Help with Bailey Approach Autograph 730 Electrical System Please

[gwinch]

Evening all. My outfit is a Bailey Approach Autograph 730.

Can anyone confirm if the vehicle as wired ex works is designed to/capable of charging/maintaining the starter battery as well as the Leisure battery on EHU. Bailey will not/cannot answer this question!

On the BCA control panel there is an option in "settings" to "Charge Vehicle Battery" - this is set to "on" as well as the option to run the habitation electrics from the starter battery; does this need to be on as well for the system to charge the starter battery when on EHU.

I have checked all the relevant fuses that I can find, there are probably some I have not come across yet!. The BAC PSU is working and is supplying voltage to the battery charging output on the circuit board in the mains box. I would expect the design to provide a switched line to connect this output to the vehicle battery when on EHU and no D+ signal present ie engine off whilst maintaining a feed to the leisure battery.

One curve ball is that the previous owner replaced the leisure battery with a self contained EZA130 unit. This has 5 connections, only 3 used as there is no main lithium charger or inverter fitted:

Red - A D+ switched charge feed directly from the starter battery to the built in charge management system in the EZA130 unit.

Black - A feed into the BCA PDU to provide 12v habitation electrics when not on EHU. There is an inbuilt BMS that feeds this output.

Yellow - A direct feed from the fixed solar panel to the inbuilt solar management system in the EZA130. There is no electrical connection between the BAC PDU and the EZA130 to charge the EZA130.

Any one any ideas, where to look, what to look for? Any 730 owners able to advise if their system works like this on EHU or if theirs works as expexted and maintains the starter battery.

Many Thanks in anticipation.

 

[Ingwe]

Can anyone confirm if the vehicle as wired ex works is designed to/capable of charging/maintaining the starter battery as well as the Leisure battery on EHU. Bailey will not/cannot answer this question!

Hello, not sure if this is much help to your general query but, in relation to the quoted section, above, in our 2012 Approach you can opt for ECU to either charge your starter battery or your leisure battery but not both. You select which battery you require charging on hook-up from the control panel. Of course, if you opt to keep the starter battery charged so that you can start the van, you may find that your leisure battery gets too lower to power your 12v system such as the heater fan, lights, etc.

If you have ECU, then I’d opt for charging the leisure battery and install a Battery Master (very easy) that will trickle charge your starter battery when its voltage is about 1.5v lower than the leisure battery.

The Bailey Users’ group on Facebook is very useful apparently with a fund of expertise relating to Baileys. I don’t have FB so can’t help with a link.

Hope this helps.

 

[Branston]

With my Bailey Approach I trickle charge the starter battery when of the road in the winter leaving the solar panel to look after the leisure batteries without any switching of switches. Others on the forum may have better advice.