Drovers new Rig - "Big Mal"

[Drover]

Dug around and found some instalation instructions for your TS1500 and the wiring schematic is virtually the same as the Breaksafe, so connecting the van 12v to the black wire which is from the tug via the 12pin is the way to go as it appears to have the same trickle charger installed, I wouldn't connect the van supply to the 240v charger input as that would shunt the full power into the battery .......... I notice the later Model TS2000 has done away with the battery and now connects direct to van battery.......
You don't want to connect anything that requires charging direct to a battery as the power needs to be regulated so the unit needing charging basically doesn't melt.....

 

[Boots in Action]

Sorry, I have been using the wrong name for the breakaway device fitted to my Jayco. It is actually a TOW SECURE TS1500 unit. It came with a small 230v switch-mode plug pack that provides 15v DC @ 1A to charge the 7Ah battery whilst the caravan is connected to 230v AC. The end of the lead from the plug pack is inserted into a connector lead protruding out of the TOW SECURE control unit. What I was thinking of doing is replacing the 15v DC output from the plug pack with a feed from the lithium house battery (approx 13.34v - though voltage will vary a little up and down from that within the setting limits of the solar controller and BMS systems). Anybody see problems with trickle charging the 12v 7Ah SLA battery using that? That way I wouldn't have to worry about the 7Ah going flat.

Now that @Drover has explained that the breakaway battery (12v 7ah) has its own dedicated charging system 240v trickle charger AND a separate charging link from the tug alternator, I certainly would NOT be connecting it to a different type of battery chemistry ie. lithium. With the existing setup, connection is made with two batteries of the same type ie. LEAD ACID. A lithium battery has considerable power potential and an uncontrolled connection could result in a huge surge of current into a low SLA battery in parallel, This would be especially so if solar charging was in progress at the time. We all know the problems that can occur when a low battery is connected in parallel with a fully charged battery of the SAME type and SIZE {capacity). Connecting two batteries of different type/size/chemistry and even voltage could cause problems IMHO.

 

[BaldEd]

Thanks Drover and Boots. Advice noted. I'll just have to try to remember to connect that little 230v plug-pack charger at home every month or so .

 

[Drover]

Just check the wiring coming out of the box, the black one is the one your after, connect it to a 12v circuit from your van battery/fuse board or even a direct connection to your battery, chemistry is of no matter and your all good.................

Pleased to report that this new Lithium is really performing beyond expectations, today I'm going to see if I need to put out the portable to get things fully charged by 0900, I suspect not..................... I have a suspicion I had one of my GEL's faulty longer than I thought all history now ............

 

[jazzeddie1234]

This is the wiring for the tow secure.

You could disconnect the black wire that is currently going to the tug via the 12 pin and instead connect it (via a fuse) to the van battery. This would mimic the vehicle being always attached and should work fine...so long as the van battery has enough voltage (yes voltage) to power the units trickle charger. The plug pack is 15ish volts so I would be looking for at least 14 from the van battery to keep it charged. NOTE: It cannot be left wired thru to the tug!

A second option is to wire the van battery via a plug the same as the plug pack and connect this (via a fuse) instead of the plug pack. This has the advantage of leaving the permanent wiring alone and the tug still providing charge when connected.

Either of the two examples don't care what sort of van/tug battery is used but a battery with high charge voltage like a lithium (14.6v) is better for the units trickle charger.

 

[jazzeddie1234]

Pleased to report that this new Lithium is really performing beyond expectations

No going back now!

 

[BaldEd]

This is the wiring for the tow secure.

Thanks jazzeddie, I had looked for that info in the instructions and failed to find it. Will give further thought later about using my new lithium batteries as the charging source via a fuse and a disabling switch. Off now on first trip with the lithiums.

 

[Drover]

Back on topic again,........

Tad warm so side screen up, river rocks not peg friendly so milk crate, ALDI canvas bag and a shopping bag make great rock pegs..... They have held well in some good winds....

Totally wrapped in the new lithium battery ...



...

 

[Drover]

A nice cloudy day that wasn't hot recently was an ideal time to do the dreaded bearing/brake/wheel rotate to Big Mal, what a pain that is for an old coot, about 8K km since last time, near enough, brakes got about 1 click each, bearings not a wobble so very happy since last pack which was when I did the new magnets and shoes, whenever that was. Tyres rotated and the rear ones do get a hammering on this suspension set up, they are 6 yrs old and have a good amount of tread left after probably 50/60K odd km but new ones next year, this time going for Bob Jane J-Trax LT's in 265 75R16's, price is good and seem to give good life by reports, Geolanders have been great but just way to expensive now and as the Jeeps Geolanders will probably need replacing at end of next year, the J-Trax fit the bill, I hope .... still over a Grand to shoe each vehicle so will need a generous tooth fairy .............. Been quite a few years since underneath got sprayed so decided to give it a recoat, didn't get far with it, got the suspension recoated and the rest will have to make do, poxy job...

Some new insulation on a couple of water lines underneath is needed as the old AC pipe lagging has rotted away and the quicker the HW gets to shower the better for all concerned ..

New gas piggies and regulator made an improvement, gas lasted longer and no faint gas smell at times.............. Lithium battery is working nicely and my diy settings on the Epever appear to work well as it charges up happily ............. Water pump clean up seems to have done some good, not as noisy as previously and reverse flush of water lines can only be good, at 12 yrs old it needs special TLC every so often.... Every so often I will pull something down for a clean up....... also a good walk around after rain driving, any rivet showing a rub/dirt streak gets removed, silicon in hole and a new rivet in place to stop any possible leak.

Awning upper arm brackets need a mod but haven't quite figured it out, clinker type cladding makes things difficult ............ Some 3mm alloy plate shaped to fit the wall contours is on the books as being the ideal choice and with some off cut wall panel I'm hoping a mate of mine who is very OCD can knock me a shaping plate up from timber so I can form the alloy over it ..................... failing that 2 bits of 5mm welded at the edge to make a step then some creative grinding work....

The fun never ends ...............................

 

[Drover]

Some more hot days and the fridge side of van copping lots of morning sun, this fridge is working so well, the insulation of the outer wall has proved a very good move, run your hand over the outside wall and you cannot tell where the fridge is, its all the same temp, before the fridge section would be warm to very hot, not now..... The fridge also operates so much better, 35c day it doesn't have a hard time keeping at the 4c and if it gets a restock during the day it pulls the temps back down quick smart............ Proper insulation of the fridge has made it work so much and I think the problems with cooling encountered by many with 3 ways is just lousy installation, I haven't found the problematic ambient temp yet but think it might be high 30's now....... and this is with no screen over the wall at all............

It has at least 60mm of insulation on sides, 75mm on top, paneled in with ply or alloy sheet, the outer wall has probably 75mm of insulation and 1.2mm alloy sheet, I added a baffle plate to close up the gap between wall and fins to get the full flow over the fins with an insulated baffle plate above to direct the rising air out the vent helped by 2 x 70mm fans with a 55c thermo switch mounted on the plumbing on the outlet side of the fins, all totally sealed from the inside of van. The insulation was the alloy faced stuff used under the roofing iron on a house, all new stuff aquired from hail damaged roofs repairs..

Checking if your fridge is insulated properly is a must be it a 3 way or a compressor, a poorly insulatad compressor fridge would be a big power user, I know from my 40 odd years of owning an Engel, good insulation would get me another day from a battery.

 

[Boots in Action]

Some more hot days and the fridge side of van copping lots of morning sun, this fridge is working so well, the insulation of the outer wall has proved a very good move, run your hand over the outside wall and you cannot tell where the fridge is, its all the same temp, before the fridge section would be warm to very hot, not now..... The fridge also operates so much better, 35c day it doesn't have a hard time keeping at the 4c and if it gets a restock during the day it pulls the temps back down quick smart............ Proper insulation of the fridge has made it work so much and I think the problems with cooling encountered by many with 3 ways is just lousy installation, I haven't found the problematic ambient temp yet but think it might be high 30's now....... and this is with no screen over the wall at all............

It has at least 60mm of insulation on sides, 75mm on top, paneled in with ply or alloy sheet, the outer wall has probably 75mm of insulation and 1.2mm alloy sheet, I added a baffle plate to close up the gap between wall and fins to get the full flow over the fins with an insulated baffle plate above to direct the rising air out the vent helped by 2 x 70mm fans with a 55c thermo switch mounted on the plumbing on the outlet side of the fins, all totally sealed from the inside of van. The insulation was the alloy faced stuff used under the roofing iron on a house, all new stuff aquired from hail damaged roofs repairs..

Checking if your fridge is insulated properly is a must be it a 3 way or a compressor, a poorly insulatad compressor fridge would be a big power user, I know from my 40 odd years of owning an Engel, good insulation would get me another day from a battery.

I added a baffle plate to close up the gap between wall and fins to get the full flow over the fins

Good move Ian as the original gap was much wider than necessary IMHO, and allowed too much air from below to not be directed through the cooling fins. I think you have now got the ultimate installation for your new fridge.

 

[Drover]

Good move Ian as the original gap was much wider than necessary IMHO, and allowed too much air from below to not be directed through the cooling fins. I think you have now got the ultimate installation for your new fridge.

When you saw it Graham it was still in the development stage, the baffle ended up another 15mm wider but still worked better than most originals, the upper baffle to close the gap only covers the area of the 2 cooling elements ..... my thoughts were the larger open area below narrowed at top with the fans above to cause a low pressure zone create a good venturi effect to increase flow with less effort, it even works.... I must admit the original gap from wall to back was caused by a desire not to have to carry out heaps of carpentry to fridge cabinet ( smaller fridge this time) so the rear wall was going to be wider to take up the space, a slight tape measure stuff up meant the wall was thinner hence the gap larger but I think the final design gives better results....... Have even thought about modding the fridges own rear fans to operate on demand if needed .....

 

[Drover]

Back home and Big Mal really tows so well behind the Jeep, I have to check in mirrors to make sure its still there............... so today, stinking hot I just do some quicky checks on leads as the Brakes lost connection on way home, too hot to stop and buggerise around, just made sure I worked the gears a bit more ....... pulled pin on Breaksafe to see if I could hear the brakes click on, the damn housing shattered when I pulled the pin out, while shouldn't have been the cause of the failure it does add another thing on the list................. probably a wire broken in 7 pin, it can wait for a nice cool day... or my daughters dog had a chew on a brake line underneath .................. I have 3 mths to find out... meanwhile Caravans Plus gets another order from me, $45 delivered............

 

[Drover]

Oh bother he says, (apply descriptive adjectives) ... just finished preliminary checks on brake system, continuity comes up good from 7 pin to van brakes, pins and connections good, so daughters dog didn't chew anything but the Jeep shows no trailer connected, so moved onto the Jeep, brake lights on when controller manually activated, but the blue wire is dead, not good it should power up, humidity got the better so I called it a day before I did something nasty, since I ran the blue wire and know its not a light weight so have narrowed it down to the junction where the P3 wires connect up or the P3 is stuffed, either way it means a bit of under dash digging, need a nice day and some incredible calmness on my part .............. New breaksafe switch should be here by Friday, at least its just plug and play ..... " B@$*%# Vans"

 

[Boots in Action]

Oh bother he says, (apply descriptive adjectives) ... just finished preliminary checks on brake system, continuity comes up good from 7 pin to van brakes, pins and connections good, so daughters dog didn't chew anything but the Jeep shows no trailer connected, so moved onto the Jeep, brake lights on when controller manually activated, but the blue wire is dead, not good it should power up, humidity got the better so I called it a day before I did something nasty, since I ran the blue wire and know its not a light weight so have narrowed it down to the junction where the P3 wires connect up or the P3 is stuffed, either way it means a bit of under dash digging, need a nice day and some incredible calmness on my part .............. New breaksafe switch should be here by Friday, at least its just plug and play ..... " B@$*%# Vans"

Ian, as they say in the classics "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!". Also, when frustrated. use a bigger brain, not a bigger hammer!.
Good luck and hang loose.

 

[Drover]

Ian, as they say in the classics "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!". Also, when frustrated. use a bigger brain, not a bigger hammer!.
Good luck and hang loose.

I look on the bright side always, its at home where it should be when something broke's not out by some creek but then I have fired up the genny to get the soldering iron going and do maintenance in camp ................... Was never a chuck a spanner or hammer person but no fear of using or throwing hammers, can't hold onto the blasted things nowadays my hands are so stuffed.............
Often before pulling out the tools I will sit back and do a mental check list of it all, easier to narrow down the cause than pulling things all apart...........
Due for new tyres and something keeps nibbling away at the savings, best decent rubber is about $300 each ...

 

[Hitting the road]

There is always something that needs to be fixed, bought, or replaced...lol. Still, gives us something to do every day! Tell you what, I am seriously looking forward to the day, very soon, when I can have the van outside my door instead of 20 minutes away locked up in a shed with dozens of other caravans, boats and cars! I can then tinker to my hearts content...

 

[Drover]

Tell you what, I am seriously looking forward to the day, very soon, when I can have the van outside my door instead of 20 minutes away locked up in a shed with dozens of other caravans, boats and cars! I can then tinker to my hearts content...

I don't think I could stay sane if that was the case, if my Van and Boat were in storage I'd be lost, have an idea for a mod can just walk to shed and look at things and check if possible .................. also the ability to spot things before they turn major....... Have to meet up again when you move out of the big rat race to the smaller rat race ...... oh yeah, just remembered something you have that I would like to borrow so don't run away ....

 

[1DayIll]

Oh bother he says, (apply descriptive adjectives) ... just finished preliminary checks on brake system, continuity comes up good from 7 pin to van brakes, pins and connections good, so daughters dog didn't chew anything but the Jeep shows no trailer connected, so moved onto the Jeep, brake lights on when controller manually activated, but the blue wire is dead, not good it should power up, humidity got the better so I called it a day before I did something nasty, since I ran the blue wire and know its not a light weight so have narrowed it down to the junction where the P3 wires connect up or the P3 is stuffed, either way it means a bit of under dash digging, need a nice day and some incredible calmness on my part .............. New breaksafe switch should be here by Friday, at least its just plug and play ..... " B@$*%# Vans"

Gee I wish I could do this, let alone understand what you are doing.

 

[Drover]

Gee I wish I could do this, let alone understand what you are doing.

Just hot foot it up here and I will gladly show you how to do it, totally hands on instruction while I sit back in a camp chair...........
....... Also got a Genny thats needs some work, did some maintenance to make sure its all working as back up in case we get extra damp, then I broke the fuel tap, shoddy pot metal rubbish, another Ebay shop, boat shop had a replacement which the owner pointed out I may not want at $113 which I politely passed on, 10mm/1.25 thread and of course brass fittings are all BSF ............ keeping the postie busy... never boring in retirement......