Chris

Rick, have you fixed it yet? Ours has just started doing something similar. Ours is going beep due to what it says is low voltage in the system when we know the voltage is super high and batteries are full. i guess we have to get a new one too; ours is the PLM 60.

John and Jo, when did you get yours put in?

We are comfortably ensconced down at Deep Creek. Internet working, sat TV up, fridge going into overdrive....but it is not unduly warm. A cool change has come up. And the lithium batteries seem to be performing brilliantly. We now have approx 450 ah of available power from a total capacity of 520 ah. This is because the system stops us from overcharging and undercharging. I can't recall at which point of SOC it stops charging but stops discharging at 10% ( I think!). The wonderful Victron monitor tells us the current % of available power, then the amount coming in from the solar panels in both ah and watts, then how many ah's to fill to full, then a voltage reading. Whew, so much information! There is more info in different settings, including which specific cells are playing up if that is happening. it is amazing. And our installer was thorough and professional. He has even checked back with us to make sure it is all going well.

As some of you know, we have had new lithium batteries installed in the van, but so far we have not had time to take the van away to test the new system. Obviously we have tried it out here at home by using the toaster and coffee machine (gosh that was handy during the extensive blackouts we have had) but the system needs a good workout to see how it responds to daily use. It will also be handy to see how long the batteries take to re-charge. The new system includes 520ah of lithium, and we already had 520 watts of solar panels (as well as a portable 100 watt panel) and a 1800 watt inverter. Our very good fortune was in having one of Australia's foremost experts and installers of lithium now living close to where we live. Terry Covill is over at Mannum (SA) and goes by the business name of T1 Lithium. I will report back on how the system goes when we get back from four days of camping, which is going to be at Deep Creek Conservation Park near Victor Harbor.

We hope everyone is able to enjoy the New Year out and about travelling with their vans. Travel safely and make wonderful memories.

I have done some checking and apparently this is not so any longer. I have found the following advice: Several folks have told me not to let batteries sit on concrete. Why is that? Is it because the cold concrete would cool the battery too much? Steen Hvidd - Dolan Springs, Arizona Your question is a frequent one. Many people have the impression that when batteries sit on concrete, energy "leaks out" or they are ruined. The short answer is that letting modern batteries sit on concrete does not harm or discharge them in any way. However, this legend is historically based in fact. The first lead-acid batteries consisted of glass cells that were enclosed in tar-lined wooden boxes. A damp concrete floor could cause the wood to swell, breaking the glass inside. The Edison cell (i.e. the nickel-iron battery) that preceded the rubber-cased battery was encased in steel. Those that weren't isolated in crates would discharge into concrete quite easily. Later battery cases used primitive hardened rubber, which was somewhat porous and could contain lots of carbon. A moist concrete floor combined with the carbon in the battery cases could create electrical current between the cells, discharging them. None of this is a problem with modern batteries — safe in their hard plastic shells. In fact, concrete is generally an excellent surface on which to place a battery bank. The electrolyte in a battery sitting on an extremely cold floor with very hot air around it could stratify, causing damage from sulfation; whereas concrete provides good thermal mass to buffer any temporarily extreme temperatures in the battery compartment.

I hope Val already knows this! I will tell him. ? .We are only half an hour away from Hahndorf! The expert we have just used is at nearby Mannum. T1 Lithium, Terry Covill 0414 819 826. He is an incredibly knowledgeable and helpful bloke and would advise what the go is. But from our experience it is fine

We are only half an hour away from Hahndorf! The expert we have just used is at nearby Mannum. T1 Lithium, Terry Covill 0414 819 826. He is an incredibly knowledgeable and helpful bloke and would advise what the go is. But from our experience it is fine to swap brands. Lord only knows we did it a few times. Have a couple of still very good 120 ah batteries sitting in the shed just come out of our Top Ender after the new lithiums were installed! chris

May you all have a great, safe and healthy Christmas and New Year. Travel smoothly with no hassles. Enjoy good friendships and family.

This thread is a great example of Kedron owners all helping each other out. This is what it is all about, hey?

Hi Graeme and Anne. Welcome to the Kedron family. You have many happy adventures ahead of you in your new baby, and already you have had a taste of what is out there! Keep posting your trip reports; we love seeing where people are travelling. Chris

FRIDGE REPAIRS State/ Territory: NT Roe-Aire Refrigeration Repairs Alice Springs 3 Hele Crescent Phone 08 8562 2365 these guys did a great job repairing and then re- gassing our van fridge earlier this year. They will come to your caravan park, or they have a giant workshop for undercover repairs if necessary.

Welcome to the forum and Kedron family! I agree with Merv and Di's post above. Any teething problems can be ironed out by a quick phone call to the factory. They are responsive and helpful in the extreme. Be aware they shut down over Christmas though - like all caravan builders- so don't delay if you have an issue. when you think about how complex a beast a van is it is amazing there are not more minor issues, really. I am not excusing errors, just saying that an item which is not tested out of the factory u til you drive it out can understandably have something small go wrong. Major issues are not excusable, of course.

Yes GrantnCarol, the forum is a treasure trove of great advice and helpful people! We have certainly benefitted from it over the years. This is the site we used for the plate: http://www.numberplates4fun.com/. And at at the time, Val wrote these instructions on how he did it. "I made the bracket out of some sheet iron I had. The wiring actually comes from the rear clearance light at the top back right hand corner. I had the vanity cupboard out at the time and was able to connect into the wiring there and then pass it down behind the toilet. It happened to be a convenient way. I could not see where I could easily get into the wiring because it goes through the frame and under the cladding. Might be worth contacting Kedron for their advice."

Here is the photo of our relocated plate

Yes this topic got a fair workout on various fora and Facebook sites. See http://caravanersforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=58145&hilit=Number+plate Kedron are aware of the issue and are now locating the plates appropriately.. we moved ours down to the bumper bar between the two spare tyres, with wiring and the little illuminating light above it. then we ordered a number plate from a commercial firm which read "Top Ender" and put that over the old site, to cover the screw holes etc. I had a photo of it all somewhere and if I find it I will post here.

John and Jo, we are certainly impressed by Terry's knowledge and experience with lithiums. We have friends whose system was installed by him and it works beautifully.. we also met up with another van in WA whose install was done by Terry and he was very happy indeed.

Ha Vulcan, you are probably right. It is costing an arm and leg! but we made a decision some time ago that when the current AGM batteries were aging we would replace them with the LiFePO4 batteries. In recent times their price has escalated of course.... Altho' not on the road permanently we do go away for longish periods each year and would love to have the extra capacity of the lithiums. And the weight saving, as you say. And the more efficient charging. i would like to think it will add value to the van but that is probably not going to be the case.....

Well, we have finally decided to go for a 520ah lithium install in our van. Readers here may recall that the issue was what size install was likely to be best for us. We dithered between a 400 ah or 520ah system. Currently we have 480ah of AGM batteries, complemented by 520 watts solar on the roof and a portable 120 solar panel. We decided to go for 520 as it fits the boot cavity where the old batteries were, and we think it is better to have more than less. We have a capacity to charge them. We are boosting the solar panels and ordered another 200 watts I think... The van went over to Mannum today on its holiday resort rejuvenation and will have its new system ready soon we hope. I will report on the progress.

Following on from Ann's helpful post, I have downloaded the manual, and am attaching a copy. It can be handy to refer to instead of rifling through the folder of manuals... Washing machine user manual.pdf

Goodness, all these comments are heartwarming! And I thank you for them. Yes, it is a great team we have here on the forum, and it amazes me that so many people make such a valuable contribution to the continued success of the group and its forum. I will have a short break from the moderating role and be back in the near future. In the meantime, I echo Lea's words of a little while ago and urge everyone to use the forum to share trip reports, ideas and plans with the whole Kedron family through this forum. And pictures. We all love pictures. Chris

I have decided to step down from my position as Moderator of the forum. It has been a privilege to undertake this role (as well as a stint as Vice President) and I have worked with some wonderful people from this group in that time. But it is time for me to resign. There are personal reasons for the decision. Of course I will continue to be a member of the Kedron Owners Group and hope to continue to make a contribution where I can. And as the AGM is fast approaching and a mostly new team will be in place thereafter, I wish them all well with their efforts on our behalf. The committee and Webmaster perform minor miracles behind the scenes of the forum, and I wish to thank Lea for her work especially, as the Webmaster. The Secretary (Sue), President (Tony) and Vice President (Cathy) perform such valuable work too, and I thank them for that contribution. Happy travels!

Pepper, from my experience, KEDRON are very good at honouring their commitments. But I am sure if you wanted something more concrete they would provide it. It is my view this would be a reasonable request. i note your membership details ( which show on the left hand side of the screen) say you currently have a XC, but you post that you are thinking of buying a van from Kedron. Do you currently have a van as shown in your registration details?

On our first van we had tyre covers for the tyres on the back of the van which were supplied by Kedron. They had the word KEDRON in large letters emblazoned on them. We would like new covers which have the same branding. Has anyone used a firm which custom makes covers like this? is Kedron still making them anymore? I know they stopped providing them for some reason.

Lea, it had its moments. Like the two days this week getting the fridge fixed. When the van had to go into the workshop it made me realise how reliant we are on our home on wheels while travelling. We had to fill in the day until time to pick it up, some five or six hours later.