Sad Sue feeling flat!

[NomadSue]

Silly Sue.

All dressed up in my finery, ready to join my friends in Bolton for a social 'do' and excited about finally showing them my beautiful little van...flat battery.


Duh. With all the Christmas activity, and with the van tucked behind at least two other vehicles on the drive, I forgot to have the engine ticking over at regular intervals.

Still, could have been worse - the battery is now on a charger, and, if the weather does not get too awful, there may still be a little outing at the end of the week. After all, what better than a long drive than to really be sure the battery is up and running properly again?

[Ian.C.S]

Silly Sue.

All dressed up in my finery, ready to join my friends in Bolton for a social 'do' and excited about finally showing them my beautiful little van...flat battery.


Duh. With all the Christmas activity, and with the van tucked behind at least two other vehicles on the drive, I forgot to have the engine ticking over at regular intervals.

Still, could have been worse - the battery is now on a charger, and, if the weather does not get too awful, there may still be a little outing at the end of the week. After all, what better than a long drive than to really be sure the battery is up and running properly again?

Oh Sue,what a disappointment,probably time for a new battery,old batteries are usually ok until it gets cold.it should have held its charge. swap it for a new heavy duty,its worth the money.
Ian

[NomadSue]

Oh Sue,what a disappointment,probably time for a new battery,old batteries are usually ok until it gets cold.it should have held its charge. swap it for a new heavy duty,its worth the money.
Ian

Hmm. Good suggestion, actually. The base vehicle is only 2008, with a low mileage. Could be that it hasn't ever really been run for long journeys to re-charge it, apart from the ones we have done. Will see how it behaves tomorrow once the battery has come off the charger.

Still, it stopped me from being tempted to show off with my lovely van!!!

[Ian.C.S]

Hmm. Good suggestion, actually. The base vehicle is only 2008, with a low mileage. Could be that it hasn't ever really been run for long journeys to re-charge it, apart from the ones we have done. Will see how it behaves tomorrow once the battery has come off the charger.

Still, it stopped me from being tempted to show off with my lovely van!!!

sues new year reso number 7,always give in to temptation.

[cedas]

[QUOTE=NomadSue2012;33948]Silly Sue.

All dressed up in my finery, ready to join my friends in Bolton for a social 'do' and excited about finally showing them my beautiful little van...flat battery.


Probably a message in there about showing off: Your van wanted to go further afield

But it is not an old battery so will probably do fine once charged up and given a good run

[NomadSue]

sues new year reso number 7,always give in to temptation.

Oh no, that should be promoted to reso number one!

The trouble with having picked up a little part-time work is that it can interfere with the chances to 'give into temptation'. On the other hand, it can help fund those moments.

[Graham]

You didn't leave any internal lights on by mistake did you? I think the lights run off the vehicle battery. We once left the bathroom light on in our Dimension and had a flat vehicle battery as a consequence.

[NomadSue]

As far as I can tell, the only power usage was by the alarm, though we did pop in and out occasionally, raiding the dried / tinned foods cupboard, switching the light on / off to do that.

I think the key mistake made was not to leave the engine running every now and again - would have been a determined thief to have moved all the vehicles between the van and the end of the drive!

[jayjay]

You didn't leave any internal lights on by mistake did you? I think the lights run off the vehicle battery. We once left the bathroom light on in our Dimension and had a flat vehicle battery as a consequence.

I was wondering the same thing. A light left on for a few days and nights would do that. I know if you leave a radio on overnight that will do it - been there, done that, was not turned off properly and on very low, so you couldn't hear it. My battery was as flat as a flat thing the next morning.

Other things to watch out for are separate alarms which have been wired up to the vehicle battery. In caravans these are usually wired to the leisure battery with the same flattening result if you leave them on without plugging in EHU. When in secure storage, they are usually disconnected for that very reason.

[peterholden]

Alarms are noted for flattening batteries

Peter

[jayjay]

The concensus seems to be that the alarm you fitted is doing it then! If the van is secure behind other vehicles, charge up your battery and turn the alarm off until you venture afield! It would be enough to flatten your battery within a few days to a week.

[NomadSue]

I think you are right! Round here it is possible to get paranoid re safety / theft etc but having another car parked in front of the van, plus steering wheel locks should really be enough to make theft a little more difficult.

Let's hope admitting my mistake will help other people avoid the same problem.

[Goneforagasper]

You can have the battery checked at places like Qwik Fit and they will tell you whether it just needs charging or replacing

[NomadSue]

You can have the battery checked at places like Qwik Fit and they will tell you whether it just needs charging or replacing

Good idea. It did seem to work ok today, after a night on the charger, but you can't be too careful.

[alf39]

As far as I can tell, the only power usage was by the alarm, though we did pop in and out occasionally, raiding the dried / tinned foods cupboard, switching the light on / off to do that.

I think the key mistake made was not to leave the engine running every now and again - would have been a determined thief to have moved all the vehicles between the van and the end of the drive!

As you park at home cannot you have a suitable external socket fitted and leave the van on hook up to charge your batteries perhaps leave a small heater working on the very coldest days, I have never been a lover of running the engine if the vehicle is not going to be moving, .. but should you wish to do so run until the engine is warm and the temperature gauge is well up.

Graham I think the lights run off the vehicle battery

all the interior lights with the exeception of the cab interior light work from the leisure battery

Alf