Newbie seeking Anderson plug wiring advise?

Shark

New Member
Feb 12, 2012
10
5
3
Wollongong, NSW
Gday all,
This is the first time I have posted on this site, so I apologise in advance if I ask too many silly questions.
I previously owned a cub camper and had many enjoyable holidays in that with wife & youngest daughter age 11 (2 older girls are too busy for camping), however recently purchased a 2009 16.49.3 OB.
We love our expanda, just needs to stop raining so we can use it.
We do a mix of caravan parks and free camping, but definitely plan to do more free camping now that we have the luxury of the expanda.
We are booked to travel to the Gold Coast at easter.
There are a few improvements that I would like to make to the wiring on the van, and I know there is lots of information on this site, but I'm easily confused? I hope to clarify some details re wiring issues.
There are 3 things that I want to achieve:
1. Charge the van battery while driving.
2. Power the fridge while driving.
3. Connect portable solar panel, probably 120W, for charging battery while camping.
The van has a 100amp battery with setec ST35-11 and 150l fridge. I have read that the 12 pin plug is supplied as standard with the 150l fridge, but I only have a 7 pin plug.
The van has an anderson plug wired, but I think it was done by the person that I purchased the van from and the cable looks too thin, so I will redo that.
I had an anderson plug wired to the car by an auto electrician and I believe that correct cable/isolation/fuse is installed, but when connected to the van there is insufficient volts to charge the battery. The auto electrician says the anderson plug wiring on the van is the problem.
I will redo the aderson plug wiring on the van, but my questions are:
1. Can a single anderson plug do all above mentioned?
2. Does the power from the car connect through the setec unit, or connect direct to the van battery terminals?
3. I have read that the fridge power can piggy back of the single anderson plug, how is that done?
4. If I need a separate anderson plug for the solar panel, does that connect through the setec unit or direct to the battery terminals?
 

benandjordansmum

Active Member
Feb 8, 2012
170
52
28
Logan Village, Qld
Hi Shark

We would be interested to hear suggestions as we have just bought a 2nd hand 2010 16.49.1 also, but ours came with the 12 pin plug. I spoke at depth with the guys in the parts division at Brisbane camperland and as our car has the 7 pin and the Anderson plug and dual battery in the car he recommended to convert the van over as the Anderson plus was better source for charging or something. It was also a better option for us with the dual battery and the fact we use the Anderson plug on the rear with the arb air compressor to inflate the tyres.

You were talking about using the Anderson plug for solar, was that with the portable solar panels?
 

ElectricGuru

Member
Sep 5, 2011
189
22
18
SE Brisbane
Hey Shark

Welcome to the forum. Good to see another 16'er here. No such thing as silly questions here, we are all learning too.

Know what you mean about the rain... :rain:

I have a very similar setup with the van and vehicle wiring, due to what the last owner wired in. Works very well with a couple of minor adjustments I have made.

I have a standard 7-pin plug for the lights and an Anderson plug for the fridge and battery. From the vehicle I have a 50 A supply with a auto cutout switch so the caravan cannot draw off the vehicle starting batteries when stopped. The Anderson plug itself is rated at 50 amps but it will be the wiring and connections that govern how much you can draw.

The SETEC unit should only come into play when supplied by 240 Vac at a park but depending on how the battery is connected, it may require some fine tuning. Can you please post some details how the battery is connected and where the Anderson plug is wired to?

The Anderson plug on my van powers the 12 Vdc component of the fridge and provides enough to just keep the charge (not full) on the van battery when driving. If the volts are not getting to the battery, then the cable may need to get upgraded (pending connection details). Also, may pay to check the vehicle alternator has enough capacity since newer cars have a controlled output on the alternator that may not be enough to fully supply the load while driving.

Think of it as water in a pipe, if the pipe is too small then the pressure drop through the line is too great and there is no flow. Also, if the pipe is large and there are no restrictions, then there is lots of flow, ie a short circuit so use fuses with any connection to/from the battery.

For the solar we have the portable panel as well but I found that the volts were not getting there due to the size and length of the wiring. I removed the regulator off the back of the panel and installed it next to the battery since maximum charge voltage can be attained by minimising the distance between the regulator and battery. (Don’t forget a fuse)

I also upsized the cable on the panel and installed a separate circuit on the van with a different plug so no chance of connecting the solar panel direct to the battery. Batteries don't like 17-22 Vdc so ensure that there is a regulator between the panel and the battery at all times. If you keep the solar standard, you should be able to charge the battery through the Anderson plug to a point but it may not be full. Most vans with a solar allowance have the reg next to the battery with the panels on top for maximum efficiency but that can get limited output if parked under trees for shade.

Another thing I have installed is a low voltage cutout switch on the fridge circuit to prevent the battery discharging too far. Batteries can die if discharged below a certain level, usually below 10 Vdc for extended periods.

Let me know if there is anything else. Cheers.

Gil
 

Moto Moto

Forum Moderator
Staff member
Mar 15, 2011
1,553
567
113
The Gong
Woo Hoo! Another member from The Gong:whoo:

Unfortunatley i am completley useless when it comes to anything electrical, so i will leave the answers to the experts.

Just wanted to say hi and congrats in the new(ish) van:welcome:
 

Shark

New Member
Feb 12, 2012
10
5
3
Wollongong, NSW
Thanks for the replies, much appreciated, I will try to post some photos in the next few days.
Cheers MotoMoto, I noticed you're from the gong.
 

boots33

Well-Known Member
Jun 25, 2011
708
679
93
Maudsland Gold Coast Hinterland Qld
Hi Shark and welcome as well...
You have picked a beauty for your first post, sure to get a few comments on this subject. You are correct that the "standard" way jayco use is a 12 pin plug if you get the larger fridge. Expanda did a good layout for this here http://www.expandasdownunder.com/sh...er-12-Volt-Fridge-Hotwire-12-Volt-Hotwire-DIY

Of course there are many variations in use on a wide number of vans. The trick is to find the way that works best for you and can be done with as little mods as possible. Really to give an informed opinion we need to know exactly how your setup is wired and what cable has been used.

You say that when connected you don't have enough power to charge the battery, this is highly unlikely as even a very small wire will allow some current through to the battery, or at least melt trying! I would be looking for a blown fuse or open connection in the circuit somewhere, probably close to the battery.

As you say your anderson plug has been wired by an auto sparky I would hope he has used at least 8b&s cable or better still 6b&s cable. You should have at least 8b&s if you want to run your fridge and charge your battery off the one connection. have a look at the current rating for the various cables here http://www.sidewinder.com.au/page106.html

You already have an anderson plug so I wouldn't bother with a 12pin plug as long as you understand that if you stop for an extended period on a trip you will have to remember to turn the fridge off the 12v setting so as not to flatten your battery. With that in mind here is how I think you should proceed at this stage. if we assume Your vehicle is wired ok then all you need to do is look at the wiring on the van itself. I would replace the small wiring on you current anderson with 6b&s cable and run it all the way back to the battery. You will need to run both the positive and negative leads, do not ground the negative on the chassis, connect it directly to the negative of your battery. at the end of the positive lead connect it to some type of connector block ( one of our 240v sparkies might be able to suggest a suitable type) and mount it in a small insulated box. from there you can easily branch off to other areas as needed.

To connect this positive to your battery you have two choices... you can connect it through your setec or go strait to the battery. Both methods have their pros and cons but either way you must install a fuse in this circuit and it can be no larger than 30A if you decide to go through the setec unit. As for your fridge you need to check the rating on the fuses installed in your setec. I have an st20 and the fuses are only 10amp so would not be suitable to connect to the fridge. If your st-35 has a spare connection and is fitted with a 20Amp fuse then that is where you should connect your fridge. this way your battery will be protected by the setec low voltage cut-out circuit.If however you have no spare 20Amp connection available you really have no choice but to run it direct from your battery to get the required power (15amp draw with a 20Amp fuse). This means you will be by-passing the low voltage cut-out circuit of the setec so i woud do as EG has suggested and fit a low voltage cut-out to this line as well...remember this wire must be fitted with a 20Amp fuse as well.

This now leaves us the solar panel which at this time I would just leave the regulator on the solar panel and see how you go. This will allow you to fit an anderson plug to the lead coming from the panel and simply plug it into your vans (or vehicles) anderson plug to charge the desired battery. I would also fit a fuse at the solar panel to guard against shorts in the lead. As EG has mentioned this is not the most efficient place for the regulator to be (closest to the battery is best) but it means you can use your anderson plug already present rather than running another lead at this time. It also means you can easily use your panel to charge other vehicles etc. which is an added bonus with a portable panel. You can always move the regulator and run the extra wiring at a later date if you feel the need.
 

chartrock

Forum Patriarch
Staff member
Sep 26, 2010
6,127
7,392
113
Gold Coast Hinterland
G'day and welcome Shark. Good to see your maiden trip is up to God's own country, which is now 'under new management.' Great advice above from two of our experts on van power.

I had the van "prewired" for solar after telling the dealer I would be using portable panels so they just wired an Anderson plug through to the battery. The advantage of this is I just hook it up to a plug on the car ( which is wired directly from my auxhilary battery) and the battery is charged from the car while driving. The fridge is wired through an ignition relay direct from the car cranking battery so it runs while driving but shuts off when stopped and does not flatten the starting battery. Longer stops we just switch the gas on.

When needed, I just plug the solar panels into the anderson plug on the van but I can also plug into the car connection and charge my aux battery if I want. Works for me. :thumb:
 

ElectricGuru

Member
Sep 5, 2011
189
22
18
SE Brisbane
Hello all, more info on the cable sizing that we have been speaking of.

Below is what voltage you would see at the end of the circuit based on some standard cable sizes. This is calculated using 13.8 V from the car and 10/20 amps of load for a 10 metre run (note this counts as both the +ve 10 m there and -ve 10 m back that would be average for the car to van cable run).

Cable at 10A
6 B&S (13.29mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 13.55 V
8 B&S (8.36mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 13.40 V
10 B&S (5.26mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 13.16 V

Cable at 20 A
6 B&S (13.29mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 13.29 V
8 B&S (8.36mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 13.00 V
10 B&S (5.26mm[SUP]2[/SUP]) = 12.52 V

Sorry if it's a bit messy, I couldn't get the table working too well.

Note that at the 20 A range, the voltage at the battery is still well below float voltage (13.8 V) but for anything smaller, you will be getting the battery supplying the load instead of charging. Fridge load is about 12-13 A as the battery charging may be anything up to 10-15 A depending on voltage.

Boots is right on the money saying that you should use a 6B&S cable for all major cable runs or even doing two runs that would split the voltage drop across the two cables. :)

Also depends on the type of battery that you have as some types require higher voltages (13.8 - 14.4 V) to fully charge.
 

smwilk

New Member
Apr 6, 2012
29
2
3
Gold Coast
Hi everyone, I'm about to order my Expanda. My car also has 7 pin plug and Anderson plug. My question is whether to have jayco do the wiring or me? Anyone have any comment on the wire they use, what they charge and whether it is easy to do I.e. through the drawbar etc
 

straydingo

Well-Known Member
Jul 4, 2011
1,137
645
113
Melbourne
Just order the van with 7 pin + anderson. it shouldn't cost any extra (at least mine didn't). 6mm was used with a length similar to the 7 pin cable
 

Capt. Gadget

Obsessive & Compulsive Gadget Man
Dec 1, 2011
1,894
1,843
113
59
Busselton W.A.
bbmwa.com.au
I too have been giving a bit of thought to which is the easiest and most economical way to go with the Anderson plug. I have been holding off and reading what everyone else is doing before jumping in. The only thing I'm stuck with is where to connect it to in the Van would I be correct in assuming that it could be connected to the same place as the wire that runs to my 7 pin plug and Is there any advantage / disadvantage in leaving the existing one there or should I remove it. I have an Auxiliary Battery in the rear of my ute which Charges from the alternator but can't draw from the front battery if it was to go flat. So I would connect the other end to that and use 6B&S Cable, 50 amp Anderson Plugs and a 20? amp fuse.
The Benefits I can see from this would be
1: That my fridge is connected to the setec's low voltage cut out switch and shouldn't flatten the Van Battery to the point of Death
2: I would be getting a better Charge for the van battery due to the increased size of Wire from the vehicle
3: I could connect my Solar Panels with Regulator (when I get some) to the Anderson Plug and charge the van battery
4: If I did forget and leave it plugged in I would only flatten the Auxiliary Battery in my Ute

Only disadvantage I can see is that the Solar would work better if the regulator was closer to the Battery.
Are there any other disadvantages or advantages by doing it another way

Cheers Grant
 

Angus

Member
Apr 13, 2012
71
35
18
Brisbane
I asked about this the other day when ordering our van Anderson v 12 pin as the main aim for me was keeping the fridge cool while on the road they talked me into going for the 12 pin plug . Hope I have made the right choice ??????
 

straydingo

Well-Known Member
Jul 4, 2011
1,137
645
113
Melbourne
Angus, there are a few other posts of 12 pin vs anderson, but I think the general gist is that although it does the job, the 12 pin is possibly a bit too light weight. The 12 pin is supposedly fine for the purpose of the fridge, but if it is a concern, you can still change the order until you do the final pre-build confirmation of all the details.
If getting an anderson, it will also cost a few hundred to have the car wired likewise....
 

straydingo

Well-Known Member
Jul 4, 2011
1,137
645
113
Melbourne
Angus, there are a few other posts of 12 pin vs anderson, but I think the general gist is that although it does the job, the 12 pin is possibly a bit too light weight. The 12 pin is supposedly fine for the purpose of the fridge, but if it is a concern, you can still change the order until you do the final pre-build confirmation of all the details.
If getting an anderson, it will also cost a few hundred to have the car wired likewise....
 

fraserL322

New Member
Mar 4, 2012
19
3
3
Another variation I'm going to do:
I have a 7 pin plug and 50A anderson plug wired to permanent 12v in the car via 6BS cable.
I'm wiring it to the Van batterirs via a Redarc VSR which will be in the van right next to the van batteries.
Now, on this relay there is a small sealed circut that energises the relay when the voltage reaches 13.2v, this circut outputs to a small pin on the relay to turn it on, so I'm pulling voltage from this output to drive a smaller automotive 20A relay to switch the fridge on.
This way the fridge won't run off the van batteries once the car stops charging the van batteries. (I have 3 x 55Ah)
My car's system runs at 14.3v and I'm getting 14.0 at the van whilst the engine is on and the batteries are charging (this was after 4 days of use with no charging) - I will be fitting a dc-dc charger later to improve the charging rate/voltage later, and will place it after the relay (on the van battery side) and will run the fridge from the car side of the dc-dc charger, after the VSR.

Any thoughts?

Fraser
 

Burnsy

Well-Known Member
Mar 26, 2012
2,663
977
113
Newcastle
Hi Fraser,

I also have 2 supplies, 7 pin for fridge through relay and Anderson for charging battery which is from aux battery in tug with redarc isolator. I get 14v to battery in van and also have lighter socket direct from van battery through 10a fuse to run my waeco, which basically runs fron tug. When car is not running waeco runs from van and aux battery in car.
I checked voltage in van battery the day after we arrived at Easter and had 12.9v. If I'm getting 14v to my van battery I'm not sure weather I need a dc-dc charger?

I guess I'll just keep a check on it and see how it goes but I do plan to put another 100amp battery in van also. Maybe then I'll need a dc-dc charger?
Cheers Burnsy.
 

fraserL322

New Member
Mar 4, 2012
19
3
3
Burnsy, I think in my case at least, 14.0v isn't really enough to supply a "top off" charge.
This is quite a "sensitive" issue, and some people have very strong feelings about it.
However, I have noticed that most good quality chargers will charge at 14.4 -14.7v depending on which battery type it is set for.
In my case I have 3 55Ah AGM batteries and these are recommended to be charged with voltage limited to 14.4v. ultimately they will fully charge with 14.0v, but will take an awfully long time to get there.

I'll definately go for a 3-stage dc-dc charger before next season (probably around the 20A )


Cheers,
Fraser
 

benandjordansmum

Active Member
Feb 8, 2012
170
52
28
Logan Village, Qld
When we bought our 2nd hand 2010 16.49.1 about 6 weeks ago, I had a lengthy discussion with the guys from Jayco in Brisbane (they had originally sold the van). The Expanda had a 12 pin plug but our car has dual batteries with a 7 pin plug and anderson plug. Knowing what was in our Expanda, he recommended our best option for charge etc, was the have the Expanda converted over to 7 pin and anderson plug. We got a local auto electrician out to change it all over. We did our first free camp for 5 days over Easter and all was good!! (we had a 1 1/2 hour drive to where we were going also, before we switched the fridge over to gas)
 

Burnsy

Well-Known Member
Mar 26, 2012
2,663
977
113
Newcastle
Hi benandjordansmum,

So does that mean you don't have a dc-dc charger? I'm also looking forward to free camping, what did you do for a shower? (sorry don't mean to change the thread topic)

Cheers.