Leisure battery

[Baspegpet]

Following the discussions about leisure batteries, maybe someone can advise me how best to look after one during the lay-up period, especially in winter. Our battery is 110 (somethings - I' m not too technically minded being a mere girl!) and up to now we occasionally hook into the house electric supply for a few hours every few weeks or so to keep it topped up. Is this okay? These smart chargers sound good - if I had one, what would I do with it (no smart alec answers, please). Does it work with the battery still in the caravan, or does the battery have to be removed? Sorry for being so unknowing, but I really would appreciate some advice. Thanks.
by the way, I love the magazine and read it cover to cover the moment it comes through the letter box, much to my partner's annoyance!

 

[JTQ]

Baspegpet,

The important thing with our batteries is that they are as fully charged up as possible as harm is done storing it in any level of discharge; the greater that discharge the very much more damage is done.
Charging your battery by connecting the EHU every few weeks goes a long way to keeping the battery healthy. A few vans have sophisticated chargers that fully recharge the battery but most only charge to about 80%; this level is not particularly “harmful” but is not quite the optimum for a long battery life.
Using a free standing smart charger is a better solution if the vans charger is not one of the sophisticated ones that are themselves smart chargers.
It would present the least risk of issues if the free standing charger alone is connected to the battery. So disconnect one main cable to your battery whilst using the smart charger, or simply don’t power up the EHU whilst using the smart charger. I doubt any harm would be done with both caravan and smart charger connected but doing so could confuse the smart charger so I would avoid doing it.
The smart charger can be left on continuously or used say monthly.

 

[Parksy]

.......... Our battery is 110 (somethings - I' m not too technically minded being a mere girl!) and up to now we occasionally hook into the house electric supply for a few hours every few weeks or so to keep it topped up. Is this okay? These smart chargers sound good - if I had one, what would I do with it (no smart alec answers, please). ............

Hi Baspegpet
Your leisure battery is 110 amp / hour and the figure relates to the capacity of the battery, 110 amp/ hour being a fairly high capacity.
A 'smart' charger will keep your leisure battery fully charged when it's connected and the reason why these battery chargers are 'smart' is that they use multi stage technology.
In laymans terms this means that it's sometimes possible to rescue a poorly maintained battery which has 'died', the multi stage charge means that even if you leave the smart charger connected for months the battery will always receive the optimum charge and this normally means that the working life of the battery is extended.
Popular amongst caravaners is the C-TEK Multi Stage Charger but Lidl Supermarket sometimes offer a charger which uses similar smart technology for about £15, these chargers are part of their special offer deals and you have to check Lidl's website ( or PCv forum) to see when they are on sale next.
By hooking up at home you are doing everything right, and the Lidl smart charger if you get one could be used to charge your battery to the maximum to prolong it's life because the caravan charger could never provide maximum charge.
P.S. never apologise for asking a question, this forum is for caravanners to share tips, advice and information so questions are always welcome.

 

[Gafferbill]

Baspegpet........one more thing to add to the advice already given about smart chargers.

You do not say what caravan you have but you may find that yours has a smart charger fitted as standard equipment.
If you have a fairly new caravan I would check the specification of the charger in the handbook or on the internet.

My own 1995 model has one fitted as a replacement as the original stopped working.
This is the unit I fitted and the link also describes how it operates to fully charge a battery.

http://www.amperorassociates.co.uk/c-battery_chargers/BatteryC-3_18A.html

 

[Baspegpet]

Hi Gaffer Bill,
thanks for your info. We have a 2010 Lunar Clubman SE. Must check handbook/manual for more info. Thanks again.