “it all depends”. Some vans do this automatically; some systems require the user to select which battery is to be used for both charging and running the leisure equipment. Many do not. For those that do not then the “Battery Mate” or “Battery Master” can be fitted or a simple “bridging fuse” fitted during periods of vehicle lay up. (http://www.motts.org/BRIDGING%20FUSE.htm ) Hope that helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeymac Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Interesting thread. My Hymer has a button on the control panel for switching off power to the entire cabin, effectively isolating the leisure battery. Trouble is that by doing so I lose all the settings on my Pioneer Satnav audio system. The radio stops every time Heidi gives a direction, the reversing camera need resetting, the route settings return to default and all the radio channel presets are lost,....Add to that, we often use the freezer as an overspill for dog food and trout, power is required for the control panel, the boiler dump switch, the alarm, the Phantom GPS tracker and the other functions mentioned earlier in the thread, plus the M/H is used as an extra room at home where fly tying stuff can be left set up and a book can be read in peace and quiet.......life's too short to be messing around. I just leave power connected, in winter often with a dehumidifier plugged in. Nothing here to make me feel I should change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 In our Hymer, the radio, the lights around the rooflight, fridge electrics, Truma heater electrics & sat receiver are powered from the leisure battery with the control panel switched off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DESCO Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 If you are worried about leaving on charge 24/7 why not do as I have for years wire EHU through a programmable time switch to go on for a few hours overnight, once a week, batteries always charged, no problems. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harvey Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Clive - 2010-11-26 1:57 PM Clive writes :- If your wet battery has “re-combination caps” and is as such a no maintenance battery it should tolerate many days of continuous charging using your charger. Hope that helps. Clive, would you clarify " re-combination caps" please. Thanks, Harvey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJB Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 We stay mostly on sites with EHU. The onboard battery charger is always switched on. Haven't had a dud battery for more than the last 40+ years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeymac Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Reference my last; just when I thought I'd made a final decision, I stumble upon this..... http://www.engineersedge.com/battery/antimony_calcium_selenium_tin_alloying.htm See paragraph 4 cautionary note on lead calcium batteries. Bah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeymac Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 Now I find a brief that sys that Calcium-Calcium batteries should be kept connected to a battery charger. http://lead-acid-battery.rappendal.se/calcium-calcium-lead-acid-battery.htm My Hymer control panel shows a charge of point one amps when the battery is fully charged. I have to program it to show how many ampere hours the battery holds when fully charged. Initially a question mark is added to this figure figure when fully charged, though it disappears after a while. Perhaps this is to remind me that fully charged means only that the battery won't take any more charge, but if it won't take a full charge, would I know, or would it still show the fully charged ampere hours, i.e the extent to which it is able to charge the battery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 10, 2011 Share Posted May 10, 2011 Harvey To fully charge any storage battery a certain amount of overcharge is necessary. This equalizes the power in the cells of the battery. When a cell reaches 80% capacity, surplus energy is dissipated through heat, which results in the release of hydrogen and oxygen gasses. These gasses escape from the battery and cause a reduction in the electrolyte level. You must then counteract this process by "topping up" these cells with distilled water. Recombination caps are able to catalytically recombine the hydrogen and oxygen gasses into pure water which is then returned to the battery cell. This process drastically reduces the amount of "topping up" and virtually eliminates the danger of a hydrogen gas explosion. Corrosion is eliminated because the acid spray and fumes are contained within the cell. In general, and under normal conditions, recombination caps decrease the frequency of watering intervals by three times - meaning up to 3 fewer annual watering / maintenance intervals. To summarise - recombination caps:- - drastically reduce the amount of time and money you spend on "topping up" your batteries. - virtually eliminate the risk the venting of hydrogen gas can cause. - contain corrosive elements - which increases the life of your battery and decreases cleaning time. - provide the user with all the benefits of a flooded type battery with minimal maintenance similar to sealed batteries. - increase watering interval by three times. This can be as long as 12 months. (Courtesy of GOOGLE) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeymac Posted May 16, 2011 Share Posted May 16, 2011 Yes indeed. After 35 years in Royal Signals I've had a fair amount of exposure to batteries and what happens if they're mistreated, especially on hilltops in the snow at minus goodness knows what. It seems unjust that a vehicle charger, both alternator and mains converter, won't fully charge a battery, but then I suppose there is a built in safety factor to stop them fizzing as I remember them doing in regimental battery "shops". What a palaver to charge from another charger when returning home, requiring everything to be disconnected, losing default settings on radio and satnav in the process, only to have the same situation a day into an excursion. Seems to me that it's better to run with it and just have plenty of battery on board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brambles Posted May 16, 2011 Share Posted May 16, 2011 Whiskeymac - 2011-05-16 12:50 PM ...... Seems to me that it's better to run with it and just have plenty of battery on board. Got it on one. Unless you have very high power needs then you do not need to charge to 100%. You do not need to disconnect the batteries to recharge. Technology has moved on, and with controlled chargers and better batteries you can charge in situ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whiskeymac Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 Thanks for all the input one and all. On a related note, having fessed to a military comms background, just a word of caution. I witnessed the deaths of 3 young soldiers from carbon monoxide poisoning in separate incidents. All were caused by breathing in exhaust fumes from petrol generators. These had ten foot flexi exhaust pipes which in all cases were correctly routed away from where they died. The common element was that there was no wind to dissipate the fumes and they were sleeping or working in confined spaces. Trees, scrub and walls all featured in building the concentration. Our leisure generators are just as potentially lethal. Good siting and ventilation, should be observed at all times and especial care should be taken on calm evenings. I have an on-board generator which means that I can't place it as far away from the van as possible, but even if I could, I know from bitter experience, that there is no room for complacency. Needless so say, a CO detector is fitted and always activated when battery charging and using bottled gas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.