How oftern do you do it......and how long for? (1 Viewer)

Boo

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Jan 26, 2009
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Thought the title would bring you in :winky:

How oftern should I be starting the engine..........and how long do you leave it running for?

Reason I asked it that the alarm and the radio/CD player drains the engine battery in about a month.

Anyone any tips or rituals they go through to stop this?


Boo

P.S. with my van being mostly static how often should I be giveing her a run out just to free all the brakes/barrings etc...?
 

Wildman

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My beast is left most of the winter without running but the solar panel keeps all batteries topped up, (well so far touch wood)
 

scotjimland

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Jul 25, 2007
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Hi Boo

Bad idea.. it does the engine no good at all, starting is when most engine wear occurs .. besides, it won't charge the battery up properly, better to buy a small auto charger such as a Ctec , occasional similar sold in Lidl and Aldi or a bog standard cheap one and put it on charge every week or so.

Jim

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Boo

Boo

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I wasn't sure if the charge wizard should be doing it for me................or is that just for the lesure batteries? and if so can't I just connect ALL the batteries together?

Boo
 

Geo

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Jul 29, 2007
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Connecting all batteries is not recomended I have not had chance to get my head around what the battery wizard is suposed to be wizarding prehaps Scotjim can enlighten us here
However there is a devise called battery master and cheaper versions that will send any residule charge from your leisure battery to your starter battery about £30 ish for the maplins variaty
Geo
 

scotjimland

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I wasn't sure if the charge wizard should be doing it for me................or is that just for the lesure batteries? and if so can't I just connect ALL the batteries together?

Boo

Hi Boo

The wizard will only be charging the leisure battery(s) .. and it won't be doing that very well either, it's basically a 12v power supply unit, and not a very good charger.

Connecting together isn't a good idea, firstly, it won't charge them all properly and second, if you ran the leisure battery(s) down you could also end up with a flat engine battery, best to keep them separate.

Before I installed the Victron Multi Plus, which has a separate 4A output for the engine battery, I had a small cheap charger clipped onto the engine battery and switched it on periodically for a couple of days.. you can monitor it with a multimeter.

Jim


Edit

Just read Geo's reply.. I forgot about the battery master ,:Doh: that is another solution, personally I prefer a separate charger..

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Geo

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Looking at the write up it appears to be a resonable setup jim, it seems to tick allthe boxs with regard to looking after your leisure batterys, I know you just love your Victron But !!!! at a price Eh
Geo
The Charge Wizardis our patented microprocessor-controlled circuit built into all our PD9200 Series converters. The Charge Wizard constantly monitors the RV battery voltage and then selects one of three charging voltages and one of four operating modes to properly re-charge or maintain the RV battery. The addition of the Charge Wizard makes all our 9200 Series converters an intelligent battery charger. It will safely and rapidly recharge a discharged battery by automatically selecting the Boost Mode (14.4V) to rapidly re-charge the battery to 90% of full charge. Once the battery reaches 90%, the Charge Wizard automatically selects the Normal Mode (13.6V) to safely complete the charge. The Storage Mode (13.2V) is automatically selected after 30 hours of non-use of the 12-volt RV electrical systems. The lower charging voltage in the Storage Mode of of operation reduces batteryLink Removed
gassing and water usage, while maintaining the charge. Every 21 hours when the system is operating in the Storage Mode, the Charge Wizard will automatically switch to the Desulfation Mode of operation. The Desulfation Mode increases the charging voltage up to 14.4 volts for 15 minutes. This increased voltage mixes up the battery electrolyte and prevents battery stratification and the resulting problems of battery sulfation.
 

scotjimland

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Jul 25, 2007
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Looking at the write up it appears to be a resonable setup jim, it seems to tick allthe boxs with regard to looking after your leisure batterys, I know you just love your Victron But !!!! at a price Eh
Geo
The Charge Wizardis our patented microprocessor-controlled circuit built into all our PD9200 Series converters. The Charge Wizard constantly monitors the RV battery voltage and then selects one of three charging voltages and one of four operating modes to properly re-charge or maintain the RV battery. The addition of the Charge Wizard makes all our 9200 Series converters an intelligent battery charger. It will safely and rapidly recharge a discharged battery by automatically selecting the Boost Mode (14.4V) to rapidly re-charge the battery to 90% of full charge. Once the battery reaches 90%, the Charge Wizard automatically selects the Normal Mode (13.6V) to safely complete the charge. The Storage Mode (13.2V) is automatically selected after 30 hours of non-use of the 12-volt RV electrical systems. The lower charging voltage in the Storage Mode of of operation reduces batteryLink Removed
gassing and water usage, while maintaining the charge. Every 21 hours when the system is operating in the Storage Mode, the Charge Wizard will automatically switch to the Desulfation Mode of operation. The Desulfation Mode increases the charging voltage up to 14.4 volts for 15 minutes. This increased voltage mixes up the battery electrolyte and prevents battery stratification and the resulting problems of battery sulfation.

Cheers Geo.. ~I stand corrected :Blush: ... you can google faster than me .. :roflmto:

so it's a decent charger , but doesn't look as if it has an output for the engine battery..
 
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Boo

Boo

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I do have a MOM switch on my dashboard but that wasn't much of a bonus when I had to get up at 3am to press it to stop the clifford alarm screeming because of low voltage :Sad:

I bought a really good (all bells and whistles) charger from halfords when I was having trouble with the lose wire on the 12v reducer.........so might be a good idea to unpack it :Smile:

Cheers for the advice, just one more thing...........the leasure and starter batteries look too small for their holes........I hhave 3 batteries under the step and they have bits of wood wedged in to make a tight fit.........I was wondering if the batteries had been swapped for the sale as I understand the BIG blue leasure batteries can be a fortune........what think you?

Cheers again

Boo

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johnsandywhite

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My beast is left most of the winter without running but the solar panel keeps all batteries topped up, (well so far touch wood)

:Cool: Same here. We had to move Plots in January. We hadn't started the Motor for over 7 months. It fired up straight away. :thumb:
 

Bulletguy

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Feb 7, 2008
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How often should I be starting the engine..........and how long do you leave it running for?

P.S. with my van being mostly static how often should I be giving her a run out just to free all the brakes/barrings etc...?
Forget the first question and concentrate on the second.

No vehicle should be left standing for lengthy periods without being taken out for a run at least once or twice a month. Even collectors cars and museum exhibits are regularly run to keep them in good order, and they are stored in far better conditions than the vast majority of mh's.

I've lost count of the number of mh's i see regularly sitting in driveways just doing nothing for months on end.

Crazy!
 
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Boo

Boo

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And would I need a mortgage for one on those solar jobbies?? :Sad:

:Cool: Same here. We had to move Plots in January. We hadn't started the Motor for over 7 months. It fired up straight away. :thumb:

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scotjimland

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Jul 25, 2007
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Forget the first question and concentrate on the second.

No vehicle should be left standing for lengthy periods without being taken out for a run at least once or twice a month. Even collectors cars and museum exhibits are regularly run to keep them in good order, and they are stored in far better conditions than the vast majority of mh's.

I've lost count of the number of mh's i see regularly sitting in driveways just doing nothing for months on end.

Crazy!

Taking out for a run is a lot different from just starting and letting it idle.. that's the worst thing you can do, does the engine no good whatsoever.. idling a diesel can cause glazing on the cylinders and premature wear.. A good run, 30 min or so, once a month is worth while ..

I've sat for months and never started, and hauled by hand the grey and black waste rather than start up just to dump..

The original question was:

How oftern should I be starting the engine..........and how long do you leave it running for?

I stand firm behind my advice.. for the question asked.
 
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Boo

Boo

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I bought a maciator from Lindy so I have no dumping probs.........I even managed to use it 1st time and stay clean..........I did however forget to read the part about inserting the washers so I had to give the locker a wipe afterwards :Blush:)

But won't the discs rust up if not used and the oil go thick if not used...........see there is another question in there i'd like to know too......like do you put your handbrake on (mine is electronic) when parked for long periods or do you rely on the P to lock the transmission? if so wont it strain the gearbox and if you leave your parking brake on don't the pads/shoes stick on?

I have loads more questions but I will put those in their catagories...............hope you all can keep up :thumb:


Boo



Taking out for a run is a lot different from just starting and letting it idle.. that's the worst thing you can do, does the engine no good whatsoever.. idling a diesel can cause glazing on the cylinders and premature wear.. A good run, 30 min or so, once a month is worth while ..

I've sat for months and never started, and hauled by hand the grey and black waste rather than start up just to dump..

The original question was:



I stand firm behind my advice.. for the question asked.

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scotjimland

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Jul 25, 2007
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But won't the discs rust up if not used and the oil go thick if not used...........see there is another question in there i'd like to know too......like do you put your handbrake on (mine is electronic) when parked for long periods or do you rely on the P to lock the transmission? if so wont it strain the gearbox and if you leave your parking brake on don't the pads/shoes stick on?

The discs will rust, but that happens overnight after a run anyway.. don't know if continually rubbing it off does any good or not..

The engine oil won't go thick standing, the danger is if you only run for a short time and the oil doesn't reach running temperature the moisture from the fuel won't 'boil off' resulting in white sludge .. this used to be a problem with some cars, you could see the white gunk at the oil filling cap.

Sorry, I don't know how your parking brake works, but if your parked level you don't need it, I would leave it off , gear in neutral and block the wheels.
My parking brake is an air operated brake on the prop shaft and it's 'fail safe' ie , air pressure holds it off but over a period of a few weeks or months the air gradually leaks away and it goes on.. but it's never seized.. yet ..

That's my thoughts and understanding .. others may think different..
 

johnsandywhite

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:RollEyes: Our Newmar had been parked on it's Jacks with the Park brake applied for 2 years before we had to move it to another plot. The ONLY problem was the 8+ year old tyres starting to break up when we moved and re-parked. :Doh:
 

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