zig charging

[billybigspud]

HI all,
i have no split charge on my camper and just use the switch on my zig cf6 to isolate between batteries. i am going to fit a hook up point today on my house and was wondering if i plugged it in, is it ok to charge the crank battery from the zig?

many thanks
jamie

[1664]

You can only charge the leisure battery from the Zig.

http://www.club80-90.co.uk/pages/downlo ... ig-cf8.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[billybigspud]

cheers, going to fit a seperate battery charger for it now. it is so i can plug it in when it is in the drive and can charge both batteries and cool the fridge when need be. also the stereo is on the crank battery and is a bit of a pain to swap to leisure. was going to fit a change over relay so i could flick between charging the leisure and crank but will over complicate things.

[1664]

No it only charges the leisure battery like the CF6 and CF8. You have to remember that Zig units are designed for caravans not campers and the starter battery is actually in the vehicle towing the caravan. The Zig unit allows you to run the caravan 12v equipment off the car battery if you need to (only in an emergency presumably since you'd hardly want to flatten it) but it leaves the charging to the car alternator.

CF9 manual PDF here > http://www.club80-90.co.uk/pages/downloads/docs/Zig.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[1664]

Before I got into VW's I had a Ducato/LMC and the unit there charged both batteries which was a Godsend because the starter battery used to run itself down after a few days idle. I never did find out why.

I take it that there was something other than a Zig fitted then?

[billybigspud]

had a look inside and to be able to swith between starter and leisure is a very simple mod. just gotta find a switch that sort of matches now and cut it in. all switching is dome manually on mine anyway so another wont make a difference.

[1664]

had a look inside and to be able to swith between starter and leisure is a very simple mod. just gotta find a switch that sort of matches now and cut it in. all switching is dome manually on mine anyway so another wont make a difference.

I did consider doing that myself but in the end rejected the idea. The Zig only provides a low value trickle charge and the manual specifically advises against leaving it charging for extended periods. Since I use my camper all year round the starter doesn't go flat anyway......

Ebay, Maplins, RS Comonents, Farnell etc should find you an asthetically matching switch I'd have thought.

[billybigspud]

i dont even use ours every weekend as i am quite busy. i have got a very slight drain somewhere and the battery goes flat after a couple of weeks. had a look for it but lost interest so gonna fix it when it becomes a real problem or if i get a bit of time. clamped it and it is tiny. a trickle charge will be perfect. just plug it in the day before we go somewhere and it will be sorted.

[1664]

Slight drain is probably the van radio/ ICE equipment as most stuff these days requires a permanent feed so the equipment retains it's memory of station locations etc. The clock also requires a permanent feed but it's very low. Both radio and clock are probably on fuse 3; you can pull it but you'd have to retune your radio and set the clock each time.......

[billybigspud]

cheers bud.
thought that could be it but far too lazy to do anything about it. i dont have a clock, porper edition me thinks
also got one of those multi 12v things hard wired in on the dash and it has some battery condition leds on it. could be that as well. ironic really. seems crazy that something with such little draw could drain a battery that size so fast. new battery as well.

[1664]

could be battery's on it's inevitable decline. I had to replace my starter for this exact reason