Mr Rehab
Traveller
Need some advice on possibly modifying the charging setup for our camper which uses a Victron Centaur charger and Victron battery monitor. We have 2x150ah AGM house batteries for 24V and 2 x Optima AGM for 24V for the truck; as in the pic below.
The truck has been in storage for a while during which time the Optimas start batteries seem to have died. When the workshop owner ran the charger to get some life back in the start batteries the Optimas were defunct but the house batteries were overcharged and now bulge at the ends. The Optimas had also gassed, blown the pressure relief valve and hold zero voltage. So, I’ve replaced the start batteries and I’m in the process of replacing the house batteries. I’d like to avoid any repeats.
The charger is connected to both the house batteries and start batteries. The house battery is connected as in the Victron schematic below, with battery negative to one end of the shunt and all other loads plus the negative from the charger to the other end of the shunt. That part looks OK, what concerns me is the heavy cable from start battery negative also to the load/charger end of shunt. The charger will supply up to 3 battery banks and I understand this setup is intended to charge both battery banks. The problem being that the start batteries don’t need to be connected to the charger and a problem/failure in one of the batteries can cause overcharge and damage to all the rest - which I think is what happened here.
I want to disconnect the start battery from the charger setup by removing the heavy cable from the start to the shunt. This should leave the house batteries in the correct configuration I think, so that only these batteries are charged directly.
The battery banks are also connected through a Voltage Sensing Relay so that once the house batteries are fully charged the VSR opens and the start batteries are charged, same applies for charging to the house batteries via solar and the reverse applies from start to house batteries from the alternator. So I don’t need a charger connection to the start batteries. Clear as mud?
Can anybody see any problems with removing the cable from start battery to charger/shunt? I ask as I know zip about electrics and have caused problems with my amateur efforts before....and I’m in Lima, Peru and don’t speak Spanish. Thanks for any comments.
The truck has been in storage for a while during which time the Optimas start batteries seem to have died. When the workshop owner ran the charger to get some life back in the start batteries the Optimas were defunct but the house batteries were overcharged and now bulge at the ends. The Optimas had also gassed, blown the pressure relief valve and hold zero voltage. So, I’ve replaced the start batteries and I’m in the process of replacing the house batteries. I’d like to avoid any repeats.
The charger is connected to both the house batteries and start batteries. The house battery is connected as in the Victron schematic below, with battery negative to one end of the shunt and all other loads plus the negative from the charger to the other end of the shunt. That part looks OK, what concerns me is the heavy cable from start battery negative also to the load/charger end of shunt. The charger will supply up to 3 battery banks and I understand this setup is intended to charge both battery banks. The problem being that the start batteries don’t need to be connected to the charger and a problem/failure in one of the batteries can cause overcharge and damage to all the rest - which I think is what happened here.
I want to disconnect the start battery from the charger setup by removing the heavy cable from the start to the shunt. This should leave the house batteries in the correct configuration I think, so that only these batteries are charged directly.
The battery banks are also connected through a Voltage Sensing Relay so that once the house batteries are fully charged the VSR opens and the start batteries are charged, same applies for charging to the house batteries via solar and the reverse applies from start to house batteries from the alternator. So I don’t need a charger connection to the start batteries. Clear as mud?
Can anybody see any problems with removing the cable from start battery to charger/shunt? I ask as I know zip about electrics and have caused problems with my amateur efforts before....and I’m in Lima, Peru and don’t speak Spanish. Thanks for any comments.
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