Sargent EC160 with additional relay? (1 Viewer)

[JamesFMB]

Hello,

I'm in the process of upgrading a recently purchased day van into a full campervan so I thought I'd take the time to understand what equipment is currently installed. The van has a Sargent EC160 power supply, but I noticed it also has a Durite split charge relay from the battery. As I understand, the Sargent has a split charge relay built in, so what's the benefit of an additional relay?

I know the Sargent has vehicle battery charging as an option, would the Durite relay prevent this?

Thanks for your time

 

[Cush]

Hi
i had a bongo that had that relay. It charged the leisure battery while driving. The Sargent should charge whichever one you select while on ehu without the relay affecting this unless you set the Sargent to charge the vehicle battery. If you do the latter then the relay should provide charge to the leisure’s too. I would check the voltage at the vehicle battery when charging under the different scenarios to check what’s going on.

hope this helps
Cush

 

[autorouter]

Both relays connect the leisure battery to the starter battery/alternator while the engine is running, so that the alternator can charge both batteries. The difference is what exactly triggers the relays.

A Durite relay is a 'voltage sensitive relay' (VSR) that switches on when the starter battery voltage rises to over a preset threshold, about 13.5V I think. On a standard vehicle this only happens when the engine is running and the alternator is charging the starter battery.

The split charge relay built into the EC160 is triggered by the 'D+' (engine running) signal sent out by the alternator on a dedicated wire. In case you're not sure what the D+ signal is, when you turn the key, the dash lights come on - that's the ignition signal. When you start the engine and it's running OK, the alternator light goes off - that's the D+ signal.

A VSR is often fitted to avoid the problem of finding the D+ signal and running a wire to it from the EC160. So it's possible in your vehicle the D+ is not present at the EC160.

The EC160 is a fairly basic distribution/fusebox, and the charger is the old-style fixed-voltage (13.8V) type. Modern multistage smart chargers are available nowadays at a reasonable price, and take much better care of your expensive leisure batteries.

A VSR works OK on a standard vehicle, but once you start fitting things like solar panels you can get problems with the VSR triggering when the the starter battery is being charged by solar or a mains charger, which might not be what you want.

 

[Cush]

Both relays connect the leisure battery to the starter battery/alternator while the engine is running, so that the alternator can charge both batteries. The difference is what exactly triggers the relays.

A Durite relay is a 'voltage sensitive relay' (VSR) that switches on when the starter battery voltage rises to over a preset threshold, about 13.5V I think. On a standard vehicle this only happens when the engine is running and the alternator is charging the starter battery.

The split charge relay built into the EC160 is triggered by the 'D+' (engine running) signal sent out by the alternator on a dedicated wire. In case you're not sure what the D+ signal is, when you turn the key, the dash lights come on - that's the ignition signal. When you start the engine and it's running OK, the alternator light goes off - that's the D+ signal.

A VSR is often fitted to avoid the problem of finding the D+ signal and running a wire to it from the EC160. So it's possible in your vehicle the D+ is not present at the EC160.

The EC160 is a fairly basic distribution/fusebox, and the charger is the old-style fixed-voltage (13.8V) type. Modern multistage smart chargers are available nowadays at a reasonable price, and take much better care of your expensive leisure batteries.

A VSR works OK on a standard vehicle, but once you start fitting things like solar panels you can get problems with the VSR triggering when the the starter battery is being charged by solar or a mains charger, which might not be what you want.

That’s what I meant to say