I've tried to answer my own question but...

[SternWake]

Yes the 12vDC output on hondas is only 8 amps and not regulated. Much better to employ a grid powered charging source powered by the generator. Automatic smart chargers don't quite finish the task of fully charging a heavily cycled battery, but they are better than nothing, and better than the unregulated honda DC output.

Finding a charger which does the battery manufacturer recommend absorption voltage is wise. if one employs flooded batteries, having a charger which can perform equalization charges can be seriously beneficial to battery longevity.

I gave up on Automatic charging sources. So 'smart', they are too dumb to do their job. But their green lights are so soothing, and make the lawyers and bean counters happy, as well as the battery manufacturers, as long as their gamble that the battery lasts the warranty period anyway, pays off.

 

[akrvbob]

Getting the longest possible amount of time out of batteries is fairly labor and attention intensive. The question is, "How much time are you willing to put into getting another year of your batteries?"

Everybodies answer is different, and there is no right or wrong answer. But I'm not willing to put hardly any amount of time into my batteries to get another year out of them, my time is worth more to me than that. I paid $250 for my batteries and I set my system up to work as well a it can without attention from me (I do check the water and get them equalized once a year). If they last 5 years that's $50 a year. I'm not willing to put a bunch of time into them to get another year which is $50.

Some people turn it into a hobby. That's a pretty good hobby that pays you money in the long run! But it's not for me.
Bob

 

[907KHAM687]

Getting the longest possible amount of time out of batteries is fairly labor and attention intensive. The question is, "How much time are you willing to put into getting another year of your batteries?"

Everybodies answer is different, and there is no right or wrong answer. But I'm not willing to put hardly any amount of time into my batteries to get another year out of them, my time is worth more to me than that. I paid $250 for my batteries and I set my system up to work as well a it can without attention from me (I do check the water and get them equalized once a year). If they last 5 years that's $50 a year. I'm not willing to put a bunch of time into them to get another year which is $50.

Some people turn it into a hobby. That's a pretty good hobby that pays you money in the long run! But it's not for me.
Bob

I'm coming to that conclusion myself. I'm trying to figure out enough to not do something monumentally stupid. Like attach my honda generator to the coach battery, overcharge it till it bubbles like an alka-seltzer, and fire up the colman for a cup of coffee. Or spend a whole lot of money on AGM batteries and charge them so wrongly that they have half the life of a normal deep cycle battery treated equally bad.

Or, and this is one I still have questions about, If I buy a big coach battery, solenoid it to the chassis battery, and then drive one mile every time I start the van for a month. I am thinking that the coach battery would take as many(if not more) electrons from the charging system as the chassis battery and could put the chassis battery at an unhealthy state. I think I'll put in a secondary switch to disconnect the solenoid and only flip it after I've been driving for a few miles.

Hank

 

[simply lesa]

Just a couple other ideas for when you can't get charged up somehow. ..don't overlook an old fashioned hot water bottle or sheepskin to function as a heating pad might.
Often I notice people have found solutions that can be helpful when they remember or research what was done in history before all the modern convieniences.
I don't always think like the crowd.

 

[gypsychic]

Just a couple other ideas for when you can't get charged up somehow. ..don't overlook an old fashioned hot water bottle or sheepskin to function as a heating pad might.
Often I notice people have found solutions that can be helpful when they remember or research what was done in history before all the modern convieniences.
I don't always think like the crowd.

Yes, thanks for the reminder. I've thought of using a hot water bottle before but didn't write it down in my notebook so it was lost. It was more for keeping warm but could use it in place of a heating pad also. A good thing to have a number of options, especially when my comfort is dependent on it.

 

[Almost There]

Yes, thanks for the reminder. I've thought of using a hot water bottle before but didn't write it down in my notebook so it was lost. It was more for keeping warm but could use it in place of a heating pad also. A good thing to have a number of options, especially when my comfort is dependent on it.

A Nalgene bottle with a cuddly sock around it can be used instead of trying to find a hot water bottle. Just make sure you've got the lid on properly in either case.

The Nalgene bottle can be used for other things which is important when space is at a premium.

I like keeping a couple of the hand warmers in stock. Late last fall on a camping trip I had two of them in use, one on each butt cheek and had a few words to say about the manufacturer not making an 8x10" sheet....

 

[gypsychic]

OK, I've been over and over this thread. I've written notes and have several pages of questions. I've reread other threads and some of Bob's blog posts as well as other internet blogs. There are to many choices. I still can't determine the pros and con's between a relay, a solenoid and the other option I can't remember right now. SW's switch (1/2/1&2/off) makes the most sense to me. I like having control over things for differing circumstances and don't usually like auto 'dummy' options that are more out of sight, out of mind especially if I'm trying to learn about a subject. SW's explanation of allowing his alternator to just charge his vehicle battery at first while his van warms up before switching to having the alternator recharge both house and vehicle battery is the kind of information I'm looking for. His knowledge of my vehicle's ideosyncracies, like the alternator's voltage regulator being internal to the ecm and explaining that helped me understand why he made the choices that he did. That info helps to design a system for my needs instead of a one size fits all solution that may work but a different solution could have made more sense, be more elegant, for my particular circumstances.

I'm staring down at a deadline of having to be in my van and out of my apartment at the end of the month. Therefore I think I will need to consult a professional eventually. Problem is, I don't even know what type of professional might do this sort of work. Any ideas? While I would have wanted to make my transition as comfortable as possible I'll just have to make due until I can afford to hire a pro. As mentioned earlier in this thread, these things shouldn't be halfa$$ed.

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Electrical-install-near-Barstow-CA When I get to the point where looking at diagrams like the ones in post #6 of the above thread doesn't make me want tear my hair out then I might be to the point that I can start doing some things myself. Those diagrams are like a foreign language and I have no reference point to draw upon.

Just trying to discern which 'dumb' charger I should get was revealing in how much I don't know at this point. How much time and effort is involved in looking over a battery charging on a manual charger? Should I just get a smart charger even if the algorithms aren't correct? What amps profile should I get? Would a 2/10 amp manual charger work to recharge my batteries overnight?

I already have a multimeter. I've purchased a hydrometer and a digital plug in voltmeter. Hopefully with using these tools on my vehicle battery I can start to answer some of my own questions and be a more educated consumer. Any other suggestions that might help educate me?

Thank you to BBJ, SW and everyone else who contributed what they thought would be helpful. I appreciate the time you took to write out your thoughts. Helping me to realize I'm over my head is still helping me [emoji3]

Cheers

 

[gypsychic]

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Electrical-install-near-Barstow-CA

Oops -My link didn't work above

 

[akrvbob]

Okay, do this:

1) Buy this battery charger. I have one myself, it's not perfect but it's plenty good enough and perfection is your enemy . All you have to do is plug it in, clamp it to the battery, and turn it on. Very simple:
http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-SC-10030A-SpeedCharge-Automatic-Maintainer/dp/B001MYWBF0/

2: Buy this switch to put between the starting battery and house battery. All you have to do is unscrew the nuts, put the wire on both ends and tighten the nuts. Then turn it on-off depending if you want to charge the battery or not. Very simple. But, if you forget you can drain your battery.
http://www.amazon.com/Marinco-701-Battery-Disconnect-Switch/dp/B005DUUL9W/

What else do you want to know?
Bob

 

[SternWake]

Gyps,

The commonly available 2/10 amp transformer based manual chargers are quite poor for your intended application. My neighbor has one, and on the 10 amp setting was incapable of more than 4 amps, and took 24+ hours to get a pair of new 27 batteries up near fully charged.

Basically the more powerful the manual charging source, the less time it need be monitored. And one can put such a charger on a spring wound timer to shut off after a certain amount of time.

I don't know if you have seen my manual charger solution using an adjustable voltage switching power supply,and I am not recommending you follow my path concerning this, but there is likely some info in this thread you might find enlightening.

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-My-newest-electrical-toy

Regarding the 1/2/both/off switch, MaineSail has a good write up on them, but much is kind of boat specific.

http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=137615

An automatic charger with the incorrect profile is better than having no charger to utilize when grid power is available. While these all stop a bit prematurely, unplugging the charger, turning on enough loads to bring battery voltage below 12.v, and restarting the charger can be done multiple times to shoehorn in that last 8+% Most automatic chargers stop in the 92 to 94% state of charge range and need to be tricked into finishing the task.

In the past I have recommended Auto stereo shops to do this task, but Highdesertranger has recommended against this and i respect his opinion.

Perhaps Look for an Automotive electrician to do this, and perhaps have the cabling already available. Such a person would hopefully have the proper crimping tools for larger cabling.

I'm Down in San Diego and it looks like my regular source of employment will be less regular in a week or two, but I have difficulty leaving the proximity of the coastline, and have to deal with some braking issues and acquiring a backup ECM before I feel confident enough for even a minor road trip.

 

[Seraphim]

To the original post: we use about 25 amps a day and one to two hours of driving we were back to 100%.

 

[gypsychic]

SW-one of my best friends lives in SD, as I used to years ago. When I make the trip to see her I'll look you up and buy you a beer and a meal. You have certainly helped explain a lot.

You must get tired of repeating yourself. I've read so many of your posts and the general stuff you type over and over again. When my move is complete, and if I have decent internet, I think I'll copy and paste a lot of your posts together with links and ask it to be a sticky for batteries 101. There are others who I look to read their replies in threads also but anything I know about batteries is because of your very detailed posts.

Thank you very much. After I wrote all this out I think I recall a post where you said you don't take compliments easily. I hope you're getting better at that because you sure deserve the compliments. I hope your work remains steady if that's what you want. Enjoy the coast. I always do when I'm near it.

 

[SternWake]

Glad to be of assistance.

It does get a bit frustrating typing similar things over and over, but the questions force me to think about how to convey my message in a better manner so it can be more easily understood and help things to 'click' for the reader. Hopefully it helps them set up a system that meets their needs and gives adequate battery life. But what is considered adequate is a moving threshold among the readers too, depending on their original expectations.

Too many of my posts on this topic have improperly conveyed that nothing less than ideal was acceptable, and I am working on that.