[dazmond]

ive noticed a fault code when shutting down my 9kw diesel heater(3 long flashes)at the end of my day(6 hours with heater running constantly)....this means low power...also (under load) at the end of the day my battery voltage is reading as low as 12.1 where it used to be 12.5......ive only moved my van once today so been parked up for up to 3 hours at a time......

ive also noticed the water is not as hot as usual which indicates insufficient battery power.....

the numax batteries are just over 2 years old and i bench charge them every night plus i have a smart btob charger in the van.....is it just a straight swap?will i have to reset the btob charger?(the module is behind my drivers seat)........cheers lads....

[Spruce]

ive noticed a fault code when shutting down my 9kw diesel heater(3 long flashes)at the end of my day(6 hours with heater running constantly)....this means low power...also (under load) at the end of the day my battery voltage is reading as low as 12.1 where it used to be 12.5......ive only moved my van once today so been parked up for up to 3 hours at a time......

ive also noticed the water is not as hot as usual which indicates insufficient battery power.....

the numax batteries are just over 2 years old and i bench charge them every night plus i have a smart btob charger in the van.....is it just a straight swap?will i have to reset the btob charger?(the module is behind my drivers seat)........cheers lads....

A battery needs to rest for around 4 hours before you do a voltage check to test remaining charge.

I don't know anything about Grippatank's battery to battery charger.
The Sterling unit is programmable. A sealer leisure battery should only be charged at a maximum of 14.2v where a flooded (screw plugs on top to top up the water) can be charged at 14.6v.

I would suggest you ask Grippa as they don't have that info on their site.

Whilst the Webasto is giving you a direction to look in, it could also be a poor supply connection that will also give a low voltage signal. First place to check is the fuse and then the battery terminals.
 

[Don Kee]

As long as you replace with the same batteries (ie size and type) then I should think it’s a straight swap.
Some of the b2b chargers can tell whether it’s a different battery on their own and adjust accordingly if you do go for a different battery type.

You’ve done well to get two years out of the batteries to be fair.
You’d probably get more if you weren’t parked up for as long (as the charger would top up the batteries) but I’d rather the more compact work than an extra few months out of a battery, myself.

[Splash & dash]

My batteries are over 5 years old running two/three pumps 9 kw boiler  and charged every night and they are still like new , these cheap and nasty ordinary batteries are not suitable for our type of use get a couple of gell 180 amp haze batteries they are brilliant. Your charger might need adjusting though , also some cheap chargers cook the batteries when charging , again a quality charger will charge at a slower rate , that won’t damage the battery , when I was cold I had the batteries you have got and found they lasted about 3-4 years

[Jonny 87]

Daz I replaced my batteries at the end of last year.

It’s just a straight swap. Just make sure your terminals are on nice and tight. (I made that mistake, but Oliver fault found it for me).

I upgraded to over 300 amps of power now so hopefully these last 3 plus years.

An easy option is just to replace with 2 brand new batteries that fit in the same boxes though.

[P @ F]

Daz , rumour has it there’s a chap on here with a heater that only needs a single 105 amp battery , you want to track him down mate as he’s just about to start taking orders

[dazmond]

As long as you replace with the same batteries (ie size and type) then I should think it’s a straight swap.
Some of the b2b chargers can tell whether it’s a different battery on their own and adjust accordingly if you do go for a different battery type.

You’ve done well to get two years out of the batteries to be fair.
You’d probably get more if you weren’t parked up for as long (as the charger would top up the batteries) but I’d rather the more compact work than an extra few months out of a battery, myself.

i think i reduced the life of the batteries the first week i had them fitted as i drained them too much by just relying on the smart split charge relay,they have been great up until the last few days or so.......

[zesty]

Daz , rumour has it there’s a chap on here with a heater that only needs a single 105 amp battery , you want to track him down mate as he’s just about to start taking orders

😁

[KS Cleaning]

ive noticed a fault code when shutting down my 9kw diesel heater(3 long flashes)at the end of my day(6 hours with heater running constantly)....this means low power...also (under load) at the end of the day my battery voltage is reading as low as 12.1 where it used to be 12.5......ive only moved my van once today so been parked up for up to 3 hours at a time......

ive also noticed the water is not as hot as usual which indicates insufficient battery power.....

the numax batteries are just over 2 years old and i bench charge them every night plus i have a smart btob charger in the van.....is it just a straight swap?will i have to reset the btob charger?(the module is behind my drivers seat)........cheers lads....

You’ll be ripping the system out your van next week and telling everyone hot water makes no difference😜😂😂

[dazmond]

ive noticed a fault code when shutting down my 9kw diesel heater(3 long flashes)at the end of my day(6 hours with heater running constantly)....this means low power...also (under load) at the end of the day my battery voltage is reading as low as 12.1 where it used to be 12.5......ive only moved my van once today so been parked up for up to 3 hours at a time......

ive also noticed the water is not as hot as usual which indicates insufficient battery power.....

the numax batteries are just over 2 years old and i bench charge them every night plus i have a smart btob charger in the van.....is it just a straight swap?will i have to reset the btob charger?(the module is behind my drivers seat)........cheers lads....

A battery needs to rest for around 4 hours before you do a voltage check to test remaining charge.

I don't know anything about Grippatank's battery to battery charger.
The Sterling unit is programmable. A sealer leisure battery should only be charged at a maximum of 14.2v where a flooded (screw plugs on top to top up the water) can be charged at 14.6v.

I would suggest you ask Grippa as they don't have that info on their site.

Whilst the Webasto is giving you a direction to look in, it could also be a poor supply connection that will also give a low voltage signal. First place to check is the fuse and then the battery terminals.

fuse fine and terminals are nice and tight spruce,no corrosion(they both sit in battery boxes).......ive just ordered the same numax batteries to swap like for like....£196.36 including VAT and delivery from tanya batteries...i dont think thats too bad......

[dazmond]

Daz I replaced my batteries at the end of last year.

It’s just a straight swap. Just make sure your terminals are on nice and tight. (I made that mistake, but Oliver fault found it for me).

I upgraded to over 300 amps of power now so hopefully these last 3 plus years.

An easy option is just to replace with 2 brand new batteries that fit in the same boxes though.

wow your batteries didnt last long! ......im sure you had your heater fitted a year after mine was it mate?or did you use your existing battery bank from your old system?

anyway ive just ordered 2 of the same numax batteries to swap like for like


cheers jonny....

[Jonny 87]

Daz I replaced my batteries at the end of last year.

It’s just a straight swap. Just make sure your terminals are on nice and tight. (I made that mistake, but Oliver fault found it for me).

I upgraded to over 300 amps of power now so hopefully these last 3 plus years.

An easy option is just to replace with 2 brand new batteries that fit in the same boxes though.

wow your batteries didnt last long! ......im sure you had your heater fitted a year after mine was it mate?or did you use your existing battery bank from your old system?

anyway ive just ordered 2 of the same numax batteries to swap like for like


cheers jonny....

Grippa added one new battery to my system, so I still had one battery that was a few years old. Then in time the old battery must have been draining power from the new. It’s always best to have both batteries the same age I’ve heard.

I’ve taken the battery from grippa and kept that for the system I have in the pickup.

Replaced it with 2 x 180amp batteries. Little test to see if this makes them last longer. If not, then next time I’ll just replace them with 2 x 115 amp batteries.

[NWH]

Splash and dash what make are your batteries again I need 2 more anytime soon,I charge my batteries but the funny thing is even after charging it powers the heater on and then almost straight away turns off again.
If I turn the heater on while the van is running it starts powers up and then runs all day once it’s going obviously without the van then running,that seems weird if anyone knows why because it still has to go through loads of cycles throughout the day without the van going although I do a fair bit of driving between jobs the split charger wouldn’t put that much back into them,though that shouldn’t matter as they’ve been charged overnight.

[P @ F]

It does it on initial start up because you are really pulling amps at that point , during the day if not fully shutting down you are not asking so much of the battery bank .
You should always have the van running when starting the heater up as the alternator will help immensely with the power draw , providing you are b2b or scr that is .
I think Daz does this !

[Splash & dash]

It does it on initial start up because you are really pulling amps at that point , during the day if not fully shutting down you are not asking so much of the battery bank .
You should always have the van running when starting the heater up as the alternator will help immensely with the power draw , providing you are b2b or scr that is .
I think Daz does this !

If you are having to have the engine running to fire the boiler up the battery capacity  isn’t enough , get some decent batteries theses  things most people are using for  there systems are designed for camper vans and motor homes that generally use little power , go to a battery specialist like bbl and ask them , they will tell you they arnt suitable fir the use we give them . Mine are now 5 years old they have run the boiler for over 10,000 hours , run between 2-3 pumps 8 hours a day 5 days a week and are still as good as new .

[Splash & dash]

Splash and dash what make are your batteries again I need 2 more anytime soon,I charge my batteries but the funny thing is even after charging it powers the heater on and then almost straight away turns off again.
If I turn the heater on while the van is running it starts powers up and then runs all day once it’s going obviously without the van then running,that seems weird if anyone knows why because it still has to go through loads of cycles throughout the day without the van going although I do a fair bit of driving between jobs the split charger wouldn’t put that much back into them,though that shouldn’t matter as they’ve been charged overnight.

Haze 180 amp heavy duty gell batteries they are about twise the weight of the numax and other cheaper batteries , if you have a bbl batteries near you speak to them that’s where I got mine , they were dearer than normal ones but well worth the bit extra in cost , again you need to be using the correct charger to optimise battery life most get high powerd chargers and think they are doing a great job charging them fast but this kills batteries , a b2 b charger is ok but unless you are doing reasonable mileage they will not be being charged enough and again running them to low will shorten there life quite considerably

[NWH]

I plug into the side of the van to charge mine I had it fitted by Grippa mains to 3 pin charger.

[dazmond]

i always start the van before firing up the heater first thing in the morning then it stays on all day, the odd time that i let the heater shut down in the day it fires back up no problem with the engine OFF(if i have a brew and dont plug my hose back into the return valves for example)......something doesnt sound right there nigel....your heater shouldnt turn off just because you fired it up without the van running.....

[NWH]

I need new batteries Daz that’s all m8 they are just over 2 years old now Numax I got from Grippa

[brianbarber]

We have done the following and it helps
Whilst it’s still plugged in to the grippa charger we start the heater, leave it on fir 5 mins, unplug and drive to jobs
I’ve found by using the spare pump (twin 9kw heater fitted) at say a pump setting of 10, it’s constantly recirculating all day and then the heater won’t shut down, which is what sucks a lot of battery juice .
Just my findings
Also daz think your a bit premature with replacing, unless grippa said so....

Mr B

[NWH]

I do that sometimes also the water gets really hot then though lol,when the battery output reads 14.5 the water on start up is burning hot.
As said starting the heater with engine off of the batteries are oldish the heater can turn off.

[Spruce]

Webasto heaters will automatically switch off if the battery voltage drops to 10.4v. The way to see if it is the battery is to put a multimeter across the terminals on the voltage setting and switch the heater on. If the voltage drops to the mid  10v then its a battery related issue, especially if they have been on charge all night.

[dazmond]

We have done the following and it helps
Whilst it’s still plugged in to the grippa charger we start the heater, leave it on fir 5 mins, unplug and drive to jobs
I’ve found by using the spare pump (twin 9kw heater fitted) at say a pump setting of 10, it’s constantly recirculating all day and then the heater won’t shut down, which is what sucks a lot of battery juice .
Just my findings
Also daz think your a bit premature with replacing, unless grippa said so....

Mr B

It's got to be the batteries as the low power fault code only shows up after 6 hours running NOT if it's been running for 3 or 4 hours and then shutting down.....

[dazmond]

Webasto heaters will automatically switch off if the battery voltage drops to 10.4v. The way to see if it is the battery is to put a multimeter across the terminals on the voltage setting and switch the heater on. If the voltage drops to the mid  10v then its a battery related issue, especially if they have been on charge all night.

I think nigels batteries will be well and truly knackered then if they've dropped that low!

[NWH]

These haven’t dropped that low they did before I got the mains to van charger though,I think mines down to the batteries needing to be replaced.

[dazmond]

well.......today i had the heater running again for 6 hours and it was absolutely fine....water piping hot and no low power fault code when shutting down at 3pm.......the only thing i can think of is i did a bit more driving around this afternoon which must of topped up the batteries a bit...the water was that hot i couldnt put my hand under it this afternoon.....strange.....voltage reading of 12.5 when shutting down too before going up to 12.8.....its never been that high at the end of the day for ages....

lots of times over november/december ive noticed the fault code flashing when shutting down at the end of the day and this is despite keeping my engine running at lunchtime for half an hour (with the heater still running)this is usually on days where im parked up for hours on end......the voltage reading is 12.2 before going back up to 12.4 once heater has completed its 3 min shut off cycle......

[NWH]

If my heater shuts off after I’ve started it even with an overnight charge the red led on the side flashes about 3 times pauses and same again,if I drive turn the heater on before when the vans running when I get to the next job it’s working fine and continues to do so the rest of the day.
My issue I’m sure is the batteries due to it drawing a huge amount of amps on initial startup,if I plug into the mains and start the heater up obviously van not running it purrs like a dream with 14.5 volts on the meter,nice to hear your heater is producing something like hot water Daz lol lol.

[dazmond]

If my heater shuts off after I’ve started it even with an overnight charge the red led on the side flashes about 3 times pauses and same again,if I drive turn the heater on before when the vans running when I get to the next job it’s working fine and continues to do so the rest of the day.
My issue I’m sure is the batteries due to it drawing a huge amount of amps on initial startup,if I plug into the mains and start the heater up obviously van not running it purrs like a dream with 14.5 volts on the meter,nice to hear your heater is producing something like hot water Daz lol lol.

it must be your batteries mate....my heater has never turned off due to low power and im replacing mine this weekend!

[NWH]

Yeah I know it’s the batteries m8 I’ll probably get the same as Splash he has BBL batteries

[dazmond]

Yeah I know it’s the batteries m8 I’ll probably get the same as Splash he has BBL batteries

how long is your heater running on an average day nigel?mines 6 hours.......you also have a split charge relay fitted i gather?and bench charge overnight?i seem to remember you getting your grippa heater fitted around a year after mine meaning the batteries are only just over a year old....

[NWH]

At least 6 hours yeah much the same,if I’m doing a job that the hot will crack I’ll turn it off return to tank to cool the plates down first then turn it back on,this doesn’t effect the heater turning off though once it’s running it’s fine it’s just first thing in the morning when you need good batteries.
The first switch on it requires good healthy batteries or it will shut down,it doesn’t just have to be voltage as low as 11.10 the better the batteries the hotter the water you’ll get in my experience.

[dazmond]

ive had my heater on for 5 and a half hours today and the low power fault code came on again when shutting it down  this afternoon.......it was fine yesterday and it was running for 6 hours......i cant work it out......

i spent 3 hours parked up (like yesterday)and a few little drives this afternoon.....water was fairly hot all day(weather was colder today)......

[dazmond]

my numax batteries have been delivered to my girlfriends house today so i think ill swap them over this weekend,my van is also in for its first MOT on monday!wow!3 years have flown by!

[dazmond]

changed batteries today....10 min job.....a little bit awkward as its a tight space down the side of my tank,its times like this when i wish id got a van with twin sliding doors! ...put the new batteries on charge straight away and ill test them out next tuesday( my van is in the garage for its first MOT monday morning)

[NWH]

The water will be hotter straight away,it’s a head  scratch with me at the moment I’ve been charging as normal and my heater has been working better than ever.
Last couple of days it’s gone back to being smoking hot again it’s like some days the batteries are charging better than others,when I drive from job to job switch the van off and do a battery check it’s reading out 14.1 ish,before it was reading 13.1-.5 weird.

[NWH]

Even when when I’m using hot water with the heater on although the batteries have been reading a lower voltage it’s still very hot though.

[dazmond]

the only thing i didnt like on the new numax batteries is they filled the battery vents with gunk(instead of  little plastic plugs)to stop acid spilling out in transit,horrible stuff to get out of the vents...... ...got most of it out in the end.....

[dazmond]

my heater is back to its best now.....no low power warning light coming on at the end of my working day,lightening fast reeling in and the water is hotter..... cleaning my van after work this afternoon and i couldnt put my hand in front of the jets it was that hot despite 20 m off the reel and my pump on 90...my van looked like it was on fire.....

[NWH]

Lol working now is it.

[P @ F]

No his van really is on fire like the good old L5 days