Leisure Battery Protection

[Alan2016]

I've been reading through the forums before buying a Bongo and have seen that is isn't advisable to let the leisure battery drain too much. Looking on eBay I've seen that there are digital voltage monitors you can plug in to the cigarette lighter to keep an eye on the voltage. Is this a good way to monitor them or are they unreliable? I've also seen mikeonb4c mention in another thread (http://igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/view ... 58#p678674) a gadget that can turn off a device if the battery level drops too much. Is there a similar device that can just protect the leisure battery as a whole (rather than an individual device) and shut the whole leisure circuit off or alert you if the voltage drops too far?

Thanks

Alan

[wonkanoby]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/12v-Battery-Di ... B004AUJ002

[g8dhe]

Only problem with that unit is that it needs to be connected to the battery terminals ideally and yet its not water proof and you have a little adjustment pot. on the side exposing the board behind it to water spray and also vibration
edit:and watching the rating "20amp rated / 10 amp with no additional cooling" so its not going to like being put inside a sealed waterproof box either!

[mikeonb4c]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/12v-Battery-Di ... B004AUJ002

Lovely looking device and preferable to a ciggie socket plug in unit since the iffy connections on those can drop voltage regardless of units that are drawing power. On slight caution i think with having one device that cuts all power. Some devices may cause LB voltage dips when they start up, due to power being drawn. You might not want LB power to all devices being cut if/when one device temporarily drags LB voltage below the cutout threshold.

[Alan2016]

Thanks all. So do most people bother with such automated systems then or just try to keep an eye on a monitor? I'm new to all of this so probably over-thinking things

[g8dhe]

I have a low volt cut out installed, as its a pain watching it all night long for low volts! Also I have some additional demands on the battery from other equipment so it can be difficult at times to forecast just how much is left in the battery and as it already gets cycled a lot I would rather not have it get down too low!

[Alan2016]

Thanks Geoff, is it a commercial one or one you've made yourself?

[g8dhe]

Very little electronics wise in my van is commercial! Your welcome to the diagrams etc. but it was built more around what I had available at the time and if it were to be replicated you would probably want to change a few things!

[Alan2016]

Ah OK, probably best left alone then I could probably copy something but doubt I'd be able to modify the design. I've seen these online but don't know if they are worth the extra price over the one above http://www.shop.solar-wind.co.uk/acatal ... n_lvd.html, or http://www.12voltplanet.co.uk/battery-guards.html.

[jimmo62]

Just a quick question - if you have done the normal circuit swap for fuse 8 to the leisure battery, you will also have moved one of the engine ECUs across. So if you have a low voltage cutout on the LB and it cuts off the supply due to low voltage, will the engine still be able to start?

I guess I could test it by removing the fuse.....

[g8dhe]

Yes its not a problem, the vales (if any) appear to be rapidly regained from the default values, what you will normally get especially on the diesel, is a flashing of the Glowplug light to indicate that the backup has disappeared it clears on the next start!