Changing type of battery

Jul 18, 2017
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If you have a 2016 Buccaneer caravan with a Yuasa L36-100 leisure battery which is a deep cycle wet cell battery. If it is changed it for an AGM battery, will the charger in the caravan be able to charge it correctly? It is my understanding that a different type fo charge is needed for an AGM battery. The solar panel Truma controller can be set from lead acid battery to AGM so no issue there.
 
Nov 6, 2005
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Do you need an AGM battery rather than a decent wet battery, eg EFB.

AGM is useful when fitted in car interiors as they don't leak in a roll-over crash but that advantage is wasted in a caravan.
 
Jul 18, 2017
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Do you need an AGM battery rather than a decent wet battery, eg EFB.

AGM is useful when fitted in car interiors as they don't leak in a roll-over crash but that advantage is wasted in a caravan.
:)

I was asking on behalf of someone else with a 2016 Buccaneer as our 2018 Buccaneer may have an AGM battery as standard. Our car has an AGM battery as standard and it is fitted inside under the driver's seat.
However the question was whether the charger in a caravan is suitable for charging an AGM battery and I am no referring to the solar panel charger. Apologies if I never put it across clearly.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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It's difficult to find a entirely satisfactory answer. You will have to do a bit of your own investigation.

Consistently battery related web sites will tell you that AGM batteries require a long slow charge, and that keeping them on continuous charge for long periods to keep them topped up time will damage the batteries performance and shorten its life. AGM batteries also work best where the discharge rate is also kept relatively low, which is why they are not often used to start cars, becasue heavy engine starters can draw several hundred Amps during cranking, and AGM's are not good with high currents.

Normal caravan habitation duties should be fine, but you should the battery is designed to cope with the peak current load current (Stalled load) of your caravan mover.

They also mention but do not detail the need for a differnt type of charger.

I cannot tell you if which if any caravan charger systems are compatible with AGM batteries. You will have to check teh specifications of the unit you have fitted. If it does not have specific instructions for using AGM batteries, then it is safest to assume it is not compatible.

You need to check the chargers manufacturer if an AGM compatible replacement is available for your model.

You then also need to know the charging specifications for the model of battery you are intending to get, and to make sure its compatible with the charger.
 
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Jul 18, 2017
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Thanks prof. If the car is connected to the caravan which has an AGM battery, is there any difference to the way the AGM battery is charged by the car taking into account the alternator on modern cars? I am referring to a vehicle that does not have an AGM battery as standard.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Thanks prof. If the car is connected to the caravan which has an AGM battery, is there any difference to the way the AGM battery is charged by the car taking into account the alternator on modern cars? I am referring to a vehicle that does not have an AGM battery as standard.
Again I think you might need to consult your battery supplier for detailed specifications and advice about charging from a car. Generally the charging circuit from the car is limited to about 10A, and the wiring distance from the alternator to the caravan battery along with the various connectors does produce a modest resistance to the cars alternator current so the charging potential at the caravan battery will be somewhat lower than the output voltage at the alternator. I suspect that for the time the AGM battery would be charged this way from towing, is not going to make a big difference.

Some solar charge controllers that are designed for AGM batteries allow for different input sources, It might be possible to use an unused input for the cars charging current, then the charge controller should manage the AGM correctly, regardless of where the power is coming from.
 
Sep 26, 2018
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One of the advantages of AGM batteries is that they withstand normally wrecking degrees of discharge compared with flooded LA batteries. In 2006 I replaced the three AGM domestic batteries on my boat, and later that year, I failed to notice that I had left a device on (some items on a boat are on an "always on" circuit -e.g. bilge pump). When I got back to the boat some 6 weeks later, the brand new AGM's were reading 4V. I had to use a trickle charger to start them off, but once recovered they lasted until 2015...
 

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