battery charging via anderson plug

[crdv6]

I am getting a new van which requires an Anderson plug connection for fridge and battery charging and also for the esc on the caravan.
The auto elec tells me I would also need a DC-DC charger as the output from the car's alternator would not be sufficient to charge the caravan's batteries alone.
Is the alternator on the GC ('17 diesel) a 'smart' alternator that drops it's output?
Anyone advise me if this is necessary, and does the DC-DC charger go in the car or next to the van's batteries?

[Rod Harrison]

The problem is usually not the vehicles alternator but the voltage drop from the front to the caravan battery. It is such that the caravan battery cannot receive the full recommended charge. Are you sure your new caravan doesn't already have a DC / DC charger? Many that I have seen do. If not, then the charger should go as close to the battery as possible.

Rod.

[SouthernComfort]

Originally Posted by crdv6

I am getting a new van which requires an Anderson plug connection for fridge and battery charging and also for the esc on the caravan.
The auto elec tells me I would also need a DC-DC charger as the output from the car's alternator would not be sufficient to charge the caravan's batteries alone.
Is the alternator on the GC ('17 diesel) a 'smart' alternator that drops it's output?
Anyone advise me if this is necessary, and does the DC-DC charger go in the car or next to the van's batteries?

Not sure if this helps, but I had mine wired up professionally and no DC-DC charger was added. I think there may be one in the van though. My van was manufactured with 2 Anderson's - GREY for fridge/battery which is subsequently wired via an 80A ignition relay and a maxi-fuse on the car. A separate RED Anderson on dedicated fused circuit serves the ESC only.

I also have a fixed solar on the van roof permanently feeding the battery.

[Barboots]

Depends on your equipment, usage and expectations.

Running 3B&S through the car to the van's 8B&S wiring, I had a decent amount of initial current flow to a depleted van AGM battery. Performance rolled off as the battery charge increased... however that happens anyway. I spent the money I could have used installing a DC-DC in the van on improving the solar. This offered value when parked up as well.

However I found the wiring arrangement very limiting when I changed the van to LiFePO4 batteries. I now have a 40A DC-DC next to them.

It's important to factor in the "acceptance rate" of your battery when planning your recharge system. If the battery will not take the amps available, it becomes a function of time instead. So a good question is "how long is the drive"?

The alternator in the MY14 has never been an issue for any of my configurations. Given a DC-DC charger should go in the van, and as the car cabling still needs to be decent, you might choose to see how you go until you really know where your needs are.

What fridge does your van have? Decent power to 3-way types is extremely important...

Cheers, Steve

[crdv6]

Thanks for your replies. I will just have basic setup via Anderson plug(s) to start and see how it goes.

[johnnywal]

Without a DC-DC charger in the van your deep cycle AGMs will never get fully charged while touring unless you connect to 240v at a caravan park overnight. Not really satisfactory if you do free camping.

[Barboots]

... except most vans have solar, which will finish off the charge cycle.