What is SUPPOSED to work on 12 volts?

[Matthew_374540478]

Hi, my new caravan is an Abi Monza 400d... with 240 on the lights work, fridge, all pumps (except toilet) and I'm happy. BUT with only the battery nothing seems to work... the battery is 'ok'.. showing 11 volts.

Can anybody tell me what this caravan is supposed to have working with just a battery?

Thank you

 

[Woody3]

If your battery is reading 11V (actually 10.8) it is flat. As soon as you put any load on it the voltage will drop dramatically.

Put the mains on and check the voltage across the battery. If it is still 11V then go looking for a blown fuse. If the fuse is OK and the mains unit is working then the voltage will be anything up to 13.8V. In this case leave the mains on for a couple of days and see what happens.

Alternatively if you have an intelligent car battery charger ( intelligent charger that is, not car!) then remove the battery and use the external charger. That will bring the battery up much more slowly and it will retain the charge longer.

One other thing - if the battery goes down again check to see that there is nothing still drawing current after you have switched the battery off. Most batteries will self-discharge over a few weeks of no use, but if it goes down quickly something must be causing it.