Aux/Vehicle battery status (2 Viewers)

[Touchwood]

My Compass Avantgarde has a battery status indicator, which doubles as a fresh water tank level indicator. There is also an Aux/Veh battery switch, which of course I always have in the Aux position normally. The handbook says the battery status indicator shows the status of the battery selected, but I have noticed that when switching between batteries the voltage indicated doesn't change - even after a couple of nights away recently off EHU when the voltage had dropped to just below 13v on the Aux battery (as you would expect) switching to Veh battery it didn't move, staying at just under 13v.

Have I a problem? My concern is that both batteries are draining.

 

[crimbo]

My Compass Avantgarde has a battery status indicator, which doubles as a fresh water tank level indicator. There is also an Aux/Veh battery switch, which of course I always have in the Aux position normally. The handbook says the battery status indicator shows the status of the battery selected, but I have noticed that when switching between batteries the voltage indicated doesn't change - even after a couple of nights away recently off EHU when the voltage had dropped to just below 13v on the Aux battery (as you would expect) switching to Veh battery it didn't move, staying at just under 13v.

Have I a problem? My concern is that both batteries are draining.

I think you`ll find that the dual water level/battery status guage only corresponds to habitation battery and not the vehicle battery. The Aux/Veh switch only switches the charger between the two when on mains hook-up

 

[Touchwood]

I think you`ll find that the dual water level/battery status guage only corresponds to habitation battery and not the vehicle battery. The Aux/Veh switch only switches the charger between the two when on mains hook-up

Unless I'm misreading it, that's not what the handbook says.

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[chaser]

I think you`ll find that the dual water level/battery status guage only corresponds to habitation battery and not the vehicle battery. The Aux/Veh switch only switches the charger between the two when on mains hook-up

Think that is wrong, the hookup charger never charges the veh battery, the switch only let's you use the van battery as an emergency thing if your hab battery runs out although the gauge does show the volts of either, ours is nearly always way better on veh battery, after a bit of use but when we park up they are usually the same.
Hth, only my interpretation :thumb:

 

[DeuceBG]

We have a series of Red, Amber and Green lights which do the same thing and they give an indication of charge level in either battery, depending upon which way the rocker switch is set...

 

[GJH]

Think that is wrong, the hookup charger never charges the veh battery, the switch only let's you use the van battery as an emergency thing if your hab battery runs out although the gauge does show the volts of either, ours is nearly always way better on veh battery, after a bit of use but when we park up they are usually the same.
Hth, only my interpretation :thumb:

That's more or less what I found when we had our Autoquest. The one time the switch was inadvertently set to Veh it didn't half drain it fast

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[GJH]

I think you`ll find that the dual water level/battery status guage only corresponds to habitation battery and not the vehicle battery.[HI] The Aux/Veh switch only switches the charger between the two when on mains hook-up [/HI]

Not on the Compass/Elddis range. The starter battery is not charged from EHU using standard wiring. I installed a Battery Charge Manager in ours to overcome that.

 

[gozomike]

Obviously differences in Vans. My AS works as Crimbo says, but I know that is not the norm.

 

[pappajohn]

Think that is wrong, the hookup charger never charges the veh battery, the switch only let's you use the van battery as an emergency thing if your hab battery runs out although the gauge does show the volts of either, ours is nearly always way better on veh battery, after a bit of use but when we park up they are usually the same.
Hth, only my interpretation :thumb:

if the switch brings the engine battery into use then it will also charge it.
The only way it wouldnt is if the charger was connected directly to the hab battery....which it isnt, it is connected to the centre contacts of the said switch either directly or indirectly.

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[crimbo]

Think that is wrong, the hookup charger never charges the veh battery, the switch only let's you use the van battery as an emergency thing if your hab battery runs out although the gauge does show the volts of either, ours is nearly always way better on veh battery, after a bit of use but when we park up they are usually the same.
Hth, only my interpretation :thumb:

opp5sorry, i stand corrected. I don`t know wether i`m right or wrong now. All i do now is that my charger set-up says it will charge whichever battery the Veh/hab switch is set at.

 

[chaser]

if the switch brings the engine battery into use then it will also charge it.
The only way it wouldnt is if the charger was connected directly to the hab battery....which it isnt, it is connected to the centre contacts of the said switch either directly or indirectly.

No it doesn't, if you are on hookup there is no need to charge the veh battery as you would not be useing it or for that matter the hab battery either, but if you are off hookup you would run your hab battery down and could in theory use your veh battery in emergency but wouldn't be charging either.

 

[GJH]

if the switch brings the engine battery into use then it will also charge it.
The only way it wouldnt is if the charger was connected directly to the hab battery....which it isnt, it is connected to the centre contacts of the said switch either directly or indirectly.

No it doesn't, if you are on hookup there is no need to charge the veh battery as you would not be useing it or for that matter the hab battery either, but if you are off hookup you would run your hab battery down and could in theory use your veh battery in emergency but wouldn't be charging either.

That was our experience. The time that the switch was knocked by mistake we were on hook-up and the starter battery ran down rather than being charged - I had to get a jump start off a tugger

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[pappajohn]

No it doesn't, if you are on hookup there is no need to charge the veh battery as you would not be useing it or for that matter the hab battery either, but if you are off hookup you would run your hab battery down and could in theory use your veh battery in emergency but wouldn't be charging either.

agreed, you dont even need a battery fitted on hookup but if you can use the engine battery off hookup then its wired in such a way it can charge on hookup.

Its still powering up the 12v circuit which includes the charger wiring.

 

[pappajohn]

That was our experience. The time that the switch was knocked by mistake we were on hook-up and the starter battery ran down rather than being charged - I [HI]had to get a jump start off a tugger[/HI]

how embarrassing is that.

you should have had a Swift......they wire them correctly.

 

[GJH]

how embarrassing is that.

you should have had a Swift......they wire them correctly.

So do Burstner - and such that the solar panel charges both when wired through the Elektroblock unit :thumb:

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[chaser]

agreed, you dont even need a battery fitted on hookup but if you can use the engine battery off hookup then its wired in such a way it can charge on hookup.

Its still powering up the 12v circuit which includes the charger wiring.

No it isn't, don't know how it's wired but it definitely doesn't charge the veh battery wherever the switch is, I have seen in other threads a while back where someone had a normal battery charger plugged into the 240 plug in the van while on hookup connected to the veh battery and then charging both up from hookup

 

[crimbo]

Well mine does :thumb:

 

[chaser]

Well mine does :thumb:

Is it a compass or eldis, if it is how does it work, would be very interested:thumb:

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[Terry]

My new Transit charges either LB OR VEHICLE BATTERY on the flick of the switch(ehu)plus the vehicle running charges both and now runs the 12v side of things on the fridge WANNA buy a properly wired transit ?
terry

 

[crimbo]

Is it a compass or eldis, if it is how does it work, would be very interested:thumb:

Its a 2006 Nuevo EK, all i now is that the manufactures instructions for the type fitted say this is so!

 

[GJH]

No it isn't, don't know how it's wired but it definitely doesn't charge the veh battery wherever the switch is, I have seen in other threads a while back where someone had a normal battery charger plugged into the 240 plug in the van while on hookup connected to the veh battery and then charging both up from hookup

That was me with our Autoquest before I fitted the BCM

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[GJH]

It all depends on how the converter has decided to wire the van.

It isn't all converters who have Terry's expertise

 

[Terry]

It all depends on how the converter has decided to wire the van.

It isn't all converters who have Terry's expertise

IF IT WAS DOWN TO MY WIRING GRAHAM god only knows what would work on what switch -it's all down to Paul to make the connections I only tell him how it should work and he makes it all happen after calling me a few choice names
terry

 

[keith]

All MH are not built the same as there are no rules (other than keep costs down so they make more profit) and therefore all MH will have what the converters think we need.

Our Starseeker has an ECU that shows both battery voltages and charges both according to which battery has the greatest need, it says in the hand book.

It also gives the opportunity to use the hab. battery to start the van, if the vehicle battery is flat, a system I used to good effect during our last trip from Portugal. In the end though I had to buy a new one at a ridiculous price of €260.

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[Merle]

All this makes for very interesting reading to me. I have a 2003 Autocruise Wentworth which would appear to have the same control panel as the original question. The starter battery let me down twice in the last 2 weeks, once while on hook up with the aux batteries selected and once off hookup again with the aux batteries selected, both times selecting 'main' for about 15 mins, (generator when off ehu) resulted in starting OK. As the starter battery is 5 years old a new one is being fitted next week. So to my way of thinking...Papa John 1-0 :thumb:

 

[chaser]

All this makes for very interesting reading to me. I have a 2003 Autocruise Wentworth which would appear to have the same control panel as the original question. The starter battery let me down twice in the last 2 weeks, once while on hook up with the aux batteries selected and once off hookup again with the aux batteries selected, both times selecting 'main' for about 15 mins, (generator when off ehu) resulted in starting OK. As the starter battery is 5 years old a new one is being fitted next week. So to my way of thinking...Papa John 1-0 :thumb:

Auto cruise is a swift not compass or eldis:Sad:

 

[chaser]

I think I may have something here that might explain it, when the ignition is switched on no electric works in the hab, so does it follow that when the ignition is off no electric goes the other way:thumb:

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[Sift]

Do you mean no 12v electric works in the hab or no 240v electric works in the hab or neither?

So many variables

Edit: just thinking that's strange because surely you might want 12v available in the hab even if the engine is running?

Cheers,
Lee.

 

[Sift]

Went out and did some testing with a multimeter myself. Like someone said: I guess all MHs could be wired differently.

The long and the short of it, in my case, is that the vehicle battery is not charged by 240V hookup, no matter which direction the panel switch is flicked.

The Leisure battery did stop charging when the switch was flicked to 'truck' position.

Cheers,
Lee.

 

[keith]

Do you mean no 12v electric works in the hab or no 240v electric works in the hab or neither?

So many variables

Edit: just thinking that's strange because surely you might want 12v available in the hab even if the engine is running?

Cheers,
Lee.

Exactly.

If you want 12V in the hab while running you need to change the wiring somewhere, as it cuts off automatically once moving. Seen a thread somewhere on that.

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