Dead battery

[Gary Molloy]

Leaving my van in storage and after a week,started fine.but left it for 2 weeks and the battery was dead.would the internal clock do this?as I switch everything off and its the only thing I see working,but was told,this switches off after a certain time,but never checked that.i'm planning to get a switch fitted and isolate the engine battery.thanks.

 

[Lenny HB]

The starter battery should be OK for 3 to 4 weeks & leisure battery a lot longer.
The battery is probably on it's way out and has it's gone flat it is best to replace it. If it's a Fiat low starter battery volts often kills the Airbag EUC.

Better to fit solar to keep the batteries charged, disconnecting the starter battery for any length of time can cause problems with the ECU units and may require a dealer reset afterwards.

 

[Gary Molloy]

The battery is 3 months old mate.the problem is the parasitic draw somewhere and I'm guessing the clock if it doesn't switch off.cheers.

 

[GeoffnDee]

Radio may be drawing power even if switched off but on standby.

 

[Gary Molloy]

The radio,as far as I know switches on and off,no standby.its an 02 fiat ducato mate.

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[Gellyneck]

The battery is 3 months old mate.the problem is the parasitic draw somewhere and I'm guessing the clock if it doesn't switch off.cheers.

Alarm, tracker, radio \ media centre, etc will all draw power even when switched off.

 

[Gellyneck]

The radio,as far as I know switches on and off,no standby.its an 02 fiat ducato mate.

It will have a permanent power supply to keep the tuning, clock timing, etc.

 

[Gary Molloy]

Thanks mate.its frustrating to say the least

 

[Gary Molloy]

What's the solution please,obviously power is a main concern in these vans.cheers.

 

[poppycamper]

You say stared fine, then 2 weeks later did not....
Did you run long enough to put what you used to start first time back into battery???
You may have depleted enough to compound your problems.

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[jumar]

Battery isolator after you have fully charged your battery Mate, that's the answer...

 

[599]

ditto we had one of these fitted to the roof when the m/h was on storage NEVER had a problem after
Amazon product ASIN B07DWCTSY7

 

[Lenny HB]

Get yourself one of these, invaluable for fault finding.

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[Gary Molloy]

Battery isolator after you have fully charged your battery Mate, that's the answer...

Thank you.i'm on that now mate and getting it fitted soon.

 

[Gary Molloy]

Get yourself one of these, invaluable for fault finding.

UNI-T DIGITAL UT210E 100Amp 600V AC DC CLAMP METER Multimeter True RMS VFC diode | eBay

1 Cloth Bag. 1 Gift Box.

www.ebay.co.uk

Yes,I've been looking at those.think your 100% on that.cheers.

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[Spriddler]

........and the battery was dead.........

Did you get any dashboard lights?
Have you checked the battery voltage at its terminals by using a meter?
If the battery is only 3 months old it could be just bad Earth or battery connections, mate.

 

[Gary Molloy]

You say stared fine, then 2 weeks later did not....
Did you run long enough to put what you used to start first time back into battery???
You may have depleted enough to compound your problems.

Something and can only be the internal clock is draining the battery mate.so going to get an isolator fitted.cheers.

 

[Gary Molloy]

Did you get any dashboard lights?
Have you checked the battery voltage at its terminals by using a meter?
If the battery is only 3 months old it could be just bad Earth or battery connections, mate.

Completely dead mate,nothing.yet left a week in storage,started first time

 

[Lenny HB]

I think you will need a new battery not worth the risk when they have gone that flat.

 

[Gary Molloy]

I'll test it first when charged etc,might be throwing money away without testing mate.

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[Lenny HB]

I'll test it first when charged etc,might be throwing money away without testing mate.

They never recover properly capacity will be reduced, all seems great until that morning when they let you down.

 

[ChrisL]

This is a very handy tool for evaluating your starter battery and charging system, also a failed diode in your alternator may be the cause of parasitic drain.

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[poppycamper]

They never recover properly capacity will be reduced, all seems great until that morning when they let you down.

When I first got my van I (6yrs ago) I stupidly let my cab battery go flat, flat, flat,, not even light on.
Jump started it and got home after 5hr drive.
Since then absolutely no problem.. Will sit in drive for 4 or 5 weeks even in winter and start first time...!!
Was I lucky.. exceptional battery or Lenny HB , dare isay it, you maybe being over cautious..

 

[Lenny HB]

When mine went flat after charging it I checked the capacity by monitoring it over a couple of weeks it was down to about 60% & 4 years old so I replaced it.

 

[Gellyneck]

When I first got my van I (6yrs ago) I stupidly let my cab battery go flat, flat, flat,, not even light on.
Jump started it and got home after 5hr drive.
Since then absolutely no problem.. Will sit in drive for 4 or 5 weeks even in winter and start first time...!!
Was I lucky.. exceptional battery or Lenny HB , dare isay it, you maybe being over cautious..

Conversely, we had a low battery warning on our control panel, motorhome started first turn of the key but experienced issues with airbag ECU. Battery was around six years old so replaced.

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[Gary Molloy]

When mine went flat after charging it I checked the capacity by monitoring it over a couple of weeks it was down to about 60% & 4 years old so I replaced it.

I have got a monitor and it comes through my mobile,but you have to be next to the van for it to work.it hasn't got any distance mate

 

[Lenny HB]

I have got a monitor and it comes through my mobile,but you have to be next to the van for it to work.it hasn't got any distance mate

I checkeed the current drain then just went out to the van every day & checked the voltage and compared the level of discharge to the SOC.

 

[autorouter]

Something and can only be the internal clock is draining the battery mate

It's a bad idea to assume that without any measurements. A normal vehicle quiescent consumption should be a lot less than 50mA. Motorhomes seem to have extra devices fitted that have high quiescent consumption, 200mA is not unusual. Also some electronic control units (ECU) can fail to go into 'deep sleep' mode like they are supposed to, so they can be taking unpredictable power too.

That's one reason why a clamp meter, as Lenny HB suggested, is great for this. no need to disturb the circuit by disconnecting it and reconnecting it again, you measure the real current consumption.

 

[Gary Molloy]

It's a bad idea to assume that without any measurements. A normal vehicle quiescent consumption should be a lot less than 50mA. Motorhomes seem to have extra devices fitted that have high quiescent consumption, 200mA is not unusual. Also some electronic control units (ECU) can fail to go into 'deep sleep' mode like they are supposed to, so they can be taking unpredictable power too.

That's one reason why a clamp meter, as Lenny HB suggested, is great for this. no need to disturb the circuit by disconnecting it and reconnecting it again, you measure the real current consumption.

I intend to buy one of those mate.cheers.