Should we built a garage for BT?

Hello MH,
We built a shed with the solar sheeting in the roof and there is enough light entering the space to well and truly charge the batteries.

From discussions at Copeton with batteries not lasting much over a year because vans were left with their battery chargers plugged in and on - we leave our fridge on which draws down the batteries enough to allow the solar charge to be received and used.

As we are from a building background we would expect that to have the BT protected is beneficial. No matter how UV resistant manufactured materials are these days the sun is a powerful beast and over time has a detrimental impact on exposed materials - beit paint, plastics, rubber, or silicon they all break down over time and become brittle to some extent.

Besides the benefit of protection from storm damage, hail & hardwood sap from trees if you have gums nearby.
We think a shed is a good investment. Hope this helps with your desicision.

Cheers,
Helen

G'day Jim & Judy,

We built this (Photo attached) 8.4 x 4.2 shed with 4m wide x 3.1high door opening in 2001 for about $8000(incl conc. floor), and have had our 18ft BT in it since day 1 (June 02), except ,of course, when on the road. Keeps it free of bird droppings, dust, rain and hail. We have had 240v 15amp power connected, plus a couple of Alcynite sheets to keep the solar happy (Just). Windows on left side (west) and rear, plus a double sliding glass door at the back. Shelves on one side ensure safe storage for all things BT....camping gear etc. Even though we have a big back and front yard, we feel it has been thoroughly worth the effort.

We have a 6.5m wide gravel apron in front and manoeuvring the van in is tight but okay with LC100. Makes it easier with a front towbar to get in and out.

Get some quotes from farm shed manufacturers.

Hope this helps........cheers for now..........Rob & Liz

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TRIED POSTING PHOTO BY CUT/PASTE BUT I DON'T THINK IT WORKED!

The question of caring for batteries has been raised in this post. It is of obvious interest due to the cost of replacing batteries whose life has been shortened through incorrect care. We received our new BT in July this year and the intructions we received from BTi were that the battery charger we had would best care for the batteries by being left on all of the time.

I'm not technical, but my understanding is that a very low float charge is applied all of the time and every week the charger does something to give the batteries a 'shot in the arm' to keep them in top shape.

When researching my BT I had read a lot of posts from the previous user group site about boiling batteries and all kinds of problems with chargers being on all of the time. However, I gather that the charger system now used is an improved version where one of the features is that the batteries are best cared for by the charger being left on constantly.

I would appreciate the input of anyone of a more technical persuasion as I cringe at the thought (cost) of 4 replacement glass mat batteries.

Phil

Ours also lives besides the house, as we bought a bigger van than a trailer spot we allocated when we built the house.
We get occasional salt spray on the back of the van and have been worried for some time. We have had a little corrosion on things like steps, but all in all not bad.
The hail damage this year changed our focus and xmas consists of totally reorganising the front garden to take a 6 x 6m carport sideways on our block.
The good news is the van has been blocking access to the trailer (read boat) space, so options open up.