110v hook up & leisure battery. Which Zig unit do i need?

[chief]

Just had a leisure battery fitted with a split charge relay. I have been advised that I can use the rear cigarette lighter to boil kettles etc? However I was under the impression that you could fit a plug in the back with a cable running to to the battery or and have socket form the van to campsite plug ( I have a cable).

Help fellow bongonauts I am really confused.

If I read that right, you are asking if you can run a 240v lead to your leisure battery - definitely NOT .
Depending on the type of lead you've got, you can fit a socket, to your van, that the lead plugs in to. You will then need a Zig unit (or similar) to reduce the voltage to 12v to charge your battery.

I have just read a little more on this and now am starting to get the picture. Hypothetically I could fit a power inverter with a normal 240 household plug straight to the battery or the ciggie lighter and then would be able to run a tv or coolbox etc for a short period if I was not on camp power? Therefore is a power inverter the same as a Zig unit? And what shall I purchase to check the functionallity of my LB?

[francophile1947]

I have just read a little more on this and now am starting to get the picture. Hypothetically I could fit a power inverter with a normal 240 household plug straight to the battery or the ciggie lighter and then would be able to run a tv or coolbox etc for a short period if I was not on camp power? Therefore is a power inverter the same as a Zig unit? And what shall I purchase to check the functionallity of my LB?

Well, you could do that, but it not very efficient. The inverter would waste power, stepping the voltage up to 240v, and the power supply unit in your TV lead then has to drop it back to 12v. Most portable TVs seem to be 12v anyway, so I just got a suitable lead from a motor accessory shop and plug my 15" TV direct into the cigar lighter.
Aldi and Lidl regularly do dual voltage coolboxs for £30. These are ideal as you can plug them into the mains, if you have a hook-up on site, or the cigar lighter if not. You must, however, be aware that a coolbox will flatten a leisure battery in a few hours, so you can only plug it in for about an hour at a time.

[chief]

I have just read a little more on this and now am starting to get the picture. Hypothetically I could fit a power inverter with a normal 240 household plug straight to the battery or the ciggie lighter and then would be able to run a tv or coolbox etc for a short period if I was not on camp power? Therefore is a power inverter the same as a Zig unit? And what shall I purchase to check the functionallity of my LB?

Well, you could do that, but it not very efficient. The inverter would waste power, stepping the voltage up to 240v, and the power supply unit in your TV lead then has to drop it back to 12v. Most portable TVs seem to be 12v anyway, so I just got a suitable lead from a motor accessory shop and plug my 15" TV direct into the cigar lighter.
Aldi and Lidl regularly do dual voltage coolboxs for £30. These are ideal as you can plug them into the mains, if you have a hook-up on site, or the cigar lighter if not. You must, however, be aware that a coolbox will flatten a leisure battery in a few hours, so you can only plug it in for about an hour at a time.

Hello again,

Is there a way of checking that the cigarette lighter is using the LB rather than the normal battery or am I missing the point?

[francophile1947]

It will be using the starter battery, unless you've carried out any wiring modifications.

[chief]

I am so sorry to be such a dumbass... but how does the LB work then? I have fitted a split charge relay which I understood charged the leisure battery. So unless I wire up the cigarette lighter to the LB it will continue to use the starter battery?

So therefore the LB is useless unless I attach stuff to it directly... Unless the Starter battery uses the LB to start when it has been run low???

[francophile1947]

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