Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: JSMC on November 29, 2014, 04:36:01 pm
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i have always had my system connected into my vivaro battery. Other day i bought a vw t5 and battery is in engine bay and is tiny compared to vivaro battery.
Easier to connect up in vivaro also as battery under floor in front of van. Vw means i have to run cables probably though bulkhead or underneath van up into engine bay.
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What do the majority on here use? Leisure battery or wired in?
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I now use a 110amp Leisure battery after using scrap car batteries for years
it gives a more consistent flow I think.
Also it gets trickle charged from my scr.
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SCR?
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what is the best battery out there just now? Numax i think used to be reliable
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SCR?
Split Charge Relay
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more infor required please.
what is minimum rating if using leisure battery 100ah?
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Some use 75amp, I just thought I'd go for something that would hold the charge for longer
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so how is this split charge relay set up ?
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Best man to ask is spruce (scr)
In a nutshell, an intelligent split charge relay will charge your leisure battery from the van battery
It monitors the van battery and waits until the vans battery has sufficient charge before it then starts to trickle charge the leisure battery
You'd need to do a decent amount of driving (time wise rather than milage although the two usually go hand in hand) to ensure you get a decent charge, so you'll probably need to bench charge the leisure battery every so often
This is the one spruce recommended to me ages ago -
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161502176237?redirect=mobile
Only had to bench charge the leisure battery around twice in around a year of having it
You can also get scr's that charge your leisure battery direct from the alternator
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Brocott Smart charge in mi t5. Works perfect
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There isn't much more I can add to Don's reply.
If you do a search on split charge relays under my name there is tons of information that is relevant to you.
We tried on 2 of the small vans (that now have 85 amph leisure batteries,) to run them off the van's starter battery. It didn't work for us as we don't do enough mileage to recharge them. Having to jump start a van half way through the day cost more than a leisure battery in down time.
If your pump draws 4 amps per hour and you have a fully charged 100 amp leisure battery, you theoretically have 25 hours of window cleaning available. If you work 4 hours a day actually pumping water, then you should again have 6 days of power available to you.
Unfortunately you leisure battery is best looked after by not being discharged to far. Ideally, recharging after it discharges to 75% capacity is best and not letting it go below 50% ever. Nothing destroys a battery's longevity than letting it run flat. We have also found that the battery works better if it isn't placed directly on the van's steel floor. Both the vans that have the batteries in the back have a thick piece of rubber conveyor belt under them to isolate them from the cold. The third van's leisure battery sits in a stainless steel roasting pan under the seat on a layer of carpeting.
A battery's performance drops off by up to 25% in very cold weather.
So even although we have scrs on each of the vans, my van especially gets a booster charge every second night. An intelligent charger can be left on all night.
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http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/679-110h-leisure-battery-p278919
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scr and new battery purchased