12v Leisure Problem (1 Viewer)

[Mark33]

I own a Ci Carioca 746 and its been running great until last week. I accidentally left internal light on and drained the leisure battery. Now it will not work off leisure battery. I recharged it and still my 12v system will not work in habitation area.
If the 230v supply is plugged in, the 12v habitation system works.
If the ignition is running, the 12v habitation system works.
But if I try to run on 12v leisure battery, the control panel illuminates but when I try a light/pump/tv the control panel dies. A relay sounds in the 12v fuse box and everything 12v shuts down.
Yesterday I bought a new 110Ah battery....same problem.
I really would appreciate any help as I cannot get a dealer to even look at it for next 4 weeks!
Mark

 

[hilldweller]

You were right to buy a new battery, classic "I killed the battery".

With a new battery not working maybe a totally different "I fitted the battery wrong and blew a fuse" sort of thing is possible.

 

[pappajohn]

My th

You were right to buy a new battery, classic "I killed the battery".

With a new battery not working maybe a totally different "I fitted the battery wrong and blew a fuse" sort of thing is possible.

Rights too Brian, but what is confusing is the panel illuminates yet as soon as anything is turned on it dies completely.

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[Mark33]

Thanks for the reply Brian.
I am new to forums, but from my bit of Motorhome experience feel I have advice to offer and willing to accept advice also.

Yes its very possible I've blown a fuse somewhere but where! I tested all fuses under steering wheel in cab area and tested all fuses in 12v habitation fusebox.....all ok.
I did not expect a fuse to have blown under the bonnet, and as expected they are all fine too.
I cannot imagine that a fuse would be hidden out of sight or is this possible?

 

[pappajohn]

My th

You were right to buy a new battery, classic "I killed the battery".

With a new battery not working maybe a totally different "I fitted the battery wrong and blew a fuse" sort of thing is possible.

my thoughts too Brian, but what is confusing is the panel illuminates yet as soon as anything is turned on it dies completely.

 

[Mark33]

Pappajohn

If I turn on my control panel it illumines. Then when I switch on a light for example....the light comes on briefly (<1second), dim & flickers and a click sounds inside the habitation fusebox and everything 12v dies

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[Minxy]

It can't be a fuse that's blown otherwise there'd be no power at all to the control panel, so I suspect the new battery doesn't have sufficient charge in it (they don't usually keep them charged up fully in the shops etc) so when you turn on the panel it just has enough to give a quick 'showing' and then goes off ... assuming you've connected it up right I'd leave it plugged into the mains for a couple of days at least (resist the temptation to keep trying the electrics) and then try again and see if it works okay.

 

[DBK]

Poor connection at one end or other of the battery leads?

 

[hilldweller]

Yes its very possible I've blown a fuse somewhere but where!

I am just guessing, but I'd be looking right next to the battery. Have you put a voltmeter across the battery ? You may not have blown one it could be damaged by the battery cables bending.

A tip if you can't find a measuring point, a dressmaker's pin stabbed into a cable can work.

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[TheBig1]

the click sounds like a low voltage protection relay isolating the battery

 

[Mark33]

It can't be a fuse that's blown otherwise there'd be no power at all to the control panel, so I suspect the new battery doesn't have sufficient charge in it (they don't usually keep them charged up fully in the shops etc) so when you turn on the panel it just has enough to give a quick 'showing' and then goes off ... assuming you've connected it up right I'd leave it plugged into the mains for a couple of days at least (resist the temptation to keep trying the electrics) and then try again and see if it works okay.

I put voltmeter on it and reads 12.2v.
I put charger on it and it says roughly 75% charged.
I drove it for an hour tonight to see if I needed to charge it, but same immediate effect as described once I parked up.
Its a tough one this!

 

[Mark33]

Poor connection at one end or other of the battery leads?

John, this I thought of today. I disconnected the battery totally and metered the negative terminal clamp to chassis and got 0.01 Ohms, same reading to negative of cigarette lighter. Not sure how to check the positive though.

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[hilldweller]

Poor connection at one end or other of the battery leads?

Just enough for the control panel but not enough for any real load, yes.

 

[hilldweller]

Its a tough one this!

We like a challenge.

So with your charger that says 75% what happens if you turn lights on with this charging, monitor the voltage. You should see 14V+ on charge.

 

[Cliffdale]

Sorry to say 12.2v is a dead battery.

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[pappajohn]

12.2v is technically flat.
13.6v at least when on charge.
12.6v/12.7v after an hour or so off any kind of charge is a fully charged battery.
Charge the battery for 24hrs, leave off charge for an hour then volt check again.

 

[Minxy]

I put voltmeter on it and reads 12.2v.
I put charger on it and it says roughly 75% charged.
I drove it for an hour tonight to see if I needed to charge it, but same immediate effect as described once I parked up.
Its a tough one this!

12.2v is about 25% so way below 50% (12.4v) so please don't try to use it as you'll just ruin your new battery ... leave it on hook-up and IMV it will improve ... you are never going to charge it by driving it around for an hour, you need to give it a good bit of juice from the mains.

I suspect the 75% is what discharge state it is at, NOT what is left in it.

https://www.lifesure.co.uk/blog/2015/06/everything-you-need-to-know-about-caravan-leisure-batteries/

Meter Reading Approximate Charge Level
12.7V or above 100%
12.5V 75%
12.4V 50%
12.2V 25%
12V or lower Discharged

 

[Mark33]

12.2v is technically flat.
13.6v at least when on charge.
12.6v/12.7v after an hour or so off any kind of charge is a fully charged battery.
Charge the battery for 24hrs, leave off charge for an hour then volt check again.

Pappajohn...12.62v.......sorry this keyboard is letting me down at times (it missed the 6 digit).
I'll measure it now and measure it when in charges too so see if you make sense of the numbers.

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[Minxy]

Pappajohn...12.62v.......sorry this keyboard is letting me down at times (it missed the 6 digit).
I'll measure it now and measure it when in charges too so see if you make sense of the numbers.

Are you measuring it whilst it's on hook-up?

 

[cornish boy]

Take the battery out of the motorhome and stick it on charge with a stand alone battery charger for 24 hours, then let it rest for 12 hours and retest.

12.2v is low and while it is around 50% charged I expect the low charge relay is dropping out and switching off the habitation power.

If you can't get the charge up above 12.2v then you may just have bought a duff battery.

When asked by my customers, I normally send them the chart below, its a bit general as it does depend on battery types and design but is a good rough guide.

 

[pappajohn]

Measure it ON charge to confirm your charger is working correctly.
Should be at least 13.6v at the battery with nothing turned on.

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[Mark33]

OK, 12.61volts as it sits with nothing attached.
12.83volts and climbing when I hooked up to mains.

 

[pappajohn]

I would expect to see 13.6v straight away on hookup.
13.6v is the charger voltage, not the battery voltage, and only a heavy load will reduce that.

 

[Mark33]

I would expect to see 13.6v straight away on hookup.
13.6v is the charger voltage, not the battery voltage, and only a heavy load will reduce that.

pappajohn, I have now taken new 110Ah battery and put it in my home to charge. It read 12.7vbefore charge and rose to 3.7 when I turned on charger. I hooked up other battery again which I suspected was dead because after charging 24 hours ago it read 13.2 volts.....still same result.

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[Mark33]

It can't be a fuse that's blown otherwise there'd be no power at all to the control panel, so I suspect the new battery doesn't have sufficient charge in it (they don't usually keep them charged up fully in the shops etc) so when you turn on the panel it just has enough to give a quick 'showing' and then goes off ... assuming you've connected it up right I'd leave it plugged into the mains for a couple of days at least (resist the temptation to keep trying the electrics) and then try again and see if it works okay.

Thanks for reply minxy. Time is not on my side here but all I can do is hope. My kids have a swimming gala all weekend and we use it for this. These galas last 3 days! Heating and cooking will be fine but lighting, water pump and TV will pose problems.

 

[cornish boy]

Worth trying to identify the relay that is clicking and see if you can swap it for another relay in the box that is the same rating and switching.

 

[DBK]

... but lighting, water pump and TV will pose problems.

You may not appreciate the humour given the circumstances, but in the order given the solutions are:

Candle
Bucket
and
Book

But I'm sure the electrics will be sorted soon.


And if there are any ghosts in the system you will have almost the kit necessary to exorcise them.

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[Mark33]

Worth trying to identify the relay that is clicking and see if you can swap it for another relay in the box that is the same rating and switching.

Yes, I did trace it back today. The 12v fuse box is behind driver seat. Its a rectangular shaped box with abot 10 fuses on top. I opened the box itself under the fuses and it contains a PCB board and a lot of cables (and connectors). The clicking came from what I think is a small black relay, but its soldered to the board.

 

[Mark33]

This photograph is the underside of the 12v fusebox. The component marked REL1 is clicking when the control panel drops out.

 

[cornish boy]

12v relays tend to click when they don't get enough power to maintain the latch.

Out of interest, does your control panel when illuminated show battery charge? If so, what does it show without any 12v items switched on?

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