Leisure battery charging (1 Viewer)

[mustaphapint]

Hi.
As a newcomer to motorhoming I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction for this.
Am I correct that when plugged into the mains it would be normal for the leisure battery(s) to be charging?
It looks like the motorhome we bought recently (1998 Hymer B644) has had a fair amount of rewiring done to it and I can't see any evidence of anything resembling a mains charger.
The batteries charge fine when the engine is running but I can see the leisure batter is slowly discharging while the mains lead is connected.
Any pointers on where to start looking please?
Paul

 

[Flamenca]

My Hymer charger is below the passenger seat. However, mine is an earlier model so yours may not be there. The standard arrangement for Hymers was for the charger to be connected to the leisure battery circuit.

 

[mustaphapint]

Thanks Flamenca. I have found the transformer/charger now under a panel below the passenger window. It's not the same as the manual describes though. The fuses are well labelled but there's no indication of what the wires feed.

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[JeanLuc]

If it has the standard power supply unit, it should be a Schaudt Elektroblock (possibly an EBL99 in 1998) and it should be in the location you have described. This charges both the leisure and starter batteries when on hook-up. If yours had had some 'after-market' wiring done, the standard charging protocols may have been interfered with. A description and picture of what you have may help to shed some light on the matter.

p.s. EBL99 may not have been installed before around 2000. Let us know what you have.

 

[Flamenca]

Thanks Flamenca. I have found the transformer/charger now under a panel below the passenger window. It's not the same as the manual describes though. The fuses are well labelled but there's no indication of what the wires feed.

Probably time to use a multi-meter and check the output voltage on the terminals. Where is your leisure battery located?

 

[Terry]

Easy way is to put a multi meter on the batteries when on hook up -if they are reading 13 plus v then they are charging -of course this does not tell you where the charger is simply that it is working so leave well alone
terry
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[mustaphapint]

It's an EBL 4 as opposed to EBL99 or EBL100 the manual says it should have, so I guess my manual is for a later model.
I know it's not charging as there is a digital monitor wired direct to one of the leisure batteries. There are 2 leisure batteries wired in parallel, one under the drivers seat and one behind. The one under the seat looks fairly new and is a lead acid, the other one looks like a dryfill and is rather old. A split charging system has recently been fitted to charge the leisure batteries from the engine and that appears to be working as it should.

 

[pappajohn]

Reading the above post the old battery is dragging down the newer one.
My advise is bin the old one and if funds allow replace both.

 

[JeanLuc]

Yours is probably and EBL 4 - 105.
Normally an EBL contains all the relays to effect charging and there would not be an additional split-charge relay for the leisure batteries. This suggests that someone may have been doing a bit of DIY.
An EBL is more than just a charger in that from the EBL99 onwards at least, they contain relays for leisure battery charging, 12V fridge control and fused circuits for all the 12v consumers. Unless you feel confident about playing with the wiring yourself, I would suggest a visit to someone like Dave Newell at Telford. Dave Newell Leisure Vehicle Services He is well aware of how Elektroblocks are supposed to work and can check out what has been done to your van. Tinkering with additional bits of wiring can result in an expensive repair. A new EBL is £300+ and a reconditioned one is typically over £200.
If you want to get the correct manual for the EBL in your Hymer, it can be downloaded from the Schaudt website which is only in German but not difficult to follow. Go to this page:
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then scroll to the bottom and put 'EBL 4' in the drop-down box marked 'Artikelnummer/Bezeichnung:' and click 'Suchen'. A list will appear below. Then click the English language version you want and it will ask you to supply an email address. Do this and you will quickly get a link enabling you to download the relevant instruction manual.

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[mustaphapint]

Thanks JeanLuc. The downloaded manual is very useful. I've been trying to find one. I'll have a go at trying to work it out myself first and if I'm stumped Telford is not too far for me.