For those interested work to do on van is below 1) fit blazecut fire suppression t3 in engine bay ( this is just me being paranoid about billy and my two year old situated in the rear) 2) fit new leisure battery - going for gel ( I am not ready to take the lithium leap yet) 3) build a swing out bike rack 4) bolt my mini safe to the floor 5) instal my tacho where the now broken clock is on dash 6) connect the hardline lpg gas tank up inside the van - outside is done with the filing part ( gas it lpg tank so we can fill up at stations without having to try snd find bottles in each country)s see pics 7) weld in an isofix car seat plate for kiddies car seat to middle rear seat 8) make a fixing in tow bar plate to for water port day shower 9) make a safety net in pop top so kiddie does not fall out and can be a play / sleeping area for her 10)drink beer and celebrate if make it to the end of this list in a week and wife not got totally bored of me hanging out in friends garage all week
2) I’m not sure gel is the right option, I think it’s better to match both batteries the same. 7) again I’m not sure on this. Your relying on thin metal around your isofix and I wouldn’t want to be in that child seat in the unlikely event of an accident. Good luck with your travels though, sounds great and a perfect time to do it, before school starts etc.
Hi -isofix - agree -we plan to weld a frame behind the isofix plate to mount to -my friend was a race car engineer so leaving this stuff to him to work out but we will take a belt and braces approach as will use the existing lap belt as well for double duty. The isofix plate is a 90 degree plate and is meant to sit behind the seat and not actually be welded on but that seemed to flimsy to me. battery - interesting why do you prefer matching batteries for leisure and starter?
Universal Cars Safety Seat Mount Bracket Universal Car Child Seat Restraint Anchor Mounting Kit for ISOFIX Connector, ISOFIX Bracket (Car Universal) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08F2FYBXC/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_navT_a_NKRKX4BZKND2BQFJE4EJ?psc=1 this is the bracket
Yeah. Loads of info on the forum, but as you are embarking on a road trip, you will be better sticking with standard lead acid for 'both' batteries. By joining the 2 together in a split charge system,you are effectively creating one big battery. Therefore keep the chemistry the same, unless...you are fitting a battery to battery charger which will be able to deal with the different charge profile a gel battery needs to be kept in good condition. You'll also find standard batteries are cheaper to replace on the continent if you need to...
You may find some of the stuff here interesting,.. https://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/chip-the-all-american-bus.30973/ Some of those experiences inspired the refit in 2014 when we fitted the propex, gas it system, solar panels etc and revamped the interior to suit long term travel. https://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/chip.33075/ The syncro is currently getting the treatment now, to allow for more adventurous long term travel Excited for you and the family...
hi -question -what about AGM batteries are they ok to use alongside with a lead acid starter battery? I was thinking that would be a safer battery?
It’s the charging that’s the issue. As one battery needs xx amps/volts and the other battery a different amount as I understand it. https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www....d-batteries-what-you-need-to-know?hs_amp=true
Yeah, @Razzyh is right. The higher charge required by an AGM could potentially cook the standard flooded lead acid battery. It will work, but you'll have to be mindful of this and it just introduces a level of hassle into travel that you don't really need. I had one hooked into the leisure circuit recently, just to see if the theory was right. I reconfigured the solar charge controller to the AGM setting and with the VSR allowing higher voltage charge across to the starter when the leisure was full, it started boiling the starter battery! Who'd have thought fractions of a volt could make such a difference, but they do! As I say, it'll work but you stand not to get the best out of both batteries, which at the thick end of 200 quid for the pair and mission critical in terms of starting and habitation, it's just not worth taking the risk. Is safety your main concern? The batteries in the rear are in a vented compartment and if looked after properly will give you no trouble. However, if you are committed to a SLA battery (gel or AGM) on the leisure, then seriously consider a battery to battery charger in place of the split charge relay. It's really the only sensible fit and forget solution if using different chemistries.
I appreciate everyone’s advice and certainly a learning curve for me -so based on this advice what would be your opinion of the best standard lead acid battery to buy with max amp hrs and least amount of maintenance that would fit into the battery tray of a 79 westy. Assuming no price limitations. sorry I am probably asking a lot but I am somewhat lost in this subject.
My wheel well is modified to allow a larger case size. Currently I think we are running 115ah. You need to come at it from the other direction to a degree. What we don't know are your proposed demands on the leisure battery. How do you propose to charge it percentage wise? Are you fitting solar? Will you be mainly wild/free camping or are you travelling between friends and campsites? What power demands will you have over a 24hr period (include refrigeration, lighting, music, pumps etc) Are you prepared to modify the spare wheel well to take a larger case size? If you have cabinets above the wheel well, then it's an easy thing to do IIRC @pkrboo modified his with a bit of metal beating? If you're prepared to do that then it opens up possibilities of fitting marine spec leisure batteries which are generally more robust than the smaller automotive ones. If you are not using split charge, and will just rely on hook-up the Lifepo4 lithium option comes into play. 80ah will be plenty if you can put charge back in every couple of days or so. With 150 watts of solar, in Southern Europe in summer you will be self sufficient If you want split charge, then consider a battery to battery charger in place of the relay in the circuit. As money is not a consideration that may be the best way forward. @77 Westy has lithium for a leisure and a b2b charger that he's very happy with. As far as I know his system was put together for a very reasonable cost and I'm sure he'll spot you on mounting positions for his kit.
The biggest battery that will fit in the indentations of the tray and fit under the wheel well is approx. 260mm x 175mm and 220mm to top of terminals. However, many fit ‘low-height’ batteries that fit across the top of the indentations in the tray. I bought one of these. https://advancedbatterysupplies.co.uk/product/abs-678-non-sealed-leisure-battery/ Rated at 85Ah so about 45Ah usable, that’s not a lot if you have a compressor fridge and a few electrical goodies. It would just about last for a day in the summer. I replaced this with a 176Ah Lithium battery and a 30a battery-to-battery charger/20a MPPT solar controller. I have 2 x 100w solar panels but if I were starting from scratch I probably wouldn’t bother. My typical use is driving a couple of hours and stopping one or two nights and the B2B keeps the battery charged, I haven’t needed to use hook-up at all. Because Lithium has a temperature limit for charging to keep the battery above zero deg. I moved it to under the bed, that’s where the B2B, 12v fuse box and hook-up circuit breakers are too. The Lithium battery BMS has a low and high temperature cut-off and disconnects if the battery temperature is too low or too high. It also has low and high voltage protection.
Thanks so much for all of this detail to both bus monkey and you 77westy - I think so far I am sold on the battery to battery charger set up and probably I think I will need 2 days max without driving or hook up so probably will try and avoid solar for now but can add in if need be later. Ideally I would like to keep battery in engine bay as with a little traveler on board we need all the space possible in the van. In terms of modifying the spare wheel well I can’t bring myself to do this to billy as he is completely stock and Unmodified and untouched pretty much since his birth! I will for sure take lots of notes from your advice and spend some hours with beers and a computer looking at this set up. Happy Sunday to you.
If you're all about during the first weekend of May why not come to Techenders at Victoria Farm just outside Lutterworth. You'll see lots of trick set ups from @mikedjames engine monitoring systems, to interior kit such as @Dicky s 6 seater dining layout, and camping kit layouts etc that could really help you during your time on the road. Then there's the solar and alternative battery crew, always conspicuously positioned centre-field away from the hook up points . There's a bar and shower facilities on site and usually a youngster or two, or three, who keep each other occupied.
