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I think we need to replace our lesuire battery as, whilst it appears to be taking a good charge when on hook-up, it quickly loses umph when we are running off it in 12v mode. We are new to MHing and only had a few short outings this year. Noticed from the start that the battery would only power the digital tv for about 40 mins before the power had dropped too low.
So, any tips on which type, where to buy, guidline costs etc out there? Please!
I would advise you to buy from a local supplier,then if there is a problem within the warranty period it is a simple task to take it back.
As regards type you can't go wrong with the bog standard lead acid battery,tried,trusted,and cheapest.
Also fit the largest that you physically can in the battery compartment,a lot of people fit 2 leisure batteries in parallel to increase capacity and extend time off hook up.
______________________________________________________________ cheers Steve
If you have space (two under the front seats on earlier Fiats) a pair of matched 110 amp hour should do the trick, a medium solar panel, and a 300 watt minimum inverter.
It's what we use for wild camping and we never run out of power, even if stood for 4 days.
LED lighting helps too, <1watt compared to >10watts per bulb
It only cost £6, the result was the batteries could only really hold 50% of their stated capacity and whilst they gave the correct readings when on hook-up/solar they depleted quickly.
My money is on the batteries, DON'T get them tested with the hand-held tester used by car garages, they don't really work!
Well you asked for help on a replacement battery. If instead you would like assistance on confirming that your battery NEEDS replacement, then more information and context are all. The devil is in the detail.
I could simply ask the voltage AT the leisure battery terminals as the TV packs in. Then it would be simple to say if the battery IS the problem, IF you are confident it was fully charged to start with (depends what you mean by "appears" to be taking a good charge), and IF you have no other permanent load, or faulty earth. If the battery is the problem, then it is a question of whether it can be salvaged, which depends on whether or not it is sealed.
If it ISN'T, then it is down to what is between the battery and the TV, ultimately to the operating voltage range of the TV. Is it powered by an inverter? Or voltage stabiliser? Is the TV powered off a 12V socket with internal van wiring to the battery? When the TV fails, can you power the rest of the van - lights, pumps, etc? For how long?
Hope this helps. I've seen too many people ruin multiple sets of batteries at huge cost because they HAD to be the problem, when they weren't.
As Dave said it may not be the battery, you need to assess your load, the television may not be the low wattage type.
We have one we use when on hook up which when using every thing only lasts about an hour without hook up, and one off hook up which lasts for about 3 days.
We have one 110ah battery and a 100w solar panel, have never had a problem, most gone without hook up and not moving is 11 days.
Would recommend you have the battery tested as the previous advice, and assess your load, television, lights, alarm, heating, water pump, fridge, 12v accessories, control circuit, all have a load.
You may have to invest in a portable low wattage telly and a battery.
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