Leisure battery losing charge…

[IPrinceB]

The leisure battery in my Laika Kreos 7012 is losing its charge, even when no 12v appliances are being used eg control panel shows 12v at 10pm last night, to 11.5v at 7am this morning.
We are plugged into 230v mains electric and so stationary; the battery voltage increases to about 12.2v when I run the vehicle engine for about 30 mins and then slowly reduces.
Is there an easy way of knowing whether this is a battery issue or could it be the battery recharger (which is on and the fuse is ok)?
Sorry for long-winded post…

 

[Two on Tour]

It rather sounds as though it's time for a new leisure battery. How old is your leisure battery ?

 

[IPrinceB]

It’s just 2 years old - it came with the new Motorhome in March 2020

 

[funflair]

If you are plugged into mains with the battery charger on I would suggest that you are not getting a charge from the charger to the leisure battery, obviously when you run the engine you get a small charge from the alternator, on electric hook up you should be seeing over 13v

 

[Two on Tour]

With your engine running you should be getting a voltage reading of between 13.7 - 14.7 at the battery, so either your battery is knackered and not taking a charge, or your alternator is not giving the correct output.
If you have a multimeter with you, then check your alternator by seeing if your getting the 13.7 - 14.7 at on your starter battery with your engine running.

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[Landy Andy]

If plugged in to EHU then your voltage should be much higher, and not drop. Check the EHU is working , that you have 240v in the van, and that charger is working

 

[Pausim]

I agree with funflair you should be seeing much higher voltages both on hook up and when driving. Does your vehicle have a smart alternator? At 2 years old it may well have. If it does have a smart alternator it should have been fitted with a B2B/Booster instead of a split charge relay but this seems to have been overlooked by some converters, though I would expect Laika to have got it right.

 

[Podney]

Seems to me that the likelihood is that either the onboard charger isn’t working,or the battery is goosed.
But how you accurately check that out is beyond my limited knowledge……others will know.

 

[IPrinceB]

With the engine running the control panel is showing 14.3v for the leisure battery - this then drops to 12v within an hour of turning off the engine and plugging the 230v back in…

 

[funflair]

With the engine running the control panel is showing 14.3v for the leisure battery - this then drops to 12v within an hour of turning off the engine and plugging the 230v back in…

If you mean just running the engine for a short period that sounds about right as you won't be putting enough in to significantly increase the voltage/charge level, if it stays at 12v when plugged into hook up that seems to indicate the problem is in the mains charging.

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[Lenny HB]

Sounds like the battery has had it.
AGM by any chance? 2 years not bad for an AGM.

You really do not want to run the engine stationary can give you very expensive repair bills, if you need to run it take it for a drive so it gets up to operating temperature.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Are you sure your 240 v hook up is working.…?
It should be showing a higher charge rate on hook up.if not your charger could be faulty or the hook up itself.

 

[VXman]

Are you sure your 240 v hook up is working.…?
It should be showing a higher charge rate on hook up.if not your charger could be faulty or the hook up itself.

I agree - if the voltage is going up when the engine is running then it's odd that it's not when plugged into EHU. Either no power is coming through from the EHU or the charger is not working.

30 mins of engine is not going to charge the lesisure battery anyway so that is why it is dropping down very quickly. The alternator prioritises the engine battery and can take 4-5 hours of running to fully charge the leisure.

The EHU is the opposite and priorotises the Leisure so that's what needs to be working.

Also, as said above, don't leave engine on tick over for a long time. In modern diesels it damages the dpf filter and will be an expensive fix.

 

[PhilandMena]

You say your batteries are only 2 years old so I would not condemn them out of hand just yet. However, if this issue has been going on for the same period the likelihood is they will need replacing. Do not replace these batteries until you have identified what is wrong and corrected it or your going to end up in the same situation again. You say your getting 14.2 V from the alternator so that's working as it should be. Yet when your on hook up there appears to be no charge going into your batteries as you should be seeing the same voltage and this is where you need to concentrate your fault finding. Its possible the charger is not switched on or switched to charging the cab battery only. You should have a manual for your onboard charger and this will instruct you how to make sure you have the charger switched on and selected for the correct battery bank. (Get online for free if you do not have it to hand). If this is set up correctly and not charging, check fuses one for the charger and one near the battery. A volt meter will tell you if a charge is leaving the charger and arriving at the battery bank. If still not working try and get your hands on a decent charger and plug directly into the 240 supply and see if you can recover your batteries. I would give it 48 hrs on the charger depending how powerful it is. Best of luck.

 

[pete52]

I had a similar problem. It turned out to be a 35A fuse on the charger. It was not easy to see.

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[pete52]

I had a similar problem. It turned out to be a 35A fuse on the charger. It was not easy to see.

 

[autorouter]

If you are plugged into EHU, then the mains battery charger should be charging the leisure battery. A battery that is not being charged will have a voltage of between 12,8V and anything down to 11.5V, depending on how flat it is. A battery that is being charged will have a voltage of at least 13.0V, and ideally should go to about 14.5V for several hours until it is full. It will then drop to about 13.5V, which keeps it topped up without overcharging. The upshot is, if your battery is less than 13.0V it is not being charged.

Battery charging is a chemical process that takes several hours to complete. Just because the voltage rises to 14V for a minute or two during charging, it doesn't mean the battery is fully charged.

Assuming the charger is switched on, the problem could be a switch set wrong, a blown fuse, a bad connection or a faulty charger.

 

[BROOMYS]

Your batteries may need topping up with distilled water. If they are that type. Recommended every 3 months. Due to being constantly charged from solar panels.

 

[IPrinceB]

With the engine running the control panel is showing 14.3v for the leisure battery - this immediately slowly drops to about 12v after an hour or so and then drops slowly thereafter.
I’d assumed that it was either the charger or the battery (or maybe even a combination of both ) but wondered if there was a relatively easy way of determining which?
The battery dropped to below 11v for a short time a day or so ago - I wondered if I needed to get it back up to almost full charge before it started to ‘behave’ again?
We’re parked under trees, so the solar panel probably can’t help (even if it could) as a consequence.
I’m in Southern Spain for the next week or so, could probably get a replacement battery but maybe have to live with what we’ve currently got until we get home..

 

[PhilandMena]

With the engine running the control panel is showing 14.3v for the leisure battery - this immediately slowly drops to about 12v after an hour or so and then drops slowly thereafter.
I’d assumed that it was either the charger or the battery (or maybe even a combination of both ) but wondered if there was a relatively easy way of determining which?
The battery dropped to below 11v for a short time a day or so ago - I wondered if I needed to get it back up to almost full charge before it started to ‘behave’ again?
We’re parked under trees, so the solar panel probably can’t help (even if it could) as a consequence.
I’m in Southern Spain for the next week or so, could probably get a replacement battery but maybe have to live with what we’ve currently got until we get home..

This is happening because your leisure battery is not fully charged and you will not achieve that with engine only running. you need to get it fully charged and your not going to do that sitting under a tree. Several members have advised you to check the onboard charger and get your battery charged via Hook up.

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[autorouter]

I’d assumed that it was either the charger or the battery (or maybe even a combination of both ) but wondered if there was a relatively easy way of determining which?

If the charger is not working, the battery voltage will be below 13.0V. You have seen that if a good charger tries to charge the battery, the voltage rises to over 14V. That's what the alternator was doing. So the battery will accept the charge, and the voltage will rise.

For some reason, the mains charger is not charging the leisure battery.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

It doesn't look like the op is on ehu.

 

[VXman]

It doesn't look like the op is on ehu.

He said he was in the first post.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

He said he was in the first post.

He doesn't say they have checked it's working..if so the battery voltage should be up higher than the advised 12.2 v even if the battery is duff the charge rate should be showing higher. The battery may be duff anyway now but it looks as though there is an issue with either the ehu or charger.
If they are on hook up the battery should show no reduction in charge overnight unless they take off the ehu.

 

[IPrinceB]

The EHU is definitely working (it’s the first thing I checked) we’ve continued to run things from it and the Motorhome’s Control Panel also confirms that it’s working and ‘charging both batteries’…

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[Jimbohorlicks]

The EHU is definitely working (it’s the first thing I checked) we’ve continued to run things from it and the Motorhome’s Control Panel also confirms that it’s working and ‘charging both batteries’…

You say charging both batteries? If you have 2 leisure batteries ,one of them may be duff but the other could be ok. While you are on ehu ,it may be prudent to take them off in turn and see if they hold a charge or show a better charging rate individually.

 

[scotzsue]

Also a Laika owner we discovered the on board charger had been switched off by accident. Is the icon for charging showing when control panel is switched on? Luckily our solar kept it going and we have just spent 4 nights off grid with no problems. Have found that the Laika control panel readout and volt meter readings are within .1

 

[PhilandMena]

The EHU is definitely working (it’s the first thing I checked) we’ve continued to run things from it and the Motorhome’s Control Panel also confirms that it’s working and ‘charging both batteries’…

How do you know the charger is working! Your readings suggest something is amis. Do you have a volt meter that you can use to measure the voltage going into the batteries.

 

[mikebeaches]

I’m in Southern Spain for the next week or so, could probably get a replacement battery but maybe have to live with what we’ve currently got until we get home..

Depending where in southern Spain you are, the folk at Hispavan, next to a motorway junction outside the town of Vera, in Almeria, are very helpful.

It's a Spanish/British managed company and English is widely spoken.

Alquiler de Autocaravanas Almería - Alquiler de Autocaravanas Murcia - Autocaravanas de Ocasión Almería - Autocaravanas de Ocasión Murcia - Autocaravanas de Ocasión Alicante – Accesorios y Taller de Autocaravanas en Almería - Furgonetas Camper Almerí

hispavan.com

Google map location: https://tinyurl.com/mr3fptav

We were sorted without delay when we damaged the electric step on our van (clouted on a huge speed hump). Had heard plenty of recommendations from other motorhomers, and decided to call in as we were passing.

They were straight on to the job, dismantled the step, did some magic and got it working again in just over an hour, while we had some lunch nearby. They insisted on showing me the step while it was in pieces, and would have replaced it if they were unable to repair it.

I'm sure they'd be happy to check what your issue is and supply & fit a new battery if required.

In any case, hope you get sorted.

 

[Pausim]

The EHU is definitely working (it’s the first thing I checked) we’ve continued to run things from it and the Motorhome’s Control Panel also confirms that it’s working and ‘charging both batteries’…

The panel may think it is charging both batteries but the voltage shows nothing is reaching the battery. Have you checked the charging fuse? If the charging fuse has blown the charger may show on the panel but the power will not get to the battery. I think you may have an EBL in which case it may be marked “Internes Ladegerät” and will be 20A.

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