Thread: Battery charging

I use the Traxide Anderson plug at the tow hitch when at home as I leave the car fridge running. I have a 30amp charger which came out of my camper when I upgraded it to lithium batteries and it works a treat. (I checked with Tim when I was thinking of doing it.)

David

Yes got that David, just edited my post , didn’t want any wires outside the vehicle

For short term use you can get away with running some cables from the inside of the car to the engine bay via the front passenger door - i.e. open door, pass through to beneath bonnet, close door. The door seals have enough compression to not damage the cable and the cables won’t be visible from outside.

However, 10W won’t be enough as at best you will get 3-4W through the glass. You probably need at least 40W of panels on the dash to generate enough power to trickle charge the battery.

A 60-120W folding solar mat panel left on the dash with a charge controller is probably a better short term option. Even with all the efficiency losses, would generate enough power to keep the battery fully charged. The trick is finding one which when unfolded fits across the windscreen/dash inside the car.

I ended up putting 2x40W panels on a roof rack permanently wired via a 20A charge controller and I can park up the car for many weeks if not months.

The following shows a typical sunny day. This is after 3 weeks of not using the car.

Looking at a similar issue next week.

I'm off for a month, and the car will be sitting in the driveway.

Will is be safe enough to reverse charge via the Traxide plug at the rear on a timer for say 6-8 hours per day from a mains timer?
Charger is a Victron Blue Smart IP65 5A that will be sitting locked in the load space.
Timer is a 24h analog Bunnings job.

Hi Redtail and that should be fine.

If you have a DT90 or SC80-BM, set the toggle switch on the In-Cab module towards the LED.

This will reduce the amount of power the isolator uses while the charger is off.

Originally Posted by drivesafe

Hi Redtail and that should be fine.

If you have a DT90 or SC80-BM, set the toggle switch on the In-Cab module towards the LED.

This will reduce the amount of power the isolator uses while the charger is off.

Thanks, Tim.

I have a USI-160. Same deal?

Originally Posted by Redtail

Thanks, Tim.

I have a USI-160. Same deal?

Unfortunately some of the older versions did not have Reverse Charging so best to leave the switch set away from the LED.

Originally Posted by drivesafe

Unfortunately some of the older versions did not have Reverse Charging so best to leave the switch set away from the LED.

Okay, will do, I think mine's a couple of years old.