12 volt battery charger unbuilt for the leisure batt

[armyphil]

Has anyone else wired in a trickle charger/batt charger for there leisure battery off the hook up?

I have finally got round to sorting the camping electrics out so now I have internal lighting and a cooker along with eber .

When the engine is running I am getting 13.8 volts at the leisure batt but with all my electrics running of the leisure batt the only thing it doesn't do is the engine,so I magine it will fail relatively quick enen though it's a 110amp/hr

So if anyone has fitted a batt charger permanently into there circuit what would you recommend?

[R0B]

one of these is what you want phil...https://club8090.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=62608

[armyphil]

Cheers rob you'd turning into a personnal advisor when I come to a meet I'll bring a crate

[boatdog]

hi all i think something like a zig unit does that, i have one in my van and it charges the leisure battery and runs the 12 volt stuff when im on hook up

[armyphil]

Wish mine did

[Red Westie]

With respect......fitting a low power trickle type charger (like the one from lidol) is NOT recommended for camping and only useful when the van is laid up between camps.......look at it this way, a fully charged 110amp leisure may last you a weekend of evening lights/a few half hour radio CD stints/ using water pump etc but at times you could be drawing anything between 4 and 12 amps. This means a small 4amp charger isn't putting IN as much as is being drawn OUT, eventually the battery goes flat and those consumers then try to run directly off the puny charger which promptly overheats and burns out or if you are lucky just thermally trips to save itself.
You really need a dedicated 3/4 staged charger rated at, AT LEAST 6amps, preferably 10amps or higher, this way the battery will recieve more charge than discharge with the unit easily coping with camping consumers.
Martin

[armyphil]

Where would I get one from eBay? Are they quite expensive though to be fair I do have everything bar starting to the leisure batt

[Red Westie]

Something like this one matey......

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FULLY-AUTOMATIC-M ... 1e58f5ff11" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Martin