Best replacement for Elecsol 110 Carbon Fibre leisure battery? (1 Viewer)

[magicsurfbus]

Our Elecsol 110 Carbon Fibre leisure battery is now 8 years old. Still performing pretty much as before according to the voltmeter but the crystals have begun forming on the positive terminal and I'm thinking maybe it's time to replace it before it goes phut in the middle of a trip abroad.

It's been topped up daily by the solar panel so I think that's why it's lasted do long. The charge controller limits it to 13.6v and it settles at around 12.7v under no load.

Apparently Elecsol the company aren't around any more, so my question to the MHF collective is what do you consider to be the nearest equivalent to this battery? Did someone else take over their factory? I've been delighted with its performance and don't mind paying the extra pennies to get another top-rated one.

Also, is there anything to be gained from fitting a different charge controller that allows a higher voltage through or keeps closer tabs on things? The one we have is pretty basic (ie Chinese).

All suggestions welcome, especially from anyone in the MH trade. Thanks in advance.

 

[PhilandMena]

I too had these batteries which lasted for almost 5 years. Oddly enough when they died on me they were showing 12.7 V but had clearly reached their cycle life as I found out one evening as the sun went down and my solar panel was no longer providing power to the hab services. My two leisure batteries had worn them selves out. (My previous trip in Morocco had probably contributed to this as we were off hook up for nearly 50 days.
Anyway, moving on. Are you aware of the leisure battery scheme introduced by the National Caravan Council (NCC) whereby new leisure batteries are purchased and subjected to test by an independent test house and then classified accordingly.
This gives you some confidence on battery performance and not reliant on wild claims made by many manufacturers.
I have put a download in the resources section and you may want to go to their web site to obtain the latest list as the testing is ongoing.
As you have a Solar Panel, I would have thought a 'class B' battery would meet your needs.
Elecsol went bust a few years ago by the way and no longer trade.

 

[PhilandMena]

Whoops! Forgot to answer your last paragraph. Not sure what charge controller you have and what output you have from your solar panels, so difficult to answer.

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[magicsurfbus]

Thanks for the above info.

Solar panel is 85W, and the charge controller is about as basic as you can get, restricting maximum voltage to 13.6v. It has a spare pair of terminals which I use to power a fridge vent fan so that would be a handy feature on any replacement. Just not sure if a better controller unit would improve battery charging/performance?

 

[funflair]

Sound like you are a pretty light user of electrical power so a mid range battery should bo the job, if the majority of your charging is via the solar I would suggest making sure that your regulator is up to the job of 3 stage charging.

I believe that the Elecsol is a low profile battery so if you are stuck for space it might be worth checking the sizes of potential replacements.

Martin

 

[PhilandMena]

Thanks for the above info.

Solar panel is 85W, and the charge controller is about as basic as you can get, restricting maximum voltage to 13.6v. It has a spare pair of terminals which I use to power a fridge vent fan so that would be a handy feature on any replacement. Just not sure if a better controller unit would improve battery charging/performance?

My advice would be, the more solar power the better. If you are going to upgrade your controller then this would be the time to consider more solar power. 85W is not much and you will not get 5 Amps per hour out of that. I would go for at least twice that and more if you can.
13.6V is a float charge and you may need to go up to 14.2 (ish) for lead acid batteries if you want to be sure they are getting a full charge.
Do you use or intend getting an Inverter ? If so, think about even more Solar power. Many members will tell you, you can never have too much power.

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[Dorset Diver]

I replaced my Elecsol with an Enduroline from Tayna. Seems to be okay.
https://www.tayna.co.uk/EXV110-Enduroline-Calcium-Leisure-Battery-P8423.html

 

[PhilandMena]

For your information.
http://www.thencc.org.uk/our_schemes/ncc_verified_leisure_battery_scheme.aspx

 

[magicsurfbus]

85W is fine for us - we've had the panel for 8 years and have never needed more. There's no room on the roof anyway. We don't bother with an inverter. LED lighting, water pump, TV, sat tuner (dish is manual) and recharging portable gadgets. Occasionally the blown air heater fan. That's it.

We spend a lot of time on aires and basic campsites and hardly ever use EHU. The alternator charges to 14.2v when driving.

At night when the telly, sat tuner, and one light are on the voltage dips below 12v and it struggles to recharge gadgets at the same time. This is why I think a new battery might be in order.

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[PhilandMena]

OK! Also, your fridge will be taking a small amount of lecce too (assuming it's main power source is gas !)
It's virtually impossible to measure a battery when you have a load on it. I disconnect and rest it for a few hours then measure it for an accurate reading. If you have managed 8 years on this set you have done a lot better than most.
Safe Travels.