Electrical hook-up..

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john prince

Joined
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Southampton, UK
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87,083
MH
Burstner Nexxo T620G
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Actually start, 01/03/22
Hi, just collected my first Motorhome, installed rcd sockets to side of house, have subsequently plugged in Motorhome to trickle charge battery ,fridge etc. Question I have is that, How long should I keep Motorhome plugged in for? Or is it a case of a couple of days prior to our first trip away?
 
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If your going away ,put your fridge on electric the day before to get it nice and cold.You can leave your hook up on for as long as you like ,your batteries will be nicely charged for when your ready to go. (y)
 
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Welcome to the fun of motorhoming.
Plug it in for a day, once a month. Any longer (or more often) should not be necessary (check that the battery has at least 12.5V before you start).
Don't put heating on unless you need warmth while prepping the van for an adventure, which is when you'd switch the fridge on to cool it down.
While not in use, switch the fridge off, defrost it, and leave it with the door ajar. There may be a catch for this, just to let the air circulate.

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john prince said:
Hi, just collected my first Motorhome, installed rcd sockets to side of house, have subsequently plugged in Motorhome to trickle charge battery ,fridge etc. Question I have is that, How long should I keep Motorhome plugged in for? Or is it a case of a couple of days prior to our first trip away?
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Mine just stays plugged in to EHU all the time we’re home. We do use the fridge and freezer as over spill from the house.
 
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If you are not using the fridge or anything in the van then you really only need to plug it in occasionally just to top the battery up. I would suggest a day or two every couple of weeks. A decent battery would probably be ok for a month or more to be honest.

On the other hand there's is no real harm in leaving it plugged in all the time as the charger will monitor the battery state and not over charge.

I just plug mine in every now and again to be safe and as sad above - the night before you go out on a trip just to bring the fridge/freezer down to temp.
 
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john prince
Do you know if you have a Battery Master or similar fitted to your ‘van? This will keep the engine battery trickle charged as well as the leisure battery. And do you have any solar panels on the ‘van?
 
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We leave our moho on hook up at home and have a wee heater in it as well. As others have said, we cool the fridge a day or two before leaving on a trip.
 
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DumfriesDik said:
We leave our moho on hook up at home and have a wee heater in it as well. As others have said, we cool the fridge a day or two before leaving on a trip.
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Where is the heater………? o_O o_O o_O ;)
 
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I switch off the onboard charger and connect a smart battery charger/conditioner, this keeps the battery at a level so no damage is done. If you don't drive it for long periods then you will need one for each battery.
 
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Whether you leave it on all the time will depend on what sort of charger your mh has. Some, mainly, but not only older ones, have a simple float charger which takes the battery up to around 13.6v and keeps it there. This doesn't do the battery any good if left like that for weeks. A smart charger is a different matter. Probably best just to put it on for a couple of days a month or whatever.

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Reallyretired said:
Whether you leave it on all the time will depend on what sort of charger your mh has. Some, mainly, but not only older ones, have a simple float charger which takes the battery up to around 13.6v and keeps it there. This doesn't do the battery any good if left like that for weeks. A smart charger is a different matter. Probably best just to put it on for a couple of days a month or whatever.
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Do you know how the schaudt electroblock ebl 119 includes a smart charger or just a float charge. It's a 2021 van so I would have hoped the tech would be recent and good.
 
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VXman said:
Do you know how the schaudt electroblock ebl 119 includes a smart charger or just a float charge. It's a 2021 van so I would have hoped the tech would be recent and good.
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According to the manual it is 'smartish'. It does the bulk charge at 14.4V or 14.7V (AGM) then floats indefinitely at 13.7V.
I'm not sure holding the battery indefinitely at 13.7V is good for it. Someone Lenny HB may know
 
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Reallyretired said:
According to the manual it is 'smartish'. It does the bulk charge at 14.4V or 14.7V (AGM) then floats indefinitely at 13.7V.
I'm not sure holding the battery indefinitely at 13.7V is good for it. Someone Lenny HB may know
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It won't do any harm, current is limited to about 1 amp.
 
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Reallyretired said:
According to the manual it is 'smartish'. It does the bulk charge at 14.4V or 14.7V (AGM) then floats indefinitely at 13.7V.
I'm not sure holding the battery indefinitely at 13.7V is good for it. Someone Lenny HB may know
Click to expand...
It won't do any harm, current is limited to about 1 amp.
 
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