Westfalia Battery Charging

[Bilson]

how sensible it is to have the hookup connected for a long period of time where the batteries are concerned. despite using the van previously for many years, we've never made use of the hookup. I read a comment somewhere that the charger might boil the batteries dry, so just want some advice

[California Dreamin]

The westy charger is setup to charge both batteries 'starter & leisure' and as its is only delivering around 6 amps it is quite safe to leave on charge for several days. However, it isn't SMART and although it is staged I think I am correct is saying that it doesn't switch to a 'floating charge' stage, which does mean it will carry on charging, albeit at a reduced rate, even when the batteries reach 100% charge so unfortunately will boil the batteries dry over sustained periods.
Martin

[Bilson]

Thanks Martin for your response, I was thinking disconnecting the hookup at night might help as the fridge won't really be needed at night anyway, I've got the strip light and head unit off the leisure, so would be using that more than the starter. I was hoping that using the fridge off the cigarette lighter once a week might help as that's off the starter, preventing it from overcharging. Would doing any of that make sense at all, or should I perhaps be thinking of ways to prevent the charger from operating automatically on the hookup, perhaps putting it on a switch if possible?

[AdrianC]

despite using the van previously for many years, we've never made use of the hookup.

Might be worth checking it actually works first...

[Bilson]

Might be worth checking it actually works first...

Haha, yeah I was thinking about that too, can't really untill I get to the campsite, if the charger doesn't work, I'll have to work out how to keep the batteries topped up. Not sure which scenario I'd prefer.

[AdrianC]

Haha, yeah I was thinking about that too, can't really untill I get to the campsite

Really?

You can't get the van anywhere within extension-lead reach of a socket until then?

[Bilson]

The van's easily in reach, but the cable doesn't fit the sockets, unless I'm missing something?

[AdrianC]

The van's easily in reach, but the cable doesn't fit the sockets, unless I'm missing something?

One of these?

[Bilson]

yes, that would be very useful if I had one,

[AdrianC]

yes, that would be very useful if I had one,

You'll probably find one handy on some campsites, too - but, particularly, the Euro two-pin version if you go to the continent. Any motorhome shop will sell you one, or umpty-seven cheap online sources.

As a stop-gap for testing, you can quickly just unscrew the blue plug and screw a 13A on there.

[Bilson]

Yeah, it would be handy to have one, but with the time I've got I'd rather assume the charger is working for now, and get some advise based on that. I won't have internet to check anything for months after leaving tomorrow, charging flat batteries or getting a jump off someone isn't a problem, but knowing the best thing I could do about using the hookup for a long period of time should the charger be working would be a good thing, even if it turns out to be hypothetical.

[Smcknighty]

Just buy a smart car charger if it isn't working?

[jpennington]

The charger on my '86 Westie ruined the starter battery a few years ago by boiling the electrolyte. However, that was because the charger was faulty - the control circuit was not limiting its output voltage. I have removed the charger and tried to repair it - without success to date. Actually I've never used a hookup when away from home, I often camp wild and never stay more than a few days in one place.

My advice would be not to leave the charger on for days on end. Maybe run it for an hour a day just to keep the batteries topped up, or more conveniently perhaps for one day (say 8 hours max) per week.
If it's the same wiring as mine then you can disconnect the charger from the mains supply at the 2pin connector next to the charger unit. On mine it is a brown connector, the white one is 3 pins for the 12v feed to the batteries.
If you want to put a switch in the supply to the charger just remember that it is 240v so you need to make sure it is done safely.
You will probably be able to hear if the batteries are boiling just by listening to them.

I would also suggest taking a cheap multimeter so you can check the battery voltages. Then you only need to charge if the voltage (with no load) falls below say 12.0 volts.

Enjoy your trip!

jp

[Bilson]

Just buy a smart car charger if it isn't working?

The charger on my '86 Westie ruined the starter battery a few years ago by boiling the electrolyte. However, that was because the charger was faulty - the control circuit was not limiting its output voltage. I have removed the charger and tried to repair it - without success to date. Actually I've never used a hookup when away from home, I often camp wild and never stay more than a few days in one place.

My advice would be not to leave the charger on for days on end. Maybe run it for an hour a day just to keep the batteries topped up, or more conveniently perhaps for one day (say 8 hours max) per week.
If it's the same wiring as mine then you can disconnect the charger from the mains supply at the 2pin connector next to the charger unit. On mine it is a brown connector, the white one is 3 pins for the 12v feed to the batteries.
If you want to put a switch in the supply to the charger just remember that it is 240v so you need to make sure it is done safely.
You will probably be able to hear if the batteries are boiling just by listening to them.

I would also suggest taking a cheap multimeter so you can check the battery voltages. Then you only need to charge if the voltage (with no load) falls below say 12.0 volts.

Enjoy your trip!

jp

Cheers, Thanks for the advice.

[AdrianC]

You will probably be able to hear if the batteries are boiling just by listening to them.

You'll definitely smell them...

I swapped my BBB for a CTek smart charger - very straightforward, and frees up a big chunk of space under there, especially when you remember that the BBB needs plenty of airflow to stop it overheating, so you can't just stuff that end of the underbed.

Should add that it's very rare a "normal" charger will allow you to charge both batteries. Even if you put an A-B switch in the cable. The three-way connector by the BBB doesn't have a straight connection to the +ve on the starter. It does to the leisure (plus an earth), but the third isn't that easy. If you plug it to a smart charger, the charger won't see the starter battery, so won't chuck +12v. I suspect if you had a charger that had a "Look, just chuck +12v anyway" flat-battery mode, it might kick the split relay into life and cause you to start charging, but I've not tried that. Once you move the radio/clock/interior lights to the leisure anyway (quick and easy, at least on a late fusebox van, see the wiki), then you don't need to charge the starter battery, since you aren't using it any differently to just your normal car's battery sat outside unused whilst you sit in your house, IYSWIM.