storing a van - how do you do it?

[delicagirl]

at the moment i am lucky to have a place to park my van at home and off road and with access to 240v for constant charging when i am not using the van - and i can also SORN it if necessary.

This may not always be the case, so i am wondering how others deal with/storing/ charging their vans when they are not using them? Do storage companies premises generally provide 240v ? What charges do they make in your area?

Do you disconnect all the batteries ? Obviously drain it all down of water .... Thank you

 

[GeoffL]

We store about half an hour's drive from home. The storage site is closed outside business hours (8:30 to 17:00) but access is available during business hours 364 days a year. We're allocated an asphalt hard-standing with about 1.5m separation between units. No electricity or water is provided but, as the storage site is next to a campsite, I've negotiated filling of fresh tank and emptying toilet cassette at £2 a time. I have a 100W solar panel, so I can leave the motorhome charging between trips. If that's not enough, I have two batteries and can take them home to charge one at a time. Storage fees are very reasonable for my area at about £400 a year (average is about £600). HTH, Geoff

 

[delicagirl]

We store about half an hour's drive from home. The storage site is closed outside business hours (8:30 to 17:00) but access is available during business hours 364 days a year. We're allocated an asphalt hard-standing with about 1.5m separation between units. No electricity or water is provided but, as the storage site is next to a campsite, I've negotiated filling of fresh tank and emptying toilet cassette at £2 a time. I have a 100W solar panel, so I can leave the motorhome charging between trips. If that's not enough, I have two batteries and can take them home to charge one at a time. Storage fees are very reasonable for my area at about £400 a year (average is about £600). HTH, Geoff

thanks Geoff... i can't even lift one of my batteries let alone take it out and take it home !!!

Re your solar panel... does it maintain your battery at a decent level for longish periods - my 3 batteries seem to slowly reduce in voltage if i dont have the van on charge - even though i have a solar panel.

 

[jagmanx]

Solar panel

Should maintain all batteries.
1 may need to keep the "main switch" on.
Turn water pump off.
2 check engine battery is charged.

We pay £50 a month.
Make sure your insurers know and accept the site!

Fridge off empty and left open.
Make sure light is off.
Try to park on a slight slope to ensure rain water runs off

 

[Wooie1958]

Or use levellers to give the slope. Chock wheels, leave off, handbrake.

That`s how i do it and it`s parked off road behind 2 sets of gates right at the side of my house :dance:

Solar keeps everything charged but i have EHU if needed from the garage :hammer:

 

[TJBi]

at the moment i am lucky to have a place to park my van at home and off road and with access to 240v for constant charging when i am not using the van - and i can also SORN it if necessary.

This may not always be the case, so i am wondering how others deal with/storing/ charging their vans when they are not using them? Do storage companies premises generally provide 240v ? What charges do they make in your area?

Do you disconnect all the batteries ? Obviously drain it all down of water .... Thank you

Charges vary widely from company to company, never mind area to area. Some storage companies appear not to advertise their services - I identified a few close to me using Google Maps satellite view.

A proper solar installation should keep healthy batteries charged unless you have something drawing substantial power while the vehicle is stored.

 

[Nabsim]

Charges vary widely from company to company, never mind area to area. Some storage companies appear not to advertise their services - I identified a few close to me using Google Maps satellite view.

A proper solar installation should keep healthy batteries charged unless you have something drawing substantial power while the vehicle is stored.

Ours is only usually parked up Monday nights until Thursday afternooons but my new storage is on a farm not far away. They have allocated me a hard standing area behind but away from a barn so solar still gets whatever sun is out. I have spec’d solar to allow compressor fridge to be left on in winter but as we usually empty the fridge out I have been turning it off and opening the door. I have a feed from solar controller to starter battery as well so everything should be fine.

Not asked about water or Elsan as I can empty cassette into septic tank at home but at £300 a year come and go whenever I want I was very pleased. They just ask I message them when we are going to move so as not to call police.

 

[colinm]

thanks Geoff... i can't even lift one of my batteries let alone take it out and take it home !!!

Re your solar panel... does it maintain your battery at a decent level for longish periods - my 3 batteries seem to slowly reduce in voltage if i dont have the van on charge - even though i have a solar panel.

Hate to have to tell you, but seems you have another problem with your van, Apart from depths of winter pretty much any solar panel should keep the batteries charged up. In fact in some circles (i.e. Alan) it is considered not only bad practice to keep a van on EHU 24/7 when not being used, also keeping solar on 24/7 when van is not in use.
p.s. Come to think of it, going back to the old thread about running your laptop in the van it's probably still the same problem you've always had.

 

[delicagirl]

Hate to have to tell you, but seems you have another problem with your van, Apart from depths of winter pretty much any solar panel should keep the batteries charged up. In fact in some circles (i.e. Alan) it is considered not only bad practice to keep a van on EHU 24/7 when not being used, also keeping solar on 24/7 when van is not in use.
p.s. Come to think of it, going back to the old thread about running your laptop in the van it's probably still the same problem you've always had.

almost certainly colin ...i have never been able to stay stationery as long as i wanted to - even in summer. i have found a new local repair company run by a personable yorkshire man who has been repairing vans for 30 years, and he is fixing my water pump for me at the end of this month. i will ask him about the electrics as well.

i suspect the man who fitted my solar system was not an "expert," as he alleged, and i think that my solar controller is not a good one, but i have not yet found someone who has been able to read the user manual and tell me if it is set correctly.

this van has been a trial and still is !!


but somehow i still plod on with it.....

 

[colinm]

Electrics are often a PITA, a good electrician who will patiently go throu a system until it's fixed may cost a fair bit, only you can decided if it's worth it.

As for the solar, as it's school holidays our van gets little use, it's parked in it's 'shed' which is basically a tin roof with netting for walls, the panel on the van which is for habitation battery gets little light, but at this time of year it's just enough to keep battery at a healthy state. The vehicle battery if left alone would slowly discharge, to counter this I connect a cheapo 40w panel and regulator, at this time of year I sometimes disconnect it to prevent excess fluid loss.

 

[GeoffL]

Hate to have to tell you, but seems you have another problem with your van, Apart from depths of winter pretty much any solar panel should keep the batteries charged up. [...]

FWIW, I've haven't actually needed to take the batteries home to charge, although that may change this winter due to the way I plan to use the van. We're amateur astronomers and plan to drive a short distance to a dark sky site, set up our imaging rig and settle down to a night's astrophotography. During the night, the 12v electrics will power the telescope mount, cameras and computer as well as habitation (fan for the heater, lights, water pump, etc.) As it's less than half an hour's drive back to our storage pitch, the batteries won't be fully charged when we get back -- hence leaving the solar on to charge the batteries while the van is on our storage pitch. We'll take 30Ah to 50Ah from the leisure batteries during a night's astrophotography and the solar probably puts back less that 10Ah a day during winter; which is why we have the contingency plan to be able to take the batteries home for charging. However, it would probably be just as easy to spend a night on a CL on EHU ...

 

[vanmandan]

I had to find storage last summer when changing vans.
found a farm nearby that did winter caravan storage...£20 a month.
might be something like that in your area.
a local campsite might have a recommendation.
as for your regulator.....if it has 6 connections,
the left 2 are for the solar panel
middle 2 for the engine battery
right 2 for the leisure battery
make sure you get the polarity right on them all.
good luck .

 

[delicagirl]

I had to find storage last summer when changing vans.
found a farm nearby that did winter caravan storage...£20 a month.
might be something like that in your area.
a local campsite might have a recommendation.
as for your regulator.....if it has 6 connections,
the left 2 are for the solar panel
middle 2 for the engine battery
right 2 for the leisure battery
make sure you get the polarity right on them all.
good luck .

thanks..... Currently only 4 cables are connected to the regulator. the two left hand cables come into the regulator from the solar panel. currently the central 2 sockets are empty. the final 2 sockets are wired to one of the leisure batteries. i am told that all 3 batteries are linked via a split relay - which installed by an auto electrician. Does this sound like part of the problem ?

 

[Channa]

Collette, I am going to sound brutal stop asking 101 questions on subjects you clearly don't understand when on occasion given transparent answers. then find a man with second hand info here.Your not helping yourself

The question that needs to be asked is there any member that has first hand experience of an electrician that know what he is doing. That you can use ,most of your problems seem historical the 110 v malarkey etc

Let them go through your system with a fine toothcomb and advise as necessary. I think that is what it needs it is apparent you seem to have a patchwork quilt of a system.

I do hope you take my post in the spirit intended I have no desire to intentionally offend and for what its worth I cant help with electrics but it seems

Friendly Yorkie or not (im one) you need proof that a workman can do the job the reason the good ones are in business is they can diagnose and do things us lesser mortal can weeding them out from the chaff the difficult part which is why you need good recommendations

Channa

 

[edina]

Collette, I am going to sound brutal stop asking 101 questions on subjects you clearly don't understand when on occasion given transparent answers. then find a man with second hand info here.Your not helping yourself

The question that needs to be asked is there any member that has first hand experience of an electrician that know what he is doing. That you can use ,most of your problems seem historical the 110 v malarkey etc

Let them go through your system with a fine toothcomb and advise as necessary. I think that is what it needs it is apparent you seem to have a patchwork quilt of a system.

I do hope you take my post in the spirit intended I have no desire to intentionally offend and for what its worth I cant help with electrics but it seems

Friendly Yorkie or not (im one) you need proof that a workman can do the job the reason the good ones are in business is they can diagnose and do things us lesser mortal can weeding them out from the chaff the difficult part which is why you need good recommendations

Channa

I did suggest this earlier as there are a few good motorhome specialists in Somerset, like Chelston and Highbridge. - I've dealt with both and had good service.

 

[trevskoda]

Only thing apart from the above about charging is if you leave van for a long spell then the van should be jacked up so wheels clear the ground,other wise flat spots can affect the tyres,hand brake of solar charging and some vents open to let air round inside.

 

[vanmandan]

Sorry, but that is very unlikely to be correct.

Most (but not all) solar controllers with six terminals have them arranged

Panel - | Panel + | Battery - | Battery + | Load - | Load +

Though the + and - may be the other way round. But lots are arranged differently.

You can not generalise, though I have never seen one with the connections you describe. I have also never seen one where the connections don't all have a label of some sort, however cryptic.

What is needed is a good photo of the controller's connections, or enough info to identify which make and model it is.

works for me, keeps everything in the 12.5 - 14V range with a 160 W panel.
mine is + - + - + - , but as you say ,they should be clearly marked.

 

[vanmandan]

thanks..... Currently only 4 cables are connected to the regulator. the two left hand cables come into the regulator from the solar panel. currently the central 2 sockets are empty. the final 2 sockets are wired to one of the leisure batteries. i am told that all 3 batteries are linked via a split relay - which installed by an auto electrician. Does this sound like part of the problem ?

first you'll need to check what voltage is coming down from the panel.
disconnect the solar panel wires from the regulator & check with a voltmeter.
should be 17 - 25 Volts, if not, your panel is goosed.
with the panel wires still disconnected,
connect the leisure wires to the 2central terminals, make sure you've got the polarity right.
then reconnect the panel wires.
if still not charging the leisure battery, assume the regulator goosed.
hope that helps.

 

[wildebus]

thanks..... Currently only 4 cables are connected to the regulator. the two left hand cables come into the regulator from the solar panel. currently the central 2 sockets are empty. the final 2 sockets are wired to one of the leisure batteries. i am told that all 3 batteries are linked via a split relay - which installed by an auto electrician. Does this sound like part of the problem ?

Just add in my 2p worth .....
Most solar controller/regulators do have 3 pairs of connections. Pane! IN; Battery OUT; & Load OUT.
However the Load Output is actually very rarely used and usually not connected to anything to the vast majority of installations so don't start thinking your setup must be wrong if Load is left disconnected.

Split charge relay - if you have the most popular setup nowadays (not necessarily the best, just most common) you will probably have what is called a VSR - which is a Voltage Sensing Relay. These work by automatically switching on when a voltage is higher than one level and go off when if drops below another level. And when ON, yes, the batteries are linked together. The typical voltages are 13.2V to turn ON, and 12.8V to turn OFF.
They are not intelligent devices and all they do is connect the batteries together. Contrary to popular opinion sometimes stated, they do not work by having one battery get fully charged and then turn on to let the other charge, they just go on when a battery voltage hits the 'magic' number. So when the engine runs and alternator starts to generate electricity, the VSR will turn on when it hits 13.2V and the Lesiure Battery will be charging as well.
Most VSRs are Bi-directional in their sensing, so the same will happen when the Solar Panels are producing power and the Leisure battery is sufficiently charged to allow the voltage to go above 13.2V.

For example I have a VSR installed in my Camper and the batteries get some power drained overnight due to Fridge and whatnot. The solar comes in in the morning and starts to replenish the Leisure Battery Bank. After a short while the voltage starts to creep up as the batteries get more charge and as soon as the voltage hits that 13.2V level, the VSR clicks on and the Solar Panel is then charging - in my case - 5 batteries instead of just 4.

your setup sounds similar, but .... The more drained the leisure batteries are, the longer it will take for the voltage to reach 13.2V to turn the relay on; similarly the less sun the PV Panels get, the longer it will take. And it is quite possible that if the solar system is not generating enough to replenish the lesiure battery drain, you will never end up charging the starter battery via solar.
So if one concern is maintaining the Starter, the above is something to bear in mind.

Your pair of Leisure Batteries ... If they are basically good, then if they are gradually dropping, then simply consumption > charge. Have you turned everything off that can be turned off when van is laid up?
Also your Solar...is it in shade at all? Something to be aware of is having a part of a panel in shade - just one Cell out of the typical 36, so talking under 5% of panel in shade - can wipe out virtually all energy harvesting. And if you have multiple pane!s in series, ALL pane!s are affected by the small shading on a single panel.
Shading is a very serious issue when it comes to solar harvesting.

Hopefully this will be of some help?

 

[colinm]

Also your Solar...is it in shade at all? Something to be aware of is having a part of a panel in shade - just one Cell out of the typical 36, so talking under 5% of panel in shade - can wipe out virtually all energy harvesting. And if you have multiple pane!s in series, ALL pane!s are affected by the small shading on a single panel.
Shading is a very serious issue when it comes to solar harvesting.

You might want to do some experimenting on this, I have and found it isn't the case. I my case 'shading' reduced the output by the amount of shading, totally blocking light to a cell (say as per some leaves on it) can have dramatic effects depending on how the cells are connected.