50% or 0% battery

[Feng Li]

Sorry to ask this newbie question, should I always use the battery to only 50% for a longer battery usage. Or VW already consider this AGM battery best practice, that 0% is the actual 50% battery capacity, then I could use it till near 0%.

I got my t6 Cali ocean as an used car and installed the solar panel myself. After a two week parking in an indoor garage. The solar charge controller drain the battery to min 11.16v. is it damaged permanently? I drove the Cali out in the sun and got a recharge. Now it's 70% 12.2v after one night. Only fridge at level 4 and lights, charge a phone, nothing big. Is the the battery still OK?

A screen shot was attached for the last three days charging history. Thank you for your feedback in advance.

 

[Max-Felix]

If installing solar (but keeping the car undercover??) then a few choices. Install a simple switch in the battery feed you can flick off when doing this to prevent drain. And move it out for a day every two weeks. Or install an external solar panel on the garage too and route this into the van.

However, the controller has minimal drain I think so there may be other drains here?

 

[Feng Li]

If installing solar (but keeping the car undercover??) then a few choices. Install a simple switch in the battery feed you can flick off when doing this to prevent drain. And move it out for a day every two weeks. Or install an external solar panel on the garage too and route this into the van.

However, the controller has minimal drain I think so there may be other drains here?

Totally, big lesson learned already, I am now evaluating the damage to the battery. Does 11.16v means my battery is damaged permanently. I need to replace them? Thanks!

 

[Max-Felix]

Totally, big lesson learned already, I am now evaluating the damage to the battery. Does 11.16v means my battery is damaged permanently. I need to replace them? Thanks!

Roger says no - see posts here:

https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/thread...olar-panels-for-2017.16907/page-4#post-267949

 

[B J G]

Totally, big lesson learned already, I am now evaluating the damage to the battery. Does 11.16v means my battery is damaged permanently. I need to replace them? Thanks!

Leisure batteries are designed to withstand total draining of power and recharge repeatedly so you have no need to worry..

Max-Felix has advised on draining power issue previously.

 

[Feng Li]

Roger says no - see posts here:

https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/thread...olar-panels-for-2017.16907/page-4#post-267949

Thanks for the link, it explained a lot. Do you use your battery till minimum 50% for a longer battery life, or it is ok to use it below 50%? I was told the battery should not be used below 50%, otherwise it will reduce the total capacity. I am not sure if VW already consider this into the measurement that 0% is actually 50% of real battery capacity. Looking forward to your feedback.

 

[Feng Li]

Leisure batteries are designed to withstand total draining of power and recharge repeatedly so you have no need to worry..

Max-Felix has advised on draining power issue previously.

That is very comforting news, I will continually monitor the voltage, I got 12.7v after park the Cali in the garage, see how much it will drop tomorrow.

 

[AlanC]

If you park under cover, can you plug the Cali into the mains supply to keep the batteries charged?

Alan

 

[Skewif]

Sorry to ask this newbie question, should I always use the battery to only 50% for a longer battery usage. Or VW already consider this AGM battery best practice, that 0% is the actual 50% battery capacity, then I could use it till near 0%.

I got my t6 Cali ocean as an used car and installed the solar panel myself. After a two week parking in an indoor garage. The solar charge controller drain the battery to min 11.16v. is it damaged permanently? I drove the Cali out in the sun and got a recharge. Now it's 70% 12.2v after one night. Only fridge at level 4 and lights, charge a phone, nothing big. Is the the battery still OK?

A screen shot was attached for the last three days charging history. Thank you for your feedback in advance.

View attachment 35512

Can I ask what wattage the panel / panels are you have fitted? It's just the the Victron screen shot shows a P Max of 358W!!

 

[Feng Li]

Can I ask what wattage the panel / panels are you have fitted? It's just the the Victron screen shot shows a P Max of 358W!!

I got 4x130W solar panels, they could deliver over 400W P Max from the record, since I am living in Germany, a region dont have much sunny days. I tested it in a cloudy and rainy day, it could still get the battery full charged in few hours. The down side, you don't have half of roof for additional storage. I think 2x130W should be sufficient. Cheers~

 

[Skewif]

I got 4x130W solar panels, they could deliver over 400W P Max from the record, since I am living in Germany, a region dont have much sunny days. I tested it in a cloudy and rainy day, it could still get the battery full charged in few hours. The down side, you don't have half of roof for additional storage. I think 2x130W should be sufficient. Cheers~

520w of solar on a Cali is pretty impressive. Please do you have a picture of the panels on the roof?

 

[Max-Felix]

Impressive but overkill! Especially stored in a garage...

 

[Loz]

AGM batteries have 10.6V floor, lower than this for any length of time and its permanently damaged.

 

[Feng Li]

520w of solar on a Cali is pretty impressive. Please do you have a picture of the panels on the roof?

There you go, but I do notice the rubber tube hole I cut earlier was not properly sealed by the duct tape. Need to find a better solution to avoid rain water leakage. The cabling was a bit messy, wiring need to be improved as well.

 

[Feng Li]

AGM batteries have 10.6V floor, lower than this for any length of time and its permanently damaged.

well noted, thanks for the input.

 

[WelshGas]

There you go, but I do notice the rubber tube hole I cut earlier was not properly sealed by the duct tape. Need to find a better solution to avoid rain water leakage. The cabling was a bit messy, wiring need to be improved as well.

View attachment 35580

Rather than run the wire DOWN into the Corrugated Rubber Tube you need the wire to run UP into the tube to avoid water getting into it. So just allow some excess wire to loop downwards then up to the tube.

 

[Skewif]

There you go, but I do notice the rubber tube hole I cut earlier was not properly sealed by the duct tape. Need to find a better solution to avoid rain water leakage. The cabling was a bit messy, wiring need to be improved as well.

View attachment 35580

Thank you for posting the picture. That amount of solar must be great to have when heading into the winter months.
Another neat way to route the cable is tuck it under rear of roof and take it through the upper canvas rubber edge / trim then into the back of the wardrobe from above. (Not a good idea to run cable through pocket in canvas)

 

[Feng Li]

Thank you for posting the picture. That amount of solar must be great to have when heading into the winter months.
Another neat way to route the cable is tuck it under rear of roof and take it through the upper canvas rubber edge / trim then into the back of the wardrobe from above. (Not a good idea to run cable through pocket in canvas)

View attachment 35582

View attachment 35583

View attachment 35584

this is much better option, pity I only learn it now. Will try it in the next project. Thanks for sharing!