Choosing A Caravan Battery
Differences between Caravan (Leisure) Batteries and Car Batteries. Car batteries are designed to give out a large amount of power over a short time period, for example to start your car, and to be recharged quickly after this.Caravan batteries, part of the leisure battery family, are designed to store power for longer and provide a constant voltage while discharging over a much longer period of time to power various appliances in your caravan.
The time they last will of course depend on the size and capacity of your caravan battery. With reference to the different sizes of caravan battery as a general rule the bigger the battery the longer it will last however you must be aware of the maximum size of the area you wish to fit your caravan battery into as some batteries may be too big for the space provided.
In terms of size batteries for caravans can be found in many shapes and sizes starting at around 12v-10ah Caravan and leisure batteries to around 12v-110ah Caravan and leisure batteries (Some Caravan Batteries may even be larger than this).
We would always recommend that a caravan or leisure battery never be fully discharged as doing so would cause sulphating of the lead plates inside the battery and would cause it to work in a far less effective manner or even not at all. Caravan batteries as well as all other forms of leisure battery will last for a period of time determined on how long and often you use them and what you use them for.
When choosing a caravan battery that is suitable for your needs it pays to do the following calculation which will also help you determine how long a particular caravan battery will last for.
If you add up the total power consumption in watts and divide it by the voltage (usually 12v) this will give you the total number of amps. If you then multiply the amps by the period of time you wish your caravan battery to work for between charges this will provide you with the ampere hour rating of the battery you will require. (We always suggest you add on 10% to avoid the damaged caused by over discharging your caravan battery).
There are a number of ways to ensure that your caravan battery lasts for longer.
1) Switch off all appliances when not in use.
2) Avoid using high drain appliances such as televisions with your caravan battery.
3) Keep your caravan battery fully charged at all times when not in use to prevent it from becoming sulphated.
4) Ensure you purchase a suitable battery charger for your caravan battery as the use of faulty/incorrect battery chargers is one of the most common causes of battery failure.
With regards to charging your caravan battery there are a number of suitable battery chargers on the market that will trickle charge your battery from solar powered or wind powered chargers to generator powered chargers and those powered by your car battery which can be used when your car is being driven.
During the winter period when your caravan battery is not in use we would recommend that you remove it from your caravan and keep it fully charged over the winter to ensure it does not become sulphated and useless when you come to use it again.
When removing your caravan battery, always ensure you remove the negative (Black) lead first and then the positive lead. When reconnecting your caravan battery you must connect the positive terminal first and then the negative terminal.
Always switch everything off before disconnecting and reconnecting.