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I have acquired a 1989 Sprite Musketeer EK Special Edition in very good condition and am very happy with it. This is our first van with full on-board Mains and have a question.

On the right hand front seat base there is a Voltmeter and a switch that slows red when switched on. Under the seat base against the front wall there is a battery charger and the two appear to be linked. With the battery connected, when I switch the switch ‘On’ the meter needle goes hard over against the 15v end stop. Is that right??

I am sure that this is a “D’Oh!” question but was this kit STANDARD on the caravan when new and is it showing that the battery is now being charged??

Also – the mains box is in the bottom of the wardrobe. One circuit appears to run ALL the sockets and the other ONLY the Fridge. Is this right??

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

I have had a 1989 Sprite Major and a 1991 Musketeer. Neither had chargers or zig units so I think it must be retro-fit.

The voltmeter is showing that the battery is charging, as it becomes full the needle will gradually move back across, although will not drop right back unless you switch it off.

It is likely that one circuit is powering all the sockets and the other the fridge, is there a 10 amp fuse on the sockets one and a 6 amp on the fridge circuit? This is what I had on my motorhome.

I'm surprised one of our resident sparky experts hasn't answered this already, I'm only basing my answer on my experiences but hope this is of some help.

Thanks Caz

The 89 EK was a special editio and had a plug in 16A receptacle built into the side. There are two breakers - 5a and 15a - so I guess you are correct there.

No Zig unit - I wish!! On closer inspection I reckon the charger rig is a home made one. The take off for the charger is from the back of the 13 socket on the seat base. It has trickle charge and high charger modes and is set toTrickle. When the switch is thrown it shows 1amp on the meter of the charger.

When in use on site, is it OK to leave the charger running on Trickle all the time?? I suspect that the meter is kn - - - er - - -broken as it reads 15 volts all the time, even when the battery was running down sufficiently to stop the Carver water heater from working.

cheers

Ian

before doing anything to the van,buy borrow a small meter £7.and test the battery with it.if it reads 13.5v and the fixed meter shows 15v you know the meter is duff.

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Ah, perhaps didn't make it clear - both mine had mains elctrics fitted but there was no connection between the 230 volt and 12 volt systems to charge the battery. That is why I think the charger may be retro-fit. I used to carry a charger and re-charge it from the mains when it was low. It must be well ventilated when charging as gassing off may occur. Unless the battery is in a well ventilated purpose built battery box then I would be wary of leaving the charger on all the while.

The state of the battery should not affect the running of the water heater once it is lit on gas, the 12 volt only supplies the spark to light it. If running on mains then the battery is not involved.

if this is a car type charger it is not safe to leave the battery on charge all the time .

caravan chargers have a built in regulator which reduces the current flow to the battery as it charges up, a car type charger would "boil" the battery if left on

the correct chargers are about 40 quid

stu

Thanks again!

The charger IS a car charger. I must remember not to leave it on. (Note to self - turn the charger off when you get home!!)

On the EK Musketeer, the battery is in the outside front locker, not in the caravan itself.

I shall borrow a voltmeter tomorrow and check the battery voltage.

Stu - what is a likely candidate for the correct charger please?

cheers

Ian

(If Music be the food of Love are The Shadows the fish and chips of the 60's and 70's??)

The water heater needs more than 10.3v all the time as it will cut out at this point and run erratically below 11v

The battery charger should never give 15v at whatever amperage unless it's a very sophisticated one, 14.4v is fully charged and the battery should not be allowed to go above this. Trouble with cheap chargers is they can eventually give over 20volts if left connected to a battery and this will quickly damage it, great for a quick charge on the car but useless on caravans. If however this chargers 'trickle charge switch' cuts the voltage from it down to 13.8v or a little lower, (checked while disconnected from the battery), then it can safely be left connected.