van/leisure battery not reading correct

[Night Owl]

just noticed on the zig unit when i put the switch to leisure battery the battery indicator is on full and everything works ok, when i flick the switch to van battery the indicator shows zero nothing works, when i turn the ignition on the needle shows full and everything works, we first noticed when were on site and we tried to light the cooker with the ignition switch that clicks and provides a spark, we did this and nothing happened, then i turned the ignition to on and hey presto the switch started clicking and the cooker lit, same with the fridge, any idea whats wrong, i have checked the fuses, is there something im missing, any ideas please, thankyou.

nightowl

[ant]

Hi Nightowl.
You've missed a fuse. The under the bonnet has blown. Depending on the age of your van it's either a blade fuse or ceramic style ( now plastic) located near the battery either fixed to the black fuse /relay box to the right of the battery or to the battery box to the left of the battery. If you've got a fairly new 1.6 hdi then you'll find it inside the fuse box to the right of the battery mounted in the top left corner.
This fuse also allows the leisure battery to charge via the alternator so if it's blown you're not charging the leisure battery while driving.
Ant

[Night Owl]

Hi Ant
Had a look at the fuse box under the bonnet, all the fuses are ok, my van is the 2003 model 2000 HDI i have put a picture on of the fuse box, could there something else wrong with it? am i looking in the right place?thanks Ant.

steve

[ant]

Hi Steve.
In the second picture you can see the fuse I'm talking about. It's not in the fuse box itself but attacheched to the side of it. You can see the black sausage shape fuse holder that has a "P" clip either side holding the conduited wire. You'll need to twist( push together the two halves then twist) the fuse holder to get it apart, even if the fuse looks ok, change it as the ends of them corrode and stop conducting properly. Looking at the picture it doesn't look like you've disturbed it yet.
Ant

[Night Owl]

Hi Ant, went to check the check the fuse the other day, but just before i checked it i thought i will just nip into the van a check the reading an guess what i put the switch to van battery and it showed full charge, whats going on, so forthe moment everthing is back to normal, but i will still change the fuse anyway, thanks for your help Ant.

nightowl