Aux fuse box help needed.

[clyde]

Right i set up a leisure battery/split charger last year but im fed up of running a socket off it with croc clips.

Ive got some battery wire(like the thick red stuff that comes off your live battery connection), a fuse box and want to install this in the front of my bus to run the interiour lights, radio, ciggy socket etc.

Basically im a electrical dunce and need a diagram on how to do this?

Im going to run the wire from the leisure battery to the front of my bus but then what do i need to get this into the fuse box?

So basically the split charger works and is pumping up my leisure battery without draining my road battery...all happy
But i need to use this power.............
I dont want to spur off my main fuse box as i want it to be a seperate system to run off the leisure battery so i can have my radio, inside lights and maybe my phone charging off the ciggy lighter.

Do i need a relay?
I thought the aux fuse box would have a connector for the wire from the battery but its just got the six fuses. Do i need to make one of these an input and then what???????????????

Help

Cheers in advance.

 

[the councillor]

because i'm a cheapskate and i get all my stuff out of bins and traction engine rallies, my 'aux' fusebox just has six ? eight ? ten ? can't remember individual fuses, so i took the feed from the leisure battery to one side of the first fuse, then piggybacked it to each of the other fuses.

whatever you're wanting to run off it (stereo, lights, whatever) then goes to the other side, each with its own individual fuse. if you use the correct 'grade' of cable then i can't foresee any problems... we had a lovely fireworks display once but that was down to my boy and a discarded kit-kat wrapper

you need a relay 'out back' to keep the two batteries from being permanently connected, but you won't need one at the other end.

good luck 8)

 

[birchyman]

fit a two way switch it will have 3 prongs on bach any will do i used the guage with a switch from just campers 1 prong to engine battery 2prong to leisure battery then the middle prong is the output this way you can switch between batterys wire all out puts cig sockets lights radio etc to this middle prong as long as you have a fuse next to both batteries you wont need a separate fuse box

 

[froggy]

As the Councillor said, run 1 wire direct from the leisure battery to one of the end fuses then just piggyback this to all the other fuses (on the same side ), connect the other side to whatever you want to run and fit a suitable size fuse.
The hardest part is probably mounting the Aux fusebox OR running the wire from the leisure battery to the fuse box :lol: :wink:

 

[clyde]

fit a two way switch it will have 3 prongs on bach any will do i used the guage with a switch from just campers 1 prong to engine battery 2prong to leisure battery then the middle prong is the output this way you can switch between batterys wire all out puts cig sockets lights radio etc to this middle prong as long as you have a fuse next to both batteries you wont need a separate fuse box

This sounds a good plan, i might give this some thought. Just got to remember to flick the switch???????????

 

[birchyman]

you dont need to remember cause you will have no tunes if your switch is in the middie (ie off) plus it doesnt interfere with the split charger your batteries still charge even if your out puts are turned off plus if you are camping and your leasure battery goes flat just switch back to bus battery if you swant a diagram let me know

 

[birchyman]

oh and i forgot to mention if you put the switch next to your bed you can turn off your tunes and lights without moving or fumbling for the remote

 

[clyde]

Yes please....................this sounds the way forward. No extra fuse boxes etc so much nicer. Ive also got one of those guages to fit in the back that tells you the condition of each battery.

 

[birchyman]

ill draw one this weekend its really simple ive used mine for 5 years no probs if you fit mains and a bat charger all you need to do is plug in and it will run all your 12v plus charge which ever battery you select
all these caravan controls are way over the top with all sorts of lights which light up your van like blackpool it will even tell you if your dynamo is ok and if you are pulling too much power

 

[Sparky]

Just remember to put a fuse straight on the output from the leisure battery (if you're running 45A cable a 30A fuse would be good). This is to protect the feed from the battery to the fuse box, if the insulation were to fray on this feed without a fuse the current flow would be extremely high and set fire to the wire and anything it was touching .

Arran

 

[birchyman]

ok sorry its drawn would take me a week to draw on computer its really simple if you run the out put cable the lengh of the van you can pick up power any where ive got cig sockets at rear door for airbeds sliding door for awning power in pop top and 2 on dash plus all my lights radio itrip dash fan etc my switch is on the rear w/robe so i can switch off when in bed use 3mm wire and 30amp fuses ,fuses as near to battery terminal as poss

 

[froggy]

Dont really get the idea behind this circuit.
Yes its simple enough to wire up but why go to all the trouble as you will still need to wire the switched output to a fuse box and then piggyback the live wire to all the fuse box terminals before you wire all your other circuits to the fuse box.
Maybe its just me but, why the switched circuits? If your leisure battery goes flat are you going to use the main (starting) battery to run all the lights, radio etc and run the risk of flattening this?

 

[birchyman]

lots of reasons if you have a mains system you can charge either battery by the flick of a switch you can also run with no leisure battery if your not camping, true you run the risk of flattening your first battery but the point is is that power is there at the flick of a switch if your leisure battery goes flat no messing with wires you allways have tunes and lights plus you can leave all your systems running it doesnt matter if you flatten your leisure battery just flick the switch bingo this system is basically the same as that fitted to ALL caravans and motorhomes since1979 so it must make sence go into any caravan and you will see a switch car/caravan why only have 1 source of power when its so simple to have 2

 

[birchyman]

also why have a separate fuse box if your main feed is 30 amp and all your phone chargers are fused about 2 amp its not going to blow all your systems, a radio is about 7 amp ok there is a slight possibilaty a light may go faulty and take down all your systems but these are small vans you just dont need separate fuse boxes ,30 amp is plenty unless you have big amps or huge inverters

 

[froggy]

Have you got a link to the switch?
Still not entirely sure where the 240V to charge the battery comes into this circuit?

I know that 30Amps is more than enough for most loads but unless your going to to use everything at the same time then 30A is more than enough to cause serious damage. Your not going to power the radio or the lights from a 30A fused supply and nothing else surely? The fuse box would be a way to protect each circuit individually. You have a 100A fuse protecting your house but still fit smaller fuses / circuit breakers on the individual circuits as a precaution.

 

[birchyman]

for example my phone charger has its own fuse 2amp my tom tom is fused at 5 amp a radio has fuses on the back 7/10 amp true 30 amp is a lot but all you need to protect for is a dead short and the fuse next to your battery pops keeping it all safe if you have a separate fuse box what is each fuse rated at, plug in a dud tom tom it wont blow your aux fuse anyway just the one in your charger plug ,the only possible reason id be without power is if my drinking water pump siezed id turn on the tap and pop the fuse would go id change the fuse and just not use the sink again untill i sorted it why all these fuses mine hasnt gone in 5 years ,the point in the out put line is you can connect all your aux equipment plus a 240v charger if needed 12v side of coarse if your engine battery is flat plug in and select car ir your leisure battery is flat plug in and select caravan no messing no changing battery terminals no removing batteries no leaning into your engine bay to clip battery charger leads on its all so simple i cant see what all these fuses are for

 

[froggy]

I do understand what your saying about all the items having there own protection but just think that another fuse box will help to connect all the power outputs together easier, or do you use a splitter box / junction box?

 

[birchyman]

i dont understand what you mean by connecting all the outputs together why have a central fusebox with wires spidering all over the van when all you need is one wire like a ring main in a house mine runs from rear w/robe (cig sockets and lights) through into r/r bed base (propex and cig) up into roof (cig and lights)through sink unit (water pump and cig)to dash (2cigs, radio,glove box light dash fan) simple ok its alot easier with the interior out but i used 3mm 44s double insulated its better than all thouse piggy backs and in future i want to add something the power is near by

 

[the councillor]

Dont really get the idea behind this circuit.

x2 :roll:

still, there's more than one way to skin a cat :|

 

[birchyman]

true there are many ways to skin a cat but when you are sat in the dark with no tunes some are better that others, like i said this is how all caravans and motorhomes are basically wired