You can charge the camping battery while driving or connecting the van to an external power supply. For that, you will need to plug the cable provided (20 meters long) from the plug on the driver´s side of the camper, to an electricity source. The car will show the battery is charging by turning on an indicating light on the camper unit. The 230V sockets should be working now.
If this is not the case, check that the FI fuse and the power source works properly. The FI switch on the Surfer Suite it is located inside the rear closet, above the gas bottle compartment:
Note:
- Do not forget to unplug the power cable before driving off! To do this, press down the blue lever to the left of the plug.
- With a fully charged battery, you will be self-sufficient without a power connection for about 2 days. Then you will need to drive again for some time to recharge the battery or plug your camper in to an external power source.
You can check the charging level in the board unit:
Please keep in mind that campers can´t be charged on the stations for electrical vehicles.
If you want to give the camping battery an extra charge while you are driving, press the "max. charge" symbol in the camper unit:
This will charge the camping battery using the engine power. Be aware that this function can result on a higher diesel consumption.
Please note the following:
- When stationary, do not charge any device in the driver's cab via USB. The starter battery will discharge and the engine may not start!
- 230V sockets: only work with an external power connection
- USB ports and 12V sockets: work without an external power connection, with a charged camping battery (always keep it above 50% or 12V).
- With a full battery, you can be self-sufficient for 1-2 days without a power connection, depending on usage. Then you need to drive for a while to recharge the battery or connect your camper to an external power source.
- 🚗 Slow driving & short distances → hardly any battery charge
- 🛣️ Long drives on motorways → better charge, but takes several hours
- 🔋 The starter battery is charged first, then the camping battery.
- ⚠️ Driving alone is often not enough to fully charge the camping battery.
- 🔌 Recommendation: charge externally every 48 hours to avoid energy shortages (especially at night 💤).
- Don't forget to unplug the power cable before driving off! For some models, you need to press the blue lever next to the plug downwards.
For deeply discharged camping batteries
As camping batteries are not lithium batteries, we advise you never to discharge them below 30%. This can damage the battery. If you suspect that the camping battery is deeply discharged, try the following:
- Connect shore power and run the engine.
- Try this for about 30 minutes. The extra amperage can bring a deeply discharged battery back up to speed.