New charger: upgrade or not

Bawwi replied on 13/06/2022 11:52

Bawwi

Posted on 13/06/2022 11:52

Hi All,

I'm about to refresh my caravan charger as it has deceased. Whilst shopping for it online, one business mildly suggests an upgrade to a 3 stage charger. I understand the benefits and why you should, but wanted to check here to see if anyone has any opinion on it? The cost difference isn't overly expensive.

Current unit: Pt No. 730119 - BCA Power Unit/Transformer - 20Amp

Upgrade repacement unit: PO123 Caravan/Motorhome Dual Stage Battery Charger 20A Powerpart/BCA

Caravan: Bailey Senator Series 6 Arizona

This all assumes that the upgrade uint is compatable with my caravan.

14 replies

EmilysDad replied on 13/06/2022 14:11

Member

EmilysDad

Caravanner

Posted on 13/06/2022 14:11

if I had the option of having a 'smart' charger fitted instead of the original 'dumb' charger I'd go for the 'smart' one 👍

1 person likes this

Bawwi replied on 13/06/2022 17:35

Member

Bawwi

Caravanner from Essex

Posted on 13/06/2022 14:11 by EmilysDad

if I had the option of having a 'smart' charger fitted instead of the original 'dumb' charger I'd go for the 'smart' one 👍

Posted on 13/06/2022 17:35

I think it's a question of wheighing up the effort to fit a new one vs the easy option of fitting the original.

EmilysDad replied on 13/06/2022 20:50

Member

EmilysDad

Caravanner

Posted on 13/06/2022 17:35 by Bawwi

I think it's a question of wheighing up the effort to fit a new one vs the easy option of fitting the original.

Posted on 13/06/2022 20:50

Im not sure why, but I'd assumed that someone else was doing the work for you, though I wouldn't have thought that there'd be much difference in fitting either.

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replied on 13/06/2022 21:02

Posted on 13/06/2022 21:02

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Bawwi replied on 14/06/2022 09:19

Member

Bawwi

Caravanner from Essex

Posted on 13/06/2022 21:02 by

Such a big improvement for so little effort. I can't imagine why anyone would fit an original standard replacement.

Posted on 14/06/2022 09:19

Is the wiring simple enough to install? I can't find any install guides.

Metheven replied on 14/06/2022 09:53

Member

Metheven

Caravanner

Posted on 14/06/2022 09:53

There will be no difference in the wiring, it will have a kettle type ac input on the casing and a DC output lead/socket to plug into your adjacent DC fuseboard. Hopefully the mountings would be the same as your old one. If not, its not the end of the world to mount it separately.

It's plug and play.

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replied on 14/06/2022 10:20

Posted on 14/06/2022 09:53 by Metheven

There will be no difference in the wiring, it will have a kettle type ac input on the casing and a DC output lead/socket to plug into your adjacent DC fuseboard. Hopefully the mountings would be the same as your old one. If not, its not the end of the world to mount it separately.

It's plug and play.

Posted on 14/06/2022 10:20

The user and all related content has been Deleted User

Bawwi replied on 14/06/2022 11:32

Member

Bawwi

Caravanner from Essex

Posted on 14/06/2022 09:53 by Metheven

There will be no difference in the wiring, it will have a kettle type ac input on the casing and a DC output lead/socket to plug into your adjacent DC fuseboard. Hopefully the mountings would be the same as your old one. If not, its not the end of the world to mount it separately.

It's plug and play.

Posted on 14/06/2022 11:32

You are correct. It was the white wire that was confusing me. Although one of the new units I found has red/2 x black/yellow.

Metheven replied on 14/06/2022 15:55

Member

Metheven

Caravanner

Posted on 14/06/2022 15:55

You will have two DC outputs on your new unit, and hopefully two different shaped plugs. One will supply 13.8v/20 amps to power your caravans DC appliances, and the other will be to smart charge the leisure battery at 6 amps.