12V Battery chargers

Submitted: Friday, Oct 25, 2002 at 00:00
ThreadID: 2220 Views:3574 Replies:7 FollowUps:6
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I am intereseted in a 4 stroke battery charger. Has anybody used one ? or know where to hire one? I have spoken with Christie Engineering, and they sound good, but for the price I would like to try one first.
I remember reading sometime ago some one in this forum mentioned one but could not find the reference, does antone else know where to get one locally (Melbourne?)
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Reply By: Mark - Friday, Oct 25, 2002 at 00:00

Friday, Oct 25, 2002 at 00:00
Cameron,
Go to Forum - search and type in christie and you will find find quite a few archived post. I have done a bit of research myself on the Christie generator and the general feedback has been very positive. I'm tossing up between the Honda EU or the Christie at the moment but the Hondas only 8 amp on 12 v but then again it does have 240volt, comes down to the application I guess.
Mark
AnswerID: 7862

Follow Up By: Cameron - Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00

Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00
Thanks Mark, re the Honda, I was led to believe they take a several hours to charge a battery, along the same lines as a 240V Battery ChargerAlso, I am not looking for 240V, only 12, and thought the Christie Battery charger idea simulates the car ?? Any comments Ta
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Follow Up By: Mark - Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00

Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00
Cameron,
If you don't need the 240v then i'd say you would be better off with the Christie for just battery charging. I understand they use a bosch 55 amp alternator which you can switch between regulated and un-regulated, throwing 55 amps straight at the battery could shorten its life, but I here good batteries like Optima handle higher charge currents better than standard. The Christie unit uses a Honda 4 stroke motor but are said to be slightly noisier, the one I heard at the 4x4 show ok as it had an extension piece on the exhaust outlet to direct the noise away. Anyway sounds like everyone who has one is happy so you can't go to far wrong.
Cheers
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Reply By: Eric - Friday, Oct 25, 2002 at 00:00

Friday, Oct 25, 2002 at 00:00
cameron.
The honda eu is very good. the maximum charge rate of 8 amps is chosen by all portable generator manifacturers because it is the max rate that is safe to charge a battery at without reducing its life. the 240v is very handy.
Eric.
AnswerID: 7867

Follow Up By: Tuco69 - Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00

Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00
>

Gee I wish someone told Mr Toyota that! No wonder I'm only getting six years out of my Caterpillar batteries!

Tuco
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Reply By: Steve & Wendy - Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00

Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 at 00:00
Not entirely certain, but I'm sure I've been told that the Christie thing is very noisy. The Honda's, on the other hand are deathly quiet.
AnswerID: 7868

Reply By: Ray - Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00

Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00
Hi Cameron,

I have a Les Christie charger and have used it a number of times. Next week is the big test, I'm off camping with a mate for a week of fishing, crabbing and drinking so need to keep the fridge full and up max. The few tests I did, discharging a battery to various levels and recharging by the gen was a complete success. Time to charge Cat batteries was very quick, no boiling and min fuel though as per the advise above the noise is quite high. There is no way you will get away with it in a crowded area, they'll hang you up if you had it running for hours. I'm going to try Les's idea of running the exhaust under ground to quieten it. So far I'm wrapped in it and I looked at all the various ways of charging (solar etc) and by far this method is the best to date. As from an above reply don't worry about damaging the batteries with excess current, the charger is still voltate regulated to a max of 15 volts on fast charge. To equalise batteries (which most people don't do) you need to charge at 16 volts for a period of time so 15 volts is fine. Voltage level is what allows batteries to die, battery resistance will regulate the current just so long as the voltage is correct.

Regards
Ray
AnswerID: 7896

Follow Up By: Cameron - Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00

Sunday, Oct 27, 2002 at 00:00
Ray, thanks for the comment. It seems like it is the way to go, however noise is still a concern. I guess you would not get away with it in a "quiet camping Area", or would you if you only ran it for an hour or so in the middle of the day??
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Reply By: Member - Kevin - Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00

Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00
I have a Les Christie charger and it is fantastic (but noisy as noted by others). I find that about one hour per day is all it takes to keep my battery running a BushBoy fridge and one fluro camp light. It really came to the fore during a trip to the Kimberley last year when my dual battery controller took a holiday while travelling to Kalumburu - for the rest of the trip I'd just drive away from camp once a day and fire it up for an hour and all was well. I haven't yet tried the underground exhaust method but intend to very soon.

Cheers
AnswerID: 7919

Follow Up By: Cameron - Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00

Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00
Kevin Thanks for the comments. My auxillary batteries (2 x 110AmpHr) are on our trailer, (there is little or no room under the bonnet of the dual fuel GQ), so taking it off to charge is not an option, unless i remove then batteries and go for a drive .... maybeeee ??? I would be interested in hearing of tales of the underground exhaust method, seems like a lot of people are contemplating it. Again thanks
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Follow Up By: Member - Kevin - Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00

Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00
Bit short on detail but I believe it is essentially just a couple of 3/4" copper tubes joined with an elbow and then one end is stuck into a container of coarse river sand/gravel and the other over the end of the exhaust pipe. Cheers.
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Reply By: Member - Nigel - Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00

Monday, Oct 28, 2002 at 01:00
We were camped about 7 metres away from some people using a Honda generator on the weekend, and couldn't hear it over the waves breaking on the beach. I had to walk over to their camp and ask them if it was running. We were about 15 metres from the beach.
AnswerID: 7966

Reply By: Peter - Thursday, Oct 31, 2002 at 01:00

Thursday, Oct 31, 2002 at 01:00
The Honda eu series are the absolute best to use around others.
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I use a 5 KVa in a Toyota bus to providde 240V regulated power for a lot of equipment on the vehicle.
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That genny operates at all times of the day and night, in all conditions, in all locations (predominantly in the centre of Sydney CBD and surrounding suburbs) and does not create enough noise to generate any complaints, even from the most discerning agitator.
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My strongest advice is to get the Honda eu as it is the absolute best.
You never know, you might camp next to me one day and NOT have the Honda. I wouldn't be a happy camper if that was the case.
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Contact your Honda Dealer and ask for a demonstration IN THE FIELD. Any dealer worth his or her salt will do just about anything for a sale.
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Imagine being able to have it sitting beside your chair, running merrily, while you're having a few ales and a quiet chat. No raised voices to try to get over the noise of the others..... :-)
AnswerID: 8086

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