Solar trickle charge engine battery

[Littlemissvw]

I’ve noticed that the vehicle battery does drop voltage slightly while just sitting on the drive in between trips. Although I have solar on the roof now, I have no charging from the solar to the engine battery.
I see there are small trickle solar chargers which you can plug into the cigarette lighter or or EODB port which sounds ideal. Then it sits on the dash.
My question is, has anyone tried using one these, and does the crafter (apr 2017) have an eodb port? I know it has an odb port but not sure how to find out about if it’s eodb?!
thanks in advance!

 

[Pauly]

Same thing !
Another alternative is something like the AMT12-2

Ablemail AMT12-2 Battery Maintainer

<p>The AMT12-2 Trickle Charger has been designed to keep a vehicle’s starter battery charged and protected from damage during prolonged perio...

www.roadpro.co.uk

As you have solar which constantly charges the leisure battery this will take energy from the leisure battery and trickle charge the engine battery @ 2A

 

[Littlemissvw]

That would be ideal, but the van is already fitted out, and running extra cables etc front to rear (it's all in the garage) is now a problem. The van does have (fitted by the converter with the previous owner) a CTEK250sa which would do the job. Unfortunately, this can only take a Voc of a small panel. As I wanted something to run the van's leisure side of things for a week rather than a night I have put a panel on whose output is too big for the CTEK, so that's that option out. I could put a smaller panel inside on the dash for when it's sat on the drive, but the cable run would have to go over the bed and into the garage from the very back of the van. Though it'd be visible - but I guess that would remind me to unplug it! But as there are these trickle charge panels using the eodb or cigarette socket I wondered if that would be the least work!
Does the crafter have an eodb socket?

 

[rod_vw]

Another option to maintain the engine battery from the leisure one is the Van Bitz Battery Master. My personal impression of that unit is that it is expensive for what it does so I've never tried one but it is well known and used by the general motorhome community.
I don't know how the OBD socket on the Crafter/TGE is specified but you will find it above your feet when sat in the drivers position (RHD vehicle).

 

[Pauly]

That would be ideal, but the van is already fitted out, and running extra cables etc front to rear (it's all in the garage) is now a problem. The van does have (fitted by the converter with the previous owner) a CTEK250sa which would do the job. Unfortunately, this can only take a Voc of a small panel. As I wanted something to run the van's leisure side of things for a week rather than a night I have put a panel on whose output is too big for the CTEK, so that's that option out. I could put a smaller panel inside on the dash for when it's sat on the drive, but the cable run would have to go over the bed and into the garage from the very back of the van. Though it'd be visible - but I guess that would remind me to unplug it! But as there are these trickle charge panels using the eodb or cigarette socket I wondered if that would be the least work!
Does the crafter have an eodb socket?

not sure you would need to run extra cables, if you have a d250 fitted then you have a wire from the engine battery and a wire from the leisure at that point !

 

[Littlemissvw]

@rod_vw The van Bitz battery master looks quite good, as the solar I have should (hopefully!) always top up the leisure batteries. But I’d still have to run cables back to the engine battery. (To be honest I haven’t worked out where that is yet!!!). @Pauly I don’t think I can use the cables from the CTEK to feed back to the engine battery. The CTEK is the dc - dc charger, and the connection on it shows it connected to the alternator not the engine battery. Nothing is ever simple . Buying a converted van was meant to make life easier!! I’ll download the CTEK manual and have a read, perhaps I can put a small solar panel on the spare wheel on the back and run cables to the CTEK.
And now my water pump has stopped working…. Ho hum….

 

[rod_vw]

@Littlemissvw If your CTEK is connected as the diagram below (circled version) you have cables to both batteries at the terminals that I have marked A & B both being substantial thickness to manage the charge/discharge current so quite OK to connect a Battery Master or similar. 'A' goes to the engine battery and 'B' to the leisure battery referred to as 'Service Battery' in the diagram. That diagram is from the CTEK user manual.

Your engine battery is under the floor in front of the left front seat, lift the floor covering if you have any and remove the floor panel, sufficient tools should be in the recessed compartment in front of the above mentioned battery compartment.

 

[Littlemissvw]

Apologies for the late response @rod_vw I've been in a field with the van with little or no phone signal! I believe the CTEK is wired as the manual, but without the solar panel. I have to assume the cable connected to 'A' in the diagram goes to the engine battery, but I'll have a look in that compartment (thanks for the info as I wasn't sure where it was!) and see if a cable is coming in (there must be one!). The cables going into the CTEK aren't labelled though I can obviously trace the leisure battery ones. I thought the CTEK took charge from the alternator, but will have a rummage in the battery compartment to see what's connected.

So, do you mean put the battery master in instead of the CTEK? The CTEK does the DC-DC charging which I'm assuming (from the battery master write up) it doesn't. Or just rely on the big solar panel to keep the leisure battery charged, and the battery master to level things out by stealing the cables the CTEK currently has for it? Thanks for all advice - I like to be super careful with these things and would like to have an 'install and forget' ability to keep the engine battery topped up. As my old transporter didn't have a smart alternator, the split charge was much simpler!

 

[rod_vw]

Apologies for the late response @rod_vw I've been in a field with the van with little or no phone signal! I believe the CTEK is wired as the manual, but without the solar panel. I have to assume the cable connected to 'A' in the diagram goes to the engine battery, but I'll have a look in that compartment (thanks for the info as I wasn't sure where it was!) and see if a cable is coming in (there must be one!). The cables going into the CTEK aren't labelled though I can obviously trace the leisure battery ones. I thought the CTEK took charge from the alternator, but will have a rummage in the battery compartment to see what's connected.

So, do you mean put the battery master in instead of the CTEK? The CTEK does the DC-DC charging which I'm assuming (from the battery master write up) it doesn't. Or just rely on the big solar panel to keep the leisure battery charged, and the battery master to level things out by stealing the cables the CTEK currently has for it? Thanks for all advice - I like to be super careful with these things and would like to have an 'install and forget' ability to keep the engine battery topped up. As my old transporter didn't have a smart alternator, the split charge was much simpler!

Please remember that I don't have first hand knowledge of either the CTEK or the Battery Master but I think the Battery Master should be connected across terminals A & B. To be sure I would speak to Vanbitz and confirm both the fitment and suitability for what you need. From what I hear on other forums I suspect that Vanbitz are very helpful. If you search the MotorhomeFun Forum you will find many comments about them.

 

[Littlemissvw]

I had a look on the product page, and Vanbitz are near Taunton. As I go down that way every now and then I'll do as you suggest and give them a shout. I can always take the van one trip and if it works out I'll report back! Thanks for putting it forward as a solution.

 

[Grubscrew]

I just wired into the vehicle battery with a ctek socket, and connect the charger to that, via the inverter off the van lithium batteries which in turn is topped up by the sun on solar panels, keeps the system ticking over .

 

[Littlemissvw]

Was that a ctek250 you’ve wired in? (Or its newer model). I’ve yet to try and find whether the cable that says engine battery on it - or alternator on the ctek, actually goes to the engine battery.

 

[Pauly]

Where else can it go, the battery and alternator are wired together so effectively the same thing
If you have any type of DC/DC charger installed then you can use the in and out cables for a backwards trickle charge

 

[rod_vw]

Where else can it go, the battery and alternator are wired together so effectively the same thing
If you have any type of DC/DC charger installed then you can use the in and out cables for a backwards trickle charge

My thoughts entirely @Pauly but you and I have been into vehicle electrical circuitry for a long time, to many others wires are a black art! Most would panic if asked to terminate a 256 pair telecoms cable .

 

[Littlemissvw]

Well, give me networking or cctv, broadcast cabling and I’m good I cut my teeth on van electrics in my old T5, this smart alternator thing is new to me - plus it’s the most I’m ever likely to be able to spend on a van so don’t want to mess things up. I like to understand things before I do anything. The old van was much easier to work out where cables disappeared off too. This ready converted van is much harder! I’ve already had someone hit the front bumper and drive off which was rather insulting so something else to sort.

 

[rod_vw]

Well, give me networking or cctv, broadcast cabling and I’m good I cut my teeth on van electrics in my old T5, this smart alternator thing is new to me - plus it’s the most I’m ever likely to be able to spend on a van so don’t want to mess things up. I like to understand things before I do anything. The old van was much easier to work out where cables disappeared off too. This ready converted van is much harder! I’ve already had someone hit the front bumper and drive off which was rather insulting so something else to sort.

Sorry no offence intended, I'm an old school telecoms person so lots of wires and detached contact diagrams are quite normal to me. If you need access to VW wiring diagrams they are available on line at cardiagn dot com FOC and VW's own services for a reasonable cost (I can't remember the link but someone will come along with it). VW diagrams are the current flow version so not to everyone's taste.

 

[Pauly]

VW erwin (for a fee)

Volkswagen AG erWin Online

erwin.volkswagen.de

 

[Littlemissvw]

Sorry no offence intended, I'm an old school telecoms person so lots of wires and detached contact diagrams are quite normal to me. If you need access to VW wiring diagrams they are available on line at cardiagn dot com FOC and VW's own services for a reasonable cost (I can't remember the link but someone will come along with it). VW diagrams are the current flow version so not to everyone's taste.

Oh, non taken I appreciate all the excellent advice and ideas. I will take a look at the sites you and @Pauly have put. I always like to plan things out and prepare and understand totally before doing anything and as electrics are enough of a dark art to me still I realise I do ask what to most are probably daft questions! But to me help paint a picture.

 

[Raul a/3]

As Pauly said, if yiu have ANY b2b charger, thats were the battery master is easier to install. Just as a bypass in reverse. The battery master will block current when b2b is operational. And when habitation geys charged by solar, voltage raises and triggers the battery master to divert charge to starter via b2b cable. Simples.

 

[Littlemissvw]

Fabulous, thank you. I ordered a battery master and now just have to find time when it’s not raining to fit it! I will use the ctek terminals where the engine battery and leisure battery connect. I wasn’t sure if I could also use the earth point on the ctek but might make a new one in the chassis and run the -ve there.