This is for those of you that are towing a vehicle over 2 tonnes and require a 'break-away' safety device to be fitted to same.
A couple of weeks ago I had an issue with the Break-Safe brand 'break-away' fitted to my caravan.
That issue has been resolved and won't be discussed further, however , during the resolution of said issue, I needed to resort to the manufacturers instructions (Novel idea I know) which amongst other things stated that it was advised to change the battery in these gizmos every two years.
Yeah! Yeah! I know these batteries last forever and day, and good old uncle Bertie had one that lasted 20 years.
Problem being, this was now and present with the current laws and litigation being fought globally over negligence, goods/devices not being maintained as per manufactures specs and instructions etc etc, the light bulb started flashing the self preservation message - CHANGE IT - and be done with it.
So, first port of call, the manufactures site on the Net (revolutionary idea I know - using the web before the
forum), which revealed that they didn't sell batteries, but had some other interesting Break-Safe accessories for sale.
Much later I had determined that there were a multitude of different brands of these batteries available at around the $40-45 mark, however I couldn't determine the turnover of stock and hence the actual age of the battery.
The other thing that caught my eye was the size of these batteries, most were 5mm larger in height than the one in my Break-Safe, which was a critical feature as only a battery of 95mm in height was going to fit into the Break-Safe controller plastic case.
As usual this all happened on the weekend, so it was left to Monday when I rang the manufacturer ( an absolute innovative idea that one)and had a chat to the tech dude who confirmed that yes! there was a 5mm issue with battery sizing, however all their batteries were manufactured to fit their Controller Box's .
It also turned out that if you rolled up to Break-Safe in
Adelaide, you could buy a battery over the counter. The only reason that they didn't advertise them for sale was that they couldn't ship via post due to the Dangerous Goods Regs, and prospective customers had baulked and complained bitterly about paying shipment by courier. So to stop the angst all round, they just removed that facility.
After further discussions, the guy I was taking to agreed to sell me the required battery plus one of the wizz bang accessories that they sell, and ship it at my cost via courier.
I paid and they arrived at 9.00am on Tuesday morning the following day. Yep! less than 24hrs for a brand spanking new battery straight from the current import batch that they place in their devices at time of manufacture.
I did come across another supplier who had the correct size battery and would have had a large turnover of stock due to their industry clientele, however they didn't had that accessory that I wanted.
In view of this I respectfully suggest that it might be time to
check the manufacturer instructions of your 'Break-away' device and if you need to change the battery, be aware that actual battery size may be an issue.
DD