Entervan Battery Problem

[dannos85]

Recent new 6-pack style exide marine battery very high amps.
Great for a couple of weeks after a full charge.
The other day I open the door, the ramp deploys, get straped in ready to go... Always start the engine before closing the ramp door, A good routine.
Still was not good enough.

My entervan does have a charge point by the o/s headlight but its a bit flogged out and rather annoying.




The Only time i ever saw this kind of charge plug was 12 years ago on Nesbit+Evans SPECTRA Powerchair.

REPLACE that plug... Cant find a replacement.

The ring automotive charger aint bad, does 6v, 12v & 12v fast. But its not exactly got a brain, I need something more advanced & lightweight.




Its about time I charge the battery from inside the van to keep the charger out of the rain.

Any suggestions a far as charging the car from the inside?

Suitable maintenance charger for such a high end battery?

best way to connect?

I will just run an extension lead from my shed into the car between the door seal in the corner.

Do voyagers just not charge the battery when driving? or is it a constant residual drain due the the alarm & BRAUN gadgets?
Im guessing its on standby 24/7 waiting for a command from the keyfob?

[ex-Gooserider]

The Voyager SHOULD charge the battery while driving, just like any street car. Wouldn't hurt to have the local garage check out the charging system to make sure it's all OK, but... In terms of the car sitting, almost any car has some constant parasitic drain for the keyfob receiver and various other electronic gadgets, and the conversion stuff makes that worse - my new van says I need to drive it for a MINIMUM of 20 miles a week in order to keep the battery charged...

What I did for a charging point setup on my van (and chair) is basically the same as what BM recommends - I used AWG 6 welding cable (UK seems to be 10mm^2, about = AWG 7, a size that doesn't exist in the US market) going to Anderson SB-50 connectors, one outside in the radiator grill, and one inside on the console. I have a rubber boot on the back, and a cover on the exterior connector. The hot cable comes off the battery, goes through a 100A circuit breaker, and then splits to the two connectors. The black cable does the same, only w/o the breaker...

Not sure what to suggest for a maintenance charger, essentially you need to find out what the recommended "float voltage" is for your battery, and get a float charger that puts out that voltage - brand doesn't matter all that much, but you probably want something that can do at least 1AH output.

I'd also note that if you have a "marine" battery, it may not be the optimum choice for starting the van - many marine batteries are designed for "deep cycle" applications, which can supply lots of current at low AH draws, and take lots of deep discharge / charge cycles, but fall over when hit with a sudden high demand load like an engine starter... You should have an "SLI - Starter, Lights, Ignition" battery for use in a car, which can deliver the high currents needed for starting, but doesn't like getting discharged very deeply. OR BM's recommended "Odyssey" battery which does both...

ex-Gooserider

[Martin O Refurbisher]

BM produced all the information you need to fast charge a chair from a vehicle, see:

http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/charge- ... om-car.htm

Best,

Martin

[Burgerman]

Read this too... http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/wheelch ... ectors.htm

More...

http://www.wheelchairdriver.com/charge- ... om-car.htm

As for these vans going flat, then yes they all do it. You need a maintainance charger, and if you dont drive it for more than 7 days dont fail to connect it.

And small 12v battery maintainer such as the Ctek ones will do this fine. I use a bigger xs7000 cetek. Your battery is AGM but quite small capacity, and a sort of optima spiral cell clone? As for best battery, the best one you can fit to this vehicle is the same odyssey pc1500 that I use in my powerchairs. It is deep cycle capable and 68Ah and can start a truck in siberia... Check CA and CCA figures for it. Better than all similar sized batteries.

But will still go dead if you dont replace what the vans electrical system takes out while parked up... Your ring charger will likely damage your battery, or not correctly charge it either.

[Lord Chatterley]

I have an Entrevan and the problem is uneven charge/discharge so I do not leave mine for more than a week without charging with a Prosport charger. If you can't afford a Prosport get a solar charger from Maplins - 50ukp.

LC

[Burgerman]

Doesent matter, rollx, braun, VMI, etc -- all are heavy on batteries when parked. The van itself already is, with a ton of equipment sucking power when parked. Add that computer and extra receiver in the boot for the ramp/kneel etc and the battery is 50 percent down in 7 days.

So you NEED to connect a 13.2 to 13.5v supply to it if you plan to not drive for more than a week. Or ANY battery maintainer/3stage charger etc.
And even if you DO drive every other day. a DEEP CYCLE battery like the odyssey PC1500 is essential. Starter batteries do not like getting discharged beyond 3 to 7 percent. They are not built for this.

http://www.optimate.co.uk/

http://www.ctek.nu/ (any 12v)

is ideal. As are many others. Preferably via an anderson connector straight to the battery.

If you use a solar charger, you need at least 5 watt. Because thats 5 watts only at 12AM in the Sahara! And in case we get long sunny days, it MUST be limited to 13.5 volts max output. And have a diode in the cable so it doesent discharge the battery when theres no sun. Most do.

[dannos85]

Thanks for that info, ctek look good.

[Red Dragon]

the new town-country have a 160A alternator.
solar charger have 15.5V not good.
try to install big size Deep Cycle & Starter battery agm.

[Red Dragon]

do not Use a Deep Cycle battery.

Search for a second battery in the rear Right.
the second battery Connected to the ramp and Compressor.

[Martin O Refurbisher]

I am told I get my new vehicle with the Ricon lift next month. I'll have to think carefully about these issues.

Has anyone any experience with magnetic charger couplings?

Best,

Martin

[Burgerman]

Ricons dont use a computer in the boot, dont have the same drain issues. Should be ok driven once every few weeks. Id get a low output 3 to 5 watt solar panel and lerave it plugged into the cigar lighter connection.

Beats me why modern vehicles dont have these built in as standard.

[Martin O Refurbisher]

Good thought. I had wondered about solar chargers - what are they like for voltage output?

Best,

Martin

[Burgerman]

Well simple ones are not regulated. So you get up to 17 volts or so in the sun, OFF LOAD.
Theres so little power on the small ones that you cant get battery volts too high.

Bigger ones need a regulator.

[Lord Chatterley]

13W charger - Maplins 50 ukp.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/13w-solar-briefcase-99760

LC

[Burgerman]

Voltage (@max. power): 17.5V

And 21v open circuit.
Needs a regulator.

[Lord Chatterley]

Voltage (@max. power): 17.5V

And 21v open circuit.
Needs a regulator.

It has.

LC

[Burgerman]

If it includes the charge regulator, then it should be OK but... it says

http://www.maplin.co.uk/media/pdfs/N00C ... ctions.pdf

15v max, which is a bit too much for sealed batteries.

[Lord Chatterley]

Doubt it would reach very high in the UK - has anyone got one or similar?

LC

[Burgerman]

Even the cheap 1.8 watt ones read about 18 volts in daytime when not loaded by anything.
So presumably the regulated to 15v one will be pretty strong at 15v. It wouldnt hurt an odyssey/optima for a short period, but day after day in summer wouldnt be very good for it. Workaround... Stick a 5 amp power diode in series to reduce volts by about .7 of a volt.

So 14.3v. Or two in series for long term storage at 13.7 ish volts max.

[dannos85]

do not Use a Deep Cycle battery.

Search for a second battery in the rear Right.
the second battery Connected to the ramp and Compressor.

Im pretty sure my car only has 1 battery, just in the front.
In the back left is a control unit or something, it says braun on it.

[Burgerman]

Theres no 2nd battery on most modern braun/rollx/VMI etc.

[ex-Gooserider]

No second battery on my new 2010 Braun Entervan conversion on a Chrysler Town & Country (US model)... The controller for the Braun stuff lives in a box attached to the underside of the right rear passenger seat - access is by tilting the seat up, which makes reaching it a definite challenge if one is in a chair

ex-Gooserider