Caravan Battery we think is dead even though we have solar

[Saxo Appeal]

Was just down to the caravan last week (in storage) to pick up a few things, and noticed there was an orange light on the solar panel box in the cupboard,

Switched on the power boxes under the seats and all the fuse breakers were ok and in correct position.

The power didn’t switch on which presumably means we have a flat battery

I was told by our yearly service guy to always ensure the breakers etc were all switched off when in storage, have I been told the wrong thing and the solar panel hasn’t been able to trickle charge the battery?

Also is getting the battery charged back up a quick fix, or shall we just leave it will we are going out again and the car power will charge the caravan battery on route to next site, or should we be doing something now to prevent a bad battery?

 

[otherclive]

I would remove the battery and connect to a smart charger if you cannot connect one where you keep the caravan. Does the caravan manual not describe what should be switched on or off when not in use. Assuming the panels were OEM fitments.

 

[birdman101]

The breakers are mains not off the Battery so will have no effect. But charge Battery ASAP as the longer left flat will be detrimental to it, and less chance of if recharging up. If you have a Sargent consumer unit make sure the black power button is in the up position when the Caravan is not in use, to stop the Battery discharging

 

[Saxo Appeal]

I would remove the battery and connect to a smart charger if you cannot connect one where you keep the caravan. Does the caravan manual not describe what should be switched on or off when not in use. Assuming the panels were OEM fitments.

Yes the panels were OEM fitted

Any recommendations on a smart charger?

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Very odd how my battery can be drained, if the below is true

I know the Sargent Alarm works because it beeped when I arrived and when it was armed

I’m going to head back down this week and check again

 

[IanB1485]

I use the NBR-360-12-TB from Farnell as it doubles as a PSU and I always have a couple in stock for when a clients caravan 12V PSU packs up. Others claim the Cetek range of smart chargers are good and others say the halford ones are OK , but I have no personal experience of them. As others have said get the battery warm and on a charger ASAP to hopefully prevent it being terminally damaged.Re the solar panel 100W is the MAXIMUM the panel can produce , in current weather conditions you will be lucker to get about 1W for a brief amount of time during the day , and thats with a clean panel - debris and dirt will severely reduce its output

 

[borderbilly]

Yellow AA branded one from the big river or argos, not expensive and has charged near dead batteries for me.

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Wound I be right in saying if the battery was fully dead, the alarm would not be operating?

Maybe a dumb question 🫣

 

[IanB1485]

You can't do better than personal recommendations.

 

[IanB1485]

No, the Sargent alarm has an internal battery pack , so that if the ne'er do wells disconnect the battery by forcing open the battery locker the alarm will still operate although for a limited time.Not sure how it works ( radio tracker system ?) but on a Sargent training course they brought up a real time map , showing all the Swift caravans and the status of the leisure battery and the back up battery along with histories of the voltages. I'm not sure if you have to pay a subscription to swift to maintain this.

 

[otherclive]

Yes the panels were OEM fitted

Any recommendations on a smart charger?

I’ve always used CTEK , had it since early 2000s, but there are now other makes offering smart capability. My son uses NOCO.

 

[Gafferbill]

.....the black shut down button on the Sargent control box must be there for a reason!
I've always assumed power was being used if it wasn't turned off.
Left it on recently for a fortnight in my Swift and found my battery down to 4 volts. Nothing obvious was left on.
Recharged the battery with a smart charger to test it and it has maintained 12.9 volts for over a week ...so battery is fine.
I don't have a solar panel.

 

[Saxo Appeal]

The breakers are mains not off the Battery so will have no effect. But charge Battery ASAP as the longer left flat will be detrimental to it, and less chance of if recharging up. If you have a Sargent consumer unit make sure the black power button is in the up position when the Caravan is not in use, to stop the Battery discharging

Do you mean this black button, the ‘System Shutdown’

So leave this always on the up which means ‘off’ and all the switches to its right are all off?

 

[Mel]

Do you mean this black button, the ‘System Shutdown’

So leave this always on the up which means ‘off’ and all the switches to its right are all off?

View attachment 10029

Absolutely! Leave it in the Off position when in storage or not in use. All other buttons on the unit also off. The solar panel is on a separate system and will charge the leisure battery. Alarm has its own battery

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Thank you all

Going down this Sat to check again for sure as storage is closed due to holidays

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Ok folks, went down today and tried a few things, battery is def low or going dead.

Posting a few photos of a few things we tried and of the solar unit in cupboard, which was orange solid (low battery) and green was blinking on and off.

First was black switch in the ON position and no lights on anything.

Second was of the Solar unit

 

[Mel]

First off, turn the Sargent unit to Off. Also you might want to take the leisure battery home and see if it can be resurrected via a smart charger. Take the fuse out of the solar panel Truma gizmo if you are doing this. It is sticking into the underside of the Truma box.
Mel

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Can’t remember how I left the buttons on the Sargent, but I did disconnect and take the battery home with me.

It’s currently sitting in the boot and waiting on a Smart Charger getting delivered on Monday.

Hopefully the way I’ve left the Sargent and Truma will be fine until we solve the battery level

 

[birdman101]

With those colour lights showing on the controller is the same as I had 2 years ago. The Battery was also flat. I removed the case off the Sargent consumer unit and found that the 20amp circuit board fuse inside for the Solar Panel supply to the Battery was blown connection E9. Replaced the fuse and the Solar then charged the Battery and been fine since. So worth checking before buying a new Battery,

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Thank you, will also look into that, presumably it’s number 9 below to swap over if burnt out?

 

[birdman101]

No it is not that fuse, but on the circuit board inside the Sargent consumer unit you have posted a picture of showing the Black power shut down Button. You need to remove the unit and take the case off and look for the Yellow 20amp fuse on the circuit board next to the wire connection plug E 9

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Ah ok so the actual whole unit, thanks

 

[birdman101]

Ah ok so the actual whole unit, thanks

Also it may even be that that connector E 9 is not connected properly if you think it has never charged the Battery from you having the Caravan

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Just out of curiosity regarding the Smart Charger, is there much difference to buying a 2A V 10A?

Presume one charges one faster then the other

 

[Saxo Appeal]

Also it may even be that that connector E 9 is not connected properly if you think it has never charged the Battery from you having the Caravan

It’s always been charging fine, this is the first year we’ve had this issue since 2023, the caravan was just in for a few things getting fixed in November but nothing electrical so I can’t point the finger at the dealer.

I also need to check the Solar Panels, since it was purchased in Oct 2023, the panels have now been cleaned.