[NWH]

I have let Oliver know Daz they’ll do it when they service the burner with a new burner and glow pin.

[Jonny 87]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

[NWH]

Before this what we think is fuse holder issue let me tell you I didn’t mains my batteries for months and months with no issues,the van was charging them up to 13-6-13-9 whilst driving then dropping to 12-6-12-8.
I was told that they need 11 hours a week even though I do probably 300 miles a week on average,Grippa do a new unit that can bolt on to mine now I’ve been told that’ll half the charging time or drastically reduce it.

[Spruce]

Before this what we think is fuse holder issue let me tell you I didn’t mains my batteries for months and months with no issues,the van was charging them up to 13-6-13-9 whilst driving then dropping to 12-6-12-8.
I was told that they need 11 hours a week even though I do probably 300 miles a week on average,Grippa do a new unit that can bolt on to mine now I’ve been told that’ll half the charging time or drastically reduce it.

A lead acid or calcium acid battery will only accept a charge at the rate it can absorb that charge. My leisure battery is a calcium acid combo battery. I have a Sterling 12v battery to battery BB1260 in my van. I removed it for repair and replaced it with a basic 140amp Durite VSR. There was hardly a noticeable difference in the charging rate between the 2.

I actually asked George Sterling to clarify the claim that the Sterling unit will charge my leisure battery up to 5 times faster. He ignored my request, but did answer another question that I posed in the same email.

At the moment, the only battery available that will be successfully recharged by a B2B charger is a LiFePO4 Lithium Leisure Battery. But their price doesn't justify the benefits, imho.

[dazmond]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

Numax 20amp commercial charger

[Splash & dash]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

Numax 20amp commercial charger

Does  it vary the charging rate and then go onto float  when fully charged

[Jonny 87]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

Numax 20amp commercial charger

Does it have a recon mode on the charger etc?

I seriously recommend ctek. They are the best out there. They can recondition, maintain, and charge, all by themselves.

[dazmond]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

Numax 20amp commercial charger

Does  it vary the charging rate and then go onto float  when fully charged

Yes

[dazmond]

What chargers are you using Daz?

My Ctek charger is keeping my batteries as good as new. 3 years old now, but still never dropping below 12.7v while under load.

Numax 20amp commercial charger

Does it have a recon mode on the charger etc?

I seriously recommend ctek. They are the best out there. They can recondition, maintain, and charge, all by themselves.

It just varies the charge depending on the condition of the battery.its made for my numax batteries...

Batteries don't last forever though...I am quite surprised how good the ones I've switched are doing though considering they ve been in storage for 3 years!😄

[Ian Sheppard]

Interesting Thread to read through. 10.6V on the batteries is low however as your comment the heater will pull higher amps particularly in the initial start up . When maintaining temp it will pull less amps. Not sue about the current Webasto but an older model would pull around 9amps in its start up sequence for around 30 seconds to a minute then dropped off to around 3amps per hour if just maintaining temp.

I would agree that wiring and the fuse could be a source of  volt drop  where cables are worn/damaged The Fuse holder and fuse can be subject to corrosion over time. The cabling is heat rated to 120c but the combination of high summer temps and the temp inside the cabinet could soften the cable outer and make the cable more likely damaged.

Batteries do lose the ability to hold charge over time and at three years old are lasting well. A good example of how regularly maintaining the batteries extends their life.

I noted the battery voltage recovered to 12.7 with the heater off and the load was  reduced. A battery will recover volts when there is no load and it could potentially recover that much,  A sign that the battery is worn and needs replacing is how fast the voltage drops when the battery comes under load. I would expect to see a drop in volts perhaps up to .5 of a volt  so form 12.7 to 12.2 might be normal from there the volts should drop off slowly over 4 hours or so. If that voltage drops quickly within say 30 minutes of use that would be an indicator that the batteries need replacing.

The spare batteries you have had stored will have lost some capacity as batteries can discharge up to 5% a week just sitting that is known as parasitic discharge. However they would be in better condition than the ones in the van.

Cheers 

[dazmond]

Interesting Thread to read through. 10.6V on the batteries is low however as your comment the heater will pull higher amps particularly in the initial start up . When maintaining temp it will pull less amps. Not sue about the current Webasto but an older model would pull around 9amps in its start up sequence for around 30 seconds to a minute then dropped off to around 3amps per hour if just maintaining temp.

I would agree that wiring and the fuse could be a source of  volt drop  where cables are worn/damaged The Fuse holder and fuse can be subject to corrosion over time. The cabling is heat rated to 120c but the combination of high summer temps and the temp inside the cabinet could soften the cable outer and make the cable more likely damaged.

Batteries do lose the ability to hold charge over time and at three years old are lasting well. A good example of how regularly maintaining the batteries extends their life.

I noted the battery voltage recovered to 12.7 with the heater off and the load was  reduced. A battery will recover volts when there is no load and it could potentially recover that much,  A sign that the battery is worn and needs replacing is how fast the voltage drops when the battery comes under load. I would expect to see a drop in volts perhaps up to .5 of a volt  so form 12.7 to 12.2 might be normal from there the volts should drop off slowly over 4 hours or so. If that voltage drops quickly within say 30 minutes of use that would be an indicator that the batteries need replacing.

The spare batteries you have had stored will have lost some capacity as batteries can discharge up to 5% a week just sitting that is known as parasitic discharge. However they would be in better condition than the ones in the van.

Cheers

Thanks Ian...🙂

The  batteries I've had stored at home for 3 years have been periodically charged (roughly every 3 months) to counter the parasitic loss and they've been kept warm and dry on carpet.thats probably why they are still OK.

[NWH]

They will have to strip and replace many wires in my cabinet almost every wire on the fuse board is blackened so are the wires on the opposite end of the cabinet and have been for a few years,the thing is for me it’s very difficult to get to it as I have a hosereel stand mounted in front screwed to the van floor and with the 2 man system it’s very tight in the cabinet.

[DJW]

If you are still here Ian, What are your views of keeping leisure batteries on constant charge? Not really window cleaning related. More of a mains hook up question as found in a boat, caravan or motorhome. Is it good or bad?

[Splash & dash]

If you are still here Ian, What are your views of keeping leisure batteries on constant charge? Not really window cleaning related. More of a mains hook up question as found in a boat, caravan or motorhome. Is it good or bad?

If you are using a decent smart charger with variable charge rate and float mode you can leave them on permanent charge without any issues , a mate of mine is a marine electrician and they do it all the time on boats , he did my van s the same way .

[DJW]

Thanks Ian