When disconnecting batteries always remove the negative terminal first and when reconnecting connect the negative last. Doing it that way around reduces the chance of a spanner accidentally shorting things and causing sparks/fire. Doing it the 'wrong' way means that the spanner becomes an extension to the battery positive terminal and could short against any of the surrounding chassis parts and cause a spark. With the negative already disconnected it doesn't matter if the spanner touches the chassis when disconnecting the positive as there is no current path back to the battery negative. A bit of a long winded explanation but basically battery negative off first and on last.

If it helps my inverters fan cuts in and out . I absolutely love the overhead locker , great vid thank you .

7:08 what a great use of this space. On my smaller promaster i have my inverter there.

The fan will only work when it's needed. Constantly on will flatten your source batteries much quicker, and it doesn't need to cool something that isn't getting hot when it's resting.

Hi great vid nice attention to detail I had a 200 w inverter in my t5 camper took it out after one season they have a nack of destroying the life of a leisure battery so try not to use it too often just my opinion good luck on your travels. Mark

As others have commented, the inverter's fan is thermostatically controlled and will activate only when needed to prevent overheating. This is determined by load and ambient temperature. Keep up the great in preparation for the van's maiden journey.

If anyone has the problem of the battery terminals being to close to the underside of the swivel just raise the swivel up with a number of thick steel washers.

Don't forget if you can do it yourself

@mmd1957

6 жыл бұрын

peter miller Well spotted, he didn’t do it himself that time, just as well you can do it yourself, and you did it yourself, I’m not sure Id have thought to do it myself.....phew!

Tim.. fan will cut in under heavy load to keep unit from overheating - it will also sound an alarm when the batteries are getting below safe charge level.

@DLightBelgium

6 жыл бұрын

And like this no unnessesary battery use too (for the fan).

Dazzling white! like a Science lab.

I read an article not long ago from an older gentleman who did what you are doing. He has 2 inverters. On your size or larger and a second much smaller. Maybe 200 or 250W. He said that he keeps the smaller one on for charging his phone, iPad, that kind of thing. He doesn’t turn the larger one on until he needs it. He said that the inverters will pull their capacity from the battery to insure it has what it needs. Because of this, the batteries will deplete faster even though you are not using max power. I don’t know, and am still learning. But thought I would toss that out there, either way.

Hi Tim, great video really enjoying the can series, must feel a bit like the forth bridge though! I notice you've gone for the Ryobi finish nailer. I've had issues with my 18g nailer seizing up on bigger jobs, despite a fully charged battery. Any.issues for you? My local Ryobi service centre don't seem to be able to find a fault! 😖

Nice one! Love the vids. What batteries are you using? Might try using that space too.

As others have said, the fan will come on when needed. I had the smaller version of this inverter, from Maplin UK I believe, there ok for this and that, dirty output though so wouldn't use it on drill chargers etc. Maybe down the line if needed get a nice little victron one or something quality secondhand.

@malcolmrowe5031

6 жыл бұрын

I have one of those Maplin ones, works ok but would like a better quality one, you mentioned victron, any other names you know of that are good?

@welshnutterz

6 жыл бұрын

Malcolm Rowe sterling power, waeco, any of the more expensive ones are good. There are a couple of smaller Chinese ones are ok too

I have similar inverter. the fan only comes on when the output is close to its peak power.

Fan kicks in on overheat

It would be helpful to viewers to provide the measurements of those batteries and the underseat space. I wonder if it'd be possible to fit two SOK 206A batteries each measuring 31x32x20??? It'd be great space saving for the garage and help distribute more weight to the front axle.

I was thinking would work on my ford van same height but I have wires spring that run across left to right and sag down would be across positive and negative and there are lot of cotton and foam to catch my butt of fire.. maybe a wood cover

Bridging battery terminals is never fun. Sure wakes you up!

Understating the importance of the battery strap a little maybe? If you roll in a crash you definitely don't want the terminals hitting any metal or you have a fire... I'm using two I think

how do you charge your batteries from mains if you want to as you dont have a 240 mains hook up connected to the battery permantly? Are you just charging from the alternator as your only option? What if you where at home and wanted to put a good charge on the batteries from the house or at a camp site.

Thanks for the video, very helpful. What is and where did you get the angle trim that you used to mount the cupboard from the roof?

@TheRestorationCouple

4 жыл бұрын

Just Alu angle. Think it might have been screwfix actually. If not probably online.

@sophiekennedy1376

4 жыл бұрын

@@TheRestorationCouple thanks for the prompt reply

Surely you need to insulate the the rail from the negative terminal, most vehicles now have a positive to earth.

Hi there, I have just recently bought a Mercedes sprinter van that’s been converted to a camper. The electricity only works when it’s hooked up. I’ve had a look around for the leisure battery but can’t seem to find it 🤷🏻‍♂️ there is a converter under the seat and there’s a box thing there with a big switch that lights up with a couple of wires connected to it but doesn’t look like a leisure battery 🤷🏻‍♂️ any tips to what that can be

Have you sorted how you are charging the batteries yet? I would love to see what you have used. I used a volt sensing relay in my Vivaro last time but these have smart alternators so I seem to only be able to find thing like the Ctek 250 at £240 as opposed to £40 for the relay.

@TheRestorationCouple

6 жыл бұрын

Videos on the way. We will end up with 240v charger, small split charge but hopefully rely on solar for most of the work. :-)

@benlukejames

6 жыл бұрын

Thanks. Have you researched the smart alternators in these? they don't put out a straight 14v from the alternator so spend lots of time below the 13 or so volts needed to trigger a standard spilt charge relay (ie they just don;t charge the leisure batteries anywhere near what you hope for). I know the Ctek does the split charging as well as allow solar input and regulation in one unit although pricey). Look forward to the video.

Can you post the link to the new batteries you installed? And are they still going strong? I've killed 2 sets of batteries

Tim , I also have a Citroen relay, what are the make of batteries you used under the seat please?

@TheRestorationCouple

5 жыл бұрын

Any low profile 100ah will fit. These were AGM. Not sure on brand but it’s in a previous van video.

Are they lead acid batteries? If so what about venting?

@resistireland694

3 жыл бұрын

@Mark Morgan Cheers for that Mark....

I know this was 2 years ago but was just wondering why 2 batteries? Just starting out on mine :)

@TheRestorationCouple

3 жыл бұрын

Capacity. Just lasts longer the more ah you have.

@philsilva13

3 жыл бұрын

@@TheRestorationCouple Thanks for the quick reply! Thought that might be it but wanted to check.....

You really should check whether it’s a pure sine wave inverter

@TheVanderfulLife

6 жыл бұрын

Mike, Rohan, Poppy & Frankie Sorry for being a complete newbie but what does this mean? Whats the difference?

@RohanTheBT

6 жыл бұрын

Jack's Tutorials hi there. It would be a very long answer so I suggest you search for pure sine wave inverters on KZread.

@TheVanderfulLife

6 жыл бұрын

Mike, Rohan, Poppy & Frankie no worries! Thanks!

@ARepublicIfYouCanKeepIt

6 жыл бұрын

Jack's Tutorials No need to research. Simply put, the output of a PSW, or Pure Sine Wave, inverter more closely resembles the sinusoidal waveform of actual AC electricity. This is needed to power more sensitive AC loads, such as most things electronic.

no hairdryer? oh men!

Your comments made me laugh today. 1 - Tim's best friend is a clamp!! So sad :o( 2 - Tim will not be using a hairdryer in the van. Well you will have to wait for your hair to dry naturally then :o) Love the way you mounted the top lockers. Great idea!

Inverters are notorious voltage thieves. 12v chargers/power sources much more efficient. Btw. I've read that 12.65v is the point below which batteries start to sulphate and gradually die. I'm amazed this isn't more widely publicized.

So now if you crash you get acid burns?

@richardmann5778

4 жыл бұрын

I think if the crash is bad enough to dislodge those batteries, you have more things to worry about... like being dead..

@lioncrunch9098

Жыл бұрын

@@richardmann5778so absolutely no worries, no tax, no debt, no heating bill. Keep safe, great video.