On the Road: Aux Battery Not Charging

[dcaver01]

Sorry if there's already a topic that addresses this issue.

86' Vanagon Westy. Gowesty Aux battery setup.

The secondary battery is not charging as of two days ago (was working well for the past few weeks).

Reading the isolator solenoid, while running, I get 14v out of one side (front) and 10v (same as secondary battery) out of the other side (back). Checked wiring, grounds and inline fuse, all appear to be good. No "click" on the solenoid when key removed from ignition.

Recommendations on what to check/try next? My instinct is to try a new relay or solenoid. Does anyone have part numbers for those or suggestions where I could pick these up between Seattle and Vancouver BC? Read on another thread the relay is a dual 86 and likely not to be found at local autoparts stores, that true?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[fxr]

You can happily replace the Gowesty huge solenoid with an 80/90A relay (not so common, often a motorcycle starter relay) or if you're confident about the currents involved an ordinary 30/40A relay will do. Both available at any FLAPS.
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Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300

[dcaver01]

[fxr]

No - they are Very Common Parts. Get into a real live shop and eyeball.
_________________
Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300

[PDXWesty]

You can also bypass the relay altogether and you won’t damage anything. Wire the batteries together and disconnect if you want while parked for extended periods. All the relay does is keep you from draining the main battery by only connecting them while you’re driving. You can manually manage that process as well if in a pinch.
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89 Westy 2.1 Auto

[MarkWard]

You want to search "Continuous Duty Relay". They are similar looking to the old Ford remote starter relay, but are designed for continuous loads. The starter relay is not.


My Yandina died after a couple years on a road trip. I bypassed it for the rest of the trip and when I returned, decided to put in a large battery switch from the marine industry. I also upgraded the cables so the engine can start off of either battery.

When the van sits, both batteries are disconnected from the van by the switch. It's not as automatic as some prefer, but it works.
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[dcaver01]

Thanks for the replies.

Replaced the relay and solenoid today and still no luck.

To manually charge the aux battery, do I take the red line coming out of the relay that goes into the side (front) of the solenoid and hook that to the battery positive?

[MarkWard]

I can't tell you how to direct connect them without seeing your wiring, but you would want the positive battery terminals linked together. Most likely one of the wires on the GW relay is from the positive terminal of the starter battery. It should have power all the time. Hope that is of some help.
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[Dampcamper]

Personally, I like this unit from Blue Sea Systems. Requires 3 wires: One to each battery and a ground. Senses when voltage is high enough to charge the other battery then ties them together.

https://www.bluesea.com/products/7610/SI-ACR_Automatic_Charging_Relay_-_12_24V_DC_120A

Available from your favorite marine supply house or through Amazon.

[dcaver01]

Thanks MarkWard-
Figured out the right wires and am able to charge the van manually.

Dampercamper-
That's pretty awesome. I'd just eliminate the solenoid and blue activation wire with this setup?

[Dampcamper]

re: Blue Seas 7610:
Yes, the minimum hookup for this to be functional, you already have: the two heavier wires to/from each battery, and a good solid ground connection. I'm not big on the "pure magic, fixes everything" devices but this is a simple module to install, it senses raised voltage (indicating a charge state) and ties the two batteries together while that higher voltage exists. Doesn't need ignition switch wire (but see below) or anything else. And, it works.

(In the link I included is a Tech page link, it includes a diagram and notes. Options you can add are an external LED that shows when batteries are combined, and a "Starter Isolation" connection from your solenoid wire for your engine starter to untie the batteries when you crank your engine - this prevents the Aux batt from "browning out" during engine cranking, probably not an issue in the average Westy but when used in marine applications, for instance, it could dump or damage some of the electronics in the bridge due to lower voltage. Starter Isolation also prevents trying to draw excessive current through the wires between Iso relay and battery, if smaller than, say, #4 gauge you could conceivably have an unsafe current going through those wires during ccranking.)
Fisheries Marine Supply up near Gasworks Park (in Seattle) should have these in stock, close to $100 with tax. West Marine can also supply. If you're not in a hurry you might save some change by ordering online.

[Corwyn]

I had this same problem last year and discovered the wire going from the starting battery to the gowesty isolator was 14 gauge :-O

What I did have was a really nice heating element under the van, but there was insufficient current being transferred to charge the second battery. I upped to 8 gauge wire and everything is hunky dory now (do people really say that anymore?).
_________________
'90 White Westy ("The Longship")
FAS Gen V 2.0
The Annual Baja Rally
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=604813&highlight=baja

"If anything's" gonna happen, it's gonna happen out there"
~ Captain Ron ~

[dcaver01]

[MarkWard]

[dcaver01]