Drained Leisure Battery & New Poptop Hinge

[Pensky]

Hi all, long story short, my 1994 T4 Westy has been sitting outside a workshop for 12 months. I rescued it this week, but it seems the leisure batteries (the van has 2) have drained and I cannot recharge them.

I hooked-up to van the mains power here at home, to charge the batteries and test the fridge, sink, etc, and while on the mains everything works as it should (thankfully). But when I disconnect from the mains, the voltage readout (in the cab) drops rapidly in seconds, ending in a series of flashing dashes.

Since rescuing the van I’ve not driven it for more than 10 miles, so no charging from the engine. Does anyone know whether it suggests that I need 2 new leisure batteries? Or can I charge them some other way, other than the mains hook-up?

Separately, does anyone know where I can get new poptop hinges? Mine seem to have corroded quite badly in the last 12 months. Or does anyone know how to sort the corrosion out?

I have some more questions, will post separately. Since I got my van in summer 2019, it’s been mainly out of commission. I’ve been let down by several people, who promised to help me fix it up, sort some corrosion issues, etc, then didn’t, it’s been really stressful, to be honest. But hopefully this week, I’ll be speaking to someone who can help me out.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Wildcamper]

Sounds like dead batteries.

 

[KGCali]

You could try charging each leisure battery with a CTEK charger to see if it can recondition the battery over a few days.

 

[Pensky]

Sounds like dead batteries.

I suspect this could be the case :-(

 

[Pensky]

You could try charging each leisure battery with a CTEK charger to see if it can recondition the battery over a few days.

Great suggestion thanks, I was wondering what sort of charger would be used for leisure batteries, appreciate it.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Great suggestion thanks, I was wondering what sort of charger would be used for leisure batteries, appreciate it.

Intelligent battery chargers will have a selector for wet, agm or gel. Just select the correct setting for your battery when you plug the charger in, as recondition / charging cycles are slightly different. Yours will most likely be wet or agm, (just google the battery number fitted and you will be able to find what type they are).

 

[Pensky]

Intelligent battery chargers will have a selector for wet, agm or gel. Just select the correct setting for your battery when you plug the charger in, as recondition / charging cycles are slightly different. Yours will most likely be wet or agm, (just google the battery number fitted and you will be able to find what type they are).

Great stuff and I really appreciate this advice. Definitely I'll try this before getting new batteries as I checked the prices of new leisure batteries ,was a bit surprised at the cost. The charger is half the price of a battery and will always come in handy.

One supplementary question, would you say the CTEL MXS 5.0 will do the job?

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Great stuff and I really appreciate this advice. Definitely I'll try this before getting new batteries as I checked the prices of new leisure batteries ,was a bit surprised at the cost. The charger is half the price of a battery and will always come in handy.

One supplementary question, would you say the CTEL MXS 5.0 will do the job?

Yes, CTEK MXS 5.0 will be fine and think it’s the most popular; you could go for a higher number (the ‘5.0’indicates max amps) as will charge quicker. Then in future you will be able to top up 3 batteries in a faster overall time. Although the higher the amp the larger the physical size of the charger, so this might also influence your choice if you plan on carrying it in the van.

 

[Pensky]

Yes, CTEK MXS 5.0 will be fine and think it’s the most popular; you could go for a higher number (the ‘5.0’indicates max amps) as will charge quicker. Then in future you will be able to top up 3 batteries in a faster overall time. Although the higher the amp the larger the physical size of the charger, so this might also influence your choice if you plan on carrying it in the van.

Great advice again, thank you. I think on this basis I'll go for the 5.0 version, it gets terrific reviews overall as well.

I have a couple more unrelated questions that I'll post on the technical thread soon.

Thanks again, all, this forum makes the daunting world of van ownership that little bit easier

 

[AlisonF]

I went for the CTEK 10 - and it took longer th an the manual said to recondition a battery from a trailer. So be patient if you get the 5. I had the same thought as yourself, once you’ve got it, you can refresh batteries annually or after a spell without use.

 

[Pensky]

I went for the CTEK 10 - and it took longer th an the manual said to recondition a battery from a trailer. So be patient if you get the 5. I had the same thought as yourself, once you’ve got it, you can refresh batteries annually or after a spell without use.

Good advice thanks, I'll be patient. I ordered the 5 earlier today, looking forward to receiving it.