# Laika ecovip 7rg 2000 model, extra leisure battery



## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Hi,

Does anyone have this model and fitted an extra battery?

My leisure battery is under the drivers seat, but whoever fitted it was a real butcher, so I thought I might relocate it, if thats feasible

I can only assume a previous owner has fitted a larger battery, or is this not the original location.

Also I would like to know what size cable I should use to get from the front seat to the rear of the MH, to allow for losses, over about 5 metres allowing for not going in a straight line, would 4mm be enough? I would be powering a 300watt inverter and a status aerial.

Can anyone help.

Cheers Kev.


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

That'd be no then.

Kev.


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## randonneur (Jan 25, 2007)

We have a 2002 Laika Ecovip 7.1G and the leisure battery is under the passenger seat. LHD vehicle. We enquired about having either an extra battery fitted or a larger battery fitted, we have 110 at the moment. Anyway, they said it would have to be relocated either under the fixed bed or in the garage bit. If you haven't got an oven fitted in the bottom of the sinkunit there is space to put an extra battery in there but you would lose most of the use of the drawer, but at least the new cable length would be very small.


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Ideas change over time, I've fitted ours under the front passenger seat, (without having to butcher the seat) cable is 16mm2, length is just over a metre, but we're going to have a inverter so cable is going to be much bigger as are the fuses.

Kev.


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## randonneur (Jan 25, 2007)

We can't do that because the Power Supply Unit is under the driver's seat, so there is no more space for it. We have had a Solar Panel fitted in the last two weeks instead. This was the setup in our previous van, Rapido, and we had no problems at all with the power usage.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Hi Kev,
More battery is always better than trying to keep small ones topped up.
All our American rigs had 4 or 6 Golf Cart 110 a/h 6v giving ample usage.
I am very happy with this Hobby set up as a previous owner managed to add two more 110 a/h batteries under the settee beside the water tank which is just behind the drivers seat which houses the original 110 a/h leisure. Giving 330 a/h in theory.

Volt drop on a long cable run will be serious if you use anything less than heavy starter size cables. Also this could affect the charging of all batteries.
Can't you position the extra batteries forward and closer to the original? 

Luckily a large 60 or 80 watt solar panel also came with the van and manages to top up all the leisure capacity on a good day. But with heavy inverter usage and a cloudy day I can see us running out of amps without care.

It's a juggle.

Ray.


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