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hi all just checked my leisure batteries we have three 120watts and 120watt panel the batteries down to 11.8v got ladders out and the panel had 1ft of snow on checked the regulator no charge coming in so switched over to 240v i don't like to leave the charger on all the time because one m/h we had after a couple of days the wiring started to melt and blowing fuses the volts went up to 15.8v and still charging so we don't trust leaving it on for long periods don't temp fate .all the best
My solar panels are also under about a foot of snow so are not charging the leisure batteries.
I have a permanent hook up so just switch the mains charger on overnight if the batteries are getting a bit low,on my control panel there is also the option to charge the vehicle battery.
I started the engine yesterday for the first time in a couple of weeks and put the engine battery on charge overnight beforehand.Fortunately it started first time but the glow plugs took an age to warm up.
Modern chargers are normally safe to leave switched on if they have an intelligent charging system which monitors the battery voltage and reduces the charging voltage as the battery becomes charged,then reverting to a float charge.
My charger is a fixed point type so I just leave it on overnight every few weeks which keeps the vehicle battery topped up nicely.
You must have had a fault somewhere if the charger was blowing fuses,if the wiring was melting then the wrong fuse(too big) was in.
ps can you post in lower case-it looks like your SHOUTING ALL THE TIME and I am sure you are a softly spoken person
______________________________________________________________ cheers Steve
Steve and Dave are right. When we were fulltiming we were on hookup for ages. Did you ever pop along to an auto elctrician and get the old van checked. As for the solar panels how long did you leave them, uncovered with snow to see if they were charging>
My solar panels are also under about a foot of snow so are not charging the leisure batteries.
I have a permanent hook up so just switch the mains charger on overnight if the batteries are getting a bit low,on my control panel there is also the option to charge the vehicle battery.
I started the engine yesterday for the first time in a couple of weeks and put the engine battery on charge overnight beforehand.Fortunately it started first time but the glow plugs took an age to warm up.
Modern chargers are normally safe to leave switched on if they have an intelligent charging system which monitors the battery voltage and reduces the charging voltage as the battery becomes charged,then reverting to a float charge.
My charger is a fixed point type so I just leave it on overnight every few weeks which keeps the vehicle battery topped up nicely.
You must have had a fault somewhere if the charger was blowing fuses,if the wiring was melting then the wrong fuse(too big) was in.
ps can you post in lower case-it looks like your SHOUTING ALL THE TIME and I am sure you are a softly spoken person
hi wakk44 we also have permanent hook up but owing to the last m/h we don't leave on for long spells the m/h with the fault was a 2009 model and present m/h is also and with the same facility for charging the vehicle batteries as for posting in lower case ( new to computers) do you mean in caps lock if you do i forgot it was on
Steve and Dave are right. When we were fulltiming we were on hookup for ages. Did you ever pop along to an auto elctrician and get the old van checked. As for the solar panels how long did you leave them, uncovered with snow to see if they were charging>
stew
ps - edited your text into lower case.
hi artona not uncovered the snow there isn't anything wrong with the solar panel it's brand new i was just pointing out they was not charging because of the snow
May I have opinions? For heating I was advised that a generator would be a good investment although they evidently cost approx £500. I like the idea of not needing to rely on gas or hook-up if I'm caught out at any time, but am concerned about introducing another flammable source of energy into the van. (As I believe the generator runs on petrol. I'm due to have my small motorhome in January, for fulltiming. I'm very worried about being cold - I feel the cold badly even with lots of layers on.
Can't get to the storage to check on our van and solar panel.
However the solar lights in the garden, from the local pound shop, are glowing away under the snow
We have used the van in sub zero temperatures, I also feel the cold, gas heating is excellent, very rarely put a bit of electric heating on overnight
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Spain
Solar panels and snow
hi all just checked my leisure batteries we have three 120watts and 120watt panel the batteries down to 11.8v got ladders out and the panel had 1ft of snow on checked the regulator no charge coming in so switched over to 240v i don't like to leave the charger on all the time because one m/h we had after a couple of days the wiring started to melt and blowing fuses the volts went up to 15.8v and still charging so we don't trust leaving it on for long periods don't temp fate .all the best
