Leisure Battery - charging whilst using??

[Taw Cottage]

My Westys onboard charger is designed to keep both batteries charged up when "hooked up" regardless of what use of power is being made.

Steve

[isaune]

That's interesting Taw.

So you've somehow got a battery charger sitting in the van, connected to both batteries which you simply plug in when hooked up?

And you draw 12 volt pwer from cigarette lighter sockets to power tv's, chargers, lights, coolbox etc

Sounds like a good system.

I am particularly interested because I like the idea of keeping the main battery topped up aswell, particularly as the radio/CD and interior striplights work of the main battery - not the leisure battery. This has been fine for a night or two but I would worry about the state of the main battery afetr say a week of CD playing and light using!!

Can you let me know:-

1) what charger you use
2) where physically it is stored
3) what connections you make

Thanks

Ian

[California Dreamin]

Taw has a standard BBB charger (effectionately called the buzzing black box) these were fitted as standard to most of the Westfalia camper range and have two outputs charging both the leisure and starter batteries 'automatically' when the hookup cable is connected.

For your information: Volkswagen wired the radio, cigarette lighter and interior lights to the main battery BUT there is a simple and popular wiring mod (do a search on the Wiki) that swaps these consumers over to the leisure battery.
Once you have done the mod there is no need to charge the starter battery as it remains completely isolated whilst camping.

Martin

[isaune]

Thanks Martin - I will look up the wiring mod but I also like the idea of the buzzing black box.

Do you know if there is anything similar on the market today by any chance?

Cheers

Ian

[isaune]

Hi Martin

I found this regarding the radio. Is that what you meant?

I can't see anything re moving the interior lighting onto the leaisure battery circuit?

Any ideas?

Ian

[isaune]

https://club8090.co.uk/wiki/Ca ... re_battery" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Sorry Martin - this is what I found

[AdrianC]

I found this regarding the radio. Is that what you meant?

I can't see anything re moving the interior lighting onto the leaisure battery circuit?

They're the same fuse.

The simple, reversible way is to take a live straight from the leisure battery under the carpet - FUSE IT NEAR THE BATTERY - just remove the fuse, and plug a spade terminal into the (non-live) side. It takes minutes, and it works.

No need to charge the starter battery, unless you're leaving the van for weeks on end with alarm/etc drawing from it.

[isaune]

Thanks Adrian.

I'm going to do that today.

Can I just check what you mean by "plug a spade terminal in the non live side" please?

Where exactly does the spade terminal go?

Thanks

Ian

[ghost123uk]

In case Adrian does not log in for a while, I will answer

When you take the fuse out of the main fuse panel, it leaves 2 metal slots (that the tangs of the fuse sit in).
One of them is live with 12 Volts, the other goes to the radio and the interior lights.

The easiest way to find which contact is which (as I ain't going out to check if it the upper or lower contact ) is to use a simple test meter, set to read volts. If you do not have one a spare indicator or interior light bulb, with one side connected to a metal earth (any unpainted metal bit of bodywork nearby) and the other poked carefully into either of the two slots (contacts). The live one will light the bulb, the other one (the one you want) will not. Best do this test with the ignition on.

Take care with the wire you should have made to go from the leisure battery, with the male spade (at the fuse panel end) as that spade has 12volts on it and you don't want to short it against anything ! You have put an inline fuse in that wire, near to the leisure battery haven't you

[isaune]

Thanks everyone.

Job done!

It's the bottom socket which is non live.

The whole thing works fine thanks. Feel much happier now the lights and the radio is working from the leisure battery.

Especially as (the whole point if this thread) as I intend to charge my leisure battery and use it simultaneously when hooked up. And, when not hooked up, it's even more reason to take the lights and the radio from the leisure battery!

A good days work - thanks everyone!

Ian

[isaune]

Hi there

Please see the previous few posts for background. As you can see, I made a slight modification back in March to ensure the radio and internal lights run off the leisure battery and not the main battery. I did this by running a live wire from the leisure battery to the fusebox and connecting it to the live pin of the appropriate fuseholder.

Anyway, fast forward to today!!

The van is at the MOT garage and they have told me the brakelights are not working - he asked had I done anything with the electrics and I summarised the above story for him.

He then called me back a bit later to say what I had done WAS at fault and he has now put a fuse back in and the brakelights are working again!!

And, as an aside, he says the fog light(s) is not working either and he can't figure that out. There is power at the switch but not at the light. He says I will need an auto electrician and that I should get the auto electrician to find a different way of running the radio and interior lights from the leisure battery.

I'm just posting this to ask if anyone has any thoughts/comments, specifically:-

1) is it really likely that the brakelights are on the same fuse as the interior lights and radio
2) even if that is the case, why don't they work off the leisure battery power like the radio and interior lights
3) does anyone have any ideas re the fog light not working?

Grateful, as always, for your advice.

Thanks chaps

Ian

[Oldiebut goodie]

Hi there

I did this by running a live wire from the leisure battery to the fusebox and connecting it to the live pin of the appropriate fuseholder.



Ian

Methinks therein lies your error. I suggest that you re-read and re-wire accordingly.

[isaune]

Hmmmm - sorry I think that might have been a typo above. I am pretty sure, having re-read my above posts, I connected the wire to the non-live terminal - not the live one.

Certainly, the radio and interior lights have worked fine off the leisure battery ever since.

Would it not be the case that if I had got the wrong terminal, the lights and radio would not have worked?

And anyway, where do the brakelights fit into this whole scenario?

Thanks

Ian

[isaune]

OK - done a bit of research - it seems the brakelights are on the same fuse as the interior lights and radio.

See the link below.

http://i1210.photobucket.com/albums/cc4 ... /vw001.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So now I am confused as to why the interior lights and the radio were working fine but the brakelights not?

Also, I am not all that comfortable having the brakelights working off the leisure battery anyway.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Ian

[AdrianC]

OK - done a bit of research - it seems the brakelights are on the same fuse as the interior lights and radio.

<goes to check fuse box lid>
OK, so your fuse box is different to ours. We've got brakes, fuse 2; interior lights/radio/clock, fuse 3.

If there's +12v getting to the "out" side of the fuse, it shouldn't matter whether it's coming from the leisure or the main circuitry. I suspect something else amiss. Mind you, I also suspect muppetry - what self-respecting mechanic would suggest you need a sparky to get the foglight working? If fog and brake lights are all AWOL, then I suspect iffy wiring somewhere in the engine bay.

Oh, and this might sound a little curt, but surely you've CHECKED that the brake lights have been working, some stage in the last nine months, right? Even if you don't check 'em regularly, you checked them right before taking it for an MOT, at the very least...?