Does leaving the battery on charge constantly do it any or no favours? I'm thinking of fitting a switch(with neon indicator) before the 240v input to my charger. I work away from home and therefore the van is 'switched on' 24/7. The main reason is being able to monitor the battery more closely/easier, the last one I had didn't seem to last long. And after a recent 'surge' it will be a little more protection when I'm not here. To be truthful I have already bought a slimline switch with neon.
Battery Charger
- Thread starter nineteen4ever
- Start date
Caravans don't have battery chargers, they're power supplies - but universally called chargers! The difference is the voltage and the maximum charge that can be achieved.
Power supplies operate at 13.8v and will only charge the battery about 80%. They can be on permanently.
Proper chargers operate at 14.4 or 14.8v and will charge 100% but can only be left on permanently if they're "intelligent". Aldi were selling one recently for
Power supplies operate at 13.8v and will only charge the battery about 80%. They can be on permanently.
Proper chargers operate at 14.4 or 14.8v and will charge 100% but can only be left on permanently if they're "intelligent". Aldi were selling one recently for
Roger, I know they're not the same as normal battery chargers, it was just a slip of the keys, by the way the van is a 2004 Bailey Senator Oklahoma.
Gary, just fit a switch in the 230v cable into the power supply and use an intelligent charger, as I do - power supply for "peak" times and intelligent charger for the rest.
The power supply will provide 10/20 amps while an intelligent charger will give 4 amps, typically.
The power supply will provide 10/20 amps while an intelligent charger will give 4 amps, typically.
- Jun 20, 2005
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Hi Roger
When we collected our Wyoming last november I was told that no "new" caravans come with a system that charges the caravan battery whilst connected to the towing vehicle.
I have studied the Bailey wiring diagram and this is true.
For years I have always had a split charger relay fitted, or I thought I had , to the tow vehicle.
Anyway it seems my battery does not get charged whilst towing, only the fridge works off the car.
Do you know if this situation can be changed or is it just progress???
Cheers
Alan
When we collected our Wyoming last november I was told that no "new" caravans come with a system that charges the caravan battery whilst connected to the towing vehicle.
I have studied the Bailey wiring diagram and this is true.
For years I have always had a split charger relay fitted, or I thought I had , to the tow vehicle.
Anyway it seems my battery does not get charged whilst towing, only the fridge works off the car.
Do you know if this situation can be changed or is it just progress???
Cheers
Alan
Since the changes to 12S wiring in 1998, pin 2 is no longer used to directly charge the battery during towing.
My 2001 Bailey Pageant charges the battery from pin 4 Car Battery but using a relay from pin 6 Fridge - what this means is that pin 4 charges the van battery with engine running but supplies alternative power from the car battery with engine off or car disconnected.
My 2001 Bailey Pageant charges the battery from pin 4 Car Battery but using a relay from pin 6 Fridge - what this means is that pin 4 charges the van battery with engine running but supplies alternative power from the car battery with engine off or car disconnected.
Alan - I haven't rewired anything inside the caravan, that's how the 2001 Pageants and Senators were.
I have replaced the 12N/12S plugs with a 13-pin plug but retained all the pin allocations.
I have replaced the 12N/12S plugs with a 13-pin plug but retained all the pin allocations.
Alan,
I'll add our experiences as support for Roger's statement - our previous Eriba charged the caravan battery via the car (admittedly our last two cars have had the 13 pin Euro connector, but the pin allocations do the same job as the 12S).
It was certainly possible to disable the car to caravan charge process by setting a switch on the BIP power pack...
And our current 2004/5 Eriba has a factory fitted Schaudt WA-1214 booster - which provides "intelligent" battery charging at 14.8 volts (boosted from the car 12 volt supply) whilst towing - and this receives its power from pins 9 and 13 (which I think are 3 and 4 on the 12S)
So I would have expected a caravan battery to be charged during towing (switch setting permitting)
Robert
I'll add our experiences as support for Roger's statement - our previous Eriba charged the caravan battery via the car (admittedly our last two cars have had the 13 pin Euro connector, but the pin allocations do the same job as the 12S).
It was certainly possible to disable the car to caravan charge process by setting a switch on the BIP power pack...
And our current 2004/5 Eriba has a factory fitted Schaudt WA-1214 booster - which provides "intelligent" battery charging at 14.8 volts (boosted from the car 12 volt supply) whilst towing - and this receives its power from pins 9 and 13 (which I think are 3 and 4 on the 12S)
So I would have expected a caravan battery to be charged during towing (switch setting permitting)
Robert
I bought an Aldi "intelligent". charger and it works well. From the picture of the CTEC charger (the gold standard of chargers) it looks Identical.
Chris, I have both - a CTEK 3600 and an Auto-XS from Aldi - they certainly aren't identical, not really even close.
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