Smart battery charger

Submitted: Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 12:30
ThreadID: 64729 Views:2732 Replies:4 FollowUps:4
This Thread has been Archived
There was some discussion in Janet P's thread on 29 Nov (now archived) on this subject.
I'm considering buying a charger (probably CTEK) to charge a 120AH AGM battery with my Honda E10i generator.
The battery is an auxiliary to run a Liemack 50L fridge which monitors the battery - the fridge is currently set to turn off when the battery gets down to 11.2V. Can anyone give me a rough idea of how long it would take to bring the battery back up to full charge with the CTEK XS 15000 or XS 25000 ?
Back Expand Un-Read 0 Moderator

Reply By: Lex M - Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 13:13

Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 13:13
Very rough idea. AGM at 11.2 volt is flat. Divide AH by charge rate of charger gives time to charge.

eg 120AH battery, 25 amp charger 4 to 5 hours

cheers
Lex
AnswerID: 342229

Follow Up By: harryn - Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 09:48

Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 09:48
Thanks Lex - Liemacks are great while you are on the move but not so great when you want to stay put for a while - think I'll review my auxilliary power setup.
0
FollowupID: 610070

Reply By: Rowdy6032 - Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 13:34

Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 13:34
This may be of some help.

The brochure that came with the ctek states that a 100ah battery takes 6hrs with the 15000 and 3hrs with the 25000.

This is a bulk charge and the times stated are to charge a completely drained battery to about 80% capacity. Added to this is the time for absorption and boost, if any.

If I recall correctly these figures can be found on the Ctek web site.
AnswerID: 342231

Follow Up By: harryn - Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 09:49

Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 09:49
Thanks Rowdy - will have a look at the website.
0
FollowupID: 610071

Reply By: Mrbrush - Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 21:12

Friday, Jan 02, 2009 at 21:12
Same problem as I am having trying to keep my liemack 50st running. I have bought a 15amp smart charger which charges two auxillaries overnight. They work great but I found the cteks to expensive although they are better,
Bought mine from ABR on ebay.
Only problem now is I need a generator and looking at the ebay digtal sine wave ones. BLOODY Liemacks
AnswerID: 342318

Follow Up By: harryn - Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 10:07

Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 10:07
Hi Mrbrush. Liemacks certainly love a bit of juice. What capacity are your auxiliaries and how long can you run the fridge before recharging? I have been told Cteks are the best charger but as you say they aren't cheap - I'll do a bit more research before buying anything.
0
FollowupID: 610076

Follow Up By: Mrbrush - Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 12:13

Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 12:13
Hi Harryn,
First of all I don`t use deep cycles I`m not saying their no good but they just take too long to charge while driving and dont suit my needs. As I only use my fridges maybe 3 or 4 times a year.

I bought my liemack back in 1999 and intended to use it for travelling so the batteries would be kept topped up hence no need for deep cycle. It is power hungry but I like it.

I have a 760cca and a 580cca wet cell maintainence free batts.
I was running the 50st set at -2deg and an Engel 29ltr set at 2deg.
I managed to run these for about 4 days which included a few hrs travelling each day. The killer was temps above 35deg for these days.

If i camp overnight the liemack alone would run all night easy, and the next day we would either keep travelling or go for a day trip somewhere for a few hours, then the batteries would be topped up, If i did`nt drive for the day I would expect maybe two days max run time. Then I would have to drive for days to recharge.

Sometimes I would run the vehicle for 1/2 hour or so at the camp site, I like to keep my batteries above 12.2 volts, as 12.0 volts is about 1/2 flat, My batteries are 2 years old and still going strong.

But now with the 15amp charger and I get a generator I`ll be able to run the engel as a freezer, and the liemack as a fridge.
Hope I did`nt bore you, cheers
Here is a great site http://home.iprimus.com.au/rfh/batteries.html
0
FollowupID: 610095

Reply By: RV Powerstream P/L - Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 10:35

Saturday, Jan 03, 2009 at 10:35
Harryn
Im under the impression that the Liemac is Just as efficient as any other fridge.

The fact that it uses 8A when running is offset in that it pulls down to temp quicker and has better insulation than most other portables.

Therefore its consumption perday is reasonable.

The original designer and builder them told me that since 134A came out that you had to evacualte both the high and the low side to gas them properly and if they run too long its probably because that has not been done .
He indicated that 134A is light and the oil used is heavy and allows lockups where the old R12 was heavy and oil lighter and allowed better evacuation.

Ian



AnswerID: 342393

Sponsored Links