2007 Van battery going flat after a week of no use. Is it normal or indicating new battery in order?

GervisLooper

I have been caught several times by this now.

Last week it happened and charged with mains. I thought it had been less than a week this time so would be ok but I was not keeping track of the days so probably nearly a week again.

Is it to be expected for a 2007 van? I bought it second hand less than a year ago. No idea of the age of the battery but would guess it might be the original one.

So should I look to getting a new battery or find other ways to avoid it going flat? I could work in more driving I guess. Does the battery charge by just idling it? I just looked and yes it does but not good to make a habit of idling the engine is it?

I have solar and possibly could make it keep the battery charged but I am in a deficit as it is with that for the leisure battery in these dark months.

Bigwheels1111

7 or 8 year is very good life for a battery, Halfords or Kwikfit would test it for you.
Im not saying buy from them.
Petrol or Diesel van etc.
With a multi meter you could that the milliamp draw if you know how.
If it’s high, you the pull one fuse at a time, if no drop replace the fuse and pull the next one.
I think it will probably be the battery though.

New battery in order, Bosch, Varta, Yuasa.
Put your reg in, find the one you need.
https://www.bmstechnologies.co.uk/product-category/car-batteries/

https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/

Then look around, sometimes eBay are the best price with their discount.
Personally I would opt for a good brand as above.
My own AGM battery is over 7 years old and I only drive once or twice a week.
So preparing for a replacement next year, £200 plus pounds AGH.
I carry a GooLoo GT4000 jumper pack, would start a bus. 😳
Just in case.

400ixl

Sounds like the battery is not holding charge if the van has not been used between a full charge (which takes a couple of days on most 6/8 amp chargers) unless there is something draining it.

Get it charged and then take it somewhere to get checked for condition.

GervisLooper

400ixl said:

Sounds like the battery is not holding charge if the van has not been used between a full charge (which takes a couple of days on most 6/8 amp chargers) unless there is something draining it.

Get it charged and then take it somewhere to get checked for condition.

Well I have no idea of the state of charge. I have only charged it enough on mains to start it again then drive for about 15 minutes to the shop and back then resting again for a week. As I am living in the van and in and out of it constantly I suppose the auxiliary electrics are always being triggered? Someone else mentioned that.

Battery isolator seems a good way to both stop wasting this electric and also doubling up as a security feature from what I am seeing, which is also something I had wanted to do as I have been getting big anxiety any time I left my van due to living in it so stakes are high.

GervisLooper

Bigwheels1111 said:

7 or 8 year is very good life for a battery, Halfords or Kwikfit would test it for you.
Im not saying buy from them.
Petrol or Diesel van etc.
With a multi meter you could that the milliamp draw if you know how.
If it’s high, you the pull one fuse at a time, if no drop replace the fuse and pull the next one.
I think it will probably be the battery though.

New battery in order, Bosch, Varta, Yuasa.
Put your reg in, find the one you need.
https://www.bmstechnologies.co.uk/product-category/car-batteries/

https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/

Then look around, sometimes eBay are the best price with their discount.
Personally I would opt for a good brand as above.
My own AGM battery is over 7 years old and I only drive once or twice a week.
So preparing for a replacement next year, £200 plus pounds AGH.
I carry a GooLoo GT4000 jumper pack, would start a bus. 😳
Just in case.

I can just check the voltage with multimeter as wel cant I? I have a voltmeter but only basic. Not digital probably from the 60s which was my grandads. It is only a needle but has worked to test current when building the leisure system.

Yes but the jumper pack will have to be powered somehow I guess? Which if living off grid you are left in the same position right? If I have to start the battery currently I can just use my mums electric charger but for future I am looking to strike out into living off grid full time so reliance on shore power will not be useful.

400ixl

In that case, you would not have put enough charge in it to allow for future cold crank starting by the sounds of it. Sounds like you need to get a full charge into it somehow to then get it tested to see if it is holding a charge and that the alternator is also good for charging it when driving.

The solar may be able to be used to keep it topped up, but it would take a lot of the output to get it charged from flat to full which would  take it away from charging your leisure battery. Is there nowhere you can get the van on charge from the mains for a couple of days?

Longer term you could get a smaller solar charger for the vehicle battery. One you just put on the dash and plug in.

Mutton_Geoff

GervisLooper said:

I can just check the voltage with multimeter as wel cant I? I have a voltmeter but only basic. Not digital probably from the 60s which was my grandads. It is only a needle but has worked to test current when building the leisure system.

Checking just voltage on a battery is not a reliable way to judge it's condition. You need to measure voltage whilst it's supplying cranking current which will check the internal resistance of the battery. Halfords will do this for free.

Your 15 min trip (esp in winter with lights, wipers, heater blower etc) is not long enough to recharge.

QrizB

GervisLooper said:

Well I have no idea of the state of charge. I have only charged it enough on mains to start it again then drive for about 15 minutes to the shop and back then resting again for a week.

Vehicle batteries like to be kept charged. If it went flat, you need to give it a proper bench charge (which could easily take a day or two). Leaving it flat or mostly flat for any period of time will damage it.

GervisLooper said:

As I am living in the van and in and out of it constantly I suppose the auxiliary electrics are always being triggered? Someone else mentioned that.

Vehicle batteries also don't appreciate cyclic use, the sort of use they see when used in campervans or caravans. They're not built that way. They're designed to provide hundreds of amps for a few seconds, then be immediately recharged. They're not intended to supply a few amps for several hours, then be slowly topped back up.

Your residential circuits should be fed by their own battery and only connected to the vehicle battery when the alternator is spinning fast enough to charge both. Ideally by a smart split charger, although many people get by with a suitably wired relay.

GervisLooper said:

If I have to start the battery currently I can just use my mums electric charger but for future I am looking to strike out into living off grid full time so reliance on shore power will not be useful.

If you're planning on living off-grid, you need a bulletproof energy system. You don't want to be stuck up a mountain with a flat battery.

This guy is living full-time off-grid in a converted Ducato van. He's in the USA so some of his concerns aren't so big for the UK, but his blog is full of useful information. His 12volt pages should be of interest to you.

http://rvwiki.mousetrap.net/doku.php?id=start

Veteransaver

GervisLooper said:

Bigwheels1111 said:

7 or 8 year is very good life for a battery, Halfords or Kwikfit would test it for you.
Im not saying buy from them.
Petrol or Diesel van etc.
With a multi meter you could that the milliamp draw if you know how.
If it’s high, you the pull one fuse at a time, if no drop replace the fuse and pull the next one.
I think it will probably be the battery though.

New battery in order, Bosch, Varta, Yuasa.
Put your reg in, find the one you need.
https://www.bmstechnologies.co.uk/product-category/car-batteries/

https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/

Then look around, sometimes eBay are the best price with their discount.
Personally I would opt for a good brand as above.
My own AGM battery is over 7 years old and I only drive once or twice a week.
So preparing for a replacement next year, £200 plus pounds AGH.
I carry a GooLoo GT4000 jumper pack, would start a bus. 😳
Just in case.

I can just check the voltage with multimeter as wel cant I? I have a voltmeter but only basic. Not digital probably from the 60s which was my grandads. It is only a needle but has worked to test current when building the leisure system.

Yes but the jumper pack will have to be powered somehow I guess? Which if living off grid you are left in the same position right? If I have to start the battery currently I can just use my mums electric charger but for future I am looking to strike out into living off grid full time so reliance on shore power will not be useful.

You can but it is t particularly useful.
However if you check it about 2 hours after charging, and then again 12 /24 hours later, a knackered battery will probably be showing a large voltage drop, ie from 12.6V down to 12.2/12.3V  12 hours later.

sevenhills

I am having similar issues with my car, with a flat battery a couple of times, because I only do short journeys.

These days batteries need charge for the central locking.

My car starts ok, even if the battery is showing 11.5 volts, I am going to charge it today.

I work term time and my VW crafter will maybe last 2/4 weeks, depending on which vehicle they give me. I checked the voltage yesterday and it was 12 volts, after being stood since before Xmas.

Tucosalamanca

We briefly touched on this during one of your previous threads How to install solar panels to roof of van so they are stealthy and blend in? — MoneySavingExpert Forum

My initial observation is that you probably aren't driving enough to replenish the battery. I'd guess that you need to drive 30-60min each day during winter just to keep it topped up. Idling at 800/900rpm will not generate a useful charge.

Is the alternator working correctly? Battery voltage should rise from around 12.3v to 14v when the engine is running.

Are you sure that the habitation electrics are not taking power from the starter battery?

Did you install a split charge relay and is it working correctly?

I recommended that you installed a b2b charger, to rapidly recharge the leisure battery when driving. I'm guessing that you haven't done that. It would greatly reduce (or even stop) the power deficit you face during the winter months.
If you were to install a Van Bitz Battery Master as well, this would assist in keeping the starter battery charged.

It's a steep learning curve and the worst of winter is still to come. I hope you get this resolved before a cold snap, as that will amplify any issues you're facing.

I'd say that a digital multi-meter is an essential for vanlife, even with a good set-up, it's probably my most used tool.
Solar controller with Bluetooth is also invaluable for monitoring energy generation and usage (Victron or similar).

Good luck with it, I think you need to establish what's happening before spending on a starter battery.
You could end up in exactly the same situation in a few weeks otherwise.