Electrical Ctek 250S In Work 'N' Play

[leighregan]

Hi All,

I am in the process of fitting up a Ctek 250S in van and would like to know from others that have previously fitted these is there any issue running this unit along side the factory charging unit as this would mean having two different charging units charging the same battery.

I am planning on running new cables from under bonnet to Anderson at rear of tug then on to Ctek 250S located next to battery in van. I am also going to change the way the hot wire for the fridge is done as this wil loop straight from the Ctek 250S in van to fridge with VSR inline.

All comments and ideas most appreciated.

This is one of my last jobs before we head off for 3 months so really would like to knock this one over and get going...

Cheers
Regan

 

[Capt. Gadget]

I haven't had any problems with mine. I have a 250 dual in mine which is running charge from the solar panel on the roof fine along with the 12v side of standard Van unit when plugged into the Tug and traveling I also use Ctek MS 25000 when plugged in at mains but I have unplugged the 240 side of my Setek van unit.

 

[ShaneT]

I run lithium batteries so I have just unplugged its 240v power lead to stop it trying to charge when the generator's plugged in.

 

[boots33]

Hi All,

I am in the process of fitting up a Ctek 250S in van and would like to know from others that have previously fitted these is there any issue running this unit along side the factory charging unit as this would mean having two different charging units charging the same battery.

The Ctek D250S and the jayco Setec will work ok together. Lots of people have them installed and I have heard of no problems. As you rightly say they will of course interact with each other but it doesn't seem to affect the overall performance much. Setec do stipulate that any additional charging units connected to the battery must not exceed 14.8v or the setec unit may be damaged. The D250s will not exceed that voltage.

The Setec will only be charging when it is connected to 240v , as this is unlikely when you are travelling your battery will usually only be charged by one or the other. If you have solar as well then then that will result in both units charging at the same time, but as i have said above that will not pose a problem either.

I am planning on running new cables from under bonnet to Anderson at rear of tug then on to Ctek 250S located next to battery in van.

Yep that is a popular way of doing it , you should use 6b&s cable if you can.

I am also going to change the way the hot wire for the fridge is done as this wil loop straight from the Ctek 250S in van to fridge with VSR inline.

Another popular hook up. You should be mindful of how much current your fridge will draw, three way fridges are very heavy on current. Even a small 90ltr may use most of what the Ctek can deliver and leave little for charging your battery. If you have a large fridge you will probably exceed what the Ctek can supply. If that is the case you will need to move your fridge connection to the input side of the Ctek or fit a smart pass.

Don't forget to fit fuses where required.

If your tow vehicle has a "smart alternator" you will likely need to use Ctek's modified wiring hookup as well.

This is one of my last jobs before we head off for 3 months so really would like to knock this one over and get going...

Hope you have a great trip

Shane.

 

[leighregan]

The Ctek D250S and the jayco Setec will work ok together. Lots of people have them installed and I have heard of no problems. As you rightly say they will of course interact with each other but it doesn't seem to affect the overall performance much. Setec do stipulate that any additional charging units connected to the battery must not exceed 14.8v or the setec unit may be damaged. The D250s will not exceed that voltage.

The Setec will only be charging when it is connected to 240v , as this is unlikely when you are travelling your battery will usually only be charged by one or the other. If you have solar as well then then that will result in both units charging at the same time, but as i have said above that will not pose a problem either.




Yep that is a popular way of doing it , you should use 6b&s cable if you can.




Another popular hook up. You should be mindful of how much current your fridge will draw, three way fridges are very heavy on current. Even a small 90ltr may use most of what the Ctek can deliver and leave little for charging your battery. If you have a large fridge you will probably exceed what the Ctek can supply. If that is the case you will need to move your fridge connection to the input side of the Ctek or fit a smart pass.

Don't forget to fit fuses where required.

If your tow vehicle has a "smart alternator" you will likely need to use Ctek's modified wiring hookup as well.




Hope you have a great trip

Shane.

Shane,

Thanks for your info I feel much better about my choices and the way in which I was planning on doing this job.

I will in fact be connecting the Fridge to the input side of the Ctek and have decided to run heavier cable than 6B&S due to the distance and total draw that may be required if under full load.

Don't have to worry about smart alternator PK Ranger is old enough not to have been blessed with one of these...

Again thanks for reply.

Cheers Regan

 

[boots33]

Shane,


Don't have to worry about smart alternator PK Ranger is old enough not to have been blessed with one of these...


Cheers Regan

Ahh the good old days. Life was so much simpler. ☺

 

[Crusty181]

The Ctek D250S and the jayco Setec will work ok together. Lots of people have them installed and I have heard of no problems. As you rightly say they will of course interact with each other but it doesn't seem to affect the overall performance much. Setec do stipulate that any additional charging units connected to the battery must not exceed 14.8v or the setec unit may be damaged. The D250s will not exceed that voltage.

The Setec will only be charging when it is connected to 240v , as this is unlikely when you are travelling your battery will usually only be charged by one or the other. If you have solar as well then then that will result in both units charging at the same time, but as i have said above that will not pose a problem either.




Yep that is a popular way of doing it , you should use 6b&s cable if you can.




Another popular hook up. You should be mindful of how much current your fridge will draw, three way fridges are very heavy on current. Even a small 90ltr may use most of what the Ctek can deliver and leave little for charging your battery. If you have a large fridge you will probably exceed what the Ctek can supply. If that is the case you will need to move your fridge connection to the input side of the Ctek or fit a smart pass.

Don't forget to fit fuses where required.

If your tow vehicle has a "smart alternator" you will likely need to use Ctek's modified wiring hookup as well.




Hope you have a great trip

Shane.

Im interested in a similar charging/fridge pwr setup for a long trip, and Ive tried unsuccessfully to digest this info without replying.

I have 6 b&s direct from battery to Anderson, then to the fridge via the factory wiring. Is the 6 b&s enough for both fridge and battery charging via the Ctek D250s.

I presume I can leave the factory fridge power intact and connect the Ctek to the fridge power. Is the Ctek then simply connected direct to battery terminals .... ?????? No impact on the Drifter shunt??

I have a smart alternator .. whats the additional considerations for that?? I made enquiries to set this up with the old van and car, but there was no work around for the smart alternator back then, and the Setec 12v charging was a waste of time so I lost interest .... until this thread

 

[boots33]

I have 6 b&s direct from battery to Anderson, then to the fridge via the factory wiring. Is the 6 b&s enough for both fridge and battery charging via the Ctek D250s.

Without knowing a bit more about your system I can't really say for sure. In general terms 6b&s is a good compromise that works for most people. Unless you have very heavy power needs it should be ok for you as well. can you give us a bit more info on your setup, things like......

The size of your total battery capacity
Do you have solar panels... fixed or portable, what size
do you have an inverter, will you be using it a lot
what size fridge do you have
will you be taking a generator
any other high current draw accessories that you have
will the Ctek be in the van or in the tow vehicle
anything else you think may be relevant

I presume I can leave the factory fridge power intact and connect the Ctek to the fridge power. Is the Ctek then simply connected direct to battery terminals .... ?????? No impact on the Drifter shunt??

Sorry Crusty I am not quite sure what you mean by this. Have you got a separate line to the fridge at the moment and you are intending to run the ctek from that. As far as your connection to the battery goes the ctek positive output will go to the battery positive and the ctek negative will go to the shunt not directly to the battery negative terminal.

Remember you will need to fit fuses as well. (I am sure people who have seen some of my other posts would be disappointed if i didn't mention fuses )

I have a smart alternator .. whats the additional considerations for that?? I made enquiries to set this up with the old van and car, but there was no work around for the smart alternator back then, and the Setec 12v charging was a waste of time so I lost interest .... until this thread

Basically ctek just use the ds250 solar input (It has no voltage sensing circuits) for both charging from your vehicle and solar. They use a relay to allow the d250 to source power from the vehicle when it is plugged in and from solar (if you have it) when the vehicle is not connected. If you don't have solar you may be able to do away with the relay.

here is their diagram



If you can give a bit more info I will draw up a few wiring diagrams for you

 

[Crusty181]

Thanks @boots33
2 x batteries totalling 220a/hrs
1 x roof mount 150w factory solar panel
I have a small inverter, but rarely use it
The fridge is the 150ltr Dometic 3 way about 15amp on 12v on dedicated circuit
I have a 2kW inverter generator, primarily for the aircon
No real high demand accessories. Anything high demand is use specific and would go on the genset. Most common 12v consumption is lights (all LED), tv, sat rec, maybe a fan, and charging phones
I think id put the Ctek in the van, its only the vans batteries i would be charging with it
The van is new and at this point the 12v is as factory delivered, although i pulled the fridge pos and neg out of the 12 pin and its now on an Anderson. The car side Anderson is dedicated 6 b&s straight to the battery via circuit breaker and ignition tripped relay
I have an Engel in the car, i use it for work and thats on mostly all the time whether home or away. Other than the Engel, the car then only charges phones etc.
Left to my own half arsed ideas, i would have just attached the Ctek to the fridge circuit; presuming even with the fridge sucking 15amps, there would be enough left for the Ctek to get more into the batteries than the Setec could, and the solar would top up the batteries as as well.

 

[boots33]

Ok the diagram below shows a couple of ways you can do your hook up. As your anderson plug supply is already ignition switched you will not need to fit the Ctek relay unless you intend to hook a solar panel to the d250s at the same time as your vehicle.. I am guessing that will not be the case.

The hook up as you can see is pretty easy, the only decision you need to make is whether you will be hooking the fridge positive to the input of the ctek (Terminal A) or directly the van battery (TerminalB). Of course there are pros and cons to both setups.



If you hook your fridge to "terminal A" the fridge will have to rely on getting it's power directly from the vehicle supply. As you have a smart alternator (which generally deliver a lower voltage to begin with) It is likely your fridge will not operate as efficiently as it could when on the 12v setting.


If you hook the fridge to "Terminal B" your fridge will get the benefit of the increased voltage available from the closeness to your van battery and from the d250s.
Unfortunately your fridge will also consume a large amount of the power that the d250s can produce. If your fridge draws 15A then your d250s will only have a paltry 5A left to charge up that 220ah of batteries you have. That will be enough to keep them topped up but will not do very well if the batteries state of charge is low.

Normally I would say terminal A is the best choice for you giving you some power to your fridge as well as the full amount of power from you d250s for your batteries. But you do have 150w of solar available and in the worst case will have access to your generator as well.

This opens up a bit of room to consider using the terminal B option and see how it all goes. As your d250s will likely be close to the batteries anyway you could easilly switch the fridge back to terminal A if you felt the batteries were not being charged to your liking.

If you do go with the terminal B option your fridge will be permanently connected to your van battery which means that if you forget to turn the fridge off the 12v setting once you have stopped it could run your batteries down. To stop that you could fit a movement sensitive switch or a voltage sensitive switch to the fridge power wire. you could also use a relay that is switched on when your anderson plug is in use to control power to the fridge.

Also Check the size of the breaker fitted to your anderson wiring. I think ctek reccomend a 30A fuse to protect the d250s.

 

[Crusty181]

Thanks @boots33 for the time taken to nut this out for me, I really appreciate your input. This stuff is a bit of a minefield for me, especially when trying to mesh it with the existing Jayco setup. Its great to have this forum, and people like yourself to bounce stuff around with.

Im presuming I have a smart alternator because Ive just updated the car, and the previous incarnation had a smart alternator. I updated from a silver Navara D40 to a wait for it ....... a silver Navara D40. I was very difficult to get excited about picking up the new one ... although I still go of the clutch if Im day dreaming (this ones an auto)

Ive tested the voltage across the terminals at the fridge and its getting plenty of its veggies way down there, with not too significant a drop in voltage. We spent 5 weeks away at xmas and with the benefit of the Ironman fridge temp unit, the fridge more than held its own on 12v; in fact its temp lowered on the couple of caravan park hops. Ive got a 30amp resettable circuit breaker and 200amp relay (ha, I wanted to be able to use the 6b&s and terminal lugs on all connections to reduce voltage drop ... hence the massive relay, and no little bitty spaded connectors)

Connecting permanently to the van battery isn't a big concern, were pretty disciplined with our setting up regime, in that fridge power is always the first consideration after the van stops rolling

But all that said, I didn't realise the Ctek was only 20amp ... which is disappointing really. Seems a lot of expense and effort for a measly 5 amp. Maybe its not worth the effort, maybe stick to the solar, possible add a portable ground panel (and use the genset where necessary) and maybe wire up the Setec for the little extra it provides .... or maybe look at the Redarc alternative.

 

[boots33]

Lots of things to ponder there crusty