VSR battery isolator
Hi, I had to disconnect all my electrical system and reconnect everything again and since I did my VSR started to click on and off Everytime I am turning on my inverter or using the water pump (basically using the only two things running power right now in the van).
Where does that could come from ? Earthing, bad connexion at battery terminals? Dangerous ?
Hope I am clear English not being my first language.
Cheers
Garance
Greetings & Welcome!
Let me start by saying that I thoroughly dislike VSR’s! A plain old cheap isolator/relay/solenoid or shut off switch is much more reliable.
For yours, you need to determine what is happening both before and after the click. If the click is disconnecting the two batteries when the engine isn’t running, you MIGHT be okay. If it’s connecting them, then you have problems. They should never be connected unless the engine is running.
Cheers!
Hi!! Thank you for answering !!!
The light is off when the engine is off,
The light is ON when engine is ON and a bit after you turn off the engine.
When we try to use the inverter with engine off, the isolator is starting to click and connecting both batteries I guess.
Greetings!
Check to see if your VSR is directional, and hooked up in the right direction.
Solenoids make for cheap and reliable isolators. Usually under $20 from a battery shop. You want a “normally open” one as opposed to a
“normally closed” one. It will take a trigger wire to the fuse box, to something that is fused, but only works when the key is turned on.
When that wire is energized (engine running), it will connect both batteries so the house battery will be charged. When the key is off, they
will be disconnected from each other.
No fancy electronics to go bad, solenoids are time tested as pretty darned reliable. The one I have in my current van has been working
reliably for over 10 years now.
I would also get a load test done on your house battery. If your VSR isn’t working properly, it could have damaged your house battery.
Also worth mentioning in case you need to replace your house battery, I have been buying almost new deep cycle batteries from auto wrecking yards for a while now, usually for under $20. My last one lasted for a little over 7 years, not bad for $18. Just make sure you’re getting a deep cycle battery and not a starter battery.
Cheers!
I have reasons to think that my isolator is not the problem, maybe the new inverter (second hand) I just installed put is defective or the solar charger controller, or the water pump ? I can try with another switch but I would have love to identify the problem before buying new gear.
Greetings!
Use a jumper cable to bypass your isolator, start your rig, and see if everything works normally. If it does, it’s the isolator.
The inverter shouldn’t effect the water pump if it’s turned off.
Cheers!