Leisure Batteries (1 Viewer)

[tony_g]

Yawn, yawn. I know this topic is done to death but I'd like to come at it from the opposite direction. It seems to be a badge of honour amongst some Funsters that they equip themselves to be entirely independent of EHU. Nothing wrong with that at all, of course. But for those who don't want or cannot load up with multiple leisure batteries, battery to battery chargers, solar panels and gennys, can i ask how many of you out there just get by on one leisure battery, moderate use of equipment, LED bulbs, a decent drive every other day or so and EHU as and when (maybe three days in seven)?

 

[spannermanwigan]

I do, only concession I made was to add extra 95amp battery just for peace of mind,
before that moving daily managed fine with one.
We use van mainly in summer, dont find we have large electrical demands.
Basically lights,laptop,phones,I-pod,Kindle all charged while moving during day.

Regards
Steve:thumb:

 

[jonandshell]

A good, say 115Ah, battery should last you 48hrs depending on the load.:thumb:

'Good' being the operative word. There are some bloody useless leisure batteries out there.

Banner make the best.

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[tony_g]

Interesting. So far pretty much what I'm thinking. From experience, one 115 Ah battery seems to do me. However, I have been thinking of replacing it with 2x115 Banner for a long trip round the Balkans and southern Europe but it doesn't quite stack up for Spring/Summer climate, no wild camping in Slovenia/Croatia and light evenings. Maybe I just have the urge to buy something!

 

[wivvy's dad]

...how many of you out there just get by on one leisure battery, moderate use of equipment, LED bulbs, a decent drive every other day or so and EHU as and when (maybe three days in seven)?

Me

Me

Me

 

[gypsylady]

We managed on 1 x 85 battery until it packed in.

The space under the passenger seat was found to be too small for the 110 battery we tried to replace it with, so a grinder was employed to increase the space.

We often rally for weekends, 5 night holiday rallies, and even a 2 week holiday, all off-grid.

Have thought about solar panels, bought a generator, which only got used for our 5-day rally to power the kids portacabin lights.

If the batteries start running low, we just power up the engine to re-charge. We have a 12v pump to get water from our water barrel into the van, so running the engine to use the pump generally is enough to re-charge the leisure battery.

June

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[scotjimland]

Me

Me

Me

likewise.. (except when we had the RV.. it had 4 x 85ah as standard) ,

in the early years of caravaning and campervanning, we didn't even have a leisure battery .. but as the years went on and there were more things to power, the leisure battery was introduced...

I understand why some need more.. but I've never found the need for more than one 85ah battery .. never had solar and only carried a genny when we went full time.

Is is more than adequate for a couple of nights, even in winter .. but then some can't go without TV and all the other power hungry toys..

If wilding, the accepted code of conduct is to move on every couple of days.. so why the need for a roof full of solar and a huge battery bank.. backed up by a noisy genny ..?

I'm sure someone is going to tell me...

 

[slobadoberbob]

had to increase to 2 x 100 amps

I had to increase to 2 x 100 amps this year.. I had 2 x 85amps and it was hard going for a long weekend.

The RV seems to use a lot of power when off of hookup.. we have done some C & CC district meets where generators are not allowed. pain when I have the scooters to charge.. but perhaps european motorhomes do not draw so much power.

Bob

 

[Reallyretired]

As with an awful lot of gadgets and add-ons for motorhomes, the only need is to justify to yourself what you wanted to have anyway. I have 4 solar panels and 2x125Ah batteries. Do I really need them, probably not. They would only become necessary in such unusual circumstances that the need may never occur. Its nice to know however that running energy hungry appliances like hairdryers off grid is feasible, whether necessary ask SWMBO.

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[scotjimland]

I had to increase to 2 x 100 amps this year.. I had 2 x 85amps and it was hard going for a long weekend.

The RV seems to use a lot of power when off of hookup.. we have done some C & CC district meets where generators are not allowed. pain when I have the scooters to charge.. but perhaps european motorhomes do not draw so much power.

Bob

Yes, I understand that Bob.. you have a specific requirement with the scooters. Our RV was also very hungry, big 21" CRT telly, and 21watt lights everywhere.. the yanks don't understand the word 'conserve '

 

[aba]

we could manage 2 to 3 nights on a 80ah battery if it was summer.
but that was after changing some of the lighting to LED.
the secret i have found is to chill the fridge on mains before leaving home then switch off before setting off as when switched to 12volt it takes nearly 20amps.
when you get to your destination switch fridge back on but on gas.
some of the aes fridges sit on 12volt for up to 20 minutes after you switch off the engine and this really robs the battery power.

 

[highwayman]

We had a single 85amp/hr and have lasted four days with it we were very carefull with lights etc.
We now have a 125amp/hr and i'm thinking about putting a second under the passenger seat so i don't have to worry when i go to Le-Mans for instance as we won't be moving for six days.
The 125 ought to be enough, but ?????


cheers nige

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[scotjimland]

we could manage 2 to 3 nights on a 80ah battery if it was summer.
but that was after changing some of the lighting to LED.
the secret i have found is to chill the fridge on mains before leaving home then switch off before setting off as when switched to 12volt it takes nearly 20amps.
when you get to your destination switch fridge back on but on gas.
some of the aes fridges sit on 12volt for up to 20 minutes after you switch off the engine and this really robs the battery power.

Couple of points

when on 12v it is drawing from the engine battery, not the leisure, and not 20amps..

the rating of the element in a 30lt fridge is 75watts , current at 12v = 6.25amps
on the 60lt fridge, the element is 120watts at 12v = 10amps

the 20min delay in switching off is to keep the fridge cool during refuelling ..

the 75 watt element would use 2ah
the 120 watt element would use 3.3ah

not a huge amount.

It is a good plant to pre cool.. but it won't reduce the power used, the 12v element is not on a thermostat..