flat battery/heater

[bodgettc]

Hi this is my first post so please be gentle
My starter battery has let me down twice, the first time when I flicked the starter to work the heater fans blasted air in I cursed the boss under my breath saying she had put the heater on before starting, but it seems that my electronic heater works when key is in start possition and heater/air con is off. when battery charged i assume does not have time to get up enough speed to notice, anyone come accross this before? or has bongo wiring problems?

[missfixit70]

Welcome to the forum A bit thin on Darzzet folk
As to your problem Sorry, I've read it 6 times & it still doesn't make sense, can't quite work out what's happening when or why? Any chance of explaining it in better detail ?

[bigdaddycain]

Hi Bodgettc, and welcome! I'll be gentle with ya...

Are you saying that the heater blowers were operating with the ignition on, but with the engine off, which caused the battery to be flat? Yes,the heater just needs the ignition to be live to operate...and will drain the battery over time.

It sounds like your battery either needs a good long trickle charge, a top up with distilled water if the cells are low,or replacement if it won't hold a charge.

Try taking your bongo along to your local auto-electrician, a decent outfit won't charge you for a complete battery /charging check up.

I'd steer clear off "kwik fit" type places though, if at all possible.

[bodgettc]

thanks for coming back. no to start. Ignition on let glow plugs work (heater fan not working), press to get starter to work, motor makes clicking noise air blasts out of dash vents, let key back to ignition fan goes off. I cannot see how or why, battery now charged going to take little wire off starter so it wont work and see if fans work then.

[teenmal]

Hi Bodgettc,are you sure its the heater blower that is coming on,and not the scavenger fan??
Just a thought.Mal..

[mikeonb4c]

I'm really puzzled by this post. I do't know what an 'electronic heater' is. The Bongo car heating system, like most cars, uses the equivalent of the small radiators used around the house in central heating systems. But if the boiler is not on (i.e. engine not running in Bongo), then the water in the heater radiators won't be hot and water won't be circulating aroundthe pipes to get the hot water from the engine to the heater radiators. In fact in a car, the engine needs to have been on a while before any of this happens.

So the only fan is the one that car heater radiators have (and house central heating generally doesnt) hat is used to blow the hot air building up around the heater radiator out into the car to warm the occupants. This will drain electricity, but at nothing like the rate that a true electric heater - where electriciry was used to create the heat - would.

Just after a decent run, you could switch off the engine then turn the ignition on again and the heaters may appear to still blow hot air, but this is simply because there is a reserve of heat in the car heater radiator that is waiting to be used up.

Also, can I ask whether the fans coming on hat we are talkng about are the heater blower fans (i.e. you can turn them off using the dial on the dashboard), and not the engine cooling fans.

My next question is about the condition and spec. of the battery (just cos I like to know). I removed a 75AmpHr from by Bongo on purchase and put in a 95AmpHr battery. 75AmpHr on a Bongo is only just adequate, if it is working well.

Sorry for asking questions (plus for explaining what some may call the bleedin obvious) instead of giving answers but I'm trying to get my head around what is actually happening.

Keep posting & we'll get there. Good luck

[bodgettc]

Hi Mal its the heater motor cause its air blasting out of dash vents.
Mike my heater is the climate control type with the push buttons.
not sure of the battery size its big and heavy and at least 3 years old on van when we bought it.
Thats whats so puzzleing if the heater switch is off how and why does the heater fan work, drawing extra juice from the battery when its most needed.

[teenmal]

Hi Mal its the heater motor cause its air blasting out of dash vents.
Mike my heater is the climate control type with the push buttons.
not sure of the battery size its big and heavy and at least 3 years old on van when we bought it.
Thats whats so puzzleing if the heater switch is off how and why does the heater fan work, drawing extra juice from the battery when its most needed.

Hi does this model have a heater motor relay?If so could be faulty.Other thing faulty switch.Check voltage of battery.
If you dont have a meter take BDCs advice.

Mal..

[mikeonb4c]

Gotcha now. OK, well climate control is just another way of switching fans on and off, but with trickier electrickery at work doing it. SO you can't so easily opt to turn it off just be turning a knob. All fan systems will come live when the ignition is in the 'on' position (they must do as thats the 'driving' position). Is the climate control (rightly or wrongly) sensing that the temperature in the car needs adjusting so it just goes to work. We really need a climate control owner to confirm whether their Bongo behaves similarly.

Unles the aircon compressor is switched on as well though, I wouldn't have though a blower fan motor alone would cause a 95AmpHr healthy battery too many problems for the short time between ingintion on and start.

As BDC says, may need an auto-electrician to look at it and may possibly need repair / replacement of components realted to the climate control system.

Good luck, keep us posted

[bodgettc]

Hi ive charged battery for about 18 hours 10amp charger, van started first flick.
have disabled starter motor by taking off small wire and when the ignition switch is in the start position the heater fans are not working, soo questions, does this only happen at low battery voltage? would this happen at freezing temperatures? the cold damps getting in somewhere. If i can find a heater fan relay i will take a look at it. I think battery could be on last legs and will get checked out early next week.

[mikeonb4c]

Hi ive charged battery for about 18 hours 10amp charger, van started first flick.
have disabled starter motor by taking off small wire and when the ignition switch is in the start position the heater fans are not working, soo questions, does this only happen at low battery voltage? would this happen at freezing temperatures? the cold damps getting in somewhere. If i can find a heater fan relay i will take a look at it. I think battery could be on last legs and will get checked out early next week.

Sounds like its worth getting a new battery and then going from there on the other problem. Remember its well worth the extra cost to get a beefy one 95AmpHr or better (http://www.batmanuk.com/ supplied mine via post quickly and at a good price - just check dimensions fit your battery tray before deciding which one to get)

[madmile]

Not exactly sure here, but I think your heater with digital controls will start eaxactly where its left when you switch off. So if you switch off with heater on full blast, when you start up - ie ign on.... then heater comes on full blast.
If this is an issue then switch off before you turn off, but in reality if the battery cant cope with a few second of heater of full (before you press 'off') then its likely to be a dud battery.

[missfixit70]

Not exactly sure here, but I think your heater with digital controls will start eaxactly where its left when you switch off. So if you switch off with heater on full blast, when you start up - ie ign on.... then heater comes on full blast.
If this is an issue then switch off before you turn off, but in reality if the battery cant cope with a few second of heater of full (before you press 'off') then its likely to be a dud battery.

Spot on Ed, mine copes quite happily with full blast on the fans (as you say, stay as they were last set on the CC) & starting the bongo. I'd say battery's on the way out. If you turn off the CC before turning off the engine, it should still be off when you turn it on, if this isn't happening, it definitely sounds like something wierd is happening
You mentioned that the starter just clicked? Are you sure this isn't the starter solenoids on their way? This was the first sign of mine going, it just wouldn't start, I initially assumed it was the battery, it wasn't, when I checked the battery voltage & jumped the LB across onto the starter aswell, it still wasn't going, the starter solenoid was clicking but where the contacts were so corroded, it just wouldn't go - just a thought. A bit of gentle persuasion with a hammer got it going eventually, but only lasted a few more days before giving up completely.

[bodgettc]

Hi when I disabled the starter motor no fans came on with the switch in start position, thought this was weird, as soon as starter pluged back in the heater and scavenger fans both fired in weird unless the sensors are giving a wrong figure. That aside I took van to electrian who checked out battery and says its only flat so hes charging battery and we will see if that saves us buying a new battery. with my recent luck not hold my breath, thanks all for help and suggestions. I will be back

[teenmal]

Hi when I disabled the starter motor no fans came on with the switch in start position, thought this was weird, as soon as starter pluged back in the heater and scavenger fans both fired in weird unless the sensors are giving a wrong figure. That aside I took van to electrian who checked out battery and says its only flat so hes charging battery and we will see if that saves us buying a new battery. with my recent luck not hold my breath, thanks all for help and suggestions. I will be back

Flat battery after charging it for 18 hrs with a 10 amp charger.