Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Pure Glass on March 27, 2012, 04:45:13 pm
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I was running my Pure Freedom van mount and heater this morning for around 3 hours with short drives (less than half a mile) between stops
Came back to the van at the end of the morning to pack up and the battery had died. Jumped the van and it was fine after that.
Went to Halfords and had a diagnostic check on the van battery at lunch time and its fine. Ive got an 04 Transit. Never had this issue before and I have often run both the heater and pump all morning without moving the van and its been ok. I charge the batteries for the heater and tank most nights overnight
Any ideas?
Ta, Steve
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solenoid stuck on the starter motor?
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Alternator?
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I was running my Pure Freedom van mount and heater this morning for around 3 hours with short drives (less than half a mile) between stops
Came back to the van at the end of the morning to pack up and the battery had died. Jumped the van and it was fine after that.
Went to Halfords and had a diagnostic check on the van battery at lunch time and its fine. Ive got an 04 Transit. Never had this issue before and I have often run both the heater and pump all morning without moving the van and its been ok. I charge the batteries for the heater and tank most nights overnight
Any ideas?
Ta, Steve
How old is the battery?
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Thanks for the replies gents.
Ive had the van a year, its just passed the mot and as far as im aware its the original battery.
Steve
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Thanks for the replies gents.
Ive had the van a year, its just passed the mot and as far as im aware its the original battery.
Steve
I would replace the battery or buy a new one as a spare
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Thanks for the replies gents.
Ive had the van a year, its just passed the mot and as far as im aware its the original battery.
Steve
If it is an original battery on an '04 plate transit then it is way overdue for 'dying' when used for a year on WFP work.
WFP work really does kill vehicle batteries as the level of drain on the system is far greater than standard vehicle starting use. Whilst the battery is registering OK on a voltage test it will not be holding enough charge now due to buckled, old plates inside. You will need to change the battery as soon as possible as it will only get worse from now on in. I usually reckon on about 18 months maximum for a vehicle battery when used for WFP as well as vehicle starting. If using a second battery that is charged regularly then you can usually stretch this to about 2 years.
I have just fitted a new second battery to my own vehicle having worn out the factory original second battery in just 2 years despite having an uprated alternator charging it. This time I have gone for a carbon fibre reinforced plate 110AH battery from Elecsol which they reckon will last for 5 years - I personally will be happy with just 3 using it on WFP - http://www.elecsolbatteries.com/products/Leisure-Batteries/Elecsol-110.html (http://www.elecsolbatteries.com/products/Leisure-Batteries/Elecsol-110.html) These will withstand 80% discharge on the cycle whereas most batteries start complaining after using them down to 70% discharge. So far it seems very good.
Whatever you go for you do need a new battery.
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That's interesting Alex, the bit about van batteries not lasting, I didn't realise that. Did you wait for starting problems before renewing or do you test your battery anyway?
I'm running off my Hiace batteries which are probably five years old (2) so it would seem likely I'll have trouble any day soon.
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That's interesting Alex, the bit about van batteries not lasting, I didn't realise that. Did you wait for starting problems before renewing or do you test your battery anyway?
I'm running off my Hiace batteries which are probably five years old (2) so it would seem likely I'll have trouble any day soon.
yep with your record - youd better get to toyota first thing in the morning ;D
Darran
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That's interesting Alex, the bit about van batteries not lasting, I didn't realise that. Did you wait for starting problems before renewing or do you test your battery anyway?
I'm running off my Hiace batteries which are probably five years old (2) so it would seem likely I'll have trouble any day soon.
Here is how the last three years have gone for me on batteries.
Feb 2009 - Bought a brand new T5 transporter with second 85Ah battery and uprated alternator. For first year was very lazy and just ran the system straight from the van's primary battery via the 12v outlet (used to be called a cigarette lighter!).
Feb 2010 - After almost exactly one year and after three hours work in the day I went to start the van and it would not start! Jump-started the van from its own second battery and wired the pump to the second battery and continued working this way. The primary battery recovered enough during the days driving to continue in use as the vehicles battery until now. Standard driving puts most batteries under very little strain.
Jan 2012 - Went to wire in a prototype flow controller and this alerted me to the fact that the battery was running at under voltage at about 11.4 volts. I had noticed the pump was a little slow, but as I do not usually use a flow controller it had not alerted me to the the issue. Replaced this second battery with the Elecsol 110AH battery and immediate noticed how much stronger the pump was again! Lets see how it goes from now on.
The most I have ever previously got from a leisure battery that was charged daily was 18 months and about 14 months when using just the vehicle battery.
In answer to your question - I am very lazy and always wait for a problem! However I do always carry at least one spare battery and a set of jump leads and spare coils of wire and connectors. I hate having to give up a days work for a simple issue like a dead battery.
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Sounds similar to my experiences with leisure batteries - and i thought i was the only one. Having read on here how guys run direct from the vans battery and 'never' have any trouble I've done the same. Doesn't really seem to be a foolproof way of making batteries last unless your carbon one does the job. I think I may wire up some connectors and give myself the option of swapping between the vans batteries and a leisure battery just so the vans batteries get time to recover.
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Sounds similar to my experiences with leisure batteries - and i thought i was the only one. Having read on here how guys run direct from the vans battery and 'never' have any trouble I've done the same. Doesn't really seem to be a foolproof way of making batteries last unless your carbon one does the job. I think I may wire up some connectors and give myself the option of swapping between the vans batteries and a leisure battery just so the vans batteries get time to recover.
do you have two batteries connected to the van ?
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i got a battery from halfords with three year warranty it packed up after 2 years halfords changed battery no probs and another three year warranty. Happy days
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Sounds similar to my experiences with leisure batteries - and i thought i was the only one. Having read on here how guys run direct from the vans battery and 'never' have any trouble I've done the same. Doesn't really seem to be a foolproof way of making batteries last unless your carbon one does the job. I think I may wire up some connectors and give myself the option of swapping between the vans batteries and a leisure battery just so the vans batteries get time to recover.
do you have two batteries connected to the van ?
Toyota Hiace has two batteries under the bonnet to start the engine.
I have a spare leisure battery I can use too if needed.
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Thanks lads
Just a couple of final questions:
1/I have two batteries under the drivers chair. How do I work out which one is the main and which is the secondary and which to change?
2/As I have seperate batteries that feed the system and the heater (both charged every time i fill up overnight), how comes my van battery is affected?. Dont get it
Excuse my thickness-too many years of company cars
Steve