Newbie how do i let door open on my 2008 dodge caravan without draining battery

[Tess]

Hi everybody im new here and just buy my first van will do a nobuilbuilt.my question is maybe silly but wonder how i can let my slidding door and my rear door open when im boundocking withouth draining my engine battery. I ask mechanician and the garage  he told me its not possible but i see a lot of people in campervan doing it so its must be a way. Can you please help thank you

 

[crofter]

I did not know that it drains the battery. I don't usually leave the van open like that for more than an hour.
-crofter

 

[Trebor English]

Your Dodge is probably different from my Ford.  My Ford has 2 computers and 4 relays that turn on (about 1 amp) and stay on for 30 minutes after each door opening and door closing.  Parking in one spot and opening and closing several times per day does run down the starter battery. 

I did two things that were effective.  First I added a battery disconnect switch.  With the battery minus side not connected the battery was not discharged by the van.  

Second I added a 100 watt solar panel.  That doesn't stop the discharging but does make it so that I can stay in one place without running the engine to charge the battery until I run out of food or water.  

The useful amp hour capacity of a starter battery when regularly cycled is very low.  My Ford special tiny group size 59 battery was good for 1.9 amp hours.  That's 2 openings and closings at 1 amp hour per pair.  I upgraded my starter battery to the biggest deep cycle trolling motor battery that would fit in the original location.  That doesn't fix the problem but it does make it less important.

 

[Stargazer]

On my 2005 Ford E-150 van, each door had a switch that was activated when the door was opened. It was a simple thing to just remove and disconnect the switch.

I just looked at my 2014 Chrysler Town and Country. No visible switch so that won't happen on this minivan. But the lights turn off automatically after a few minutes and the main light switch on the dash will turn them off anyway.

Not sure about your Caravan but may be worth a minute to look for that switch inside the door frame.

 

[MrNoodly]

Back in simpler times, you could pick up a little 10 cent part at auto stores. It was a small tab you could swing to hold down the light switch in the door jam. You could rig up something like that.

Meanwhile, my 2007 Express has a knob on the dash that let's me turn off the open-door-dome-light function.

 

[Matlock]

There should be a 15 second timer that will shut them off built into the light system. If yours do not shut off automatically after a minute and you can find nothing in the owners manual about a dash switch that will let you shut them off then I'd opt for pulling the bulb out of the light fixture and do without that interior light.

But they should time out on their own.

Last thought, if you don't get an answer here, try a Dodge caravan forum website. They will know.

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Tess! There are no silly questions so please ask about anything that you wonder about as your build proceeds.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[jacqueg]

Just pop the bulbs out of the fixtures.

After fiddling with switches and sensor buttons, I found that that, as usual, the simplest fix is the best.

I'm told you can get LED replacements for many of the bulbs in those fixtures. Maybe someday I'll bother to track some down. The truth is, I really don't like those lights flashing on when I leave my van in the middle of the night.

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

On my 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan, there is a roller switch just to the right of the headlights switch. This dims and/or completely turns off the dome lights. If you roll it all the way down, till you feel a click, it will turn off the dome lights, even if the door is open. When I do this, I can leave my doors open all day long without draining the battery. And this is before I added my Solar Battery Tender to keep my starter battery topped off. 

I almost always leave this thing rolled all the way down. That way the light doesn't come on when I open the door and attract bugs inside the van.