Jump Starter

I am fairly sure I am not switching something off but at the moment I have no idea what.

There is a yellow indicator light fitted in the cab interior light area. if engine is turned off and i press the 12v button on the control panel (Shaudt DT110) once there is a click and the yellow indicator lights up. if i press the 12v button second time i hear a click and the display shows a push to make switch symbol and the yellow light goes out.

Now i know assume makes an ass of u and me BUT...

I assume on first press of the 12v button the split relay is passing power between starter and leisure batteries. On second press the split charge relay stops power flow and turns on habitation 12v. Does that sound right?
 
hairydog said:
No, it doesn't sound right to me. The split charge should be entirely automatic and only cut in when the alternator is charging. No button pressing should make it switch (on or off).

I strongly suggest that you get hold of the user manual for that unit (Mr Google will have a copy) and find out what the button does.

In general, anything that lights up yellow is usually a warning or a caution.

Your starter battery should not be powering any habitation supply, and should not be running down quickly (though some alarm systems can give problems).
Click to expand...

I have the user manual for the control panel, was only in German on Schaudt site but I did a translate so have it in English which converted fairly well. That lets me to think I am doing it right on the control panel but the yellow light is nothing to do with the original equipment and someone has added that in.

It may not be the split charge relay I hear but I am reasonably sure it is a relay clicking when I press the button, may be a relay for fully enabling hab 12v? I say fully enabling as there are a few circuits enabled even when it is switched off, (step, awning lights, fridge etc.) the yellow light may have just been added as a reminder to switch over/off I dont know yet

I had no manuals of any kind come with the mh, I am slowly building up a set of downloaded manuals but not always easy when you dont know what it is you have fitted and a lot has been changed since this was built.
 
Just a thought Nabs.

Have a look at your fridge with that mystery button on and off. In our Hymer the only clicking sound I got from the Schaudt unit was when the relay popped in to feed the fridge 12v on engine start up. Could be someone has modified that circuit to turn it on / off independently.

Cheers

H
 
Something I tend to do when checking electical stuff after installing or changing things is get a multimeter on the starter battery and the habitation batteries and compare the voltages. And also on devices
If the same (within a very small variation to allow for voltage drops) then a very good chance a split charge is operational (or batteries strapped together); If different, then it is not. Repeat with engine running.

This gives a pretty good view of how things are wired up.

(I look at quite a few van conversions where the owner has bought used and doesn't have any info, or the installer provided no documention, so can't assume anything is installed as you might expect)
 
@Wildebus Yes multimeter is next I reckon. Went to get mine out the shed yesterday and it was waterlogged. Will be glad when I stop working then I will (hopefully) have more time to do things, well that or longer daylight hours then I could look after work. While checking all the different fuses/holders some seemed too loose a fit to me. There are two separate (a 4-way and a 6-way) fuse boxes and a 30amp fuse with a 2 amp piggy back in with the leisure batteries all on 12 volt. There may be some more scattered around so its probably going to pay me to track everything down, remove anything no longer needed and fit a new single fuse box that is big enough for everything maybe something like this: 12 Way Fuse Box.

@Winks my fridge is a 12v or Mains type Waeco (compressor?) and I have the thermostat right down to turn it off at the moment. Our EBL is under one of the bench seats adjacent to the two leisure batteries and the click sounds like it is coming from the cab area somewhere.


One thing I haven't found yet though is the switch to turn emersion heater on and off. Now I know it has one I was looking at the info on that and on the one I have fitted on the installation it shows some 12volt wiring. This is the one thats fitted: Surejust > 6 Litre 12v/240v Motorhome Water Heater (NO COIL)

On the installation instructions it shows a cable linked to 12v, not sure why as the element must be 240v: Surejust > Surecal 12v/240v Motorhome Water Heater Immersion Connection Instructions
 
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Found today my battery is seriously knackered.
Went to start and wouldn't kick over. Battery dropped from 12.4v to 11.5V instantly. Clearly not holding any real charge (think it is undersized as well? 2.8L engine, 62Ah battery?)

Stuck the jump start pack on. Walked round to drivers seat and turned key for glowplugs to go off, then turned Started instantly :). Charge dropped from around 79% to 37%.
 
I've used and carry one of these no charging required very little weight a lot less expensive, You can use your leisure battery if engine battery needs a boost EBAY LINK
 
As the saying goes "Your Mileage May Vary", but I used my Jump Start Pack again this morning after the van faled to start and decided to video the process as it is not necessarily as you might expect (the process today was just like yesterdays Jump Start in fact)

Word to Note: This engine is cold. I tried to start the engine a few minutes previously to doing the video and that made the battery drop instantly from around 12.6V (on charge since day before) right down to 10.7V (the Battery has clearly totally failed and needs replacing).
The Jump Pack was connected 40 seconds into the video and after the first video key-turn.

[video=youtube_share;wDxDbn8SY1E]https://youtu.be/wDxDbn8SY1E[/video]
(I added some waffle in the YouTube description at YouTube for anyone interested)
 
Hmmm, what make is yours Wildebus, it looks similar to mine?

I may have made the mistake of following the instructions on mine or maybe while it looks similar it is completely different. On mine it says NOT to leave it connected to put charge before trying to start. It says from connecting to battery you have 30 seconds then have to disconnect then wait 30 seconds between attempts. That was why it wouldn't work for me, it needed leaving connected but from instructions it said not to do that.

If it is okay leaving them connected up and having multiple tries then it may have been different. Saying that this is what I got:
Connected jump pack, turn key to first position and dash lit up but after a few seconds all lights went out (without trying to start). Turn off and turn key back to first position and get same thing. By that time I had to disconnect as the 30 seconds was up. Mine needed to be connected longer but I didn't want to damage the pac first time out
 
I'll have a look for the make tomorrow (its in the van recharging).
I didn't read the instructions massively TBH.
The charge went from 100% down to 14% so a big hit - but starter battery was not helping at all I think.
My pauses from ignition on to trying to start were basically waiting for glowplug light to go off, nothing else.

I suspect - but I don't know - that these packs all work in a similar way. I've used it a few times now due to the bad battery and I am pretty sure it started on the second go each time?

Not planning on using again on the van as after doing the jump start this morning I fitted a new battery.
 
The jump lead part is a separate plug in unit HG and is called a 'Smart' part. It tests it is safe to continue when you connect leads and I think it said it was protected against misuse. That may just be for connecting wrong way though not sure.

I do think I had something open that was trying to send the charge to leisure batteries but not sure what yet so may be in for a few flat batteries while I find out :( Not had starter battery tested yet though so it may be needing replacement yet as well.

Roll on light nights, got my new multi-meter waiting to jump in and see what I can track down, are an awful lot of wires though, it just makes you want to strip them all out and start again. If I do that I will never be getting anywhere in it though, I start to seize up after an hour or so doing stuff that interesting now days ha ha
 
Nabsim said:
Hmmm, what make is yours Wildebus, it looks similar to mine?

I may have made the mistake of following the instructions on mine or maybe while it looks similar it is completely different. On mine it says NOT to leave it connected to put charge before trying to start. It says from connecting to battery you have 30 seconds then have to disconnect then wait 30 seconds between attempts. That was why it wouldn't work for me, it needed leaving connected but from instructions it said not to do that.

If it is okay leaving them connected up and having multiple tries then it may have been different. Saying that this is what I got:
Connected jump pack, turn key to first position and dash lit up but after a few seconds all lights went out (without trying to start). Turn off and turn key back to first position and get same thing. By that time I had to disconnect as the 30 seconds was up. Mine needed to be connected longer but I didn't want to damage the pac first time out
Click to expand...

Mine is described as a "Car Jump Starter,EletecPro 14400mAh 600A Peak with LED Emergency lights,External Battery Charger Auto Booster Jumper for Vehicles,Portable Power Bank "

Not got the instruction leaflet in the box. it was in typical Chinglish so exact meanings can get confused.
On the box itself there is clear instruction saying "Jump Starter should be removed within 30 seconds of starting the Engine".
It does not say anything about removing between attempts.
I can't see how not removing between starting attempts would damage the pack TBH - at the worst it would drain some power from it while being connected while voltages are attempted to be equalised, but attempting to start a vehicle would drain a hell of a lot more.
I CAN see why you must remove quickly AFTER the engine is going though as the alternator will be pushing a lot of current and likely too much for the Lithium Battery to bring in safely.
 
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