What capacity trailer battery?Originally Posted by mudski
What is the average daily power usage (amp hours) of your fridge, plus any other power usage (lighting, music, water pump etc)
How often do you intend to drive?
Is this for weekends away, a couple of weeks away or longer?
The two name brands are Ctek & Redarc.
I have no experience of the Ctek, but others who have them are happy with their purchase.
I have a Redarc & am happy with my purchase.
Here is the Redarc range (ignore the prices, they can be bought a lot cheaper). The size which would suit you best depends upon the answers to the questions above.
A larger amperage unit will bring the charge of a depleted battery up to around 70% more quickly (less driving time) than a smaller amperage unit, but to get that all important top 30% into the battery will take the same amount of time regardless of the amperage of the charger, so choice is dependent upon how much you expect to take out of your trailer battery between (percentage of battery capacity) driving with the trailer attached.
eg. if driving (with trailer attached) all day most days it is likely that a smaller unit would do just as well as a larger one, but if stopping for a couple of nights at a time & taking more out of your battery, & then only driving (with trailer attached) for half a day a larger unit may be better.
In my case my batteries being charged by the Redarc 40 amp charger are 3 x 120Ah, possibly being taken down to 50% capacity over several days. In my case it makes sense to have a larger unit because the batteries would be able to accept the full 40 amps for 3 hours plus in such circumstances, & a reduced charge until full for the rest of the driving day. Most of the time my batteries would not be taken down to 50% (using solar) & the full capacity of the charger not used, but the set up takes into account worst case scenarios, much more important if full time on the road.
Cuppa
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