Leisure Battery, split charge relay advice please...

[Aethelric]

There is some info about charging leisure batteries here
http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum ... =1&t=27154

[g8dhe]

usual it seems you ask 10 experts the question and get 11 different answers.
Now you tell me, just which expert should we poor punters believe and who do we claim off if we follow the advice and end up with a stewed battery?

There are a lot of opinions about I grant you, which is why in a recent discussion on this board I stuck up a series of links but didn't join in. As I said in that post the main problem with batteries is that we are NEVER (read that as 90+% ) sure of just what sort of battery we have, it often comes with the vehicle and has a grubby label with a make you've never heard of, or we buy if from Halfrauds or similar but there is no real hard info other than a quoted capacity (AmpHrs) and with luck a Cold Cranking rating (CCA) neither of which really tells you anything like what we need to know about charging, after all its done automatically by the vehicle, and anyway Users should never be told more than they need to buy an object !!

A source of info I trust is this one but even then you have to read it fully as it covers many types of battery and also many capacities/sizes of batteries all of which need to be taken into account.

Another factor that always applies is that we all use batteries differently, some only have a light load for a few hours but stay on a campsite all the time, others have various high loads at differing times and may spend most of there days away from a site with only an hour or so of vehicle charging available. All of these mean that a single charging regime won't work for us all. However one thing we can all confirm is that at some time or other our L/B have been loaded heavily (for whatever reason) and thats always the time you need even more power than what you have got

[mikexgough]

The charger is back on offer at Aldi...........http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/2827_8410.htm @ £12.59 from the 28th.........

[mikeonb4c]

The charger is back on offer at Aldi...........http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/2827_8410.htm @ £12.59 from the 28th.........

They don't say much about it. Is it just a run of the mill charger or is it something more special (battery conditioner etc.)? And (if a conditioner) will it handle high AmpHr leisure batteries I wonder?

[scanner]

The charger is back on offer at Aldi...........http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/2827_8410.htm @ £12.59 from the 28th.........

They don't say much about it. Is it just a run of the mill charger or is it something more special (battery conditioner etc.)? And (if a conditioner) will it handle high AmpHr leisure batteries I wonder?

It's the automatic one that can be left on all the time as it cuts out automatically when the battery is charged.

If (of course) it ever gets charged, as it's only 3.6amp and that is apparently not enough to keep a Bongo leisure battery topped up if you actually use it much.

[mikeonb4c]

The charger is back on offer at Aldi...........http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/2827_8410.htm @ £12.59 from the 28th.........

They don't say much about it. Is it just a run of the mill charger or is it something more special (battery conditioner etc.)? And (if a conditioner) will it handle high AmpHr leisure batteries I wonder?

It's the automatic one that can be left on all the time as it cuts out automatically when the battery is charged.

If (of course) it ever gets charged, as it's only 3.6amp and that is apparently not enough to keep a Bongo leisure battery topped up if you actually use it much.

Thats interesting. I have gained an impression (rightly or wrongly) that the charge cut-out sensor is affected by the capacity of the battery (this issue seems to come up with NiCd / NiMh chargers where older chargers seem unable to sense and go to trickle charge when fed with newer, higher capacity batteries). Also, one of the battery conditioners I was recommended by a biker mate to buy turned out to be only suitable for m/bike low AmpHr batteries and no car type ones. I'm no expert on any of this but it is enough to make me uncertain whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!

[dvisor]

Thats interesting. I have gained an impression (rightly or wrongly) that the charge cut-out sensor is affected by the capacity of the battery (this issue seems to come up with NiCd / NiMh chargers where older chargers seem unable to sense and go to trickle charge when fed with newer, higher capacity batteries). Also, one of the battery conditioners I was recommended by a biker mate to buy turned out to be only suitable for m/bike low AmpHr batteries and no car type ones. I'm no expert on any of this but it is enough to make me uncertain whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!

If it's any help, I've scanned in the instruction manual and can be downloaded as a PDF from http://dvisor.dyndns.org/websites/bongo/Tronic.pdf. It's about 1.5 Mb

The same charger was on sale at Towsure last year for around £35, but I think with a different badge. I bought a couple from Lidl at £12.99 each.

I'm no electrician, so it's all lost on me. However, I used one on my old Talbot camper when I was on site for several days and kept it permanently charging the leisure battery from a mains hookup (didn't have a zig). Worked fine for me.

Hope the manual gives you enough technical info to make a decision.

[mikeonb4c]

Thats interesting. I have gained an impression (rightly or wrongly) that the charge cut-out sensor is affected by the capacity of the battery (this issue seems to come up with NiCd / NiMh chargers where older chargers seem unable to sense and go to trickle charge when fed with newer, higher capacity batteries). Also, one of the battery conditioners I was recommended by a biker mate to buy turned out to be only suitable for m/bike low AmpHr batteries and no car type ones. I'm no expert on any of this but it is enough to make me uncertain whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!

If it's any help, I've scanned in the instruction manual and can be downloaded as a PDF from http://dvisor.dyndns.org/websites/bongo/Tronic.pdf. It's about 1.5 Mb

The same charger was on sale at Towsure last year for around £35, but I think with a different badge. I bought a couple from Lidl at £12.99 each.

I'm no electrician, so it's all lost on me. However, I used one on my old Talbot camper when I was on site for several days and kept it permanently charging the leisure battery from a mains hookup (didn't have a zig). Worked fine for me.

Hope the manual gives you enough technical info to make a decision.

Thanks dvisor - that's brill and I'll have a read. Sounds like it may be worth buying one with a view to keeping it permanently installed in the Bongo.


PS- just read it. Brilliant and it answers all my questions. It handles up to 120Amphr batteries and seems to be the batery conditioner type that can be left permanently on. I'm getting one (provided Aldi oblige and have them in stock). Thanks dvisor - that was invaluable.

[dvisor]

Thanks dvisor - that's brill and I'll have a read. Sounds like it may be worth buying one with a view to keeping it permanently installed in the Bongo.


PS- just read it. Brilliant and it answers all my questions. It handles up to 120Amphr batteries and seems to be the batery conditioner type that can be left permanently on. I'm getting one (provided Aldi oblige and have them in stock). Thanks dvisor - that was invaluable.

No worries - glad to be of help! Should just say that I wasn't drawing a terrific amount from the LB while on-site. Our fridge was gas, so we were only using it for a couple of fluorescent strip lights, a couple of LED spots, charging mobile phone, PDA and camera batteries. I don't think we used the TV!

[francophile1947]

Mike - "whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!" - Yes, no problem at all (at least it works very well on mine )

Scanner - "If (of course) it ever gets charged, as it's only 3.6amp and that is apparently not enough to keep a Bongo leisure battery topped up if you actually use it much." - no problem at all if you're on a hook-up. I leave it on permanently and run TV/DVD, water pump and neon lights off the battery, which is always fully charged in the morning. Obviously it wouldn't cope with the likes of a coolbox, but you'd plug the coolbox into the mains if you had a hook-up. If you don't have a hook-up, there's no point getting a charger.

Mine is permanently connected to the battery, so I can give it an occasional boost at home when not camping.

[g8dhe]

Try reading these two pages from the links I've given previously, don't just skim read them because they discuss using different charging patterns for different ways of using batteries. You need to think about how the battery has been used prior to the charging, what else might be going on whilst your charging i.e. if your running something whilst its being charged (as when on site etc.).
Charging the lead-acid battery
How to charge - when to charge table

A couple of things to emphasis;
Never exceed 14.7V at the terminals of the battery during charging at any time.
Don't exceed a charging current of 17-22Amps for a Leisure battery of 80-110AmpHrs -
- unless you know what your doing, if you approach these levels then do so only for a short time.
Bear in mind the temperature of the battery, and reduce the highest charging currents and voltage above if its likely to exceed 35°C.

[mikeonb4c]

Mike - "whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!" - Yes, no problem at all (at least it works very well on mine )

Scanner - "If (of course) it ever gets charged, as it's only 3.6amp and that is apparently not enough to keep a Bongo leisure battery topped up if you actually use it much." - no problem at all if you're on a hook-up. I leave it on permanently and run TV/DVD, water pump and neon lights off the battery, which is always fully charged in the morning. Obviously it wouldn't cope with the likes of a coolbox, but you'd plug the coolbox into the mains if you had a hook-up. If you don't have a hook-up, there's no point getting a charger.

Mine is permanently connected to the battery, so I can give it an occasional boost at home when not camping.

If I fit one it will be along similar lines of thinking i.e. not so much to offest battery drain on site as to make it convenient (and thus encourage me to) regularly charge my LB from the mains, as they say car charging needs to be supplemented at intervals for good battery health.

[technophobe]

Don't know anything about electrics but when leisure battery was fitted the tray came from AVA Leisure.

[mikeonb4c]

Mike - "whether the Lidl charger is OK for my 110AmpHr leisure battery. Help!!!!" - Yes, no problem at all (at least it works very well on mine )

Scanner - "If (of course) it ever gets charged, as it's only 3.6amp and that is apparently not enough to keep a Bongo leisure battery topped up if you actually use it much." - no problem at all if you're on a hook-up. I leave it on permanently and run TV/DVD, water pump and neon lights off the battery, which is always fully charged in the morning. Obviously it wouldn't cope with the likes of a coolbox, but you'd plug the coolbox into the mains if you had a hook-up. If you don't have a hook-up, there's no point getting a charger.

Mine is permanently connected to the battery, so I can give it an occasional boost at home when not camping.

If I fit one it will be along similar lines of thinking i.e. not so much to offest battery drain on site as to make it convenient (and thus encourage me to) regularly charge my LB from the mains, as they say car charging needs to be supplemented at intervals for good battery health.

Bought one of these and tried it on the LB last night. Worked a treat and seems a great little bit of kit. The instructions said to disconnect the battery before charging it, but I didn't fancy the hassle so didn't bother. Is there a reason why you should? Also, it says not to use the charger below 0 degrees Centigrade but I risked that too as car was next to house. Why do tthey advise this though I wonder, and do both the above have implications for on site re-charging and/or winter camping?

Incidentally, I'm still suspicious my LB is down on AmpHr condition but is there any ready way to check it (maybe using a shunt and voltmeter?).

While in Halfords, I noticed they are now quoting starter battery power in cranking amps (e.g. 680amps was high power). Is there any way I can work out AmpHr rating from that or are Halfords doing this to disguise a lack of AmpHr grunt in their batteries (in the way that ridiculous claims are made for Hi-Fi power based on meaningless peak wattage). They were also peddling Calcium batteries wiith a 4 yr guarantee as against 3yr guarantee for standard batteries. What are the pros and cons there I wonder. I ask all these questions as I'm seriously thinking of using a starter battery type for LB use if/when I need to replace my Numax 110AmpHr LB.

[francophile1947]

1)Bought one of these and tried it on the LB last night. Worked a treat and seems a great little bit of kit. The instructions said to disconnect the battery before charging it, but I didn't fancy the hassle so didn't bother. Is there a reason why you should? Also, it says not to use the charger below 0 degrees Centigrade but I risked that too as car was next to house. Why do tthey advise this though I wonder, and do both the above have implications for on site re-charging and/or winter camping?

2)Incidentally, I'm still suspicious my LB is down on AmpHr condition but is there any ready way to check it (maybe using a shunt and voltmeter?).

3)While in Halfords, I noticed they are now quoting starter battery power in cranking amps (e.g. 680amps was high power). Is there any way I can work out AmpHr rating from that or are Halfords doing this to disguise a lack of AmpHr grunt in their batteries (in the way that ridiculous claims are made for Hi-Fi power based on meaningless peak wattage). They were also peddling Calcium batteries wiith a 4 yr guarantee as against 3yr guarantee for standard batteries. What are the pros and cons there I wonder. I ask all these questions as I'm seriously thinking of using a starter battery type for LB use if/when I need to replace my Numax 110AmpHr LB.

1) I've used mine down to -6C with no problem (but it was already on charge before the temperature dropped). I suspect it's if the battery is very cold - they can't release so much power when very cold, so maybe they can't receive it either

2) Sorry, no idea.

3) I don't think cranking amps have any relation to the Amp/hr rating of a battery. More and thinner plates allow a very high discharge for a short time to give a high cranking rate.