Date:         Tue, 12 Feb 2008 22:05:20 -0800
Reply-To:     Jeffrey Vickers <jeff@VICKERSDESIGN.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jeffrey Vickers <jeff@VICKERSDESIGN.COM>
Subject:      Re: Sure Power 1315 question
Comments: To: Loren Busch <starwagen@gmail.com>
In-Reply-To:  <86476e250802122044r19a717eaiaf47428002bf8487@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed; delsp=yes

Thanks, Loren. What sort of aux battery do you have? I'm guessing that
since I'm not using an AGM type of battery for my aux, the 110V
charger won't care too much that my two batteries don't match. Are you
finding that a voltmeter is sufficient to tell you how much juice you
have left in your aux battery?

Jeff / San Anselmo
On Feb 12, 2008, at 8:44 PM, Loren Busch wrote:

> The answer is absolutely yes.  The way the 1315 works is it first
> charges the battery it is attached to, then, when that battery
> reaches the proper level, the 1315 starts to also charge the other
> battery.  Result:  When driving, the engine battery gets pulled up
> to snuff and then the aux battery is charged.  If engine off and
> charger is attached to the aux battery, the the reverse takes
> place.  How do I know?  First, the specs but mostly I have the
> identical setup that you describe you are putting in and that's the
> way it works.  I have a voltmeter mounted with a switch that can
> look at either battery so I can see what is happening.  And my
> charger is hardwired into the 110 and the aux battery.  Great when I
> have 'shore power', no switches to worry about and all interior
> accessories are wired to the aux battery and it stays up well over
> 13 volts.
> BTW, don't skimp on the size of the charger.  Get a 25 to 30 amp
> 'smart' charger, usually three stage, something like this (that I
> have): http://www.progressivedyn.com/prod_details/rv_conv/rv_converter_pd9130_2.html
>   and with the Charge Wizard.  The small 'battery tenders' or
> 'maintainers' are only good for just that, very small output and not
> enough to bring up a discharged battery when in the field.  Only for
> 'tending' while parked in the garage.  I tried one, didn't do the
> job at all.
>
> On Feb 12, 2008 8:17 PM, Jeffrey Vickers <jeff@vickersdesign.com>
> wrote:
>
> Will the starter battery charge (through the 1315) if I wire the 120V
> charger to the aux battery? Or would it be better, because of the two
> types of batteries, to get a dual bank charger like this Schumacher
> and charge each battery independently?
>
>
>