derek500 Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 I've decided to get a second leisure battery. I need some advice on the best and most economical way to go about it. I've currently got a 95Ah one under the passenger seat on my 10 month old Ducato. My dealer has quoted me 240€ to fit two new batteries, he said not to add a different type, which seems good advice. I assume the second battery will be put under the driver's seat as there's no room for two under one seat. I will then be left with a nearly new, redundant battery. What I was thinking is this. Why not buy a second battery solely for use with an inverter. This would leave the original van battery just for the usual - lights, Truma fan, water pump etc. I could put the new battery, largest Ah that would fit, under the driver's seat. This battery would be used for the extras - TV, sat box, laptop etc. I would charge this battery independently with a normal battery charger before leaving home. This is where I need help. Would I be able to connect a battery charger to an inverter connected to the original battery, to charge the second battery whilst driving? Or would I need to wait until I get a hook-up to charge then? Derek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Cant help with second part of your post. But your dealer offer sounds reasonable, £160 ish at current exchange rate? and his advice to have 2 identical batteries is generally accepted as "best practice" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tp002c784tp002c784tp Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Hi Derek Even if you charge your spare battery before leaving home you have know way of knowing how long this would last and using all that you want to use its not going to take long assuming that you are going away for two weeks or so. Why not get a Van Bitz Battery master and connect to both batteries a least you will get some charge into both. Terry (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 I eould simply connect the second leisure battery with a new split charge relay so that whenever the engine is running both the batteries will be charging. Using an inverter to power a battery charger from another battery is a complete waste of energy and money. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njw Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 DAVE INTERESTED IN YOUR IDEA ABOUT FITTING A RELAY .I AM THE MAN CLIVE TALKED ABOUT WHO NEEDED TO RUN A PLAYSTATION AND TV FOR 4-5 HOURS TO KEEP MY 4 BOYS HAPPY, WHICH CLIVE HELPED ME OUT AND IS SO FAR WORKING WELL, BUT IS IT A BIG JOB TO FIT ONE OF THOSE RELAYS YOU MENTIONED Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brambles Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 All these different ideas for a 2nd battery sound good in theory. Economically and to get best performance just add a second battery in parallel with original. KISS principle. Just keep it simple, less to go wrong or get confused with. Battery management units to charge one and the feed the other just delays the 2nd battery getting charged and it is NOT good for any battery to be left for long in a discharged state below 12.6 volts. Liesure batteries cope better with discharge than a normal vehicle battery and also deep discharging, but the life is still affected. The idea of drawing heavy loads of a second battery sounds good, but it if you run it down too low it will not do it any good, also max current discharge will be higher, again reduced life of battery. Better to keep original, not waste it, and fit another of similar capacity and type. If you have no electrical hook up and occassionaly run low on remaining capacity, just start the engine and run it for a while to recharge them a bit. Thats my pennies worth for what it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest starspirit Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Absolutely agree Brambles - the simpler the better then it can't go wrong 1000 miles from home and even if it does it's easy to fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek500 Posted April 16, 2007 Author Share Posted April 16, 2007 In the end I decided to go with the dealer's recommendation and I have had installed two new 'maintenance free' 100ah batteries, one under each seat. Just done two nights away parked up at a golf course in Alicante. Didn't run engine between Friday lunchtime and Sunday evening. Did all the usual stuff and watched quite a bit of TV and on leaving, the 'indicator' was showing between 3/4 and 1/2. Well pleased with the result. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted April 16, 2007 Share Posted April 16, 2007 njw - 2007-02-02 8:55 PM DAVE INTERESTED IN YOUR IDEA ABOUT FITTING A RELAY .I AM THE MAN CLIVE TALKED ABOUT WHO NEEDED TO RUN A PLAYSTATION AND TV FOR 4-5 HOURS TO KEEP MY 4 BOYS HAPPY, WHICH CLIVE HELPED ME OUT AND IS SO FAR WORKING WELL, BUT IS IT A BIG JOB TO FIT ONE OF THOSE RELAYS YOU MENTIONED Not really, PM me your email address and i will send you a sketch. C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted April 16, 2007 Share Posted April 16, 2007 NJW, my apologies for not replying back in Feb, I don't bother with e-mail notification of postings and I must have missed your posting. Anyway, I believe Clive has now sorted it for you. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted April 17, 2007 Share Posted April 17, 2007 I think I have ?? I have just emailed neil but now another wants the picture so I will post it here. Attached is a diagram of the “Split charging” arrangement. The circuit is likely to exist at least once to charge the leisure battery probably again to run the fridge off 12 volts and you can do it again to charge a second leisure battery that you do not want to run in parallel with your first leisure battery unless its on charge. Some converters connect the first split charging relay off the supply to the fridge, its another way to achieve the same objective. If it’s all too complicated for you then get Dave Newell to do it in his workshop. He may even be tempted to do it at Peterborough, we shall both be there. The relay is available from most motorist outlets, certainly Halfords and may be Maplins. Good luck Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icelander Posted April 17, 2007 Share Posted April 17, 2007 Thanks Clive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted April 17, 2007 Share Posted April 17, 2007 Just a comment as I have left two fuses in series with the battery positive connection - one each side of the relay. I forgot to remove one of the fuses as it was a different picture I modified! Sorry!. Keep the 15 amp fuse and the 5 amp fuses. The 30 amp fuse may be suitable for protecting the wiring to your inverter. You may need a more substancial fuse (and wire size) between your inverter and the battery terminals if the inverter is over about 250 watts. C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njw Posted April 17, 2007 Share Posted April 17, 2007 thanks clive,but it is a bit over my head so hopefully dave newel might help ,as i have asked if he could sort out my radio/cd problem at peterborough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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