Choosing a leisure battery

[mikeonb4c]

a VSR with fuse protection so it doesn't deliver over 27 amps before protective fuse blows,

Just as a safety point for people fitting there own VSR devices there should be TWO fuses one at each battery to protect the cable(s) running to the relay, even if the relay is fitted very close to a battery terminal (i.e. mounted on the terminal itself) then the fuse should be fitted directly after the relay, and the other fuse close to the other battery.

Something else to be aware of is that fuses are there to protect the CABLE not the device (Battery,electronics etc.).
Modern automotive fuses are rated at the current at which they will blow, that is not the same for all fuses however so don't apply that meaning in other situations, otherwise you might get an nasty surprise! Other fuses may be rated at the continuous safe current, the blowing current can be between 2 and 20 times that value !!

See these two references for more information;
Wikipedia
Automotive series

Sorry - I was being lazy in my description. It does have 2 fuses as per above, and the fuses are rated below the cable rating. When I wanted to DIY an LB there was no easy advise for beginners like me until BF member Corblimey came up with an idiots guide and parts needed. Meanwhile I started an email dialogue with Willinton, who I'd bought a battery tray from, suggesting to him it would be well worth producing a kit that idiots like me could safely fit. The rest is history. Only (being tight) I never have gotten around to fitting a Willinton kit since I'd blown my budget on the lower rated model. That said, it has served me well and I keep a set of jump leads in case I have a deep discharge and need a remedy 'in the field'. I also carry plenty of spare fuses!

[Alison01326]

You could do a Bongo weather report for when I'm down that way! SD

indeed. If you park outside my house I can come out and tell you what the weather's doing, but that's as good as it gets! Case in point, I left St Ives in bright sunshine with a coach load of visitors to visit Trebah Gardens just outside Falmouth. It clouded up en route but when we arrived at Trebah it was throwing it down with rain and hail and all sorts in between. It hadn't been forecast and most people didn't have any waterproofs. I phone my husband in the middle of Falmouth to ask why he didn't give me a bit of advance warning so I could let the group know and he said "but it isn't"!!! To think, from the age of about 12 until I failed my Physics O-level I actually wanted to be a meteorologist

[Alison01326]

Sorry if I've missed it in full, but what does VSR stand for?

And what does the CCA in

375 amps CCA cold cranking for the 100Ah battery

stand for, please?

Thanks.

[missfixit70]

Voltage sensing relay
Cold cranking amps

[stilldesperate]

Hey Alison,

You've gone from not knowing there were different battery sizes to VSR's and CCA's in 34 posts!

You'll be working for Exide next!

Love this forum! Always something to learn

SD

[Ron Miel]

Sorry if I've missed it in full, but what does VSR stand for?

And what does the CCA in

375 amps CCA cold cranking for the 100Ah battery

stand for, please?

Thanks.

To expand a bit on Kirsty's reply, and make you even more ready to take up your post at Exide , "cold cranking amps"/"CCA" is the engine cranking ability of a battery expressed as the number of amps it can deliver for 30 seconds at 0 degrees F (brrrr!), when fully charged, without its terminal voltage falling below its initial fully charged state (2.1 volts for each of its six cells, or 12.6 volts total). So it was actually superfluous for me to add "amps" and "cold cranking" to "CCA" but it might have made it half way clear for anybody who didn't know what CCA is short for

[mikexgough]

For me............ a Willinton kit with a 110A/h Marine/Leisure .... Job Done and the compressor fridge runs for 3 days while stationary....'nuff said.... Horses for courses...........you pays your money......
It's what suits your needs..........I am now doing a similar research with Bike Racks......

[Rhod]

Apologies for the long ramble and probably useless information, but at my age I don't sleep
much and have little else to do.

On the contrary, Patnben, an interesting read. I've not studied the split charge system on the factory kitchen unit (I assume it is ) but are you saying that (most/all?) split chargers simply isolate the leisure battery, and, when charging, give the full alternator output to the LB?

I'm just fitting a couple of solar panels on the roof, so hoping that, with the LB kept a bit more charged, I can avoid that huge current into it when charging off the alternator.

SD

SD - Will the low voltage cut-out on the factory cube not also help by preventing the leisure battery from discharging too much?

What size of solar panels are you using on the roof? I've been thinking of going down this route to keep the battery topped up when the vehicles standing unused, but the cost of panels seems a bit prohibitive.

Rhod

[mikeonb4c]

From all I've read on here Rhod the solar panels aint worth the money as they barely kep the LB topped up when it is not in use. They won't do anything useful when you are away camping and want to recharge the LB.

[stilldesperate]

Hi all,

I measured the LB voltage when it tripped out, it was 12.3v, so yes, Rhod, I think it will help that the battery stays pretty full.
...and yes, Mikeonb4c, I don't think solar panels are worth the money either, I aquired two when I bought my boat (I have a 3 phase wind gen on her).

The panels will only trickle a charge in, and only give you a full battery of the Ah rating for the battery. They won't keep the lights (or fridge/hairdryer/tv) going any longer at night (cos they don't work then )

I did it for two reasons.
1. They were in the shed
2. They will slow down the loss when the van's not in use.

10 mins with the engine on will put far more into the battery than a day in the sun!

SD

[stilldesperate]

Sorry, Rhod, forgot to add, they're 5w each, bout 12" square. They fit at the back, so the drilling through the roof is all outside the inner tent, just in case the sealant fails.

[Rhod]

From all I've read on here Rhod the solar panels aint worth the money as they barely kep the LB topped up when it is not in use. They won't do anything useful when you are away camping and want to recharge the LB.

Agreed Mike - what I was looking at was simply trying to keep the battery in good condition by replacing the drain of the monitoring circuit plus natural battery drain while the van is sat in my driveway all week. Not worth it if you have to pay for the panels though - I was hoping that SD had magically found a cheap source of workable panels Maybe I should erect a windgenerator in my driveway & plug the Bongo into that

[stilldesperate]

Get yerself a scrap DC motor and make some sails - works a treat!

http://www.homemade-wind-generator.com/dc-motors

Got this one on the boat:

http://www.bettergeneration.co.uk/wind- ... rbine.html

SD