# Which battery charger



## me0wp00 (Jun 2, 2010)

Sorry if this isn't a completely technical post, I'm a bit dull when it comes to electrics.
Our van hasn't got an onboard charger and we've got a dead leisure battery (came with van and also isn't a deep cycle) with an under the seat charger.
DH and I have decided we need a new battery 125ah, he says we need 2, I prefer hook up but generally if wildcamping we watch tv for an hour or 2, the kids charge their ds's and I *think* our lights are 12v, the fridge will be gas, truma blower heater 12v?? and gas, 
If we get 2 x 125ah then we'll have to go the solar route to get them charged (will a 80kw panel charge them both ??) but, if we get 1, what kind of charger do we need ? 
I was looking at the Numax connect and forget but he says its not going to be able to charge the battery at the same time as us using it, something to do with the ampage it's drawing ??? and it'll take forever to charge 
So could someone assist please and help settle our ongoing battery battle.
thanks in advance
:lol: Pippa


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## rosalan (Aug 24, 2009)

While not dealing with your main issue, may I offer some thoughts on the peripheral items. 
If you have room for two 125ah batteries, you will be making a sound move. I have two 85ah batteries which are fine, because the larger ones will not fit in. 
Solar panels come under the heading of the bigger the better (and more expensive), my 60w works like a dream but if I had the cash I may have bought larger. Do not forget that the solar panel must have a control unit to protect your batteries and both batteries will be charged. 
You say that you need a charger but do not mention if you have an electrical control panel (ZIG or whatever) as part of the electrical system. 
Far better advice regarding this department will no doubt be forthcoming so I will stop at this point. 
Good Luck! 
Alan


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## trevorf (May 16, 2005)

For the best battery chargers have a look here

CTEK

or here

Sterling

Trevor


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## me0wp00 (Jun 2, 2010)

I've been looking at the CTEK's, dh has now said our charger under the seat is an old zig panel but the wiring in the van is 20 amp max so he thinks we can only put a single 125ah in, 
its all double dutch to me


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## jhelm (Feb 9, 2008)

The wiring won't be affected by having two batteries. The wiring is affected by the amount of current drawn by the lights and other appliances and is normally protected by fuses.

I believe that with normal use of lights a small tv etc. you can run the charger at the same time without any problems. In fact that is what I'm doing until I can lay up the camper for a few weeks to send in the Electroblok for repair. I am just using a basic car battery charger and don't have any problems.

Another note is that I bought this simple charger for 16€ at the Lidl and it is great. It's not the one I use above. I have used it to charge my car and the engine battery in the camper. It can be left on as long as one wants as it automatically switches to trickle charge when the battery is fully charged. It is good for keeping a car or the camper charged while parked for long periods and does fine for charging a dead battery in a few hours.


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## me0wp00 (Jun 2, 2010)

meowp00's dh here...
The motorhome has still got its factory equivalent to a zig unit, but when we got it there was a issue with it and the dedicated fridge output was dead. I ended up jumpering a relay inside with a soldered in link as a temporary fix and it all *appears* to function, but Im not overjoyed with my fix long term.
The other issue is its still using the manufacturers standard single stage charger/transformer but probably 5amp output.
So, when we are on 240v hookup, the lesuire battery goes flat within a few hours of tv watching because the charger output cant keep pace with the electrical load.

This is where me and my so differ somewhat, I say doubling up or fitting much larger leisure batteries is a waste of time if the motorhome supply cant even keep pace with charging whats there and running our 12v stuff.
I say we're better off spending the extra money on replacing the charging setup with a more modern 3 stage charger conditioner and transformer setup that can keep pace when we're on hook up, rather than going to dual leisure batteries and just have two of them go flat instead of one. But my finger in the air calcs says we need something which can supply in the region of 15-20 amps output, since while its on hookup running the van, its also going to have the load of charging the discharged leisure battery along with running the van.


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## jhelm (Feb 9, 2008)

me0wp00 said:


> meowp00's dh here...
> The motorhome has still got its factory equivalent to a zig unit, but when we got it there was a issue with it and the dedicated fridge output was dead. I ended up jumpering a relay inside with a soldered in link as a temporary fix and it all *appears* to function, but Im not overjoyed with my fix long term.
> The other issue is its still using the manufacturers standard single stage charger/transformer but probably 5amp output.
> So, when we are on 240v hookup, the lesuire battery goes flat within a few hours of tv watching because the charger output cant keep pace with the electrical load.
> ...


You are right, but I am guessing a second leisure battery will be much less expensive and still useful when you upgrade the system. Also the second battery would probably keep you going through the evening and both batteries would get charged up during the night.


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