Battery Question
Submitted: Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:46
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rusty_dagger
Hi
I am a complete newbie to this so I will say sorry straight up.
We are looking at going away for 3 nights in the new camper trailer.
Should a 100A/H deep cycle sealed battery be enough?
We dont have a fridge so it will mainly be running lights and a couple of 12v fans.
We wont have access to 240V.
I have been looking at solar charging but it looks expensive and kinda complicated.
Russell
Reply By: Richard Kovac - Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:58
Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:58
Russell
The answer is yes to a point, I have a small van and it has a 100A/H cycle sealed AGM battery in it and by my battery monitor when fully charged and running a 1 fluro it says 110 hrs to discharge 2 fluros 55 hr to discharge and so on, If it gets low charge it with your vehicle for 1/2 an hr a day.
if I'm wrong, people will tell me :-)
Cheers
Richard
AnswerID:
392797
Reply By: Member - John - Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:59
Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:59
G'day, if the D/C is charged fully, depending on how many lights, type etc, and fans, type etc, you run, you may have no problems. Have you any way of charging the D/C while away? Have you any means of checking the voltage etc?
AnswerID:
392798
Follow Up By: rusty_dagger - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 09:10
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 09:10
I have no way of charging while I am away.
The battery box I am looking at has a level indicator.
Do you think this will be sufficient?
FollowupID:
660828
Reply By: Member - Brian R (WA) - Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:59
Thursday, Nov 26, 2009 at 23:59
Hi Rusty
We have the same size battery in the A'Van and just running a couple of lights for 3 nights we had plenty of power left ......for at least another 2 or 3 nights ...our fridge was running on the gas which was great. If you can put your hands on an extra lamp take that as a back up ..learn from experience before paying out good money for generators....and extra wieght
Brian
AnswerID:
392799
Reply By: Member - John and Val - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 07:12
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 07:12
Rusty,
A 100 Ah battery will very easily handle your requirements for 3 nights. A fridge is the big consumer, 24 hours per day; no fridge, no problem. You might be interested to see the energy budget numbers in our blog
Electricity for Camping.. Note that for the sake of the battery's life expectancy it should be recharged when you get home, not left partially discharged for an extended period.
HTH
John
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AnswerID:
392810
Reply By: rusty_dagger - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 08:36
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 08:36
I have access through a mate either a 100 A/h sealed ($200) or a non sealed ($165).
Which would be recommended?
AnswerID:
392823
Follow Up By:- Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 09:41
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 09:41
hello rusty_dagger,
personally, I'd go for a 'sealed' battery.
But only if it's really sealed, like a AGM or Gel battery.
Many shonky dealers sell 'sealed' batteries which are really only flooded/wet lead acid batteries with hidden vents. These are the worst ones because you cannot top up the electrolyte.
The truely 'sealed' batteries (Valve Regulated Lead Acid) recycle/recombine the hydrogen gas inside them under slightly elevated pressure back into the chemical process. These are the ones which don't gas under normal charging conditions.
Just note, that all VRLA batteries have better deep cycle capabilities than normal flooded/wet lead acid ones.
If you want a true deep cycle battery which can sustain 100% discharge over 250 times before it looses 40% of its capacity, then you want a 'deep cycle AGM' battery.
If the ones your mate can get is a real brand new AGM/Gel VRLA battery then it's probably worth spending 200 bucks on.
Best regards, batterymeister
FollowupID:
660836
Reply By: deserter - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 12:39
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 12:39
I thought those 12V fans were fairly power hungry ???
AnswerID:
392883
Reply By: Von Helga - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 20:36
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 20:36
RustyDagger,
Before you go away take the camper to a reputable battery
shop and have it tested (i.e Battery World).
Then buy a Battery charger ( auto 3 stage) to suit your battery and have it on charge the night before, that way you will have it in its best state before you use it for the first time.
If the battery is said to be in good condition and you get it fully charged you will have a good indicator of capacity in days for the amount of charge you have drawn on your trip.
You need to do the maths on the current draw for the fans, but i think you'll be right
Cheers
Trevor
ps read the battery charging articles in EO
AnswerID:
392940
Reply By: Von Helga - Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 20:40
Friday, Nov 27, 2009 at 20:40
Oh yes one more thing the battery
shop can give you figures on the status of your battery for before and after your trip if you were inclined to take it back for a second test.
Let us know the numbers if you do.
Trevor
AnswerID:
392942