AFAIK the CB516-3 charges your LB whilst on EHU, not via the alternator whilst driving.
First post, first camping trip, first user error(?)
- Thread starter Phil TL
- Start date
Spoke to the dealer and they were very helpful and apologetic. Agreed from my measurements it sounds damaged.
I will still get Halfords to do health check tomorrow to confirm but the dealer going to replace for free, no question of warranties at all.
Same with the over torqued wheel, they apologised and will sort it same day as the battery this week.
Thanks again for all the advice. Good to know some of this even if battery was the issue all along.
I will still get Halfords to do health check tomorrow to confirm but the dealer going to replace for free, no question of warranties at all.
Same with the over torqued wheel, they apologised and will sort it same day as the battery this week.
Thanks again for all the advice. Good to know some of this even if battery was the issue all along.
is that 12.36 V switched off or with the engine running?
That excellent news. The unforseen does happen, but the measure of a company is the willingness and efficiency with which they approach the resolution. It's refreshing to hear there was no hedging or procrastination.
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Yeah sorry my bad, I wasn’t sure if it was a new purchase or just first night away but rereading the original post it quite clearly states January
The point still stands though, getting the check done (even if under warranty/all in) at VW is not worthwhile as they will charge for the check, something i was told only after the event, and although this can be offset against a new battery it’s still cheaper to buy elsewhere. This may not be the same for a new vehicle purchase but still worth being cautious
Switched off.
Agreed. Exactly why I haven't stated which dealer it is yet. Errors and mistakes happen everywhere so unfair to name and shame before attempting resolution.
12.3v after 24hrs isn't that unusual, 'fully charged' aka 80% on these vans is around 12.5v, mine is the original battery in a 2018 van (so probably needs replacing soon) and will drop from 12.5v to 12.4v from 3pm to 8am the next morning. I've got a battery maintainer on mine which feeds it from my LB and solar so it very rarely if ever, drops below 12.3v.
If your van has been sat for longer than a few weeks without having the starter battery charged then 100% it'll be have gone fully flat and once it does the battery is basically scrap.
So a new SB should sort you out - but just be aware if you're on a site for longer than a day or 3, all the unlocking on doors, windows etc will drain the SB and it won't get any charge from your LB system, so it's easy to flatten it if you're not careful.
If your van has been sat for longer than a few weeks without having the starter battery charged then 100% it'll be have gone fully flat and once it does the battery is basically scrap.
So a new SB should sort you out - but just be aware if you're on a site for longer than a day or 3, all the unlocking on doors, windows etc will drain the SB and it won't get any charge from your LB system, so it's easy to flatten it if you're not careful.
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When resolved, it would be good to name the dealer... for plaudits rather than shaming purposes.
I am phoning a company back called Solar Shack tomorrow to discuss a solar leisure set up, I will ask about battery maintainer as sounds a good idea since they will be doing work on the van anyways. We will be doing longer trips so sounds like a good idea. Thank you.
Ablemail AMT12-2. Many of us here have this, it's brilliant and simple and does the job effortlessly.
AMT12-2 Trickle Charger charges Vehicle Battery from Leisure Battery with Solar Charger /Mains Hookup or only a Secondary Battery - Ablemail Electronics
The AMT12-2 Trickle Charger, Battery Maintainer, Battery Equaliser keeps Vehicle Battery charged during Vehicle, Boat & Motorhome inactivity.
ablemail.co.uk
This.Ablemail AMT12-2. Many of us here have this, it's brilliant and simple and does the job effortlessly.
AMT12-2 Trickle Charger charges Vehicle Battery from Leisure Battery with Solar Charger /Mains Hookup or only a Secondary Battery - Ablemail Electronics
The AMT12-2 Trickle Charger, Battery Maintainer, Battery Equaliser keeps Vehicle Battery charged during Vehicle, Boat & Motorhome inactivity.
Kept my knackered starter battery going for months!
Yep fitted mine a week or so ago - all working well so far. Only thing I haven’t done is changed the profile to lithium but all seems ok anyway so might leave it.
I've left mine on the default setting, means that it pulls from my LiFePO4 leisure battery regardless if it's being charged solar or not. It's only when the leisure battery drops below 60% or so that it stops topping it up. I've got 230Ah sitting there so no may as well use it!
My starter battery is probably due for replacement but whilst the Ablemail is keeping it healthy I don't see the need. The Ablemail is the only load I have on the MPPT load output and it uses between 10Wh and 20Wh per day (about 1-1.5Ah), so about 1-2% drop per day. Which I think is pretty normal.
I was wondering if leaving it on default mattered, seems not.
I thought my starter battery was past it’s best, but fitting the Ablemail seems to have helped. Van’s been on the drive all weekend, starter battery is showing 12.3v, 160Ah Roamer leisure is 13.39. It’s a very dull day so only between 2 - 4W of solar going in - consumed AH is 0 according to the Victron smart shunt
It’s not unusual for a Birchover in my experience, particularly if you’ve got a soft close side door or open the doors/tailgate several times a day. I’m in the process of fitting a Victron Orion XS DC-DC charger and an Ablemail AMT12-2 to finally resolve the low stater-battery issue when staying on site.
When parked up on the drive at home, to keep my Birchover’s starter battery fully charged, I now hook it up to a CTEK MXS-5 battery maintainer most of the time. I’ve discovered that this will also keep the leisure battery fully charged as the CTEK’s output will switch the VW split charge relay and allow charge through to the leisure battery. The picture below shows the CTEK connector (A) and connections to the starter battery (B) and vehicle earth (C).
Some folks have connected a maintainer/charger to the starter battery that is powered from a 240V socket outlet in the Birchover’s habitation area with the EHU connected. However, this will cause some interesting phenomena with the interior lights and 12V power switching off whilst the maintainer/charger is connected to the starter battery. This is down to a relay that Hillside fit to cut off the supply to the habitation area when the engine is running.
As others have said, if the starter battery has been flattened a few times in the past, it will be beyond rescuing so fitting a new starter battery makes perfect sense.
When parked up on the drive at home, to keep my Birchover’s starter battery fully charged, I now hook it up to a CTEK MXS-5 battery maintainer most of the time. I’ve discovered that this will also keep the leisure battery fully charged as the CTEK’s output will switch the VW split charge relay and allow charge through to the leisure battery. The picture below shows the CTEK connector (A) and connections to the starter battery (B) and vehicle earth (C).
Some folks have connected a maintainer/charger to the starter battery that is powered from a 240V socket outlet in the Birchover’s habitation area with the EHU connected. However, this will cause some interesting phenomena with the interior lights and 12V power switching off whilst the maintainer/charger is connected to the starter battery. This is down to a relay that Hillside fit to cut off the supply to the habitation area when the engine is running.
As others have said, if the starter battery has been flattened a few times in the past, it will be beyond rescuing so fitting a new starter battery makes perfect sense.
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Thanks for the insight. I will see what happens with health check and likely new battery from dealer. I am considering solar so will likely ask for a battery maintainer at the same time as that has been mentioned by several people now so seems the way to go.
@Phil TL There’s a long Birchover thread that covers various topics including electrics and solar installation that you might find helpful.
I’d agree with what’s been said. 12.3 - 12.5v is what I’d expect. I’d be more concerned if it was only pulling that when running.
Been checking it evening and morning. Consistently dropping 0.1v overnight.
12.36 to 12.25
12.28 to 12.18
12.25 to 12.11 over last night.
Checked with engine on today and it was over 14v, so alternator is working.
Dealer is replacing it for free on Friday
