Sterling B2B charger , what to do

Bart

Bart

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Boxer L4H2 van build
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In our current motorhome which was made in 2007 we have a Sterling BBW1260 60a B2B charger installed.
https://www.sp-shop.co.uk/Sterling-...o-Battery-12V-12V-60a-Charger-PN-BBW1260.html
This has worked great for us in our current setup , But i now have a dilemma or question as we are looking to upgrade our motorhome for a newer one which would most likely have one of the so called "smart Alternators" which are fitted to more modern vehicles.
My question is would my sterling B2B charger work with one of them smart alternators or would i be best motorhome and then buy one of sterlings newer "alternator to battery charger's"
https://www.sp-shop.co.uk/Sterling-Power-12V-130A-Alternator-to-Battery-Charger-PN-AB12130.html
 
take the b2b off the current van and sell it to offset the cost of the new setup
 
TheBig1 said:
take the b2b off the current van and sell it to offset the cost of the new setup
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If I need to change it to a smarter version or an alternator to battery charger then I will.

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A voltage sensing B2B is unlikely to work well with a smart alternator. If your B2B is D+ triggered I think it ought to be ok. I don’t know the technical details of your unit but the instructions for my Votronic one say that the D+ connection should be used for Euro 6 engines and smart alternators, not the voltage sensing option.
 
Bart said:
If I need to change it to a smarter version or an alternator to battery charger then I will.
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If you remove the B2B you will need to reinstate the split charge relay function - or whatever your MH had before the B2B was fitted. It might have used the Elektrobloc if it has one - I have no experience of them. Might be easier to leave it in place as a selling point. :)
 
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depends on how old it is. But in answer to your question the B2B does work with a smart alternator.

I would however drop him an email and get it confirmed with the model year you have
 
DBK said:
If you remove the B2B you will need to reinstate the split charge relay function - or whatever your MH had before the B2B was fitted. It might have used the Elektrobloc if it has one - I have no experience of them. Might be easier to leave it in place as a selling point. :)
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I installed it , nothing was removed , just cables added so i can uninstall it easy enough.

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haganap said:
depends on how old it is. But in answer to your question the B2B does work with a smart alternator.

I would however drop him an email and get it confirmed with the model year you have
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Yip i've just gotten of the phone to sterling tech dept ( Sounded just like Charles from when i watched his tutorial videos ) and he confirmed my current BBW1260 will indeed work with the new euro 6.
 
Bart said:
I installed it , nothing was removed , just cables added so i can uninstall it easy enough.
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That a bit odd. :) I'm not a huge fan of Stirling because the instructions which come with their B2Bs say nothing about how to install them in a MH as removing the split charger function is essential if they are to work correctly. However, it is possible a MH with an Elektrobloc doesn't need anything doing to it (I have no knowledge of them) but certainly if a conventional split charge system is fitted it needs to be disconnected as the B2B exposes the leisure batteries to a higher voltage than the vehicle battery and a split charge system will prevent this happening.
 
So what are you buying on a Merc base then?

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Bart said:
@DBK my current mh does not have one of them Elektrobloc , here is a link to the B2B manual / Installation instructions ( pages 4,5 & 6 )
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0..._41ed676a-c2b5-45ae-b346-e56ccbfc680a.pdf?479
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As you are selling it I guess it doesn't matter :) but before you fit one in the new vehicle I suggest you speak to Sterling. As I suggested earlier, their written instructions don't seem to mention SCRs or Elektrobloks and you could do damage to the latter if there is one in the new van and you don't take it into account. I found discussion on this on another forum which I suspect I can't link to here but the advice from Stirling was the SCR has to be disconnected otherwise the B2B just won't work to full capacity. You could try Googling "B2B need to disconnect split charge" and look for the forum about being out and about. The key post is about half way down the page. :)
 
I think you will need to use the ignition feed option not the automatic one with the Merc smart alternator. I prefer the D+ signal because it only cuts in after the engine is running, which avoids any problems with power flowing the wrong way through the system. You might need to check what power the ignition feed on the Sterling unit draws because I think the D+ signal only supports small electronic triggers not a traditional relay (could be wrong). Other Sterling products such as https://sterling-power.com/products/pro-con-if-ignition-feed-relay-unit specifically mention ignition feed/D+ signal but as far as I can see the B2B ones only say ignition feed, which makes me suspicious.

If your new vehicle has an Elektrobloc then it is worth taking a look at the Votronic VCC1212-45 which has settings to make it compatible with the Elektrobloc and associated 50A wiring. It also has good instructions on how to connect the two units. The 60A of the Sterling unit would I think exceed the Electroblok capacity and would need to be independantly wired.
 
The mh that we "currently" have our radar on is the Auto Sleeper Kingham, does anyone know if this mh has an Elektroblok
 

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