Split charge - What is different post 2015

[P4dstar]

I think I'm going to invest in a Sterling BB1260 like @spruce, have that fitter in place of the current split charge. The battery is currently housed under the passenger seat so If I move that into the system the sterling unit will fit nicely under the seat.

 

[spruce]

31 minutes ago, P4dstar said:

I've found a layman's term video. Unfortunately its bad news, pretty much every single vehicle post 2015 is euro 6. He explains why you shouldn't fit a split charge relay too. Only got 6 minutes in but he's explaining the damage it will cause to the leisure battery and I imagine the damage it will cause to the starter battery will be next.

I believe it needs to be vertical and needs to be able to breath as it has cooling vents.

View attachment Battery to battery chargers.pdf

 

[Part Timer]

I think I'm going to invest in a Sterling BB1260 like @spruce, have that fitter in place of the current split charge. The battery is currently housed under the passenger seat so If I move that into the system the sterling unit will fit nicely under the seat.

I have one as well, PF fitted mine with the tank, and 8 months down the line still running two reels and occasional hot water and no problems.

 

[spruce]

I have one as well, PF fitted mine with the tank, and 8 months down the line still running two reels and occasional hot water and no problems.

Since I've fitted mine i've hardly ever needed to bench charge the leisure battery. Its the van battery that needs charging every now and again. Its original fitted at the factory in 2012.

I plug my Intelligent charger into the system. I have a plug with Anderson connector so its quick and easy. I have the positive from this charging connector wired up to the starter battery input side into the B2B unit. This way I'm able to use the B2B charger to really fully charge my leisure battery as well as charging the van's starter battery.

Does your Fiat use adblue as well?

 

[P4dstar]

Yes, every vehicle with a diesel engine sold after September 2016 needs to be Euro 6 emissions compliant.

There was no standard among the manufacturers of how they would achieve this.View attachment 18913

Ford and Renault chose the Regenerative braking route where PSA chose to meet the targets by using Adblue.

View attachment 18913

My gut is telling me that PSA didn't add regenerative braking to the equation but I could be wrong.

As I say, best to get a voltmeter that plugs into your cigar lighter and drive around and see what happens. This is a copy of one done by Sterling in a Ford Transit. Look at the graph as see if you voltmeter mimics theirs.

I believe it needs to be vertical and needs to be able to breath as it has cooling vents.

I'll snap a pic of under the seat, I think it would be alright, it's not quite how it sounds.

With regards to the regenerative test, could I not just drive a few miles, pull up and then test the voltage going through the starter battery? If its down at 12.4 then its regenerative and if its 13.9 its not???

 

[spruce]

I'll snap a pic of under the seat, I think it would be alright, it's not quite how it sounds.

With regards to the regenerative test, could I not just drive a few miles, pull up and then test the voltage going through the starter battery? If its down at 12.4 then its regenerative and if its 13.9 its not???

Its worth a try

 

[Part Timer]

Since I've fitted mine i've hardly ever needed to bench charge the leisure battery. Its the van battery that needs charging every now and again. Its original fitted at the factory in 2012.

I plug my Intelligent charger into the system. I have a plug with Anderson connector so its quick and easy. I have the positive from this charging connector wired up to the starter battery input side into the B2B unit. This way I'm able to use the B2B charger to really fully charge my leisure battery as well as charging the van's starter battery.

Does your Fiat use adblue as well?

I do plenty of miles as well so, touch wood, never needed to charge anything. The Ducato doesn't require adblue, one of the reasons I bought it.

 

[scottish cleaning service]

How long does a van battery last? I got 10yrs out of my van battery before i needed a new one.

 

[P4dstar]

Its worth a try

I'll give it a go. I've also asked for advice on a dispatch owners forum. They probably ain't as helpful as us lot.

 

[spruce]

I do plenty of miles as well so, touch wood, never needed to charge anything. The Ducato doesn't require adblue, one of the reasons I bought it.

I'm guessing it doesn't have regen braking either. You said it was the 2.0 liter version. I understand that they have now discontinued the 2.0l engine.

 

[Part Timer]

It's the 2.3l Multijet, only has 130bhp so when fully loaded not the quickest but it has to be a steep hill to slow it down. As for regen braking  :1f633:

 

[spruce]

It's the 2.3l Multijet, only has 130bhp so when fully loaded not the quickest but it has to be a steep hill to slow it down. As for regen braking  :1f633:

Better that 2.3 Iveco engine than the 2.2 Puma Ford engine they use in the Relays, Boxers, Landrovers and Transits. Mind you, reports out of Australia say the 3.2 Ford diesel fitted to the Ranger is this country is even worse.

 

[P4dstar]

@spruce I need you again man...

Spoke to an auto electrician today. Showed him the unit etc. He had no clue of the difference but said it looks like I can just fit a B2B charger into the current circuit with no issues.

I then found this on the simply split charge website;

https://www.simplysplitcharge.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=662&search=bb1260

The only difference I can see between my split charge and this B2B kit is the unit itself. I have emailed Simply Split Charge to confirm but wanted to consult the oracle also...

Remember when replying that I'm a bit thick when it comes to this stuff though ?

 

[P4dstar]

Just to add... I've done a bit of research and I think that kit has 110amp cable where my current set up is only 70amp cable. The fuses are 80amp where my current ones are 60amp.

If I get the BB1230 it runs on the same cable but 40amp fuses, seems logical to go for that one if the wiring doesn't need to be changed.

 

[spruce]

Just to add... I've done a bit of research and I think that kit has 110amp cable where my current set up is only 70amp cable. The fuses are 80amp where my current ones are 60amp.

If I get the BB1230 it runs on the same cable but 40amp fuses, seems logical to go for that one if the wiring doesn't need to be changed.

The BB1230 is fine. I have only seen the my amp meter up at 38amps for 5 secs at the most before it dropped to below 30amps. That was after a full day on the glass with 2 of us working a school clean and no van moves.

Even if the battery would take a higher amperage charge the B2B charger wouldn't charge any higher than what its rated for.

The BB1260 can also be regulated to 30amps.

 

[Part Timer]

Just to add... I've done a bit of research and I think that kit has 110amp cable where my current set up is only 70amp cable. The fuses are 80amp where my current ones are 60amp.

If I get the BB1230 it runs on the same cable but 40amp fuses, seems logical to go for that one if the wiring doesn't need to be changed.

Shameless tagging an elderly gentleman in late on a Sunday. Have you no shame in spoiling his rest period ?

 

[P4dstar]

Old people don't have a social life. ? Every time we sit in a chair we fall asleep and snore.

Shameless tagging an elderly gentleman in late on a Sunday. Have you no shame in spoiling his rest period ?

Please see above ???

Besides, who else can I call upon. I heard Superman wears Spruce Pyjamas ?

The BB1230 is fine. I have only seen the my amp meter up at 38amps for 5 secs at the most before it dropped to below 30amps. That was after a full day on the glass with 2 of us working a school clean and no van moves.

Even if the battery would take a higher amperage charge the B2B charger wouldn't charge any higher than what its rated for.

The BB1260 can also be regulated to 30amps.

Can I assume the higher ampage wiring and fuse change wouldn't be necessary to get a BB1260. I would prefer to go for the higher spec one if it will work. If I'm 100% honest I don't have a clue about any of this and didn't want to leave anything except for fitting to the electrician so I don't get charged a fortune.

Oh, and Sterling themselves are selling refurbished units cheap;

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BB1260-Battery-to-Battery-charger-12V-12V-60A-EURO-6-REGEN-6-months-warranty/223271777277?epid=4034589075&hash=item33fc08f3fd:g:dhwAAOSwSs1cB-7~

 

[NoName]

P4dstar...just let grippa sort it for you?

They moved my system to a new van last year and advised I needed to replace the split for B2B...no issues…no headaches...and the battery is always tiptop (had a few issues with flat/dead leisure previously with the split...) don't know but suspect the new charger grippa fitted are next level...no battery issues since the transition - which is exactly what you want ?

 

[P4dstar]

P4dstar...just let grippa sort it for you?

They moved my system to a new van last year and advised I needed to replace the split for B2B...no issues…no headaches...and the battery is always tiptop (had a few issues with flat/dead leisure previously with the split...) don't know but suspect the new charger grippa fitted are next level...no battery issues since the transition - which is exactly what you want ?

I agree... However I also like the flexibility of being able to fix things myself. Although I didn't understand a split charge relay I could confidently change parts on it now its installed. Once a B2B charger is wired up I would be able to change parts if required. If I leave that to part of a van build that I won't even see I won't be able to do much with it. That's also why I have harassed Grippa about installing my current kit into a system instead of just installing their kit. This gives them a distinct advantage over the other manufacturers I am considering as none of them offer such flexibility.

 

[spruce]

Please see above ???

Besides, who else can I call upon. I heard Superman wears Spruce Pyjamas ?

Can I assume the higher ampage wiring and fuse change wouldn't be necessary to get a BB1260. I would prefer to go for the higher spec one if it will work. If I'm 100% honest I don't have a clue about any of this and didn't want to leave anything except for fitting to the electrician so I don't get charged a fortune.

Oh, and Sterling themselves are selling refurbished units cheap;

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BB1260-Battery-to-Battery-charger-12V-12V-60A-EURO-6-REGEN-6-months-warranty/223271777277?epid=4034589075&hash=item33fc08f3fd:g:dhwAAOSwSs1cB-7~

?

Your current 70 amp cable is fine. The fuse is a lower amperage than the cable and its sole purpose is to protect the cable if there is a short.

I looked at these Sterling units but what put me off was that they could have damaged/cracked casings. For you putting it out of the line of sight that probably wouldn't matter.

Is this worth a punt?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sterling-Power-12v-60amp-Battery-to-Battery-Charger-BB1260/143502664132?hash=item21696ce1c4:g:bRUAAOSw14ZeH2bi

 

[spruce]

How long does a van battery last? I got 10yrs out of my van battery before i needed a new one.

A starter battery will last a long time as it doesn't do that much work. Yes it takes around 200 amps for a very brief moment to start to rotate the engine when starting, but a few cranking seconds at most before the engine starts takes a little more than a Shurflo pump would over an hour.

The alternator takes over supplying all the vehicle's power requirements when the engine has started.

It not like the 'good old days' when vehicles had generators. When a vehicle was at idle a generator wouldn't put out enough to keep up with the demand of the headlights.

When our starter battery is compared to our leisure battery, our leisure batteries do much more work, albeit at a more leisurely pace.