Diesel heater

[janeandstef]

On our T5 California Beach (2014 model), can the diesel heater be run from the control panel without being hooked up for a prolonged period of time (ie for wild camping)? Thanks.

 

[GrannyJen]

Yes, it can.

Watch for the amount of battery power you have left. When it drops below 10.8 volts you do not have enough for the final electrical surge. However you have only one leisure battery, I have two, but I am confident for 6 days without running the engine.

 

[janeandstef]

That's great, can I ask how I can check my (one) battery power level?

Also, how long can we have the internal lights on running off the leisure battery during wild camping without draining the battery?

Thanks

 

[motacyclist]

Not sure if the Beach has the same control unit as the SE, but if it has then it shows the battery level.

If not, there is a little USB converter which plugs into the 12v socket which also shows the voltage; @WelshGas has the details on this and posted up some time ago. Of course, you have to ensure it is plugged into a 12v socket that is connected to the leisure battery.

As to how long you can have the lights on, depends how many lights and which ones; also the condition of your battery. If it was me intending to go off grid for a while, I would be very sparing in their use and would invest in one of these LED lanterns available in the outdoor shops which give amazing light output and use very little power from their internal batteries. Another essential is a decent headlight torch if you like to read or whatever.

 

[MattBW]

I think the beach control panel doesn't show the battery condition unfortunately, but there are cheap ways to tell.

Waeco Fridge (its more efficient than the VW one anyway) and heater we can easily go 3+ days in my beach. Never ran the heater full time so can't really comment on that however. Longest on battery was 6 days for us and it has some capacity left.

My personal opinion if you run your battery down to 10.8 it would do damage to it and may never charge as well again. You don't really want it below 11.8v to avoid damage problems is my view.

Very rough guide here:
100% 12.70 - 12.8+
75% 12.5
50% 12.35
25% 12.00
0% 11.80

There are several options:

A cheap 12v socket volt meter, will give you a rough idea of how full your battery is based upon the above chart. Batteries will display different voltage under load which is why this method isn't always as clear.

If you want to know the capacity you need something a little more expensive that can tell you amps going in and out.

You can install something like this which has no screen and you use your phone to view the battery condition. After a few holidays using it, we were quite in tune with our van and use it less.
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/nasa-bm-1-bluetooth-review.20041/

Or a victron battery monitor or equivilent. BMV 700 or similar is another favourite. They also do bluetooth versions..

 

[janeandstef]

That's great thanks.