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Subject Topic: battery Post Reply Post New Topic
Personprincesspickle2
15/7/2015 at 1:24pm
 Location: fareham
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Hi all, would it be possible to run my caravan an abbey impression 520 for two weeks holiday on the battery. the site we are going to has no electric pitches left . sorry if i sound dumb but we are new to caravanning, husband did say about purchasing a spare battery to take as well. our battery is a lesiure one from halfords 75a. thanks


Personiscacamper
15/7/2015 at 3:08pm
 Location: Devon
 Outfit: Cabanon Malawi 2.0 View iscacamper's Profile View Profile   Reply to iscacamper Reply   Quote iscacamper Quote  
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We managed a full week on our 110Ah battery recently and there was still plenty of charge left. Of course it depends how much power you are using for lights/TV etc every day. I think you would struggle to get 2 weeks without charging the battery at some point. Taking a spare battery is a good idea. Some sites offer a battery charging service - maybe worth checking with them? I'd also recommend upgrading to a bigger battery if possible (100 or 110Ah capacity). You could also consider buying a standalone solar panel. A 60W model available for around £150 should keep you going pretty much indefinitely.

Personally if I were going for 2 weeks without hookup I would buy a solar panel. A standalone panel with a built-in charge controller can simply be connected to the battery with crocodile clips and will keep the battery topped up during daylight hours.

Post last edited on 15/07/2015 15:17:10


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Personprincesspickle2
16/7/2015 at 6:40am
 Location: fareham
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thank you for your speedy reply iscamper, ive had a quick look at solar panels and i see they do a suitcase style, are these any good? wwe are hoping to go to our local caravan shop at the weekend so will pick up a stronger battery too


PersonGrampian91
16/7/2015 at 2:36pm
 Location: Midlands
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Depends on the wattage of the panel and how much power you will use.

If you watch TV for hours then your going more likely to kill the battery very quickly.

Halfords are expensive for batteries.

Work out how many watts your going to use over a 24hour period and to keep the battery topped up ideally you want a panel that will put that amount back in approx 5 hours.

Only a rough guess, the weather will play a big part, a couple of cloudy days and your panel may barely output anything.


Personiscacamper
16/7/2015 at 2:44pm
 Location: Devon
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Quote: Originally posted by princesspickle2 on 16/7/2015thank you for your speedy reply iscamper, ive had a quick look at solar panels and i see they do a suitcase style, are these any good? wwe are hoping to go to our local caravan shop at the weekend so will pick up a stronger battery too

Hi,
If it's of sufficient wattage it should do the job. My advice is to look for something with a power output of 40W or more. Here is a
60W unit on Amazon that looks good to me. They also do a 40W version that is cheaper and more compact. Beware of some of the cheaper suitcase-style panels that have rather low outputs (around 15W) and are only really useful for trickle charging.


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Personprincesspickle2
16/7/2015 at 5:00pm
 Location: fareham
 Outfit: Bailey Unicorn Seville 2011 View princesspickle2's Profile View Profile   Reply to princesspickle2 Reply   Quote princesspickle2 Quote  
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thanks everyone, im going to get another battery and go down the solar panel route, the one on amazon looks good and the reviews are good too. we are going to change all the light bulbs in the van to led ones too to help with consumption and we are not taking a tv, fingers crossed we get through two weeks


PersonJTQU
16/7/2015 at 6:52pm
 Location: Hampshire
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If time permits do yourself a favour by getting a decent battery from either Alpha batteries, or Tayna Batteries. The former was giving CC members, [and possibly C&CC] a useful discount on their already good prices.
I would go for a Banner Energy Bull for off EHU use.


Personprincesspickle2
17/7/2015 at 7:38am
 Location: fareham
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thank you everyone for your help, we have ordered a banner energy bull leisure battery 115ah and the 80w solar panel kit from amazon, so fingers crossed. we go the 15th august for 14 nights, first time out in the van and fist time with no ehu


PersonJTQU
17/7/2015 at 9:28am
 Location: Hampshire
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Sounds good.
Another tip that will make a difference, don't plant the solar cell sitting into the grass such that the bottom edge has any grass shadows thrown onto it; as so many people do.
This will seriously deplete the yield it can give out; place it on a sheet, cardboard, ply, or the like or on some blocks so it is high enough to avoid shadows.

Enjoy the holiday.


Personiscacamper
17/7/2015 at 9:53am
 Location: Devon
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Quote: Originally posted by princesspickle2 on 17/7/2015
thank you everyone for your help, we have ordered a banner energy bull leisure battery 115ah and the 80w solar panel kit from amazon, so fingers crossed. we go the 15th august for 14 nights, first time out in the van and fist time with no ehu


Let us know how you get on!


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PersonJax365
17/7/2015 at 10:45am
 Location: south cheshire
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The thing that seems to wear out batteries most when off grid is the water pump, so use it sparingly if you can. Fill the kettle full, for example. I also used to take a water bottle (one bought at supermarket with spring water in and which can be refilled) and used that rather than the pump. Another thing you can do is buy a few Rolson led lights which run on batteries for the evenings as it will be going dark earlier by then. It all saves the battery power! (and handy if you run out altogether!)


I hope you don't mind me saying, as you probably already know this, but test that the gas to the fridge works before you go, as you will have to use gas for the fridge. And also, check that the bigger l. battery will actually fit into the space.

rolson lights

-------------


Personprincesspickle2
17/7/2015 at 10:52am
 Location: fareham
 Outfit: Bailey Unicorn Seville 2011 View princesspickle2's Profile View Profile   Reply to princesspickle2 Reply   Quote princesspickle2 Quote  
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thank you, good points made, i will go out and measure the battery compartment.
We are testing the fridge tonight so fingers crossed. We have similar lights from our camping days, we have an invertor for the car to charge things for the kids if needed. :)



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