Habitation Electrics

[Deleted member 12539]

Again it's an electrical question for those in the know...
I have just changed my vehicle battery from a 75Ah to a 85Ah battery and all went very smoothly, I entered the radio code to get the radio working again and the alarm/immobiliser system is working also.
In fact everything is working better than before the new battery was installed!!
The reason I say this is because I am now able to use all of the habitation electrics whilst the engine is running. Before the new battery was put in, the habitation side of the electrics (interior lights, 12v power, steps etc) would isolate themselves once the engine was started.
This does mean that the steps do not automatically retract on engine start up (as they did before) but I can live with that, as long as I am doing no damage to the electrical system by running the engine with 'habitation' being live.
Would it be a blown fuse that has caused this to happen?
Personally i prefer to leave it as it is, as this allows my son to be able to use a spot light to read during a journey.

 

[lufcdave7]

Some time ago I enquired if it was possible to achieve the same situation you have. I was told by the bloke that services our Autotrail that it was possible by removing a certain fuse. However, the negative effect this would have was that the leisure batteries would no longer be charged whilst the engine was running.

 

[Deleted member 12539]

Some time ago I enquired if it was possible to achieve the same situation you have. I was told by the bloke that services our Autotrail that it was possible by removing a certain fuse. However, the negative effect this would have was that the leisure batteries would no longer be charged whilst the engine was running.

Now I did not think of that either....:scared:
Also I may not realise the engine is not charging the battery, because my solar panel also does that job.

I will be investigating now after receiving this and other advice from Alf, who suggested I may have missed a cable connection when reconnecting my new battery.

I really do find this such a useful forum...

 

[Deleted member 3011]

Yes, you HAVE missed connecting a cable - or more likely, have blown a fuse - when you made the switch.

 

[maingate]

You should have bought a German van, it is possible to have 12 volt power in the hab area while you are driving.

You could always run a supply direct from your leisure battery to a socket. make sure you put a fuse in the line though.