A different way to get UK Internet TV abroad

Those of you who like TV but travel abroad regularly will know what a pain it can be to tune in to BBC and ITV.

If you have a "normal" Freesat/Sky dish, it will work as far as central or southern France, depending on how big it is. beyond that - ie down into Spain and Portugal, you are looking at using a different satellite and receiver and a 90cm dish, which while not too complicated, is a bit of a pain for normal users.

More recently, owners are turning to the internet to get their BBC and ITV (and many others), but regular users will know that BBC and ITV can tell that you are abroad, and block you. 

You can get round this by using a VPN service, but again, this can get a bit too complicated for the average guy, and BBC and ITV are constantly playing cat and mouse with the VPN services and banning them - so it will work fine for weeks, then disappear.

And if you do use the internet for TV, then you have the added problem that usually you can only really do it easily on your phone laptop or tablet. If you want it on your main TV, you have to connect your device to your TV with an HDMI cable, which can be a pain, and it uses a lot of battery power, especially if you use a laptop.

The other problem is that internet TV uses quite a lot of data, and you have to decide whether to use your UK sim, roaming, or buy a local SIM card. However data prices have come down these last few years, and I find that this problem is nowhere near as bad as it was a few years ago. I find that you can generally buy data for well under €1 per gb, and if you have Netflix and Iplayer on the low quality setting, you can get about 3 hours of viewing out of a gig.

All in all it's always been a bit of a cat and mouse game, and certainly a pain in the arse sometimes. I do it for a hobby, but I know that many others just give up.

So that's the background - now I want to tell you about my latest solution, which I am extremely happy with. What follows assumes you have either a hotspot or wifi router in your van, with enough data for your viewing needs. My favourite 12v router is the Huawei B525 which has big antennas. I am not a fan of those tiny MiFi units - their antennas are too small. 

It revolves around the Amazon Firestick, which costs about £40, and plugs into the HDMI socket of any TV, and converts it to a Smart TV. Even if your TV is smart already, you still need a Firestick for this solution. Then you need to subscribe to a service called UK EXpat TV VPN. It's a few pounds per month. What is different about this service, vs all the other VPN services, is that they guarantee access to UK TV services - so that if UK TV services suddenly have a purge on VPN services and cause a problem, UK Expat make the changes at their end, so you have to do nothing at your end.

The other piece of the jigsaw is that they provide an app that you download to the Firestick, and this app only needs 3 clicks of the remote to start up.

So all you need to do, is switch on the TV, select the HDMI port, wait for the Firestick to start, click on the VPN, and you are then good to go - Iplayer, ITV Hub, Britbox, Netflix, Amazon and all the others, all work perfectly as they do back home.

All you need is enough data in whatever country you are in.

It is also a low power solution, which is important if you spend a lot of time on battery power.

I have been using it for several weeks now, and I am so impressed I decided to blog about it. I used to spend ages messing around with various VPNs and changing things around, but since I got this, it has been a doddle. 

I am not saying this is the only way to get UK internet TV abroad - there are loads of ways if you are techy enough - but I am saying that this is the easiest and simplest I have ever come across - it just works and is easy to use.

This should be of particular interest to anybody who winters abroad in Spain or Portugal (or Italy even) - data is cheap in these countries. France is a bit more awkward, but your satellite system should work in France if you have one.

I should also say that I am am not claiming any originality or credit for this setup - only that I have found it the easiest and most efficient of the many I have tried so far, and that that should make it more accessible to non techy people.

EDIT - If you are using a UK sim card - roaming - then you usually don't need the VPN - the firestick will think it's still in the UK. But if you use a local non UK sim, then the VPN is essential. 

This website is useful for getting data deals in different countries
https://prepaid-data-sim-card.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Europe

And this is UK Expat VPN - I daresay I could get a commission for linking them, but I can't be bothered - not many people read this blog anyway!
https://www.ukexpatvpn.com/

Classic Hymer Buyers Guide - the tough version!

I have just read yet another tale of woe from somebody who bought a van that turned out to be a dog. Every year it is the same story.

So here is the smack in the face guide to how not to buy a classic motorhome! However it must also be said that many sales go without a hitch - honest sellers and willing buyers - but they tend not to shout about it online - you only hear the bad stories.

First thing to remember is that you are buying a box of tricks made from wood and metal that is 20 or even 30 years old. Stick an old fridge or TV, or even an old car in your back garden, and then go away and come back in 20 years - that is the sort of wear and tear you can expect. So the first thing to remember is that no old van is perfect. 

But when you do buy a classic van, there are certain things you should at least check, and are entitled to as a minimum.

There are 3 main areas you have to look at as a bare minimum - damp, appliances and mechanical.

Damp is the number one killer of vans and the most expensive to repair professionally. Fixing damp problems needs experience and can be labour intensive. This makes it expensive if you are using a professional, but also, means that it can be cheap if you do it yourself because your labour is free. But for most buyers, the number one reason to walk away from a van is damp.

It's not rocket science - the major areas for water ingress are easy to see and common sense can detect major problems. Windows are the main culprit - look closely around the windows for soft spots and discolouration.

Look outside at the sealing around the frame - you don't want to see new sealer on top of old - that's a bad sign. However windows are actually easy to remove and reseal - the first one might take you all day, but after that it gets faster - a window can be removed, cleaned and resealed in under an hour.

The worst case scenario for window leaks is that the damp has crept into the wall and the wall has become rotten. This then needs chopping out and replacing. 

Roof lights are the same as windows - check all around for the tell tale signs.

The next place to look is the floor, especially in the areas near the wheel arches that catch all the water spray from the wheels. Look outside, and in.

Then there are the joins where the walls meet the roof. In Mercedes S class classics, they have a single piece fibreglass roof that overlaps the walls, so problems here are potentially less. But in Fiat family B class, it is a traditional caravan style joint with an aluminium extrusion and sealer. It is hard to check this - but get inside the cupboards and poke around.

Finally - use your nose - smell and sniff - damp has a distinctive smell.

I haven't mentioned the use of damp meters - cheap ones are useless, and the good ones need knowledge to interpret the results. If you are really keen on a van - get a professional involved - unfortunately there are not many classic pros left around, most of them have retired, but they do exist.

Next - appliances. I have lost count of the number of people who simply never check that all the appliances are working properly. I see them online all the time - they come on asking for advice, and my first question is - has it ever worked (for you), and the answer is usually no, but the seller either said "we never use it", or it's an easy fix. It isn't! If it was, they would have fixed it.

Water, heat and refrigeration are absolutely fundamental to the basic enjoyment of a motorhome. So it is essential that you see and feel them working. Ask in advance of the viewing for the seller to switch on all the appliances. You need to feel the heat coming out of the hot air ducts. You need to see the fridge working. Ask the seller to switch on the fridge, on gas, at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, beforehand, and place a cup of water in the freezer, and another on the middle shelf. I shouldn't need to say what you should expect. But there is no way to test a fridge if it isn't switched on in advance.

A new campervan fridge is around £900 to buy and fitting is around £300. The commonest fridge problem is "not working on gas" - as long as the fridge is working on mains (again, get proof) then the gas side can usually be fixed - it's a common problem. The parts are cheap if you DIY or a fridge expert will usually fix a gas problem for a couple hundred or so.

You need not walk away from a decent van because it has a faulty fridge - you just need to know what you might be in for.

However - non working appliances also has another, more sinister side - why? If heat and cold and water are so fundamental to having a good time - then why hasn't the previous owner had them fixed? It is a sad fact that some owners should never have really owned a van in the first place - perhaps they tried it, and didn't like it, or perhaps they were just lazy. Either way, if you detect signs like this, then you have to ask - what else hasn't been fixed or maintained. For some, this will be a sign of a bargain, but for others who want a working van with minimum problems - it should be a red flag. You really want an enthusiastic seller who knows everything about the van. The worst sellers are those selling "for a friend".

Heating - most classic Hymers have a Truma heater that both radiates, and blows hot air around the van. Again these can usually be fixed - but dealer labour can be £80 an hour - it soon mounts up. A new heater is around £800 plus fitting, but there are plenty s/h ones - they were not just used in Hymers. But do you want the hassle? To be fair, heater problems are less common than fridge problems. The commonest heater problem is flat batteries in the igniter - so take a couple of AA batteries!

Leisure Batteries - my attitude to batteries is really straightforward. Unless you have an invoice that shows that the battery is newish, then simply budget for a new battery. Batteries are consumables, and have a life of roughly 5 years. So other than testing that the lights work, the water pump pumps and the heater fan spins, don't worry about the battery - it's not a crime to sell a van with a worn out battery. Same goes for the charger - the charger that charges the battery when you are plugged in - the original, if still there, will be a dinosaur, and 99% of all vans have it replaced with a modern digital charger - around £150 for a good one.

Solar - same goes for solar - unless you have paperwork that proves otherwise, assume that any solar panels are old - many vans still have solar panels that were fitted in the 90s - and probably cost thousands back then. Nowadays solar is cheap and easy to fit, so is no reason to reject an otherwise good van. You can fit state of the art solar if you DIY and have change from £200.,

Mechanical - I am not a mechanic, I have always used garages for most of my servicing and repairs, but I have picked up a lot along the way. Unless you pay a professional for an inspection, you can only address the basics. These are, in no particular order - 

The engine should start easily - a bit of smoke on start up is OK, as long as it is gone within 10 minutes of driving. The van should pull smoothly - if possible, find the steepest hill in the neighbourhood. 

The gears should change up and down, and the clutch should bite in a normal way. Even if you can't be behind the wheel yourself, tell the driver to do this.

The brakes should work! Seems obvious, but motorhomes hardly ever get to stop in an emergency - they are usually driven sedately. But you need to know that the van will stop hard - so find a quiet road and ask for this to be done. The van should not pull to either side under braking.

Check for oil - this can be a head scratcher - it is quite rare to find a 25 year old diesel that is squeaky clean. There is usually a bit of oil about. Look for lots of it, and shiny. If a van is leaking oil, then the slipstream should be blowing it all over the underside of the van. Also check - is it diesel or engine oil? Many vans have minor diesel leaks that are usually an easy fix.

Pretty much everything mechanical can be fixed - the worst case scenarios are bad engines and gearboxes. Merc gearboxes hardly ever fail, it's always the selectors, which are an easy fix. Fiat boxes have a known problem with 5th gear, so make sure you see 5th working properly - you need a motorway or dual carriageway.

If in doubt - get a garage involved.

Mileage - don't forget many classics have odometers in kms. You can tell a lot from a vans mileage, and also it's UK MOT history. A 25 year old van with 125,000 km on the clock should be classed as "low mileage"! Work it out - that's 5000kms a year. That means basic family use - a few weekends away and 2 decent holidays. But a van with 250k on the clock has done double that - it may have started doing basic family holidays, but later on in life it might have been full timed all over Europe. So ask as many questions as possible and look at the history. Avan that has been full timed and overlanded is not to be avoided at all costs, but also shouldn't be premium money.  

Everything else should be cosmetic - carpets, woodwork, worktops - just be realistic. A good bit of advice is to ask the seller to let you and your partner sit quietly in the van for a while. Feel it, smell it - is it whispering to you?

Finally - and this is the daft bit - the money side.

I have come to learn from many years of stories and meeting owners and solving problems - that when it comes to a classic vehicle - the price is secondary. If you have bought into the vibe and love the scene and want to join in, then plus or minus a couple of grand either way should not be part of the process. Finding the right van for you is the top priority. Unfortunately, they are not making them anymore, so you can't just go out and buy a 93 S700 bench version with a U shaped lounge and bike rack. So when the right van comes along, you have to have the money ready, and pounce!

Also - have a contingency fund. It is totally unrealistic to expect to pay fifteen grand for a 25 year old van and immediately drive it off to the Algarve and have no problems. It just doesn't work like that. Far better to have some money in hand, and expect to have to spend it. I always advise 10% - For less than £1000 you can get a new leisure battery, a new charger, and a habitation check from a reputable engineer, and maybe even a solar upgrade and iron out a few other niggles. Then a few weekends away to iron out the niggles, and then you are good to go. Be ready to buy a solid platform, and have the budget to make it your own. It is far better to buy a van with faults for the right money, and have the budget to fix it, than it is to have somebody else's word that the van is perfect. If you do it yourself, you know it's been done. Only a perfect paper trail from an OCD owner is worth a big premium.

Know the market! Research research research! I drive a 93 S700 - I have seen the same van as low as £7000, and as high as £20,000. The 7k van had 350,000km on the clock and was very tatty, but sound. It needed at least 10k spending on it, if not more. The 20k van was as perfect as you will ever see - a paperwork file 2 inches thick, low mileage, long UK MOT history (plus all the German ones!) and had literally every upgrade and no faults. It sold within a week. If you are REALLY into classic Hymers, you will know that pristine vans are worth a healthy premium - and so do others, sometimes it is simply a matter of whoever gets there first after an ad is placed.

Finally finally - know yourself! You need basic practical skills to keep an old van on the road economically. The worst reason to buy a classic van is because it's all you can afford, but you don't have any practical skills, or the willingness to learn. I have seen so many people come a cropper like this - old vans always come with problems - you have to be eyes wide open and regard it as all part of the fun. But if you pay dealer prices every time you have a problem, you will soon be thousands down on the deal.

Good luck, and join "Classic Hymers Technical" group on Facebook, where you will find a large number of archived posts covering just about every possible technical problem with Classic Hymers, and (usually) how to fix them. The online community is another reason people buy these vans.

Adding more leisure battery to a classic Hymer ... things to consider

One of the commonest upgrades to the electrical system is to add more battery capacity, but before you do, there are questions to answer and things to consider before parting with your money. This article is not intended as a complete "how to"  but rather a discussion of all the things to consider and the possible pitfalls.

Do you really need it?

One of the first things to consider is to make sure that you actually do need more amp hours, and to answer this you first need to know that your existing battery is really up to scratch. It may just be that your existing battery is so poor that a new single battery is all you need to solve your problems.

Unfortunately testing a battery is not a simple task, unless you have it tested by anybody or any business who has a modern digital battery tester. The only way to test a battery manually is to use a multimeter and a known load. If you can, find somebody with a digital battery tester - most garages have one these days.

So have your existing battery properly tested, and if it is found to be defective or just worn out, replace it with a new single battery and see what a difference it makes. It may just be that a single new battery will perform so much better that you will no longer need to consider adding a second battery.

There is also a huge extra benefit to this approach, because if you do decide to go ahead and add an extra battery, you can add one of the same make and capacity, which is very important. You just go back to where you bought the first one and order an identical one.

Batteries in parallel

The reason for this is that when connecting batteries in parallel, they two batteries should be identical. This is quite an important rule, and if followed will give you the maximum power for your money.

However I have found from some experience that it is not absolutely carved in stone and it is wrong to think that if you break this rule you will get nothing but grief and failure.

The reason the rule exists in principle, is that if you put dissimilar batteries in parallel, then the weakest of the pair will pull the other one down, over time, to its own capacity and performance. So put a good and a bad battery together and the good will suck the juice out of the bad! More or less.

So the situation to definitely avoid is putting a brand new battery in parallel with a bad or old one.

However, it is often possible to put dissimilar batteries in parallel and get some increase in total power. The batteries should be as similar as possible - similar age, similar amp hours and similar chemistry - ie don't mix an AGM leisure battery with a starter battery. You must approach this with common sense and a willingness to experiment. 

Now I will probably attract some criticism for that last paragraph, but I am unwilling to say that you must NEVER mix batteries unless they are totally identical - there are some circumstances when you can. However, in most classic motorhome scenarios most owners will bite the bullet and buy 2 identical. If in doubt - buy new.

Where to put an extra battery

So, having established that you are going to fit a second battery, let's move on to the next problem. Where to put it. Squeezing more battery power into a motorhome is often more a case of finding space than anything else.

In purely classic Hymer terms - The Mercs have a battery box in the floor by the driver's seat that contains both the leisure battery (LB) and the vehicle engine battery (VB). The Fiat family vans usually have the VB under the bonnet, and the LB under one of the front seats. To fit an extra LB can be anything from a doddle to a nightmare. Here are a few examples.

The easiest vans are those that have a dinette or a bench seat that has empty space under it, as close to the original LB as possible. These present a void that is perfect for an extra battery.

However some other vans are the opposite - the S700 and the B694 are good examples - there is a bench behind the driver's seat, but it is full of water tank! There is literally nowhere in the front of the van to fit an extra battery. The only place possible is under the rear bed, and that means a serious amount of cabling. 

Evey van is different, so you just have to find a battery shaped space somewhere.

It can get so difficult that many owners give up at this stage. However there are alternatives. One of these is to forget about adding a second battery, and to maximise the potential of the existing LB space. This might mean finding a slightly bigger really high quality battery, such as an Odyssey or a Northstar, which will maximise the potential of the space - you might not get double the capacity, but you might get to 50% more.

Another more radical route, especially for full timers or power users, is to make the jump from bottled gas to underslung LPG tank, which gives you an empty gas locker for batteries (and other stuff!). This is quite an expensive option, but it does make sense for many - myself included.

But for many, especially owners of the bigger 6 and 7 series vans, there is only one viable option, and that is under the rear bed. This poses other problems, but none which are insurmountable. 

It might seem that the obvious way would be to have a new battery in the front original position, and the second one in the back, connected by long leads. This is valid, but I think there is a better way, and that is to locate both batteries at the rear, or better still, splash out and buy a high quality single battery of double the capacity. A single bigger battery is always the better option if you can, than two in parallel.

The problem with moving the battery to the back of the van, is that all the wires that are connected to the original battery are all at the front - so you might think you are faced with a big rewiring job, but you are not if you approach it the right way.

Spit your dummy out ...

The way to do it is to mount 2 terminals, or busbars, where the original battery used to be, and connect everything that used to be connected to the original battery, to these. They basically represent the original battery - or to put it another way - a dummy battery. So everything remains the same, no rewiring needed, just connect all the original wires as they were. Then all you have to do is to locate the new battery(ies) wherever you can, and then run two wires, good and thick, from the new battery to the dummy terminals.

Using this method, you can now mount a battery anywhere in the van you like, as long as you adhere to basic common sense safety measures. 

Cables cables cables

At this point you would normally expect quite a long discussion on what cable to use, and cable loss. This is a topic that causes some confusion. When working with 12v, unlike 220v, the losses introduced by cable are quite important, as well as its power carrying capacity. For the purposes of this article I am going to simplify it somewhat. The cable you use to connect your extra battery capacity, if mounted remotely - ie at the back of the van - should be capable of carrying between 50 and 100 amps with no more than point one of a volt drop (0.1v) - you can push this maybe to 0.15, but not much more. There are tables of losses and cable sizes all over the internet, and of course you can ask on our FB group - Classic Hymers Technical. If you really want it simple, then you should be OK with copper cables the thickness of your little finger - but copper is expensive, so if you can, take the scientific approach!

But if your batteries are in a convenient location close to the original, then thick cables is less of an issue, unless you have a high power application in mind. So up to around 2m away, cable around 4 or 5mm should do, but again, use the thickest you can afford.

My favourite cable utility is here https://www.12voltplanet.co.uk/cable-sizing-selection.html

Cable routing

If you do end up running cable from the front of the van to the back - you have two choices - through the cupboards, or down through the floor along the chassis, and back up through the floor. Every van is different, but generally speaking it is easier (although dirtier!) to go along the chassis. There is plenty of room under there, and plenty of attachment points. Again, I can't go into chapter and verse about cable routing and safety - all I can say is that unless you are confident that you can run and protect your cables and protect against vibration, short circuit and weather, then perhaps you shouldn't be doing the job yourself.

Another option to save copper, is to just run a single positive (red) cable, and to use chassis for the negative. In this case you would need a very solid bare metal to bare metal chassi connection at the remote battery end. At the front end you would need a solid connection to the VB neg, as this is already connected to chassis by a thick cable. Some purists will not agree with this, but I have used both methods with no problems. Again, if you don't understand what I mean by chassis return, you should come and ask more questions, do more research.

Fuses are essential ...

Another safety issue is fusing. If you are running a long cable to extra batteries, then you must protect that cable against being shorted in a crash. If a live battery cable is shorted to ground as a result of a crash, the battery will immediately discharge over 1000amps in milliseconds, which has the potential to cause a spark and a fire. To guard against this there should be fuses at both ends of a long battery cable run. The easiest to use are "mega fuses" - see photo - usually 100amps is the right size. These should be located as close to the battery as possible.

Parallel Series Parallel Series

Finally, let's talk about batteries in parallel. Batteries in parallel means two (near identical) batteries connected "in parallel", which means the pos and neg terminals of both batteries are connected to each other. Batteries in parallel remain at the same voltage, but double the power. So two 100ah 12v batteries connected in parallel will give 200ah at 12v. Batteries in series double the voltage at the same power, so two 100ah 6v batteries in series would give 100ah at 12v. batteries in series are rarely used in motorhomes, so we will leave it at that.

The next thing you will see if you ask the question online, is that batteries in parallel must be connected as a set - ie you should take power from them, and deliver charge to them via the pos on one battery and the neg of the second, or vice versa. See diagram below. Again, this is a purists view, although completely correct in theory. The reasoning is that this will present the two batteries as one. However in practice, the differences are negligible, and certainly not making the major wiring changes that may be necessary in a motorhome installation. If your two batteries are together and easily wired, then by all means, but if you are faced with major rewiring, then don't bother.

The simplest check you need to do with batteries in parallel is this - with a digital multimeter, check the voltage of both batteries. They should be identical, to two decimal places - ie if one says 12.86v then so should the other.

Treat the system as a whole ... Chargers and Alternators

Next - you need to think about your overall system in the context of bigger batteries. When you upgrade one part of a 12v system you need to think about how it affects all the other parts. The most important of these is charging.

A 10 amp charger should charge a 100amp hour battery in ten hours - again simple arithmetic. So if you up the capacity of the battery to 200 amp hours, then a 10 amp charger will take 20 hours. This means that you could be faced with a situation where an overnight charge from EHU may not have had enough time to recharge your batteries fully. It's an overly simple example, but it illustrates the point.

It gets a bit more complicated than that as well .... a lead acid battery needs to be charged by a charger that is capable of delivering at least 10% - 20% of its capacity. That means 10 - 20 amps for a 100ah battery and 20 - 40amps for 200ah. Personally I think around 15% is about right.

What it does mean is that the original blue box factory fitted dumb Hymer charger (usually 10 amps) really ought to be replaced, especially if you are fitting 200ah batteries.

If you are going to the expense of new 200ah batteries, then you should definitely consider installing a new mains charger of at least 20a, preferably more. 220v chargers come in all shapes, sizes and qualities. The best and most popular is Victron Blue - never known a bad one, plus they have the advantage of being fanless. You don't really want a fan cooled charger running all night and keeping you awake.

The next thing to consider is charging while driving, which is a very important source of power - you want to arrive at your destination with a fully charged set of leisure batteries.

In a standard pre 95 classic Hymer, charge is diverted from the engine alternator to the LB via a relay located behind the fuse box. (in later vans, fitted with an Elektroblock the relay is in here). This relay, and its associated wiring, is designed for the 10 to 20% rule - ie to charge a standard single 100ah LB, it needs roughly 10 to 15 amps from the alternator while driving. This will not automatically double if you double the battery capacity to 200ah. The max amount of charge able to be delivered by the alternator is unfortunately quite a complicated mix of wiring capacity, relay capacity, max capacity of the alternator and other requirements of the base chassis - ie the headlights and state of charge of the starter battery. There are many variables, so you just can't simply expect double.

Some of the early classics only had a 60 amp alternator, most later models had 80 amp or more. In most cases, doubling the battery to 200ah should not result in any major problems - but don't expect the "Strom" meter on the panel, the one that shows you how much charge your battery is getting, to go hard over and show 20 amps of charge from the engine - it might, occasionally, but it won't stay there! So, like the charger situation outlined above, you may be faced with a situation where even a 4 or 6 hour drive may not be enough to charge a 200ah battery from empty. If this is the case, then there are solutions available - usually all you need is a bigger capacity relay and wiring, but occasionally you might (rarely!) need a bigger alternator, especially if your van is an older 80s model, and you desire a really big leisure battery setup.

The same applies to solar - but every solar installation is different, as is the weather, so there are no hard and fast rules about solar, other than the fact that if you are a power user, you need as much solar as you can. For some owners, solar is massively important and their main source of power, for others it's just a top up and trickle charge - every van owner is different.

Lithium

A note on lithium - lithium batteries are coming down in price every year, and are now standard in many new vans. They offer roughly about double the "power density" of lead acid, which means that you can get twice the power from the same space. However, you can't just drop lithium batteries into a classic Hymer - you have to look at the system as a whole. That is not to put you off lithium, just to say that they are still quite expensive, and need careful design and consideration.

Conclusion ...

The takeaway point I am trying to make here, is that the original classic Hymer is designed around a single 100ah leisure battery, based on 1980s technology. You can't just throw in an extra battery and expect to have double power, all the time. That is not to say you can't "just do it", but you should at least be aware of the potential pitfalls.

The good news is that other than finding the space for extra battery in some vans, upgrading and modifying the electrics in a classic Hymer is, compared with many modern vans, relatively easy. They generally have space to work, and the work can be hidden reasonably nicely and a good job made with only basic DIY skills.

This is how batteries in parallel should be connected - in theory

But you can connect them this way if it means avoiding major wiring changes, and on completion, both batteries have the same voltage to 2 decimal places.

This is a Merc battery box with the LB removed and replaced by a dummy. All the connections that used to go to the LB are now connected to the dummy - pos on the left, neg on the right, and the remote LB is now connected to the dummy. In this case, chassis is being used for the neg return, and the red wire, centre lower, goes to the relocated LB.

This is the same setup, but now with a protecting mega fuse added (the small square yellow thing!), and a Victron Cyrix relay replacing the original Hymer relay, to deliver more alternator charge to a bigger LB setup at the rear of the van.

This (work in progress) photo shows an Odyssey PC1800 220ah battery fitting snugly in a repurposed gas locker. The blue box is a Victron inverter charger.

Fridge not working on gas - the logical approach!

Fridge not working on gas is such a common question that it has almost become a spring time ritual! For the new owner, this can often lead to thoughts of a new fridge. This isn't surprising because usually when a normal kitchen fridge packs in, it's off down to Comet for a new one. But with 3-way fridges costing around £900 plus fitting it pays to dig just a little deeper before panicking.

So here is the basic check list to go through, which should narrow it down.

But first a few words about different fridges. The major manufacturer is Dometic, which used to be called Electrolux. Because I am primarily concerned with pre 95 classic Hymer motorhomes, I am only really concerned with the fridges that were installed in those vans. Modern fridges are quite different, and usually have some degree of electronics in them. This article does not cover those. The type of fridge most common in classics is an Electrolux/Dometic with two switches on one side - red and green, illuminated, for 12v or 220v, 2 or 3 control knobs, and another small illuminated red switch on the other side that flashes when pressed - the ignition switch. Similar to this one -

But first - the obvious stuff you can try if you are in a field with warm beer ...

Do you have gas? Switch on all of your cooker rings - are they at full strength? A nearly empty bottle can deliver too little gas. If you have access to a full bottle, try that as well.

Take off the bottom fridge vent panel outside, so you can see the burner box If you have a screwdriver, remove the tin box around the burner. Now tap and blow and brush as much as you can to try and shake things up a bit - you could well be lucky and dislodge a bit of dust that is causing the problem. If you have no ignition tic - check the connections as suggested below.

If the weather is hot, and the fridge is simply not performing, but you can feel heat coming from the top vent outside (which means you have a flame), then take off the top vent as well, which will increase the air circulation. If the sun is beating on that side of the van, try and turn the van around, or erect a shade. If the fridge works OK overnight but not in the day, then all it needs is better air circulation in hot weather.

These are the first things to try - if still no joy, then roll up your sleeves and read on!

The minimum tools you need are a philips screwdriver, a spanner for the gas nut, and either an adjustable spanner or grips to grip the square burner body. (see video - link below).

Is it working on 220v

This is the first question to always ask and answer. If the fridge is working OK on any of the 3 power sources, 220v, 12v or gas, then that means that there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the refrigeration mechanism, and generally means that the fridge can be fixed. 

In the case of not working on gas, if it works on 220v, then the problem is obviously with the gas mechanism, and most of these problems can be fixed. The reason that "not working on gas" is so common is that unlike "normal" fridges, the gas part of a fridge has several components that are susceptible to dirt and old age and need regular cleaning. The electrical part is just wire and an element, which tends to be more reliable. But you should also remember that your fridge is likely to be well over 20 years old - so it deserves a bit of TLC!

If the fridge does not work on any power source, then the problem is more serious, and not covered by this article.

Does it tic tic tic?

So the next port of call is the ignition system. On most old fridges this is a red flashing switch which you press - it flashes, and then goes out when the gas lights up. If you press the switch and nothing happens, the first thing to do is to work the switch as hard as you can, many times - ie flick it on and off with (sensible) force. It could just be that the switch is getting tired - it is over 20 years old and spends long periods of time doing nothing. It only needs a tiny bit of dirt or corrosion on the contacts to make it fail - working it hard can help it to self clean. 

These red switches have been known to fail. Replacements are available, and they are a generic switch available online, although if you buy a Dometic one it will match perfectly. To test and replace the switch you basically need a multimeter and know how to use it. Ask of the group for more advice.

Some older fridges have a push button manual ignition which you have to push hard to produce a spark. The only way to check these is to go into the back of the fridge and physically check for a spark - see below.

You may have to go outside and put your ear to the lower external vent to listen for the tic tic of the spark.

No flash or tic at all - but it used to work OK last time ...

This is usually down to lack of power for the ignition circuit. Most classic Hymer fridges have 2 12v feeds - one which is permanently connected to the leisure battery for the ignition, and one that is connected to the alternator via a relay which is to power the 12v heating element which only works when you are driving. They are separate circuits. Both of these circuits are fused, so look for a blown fuse in the fuse panel. On most classic Hymers, pre 95, the fridge ignition fuse is number 2, second one down, on the same same circuit as other stuff in the vicinity of the kitchen - so if you have kitchen lights or fan also not working, then it's the fuse.

But if it's not the fuse, then one of the commonest faults is old corroded 12v connections. Take a look at this photo and you will see what I mean. So you need to remove the lower vent, and look for a similar connection. If it looks dirty, clean it. If you are lucky, your ignition will spring back into life. If you are unlucky, and the 12v feed is clean, and you still have no spark, then the ignition unit is suspect, or the switch itself. Both are replaceable. The ignition unit usually means the fridge has to come out, the switch can often be replaced easily from the front panel - both these jobs you can attempt if you have basic DIY skills, but if not maybe best to call in an engineer.

This pic shows a very badly corroded 12v connection! The location of the connector blocks varies from van to van, so if you don't immediately see it, get in there and search with a torch.

Does it flash and tic but fail to light?

If the switch is flashing, and you can hear the tic, but it doesn't light, then it's time to remove the outside vents and look for the spark. This means you have to expose the burner. You will find the burner at the bottom of the chimney/flue inside a thin metal tin box. The tin box is easily released by a couple of obvious screws. 

In this picture you can see the tin burner box which covers the burner. You can also see various electrical connections - all have to be checked - every van is different. 

This pic is taken from below showing the main components of the burner 

Now you can see the burner - see picture. The end of the burner that is directly under the flue, held there by a single screw, is the burner crown. This is a tiny gas ring about the size of a small coin that should produce a blue flame about 30 to 40mm tall. Protruding into the area of the crown you will see two finger like things. One of these is the ignition spark electrode - the one with a porcelain body, and the other is the thermocouple. The electrode is fed by a wire, and this wire goes to an ignition unit which is usually up out of sight. To make it easier to see, you can undo the single screw that attaches the burner to the flue, and pull the burner towards you so you can see inside - there is enough flexibility in the feed pipe to allow this. Then get somebody inside the van to operate the ignition. You need to see a healthy spark between the electrode and the burner crown - it's almost identical to the way an electronic cigarette lighter works.

In most cases, you will see a decent spark. You might even get a flame - if you do, see "low flame" below. If you don't see a spark, but can hear a tic, or the spark looks weak, look for obvious signs of damage or wear. The end of the electrode could be corroded, or the feed wire might be worn and the spark is jumping to ground somewhere, or the wire might have come loose from the back of the electrode, or be corroded.

Another trick you can try is to light the flame manually - with somebody inside pressing the gas knob, offer up a lighted match or lighter to the burner. If it lights and you have a healthy flame, that stays in, then that proves that the problem is with the ignition and not the gas or jet.

You have a good ignition spark, but you are only seeing a small flame, or no flame.

As already mentioned, a healthy flame should be about 40mm tall, blue, and give out a very gentle roar. A low flame will be yellow and candle-like and float about in the breeze, and be silent. The commonest cause of a low flame is something restricting the gas flow.

However it can be difficult to see the size and the quality of the flame in daylight, so be prepared to return to the problem either in darkness, or at a pinch, get somebody to hold a big towel or blanket over you for shade so you can get a good look at the flame.

There are 2 possible causes for a low flame. The first is a blocked jet - see below. The second is that dirt and dust and soot have fallen down the chimney/flue onto the burner crown. 

This is the amount of dirt that can come out of a burner!

The easy fix is to blow air onto the burner - either with compressed air if available, or by getting up close and blowing - or a bicycle pump. You can also tap and shake the burner. This is usually enough to dislodge any dirt, and if you are out and about on holiday and desperate is the first thing to try. If the results of your efforts are a bigger flame than when you started, then you can put everything back together and hopefully the problem is solved. It can be that easy, if you are lucky!

If not, then you have to remove the burner for deeper cleaning. To do this you grip the square body of the burner with a spanner, and undo the gas feed pipe nut. Then you undo the single screw that holds the thermocouple and electrode in place via the small triangular shaped metal clamp. Take care not to use too much force and make sure you don't damage either the wire feeding the electrode, or the thin copper tube feeding the thermocouple.

Linked at the bottom of this article is a Youtube that shows you exactly how to do this - although in the video, the engineer does not remove the electrode or thermocouple - it's up to you.

Situated in the end of the gas feed pipe is the jet - this is a delicate thimble of thin metal with a tiny hole in it. This allows just the right quantity of gas through, which is then mixed with air through the two side opening holes, then travels down the hole in the body of the burner to the crown, where it should produce the required good flame.

The jet exposed by taking off the gas feed pipe. 

It only takes a tiny bit of debris to block the jet and restrict the gas. This is the number one cause of fridge not working on gas, especially if the fridge has had no maintenance for many years.

The ideal way to clean the jet is again with compressed air, but blowing and brushing with a hair brush - like a paint brush - is also good. The golden rule here is that under no circumstances must you use anything metallic. Never use a pin or needle. If you open the jet even by just a fraction, you will ruin the carefully metered gas air mixture and create a serious health hazard.

The jet might not come out as easily in the video - in fact it can get stuck so tight that nothing short of brute force will get it out. In this case it is best to clean in situ as best you can. 9 times out of 10 whatever is blocking a jet will dislodge quite easily with a brush or a tap or a blow. Then reassemble and reconnect the gas. Hopefully now you should see a healthy flame.

In extreme cases you may have to replace the jet - make sure you get the right jet - most pre 95 Hymers are 50mb gas pressure, so need a 50mb jet. Swordcrown Caravans are a decent knowledgeable supplier of jets and fridge spares.

Another way forward is to consider replacing the entire burner assembly. They are available from suppliers and eBay for around £50. This is particularly advised if your old burner is literally a rust bucket. Just make sure you order the correct gas pressure - most pre 95 classic Hymers are 50mb. Most UK and post 95 EU vans are 37/30 Mb, so these components are much more common. Do NOT be tempted to fit a 37mb burner/jet to a 50Mb fridge. Do it right!

On reassembly of the gas feed pipe, check you have a good gas seal by brushing soapy water around the nut and look for tell tale bubbles, while at the same time somebody inside is pressing the gas knob so that gas actually flows - you need the gas on in order to perform the bubble test properly.

Closeup of a burner with the jet removed.

If after cleaning the burner and jet, and checking the ignition, you still have no flame, then you are getting into the realms of more complex repairs. It could be that the main gas valve on the top of the fridge needs replacing. This is located behind the main gas knob - the one you keep pressed while lighting the gas.

If you get a flame, but the flame goes out when you release the knob, then the thermocouple is suspect. Again this could mean fridge out, but it is an easy job - either for you if you are confident, or a fridge mechanic.

And that is just about it for "fridge not working on gas" - as long as it works on 220v, then 9 times out of 10 it is either the 12v feed to the ignition, or dirt in the burner or jet.

Corner fridges

A note on corner fridges - if your fridge is in the back corner of the van, you may have vents that are on the side, and you can't get access to the burner. Double check for other means of access - there is sometimes a panel you can remove near the light cluster or bumper. If not, corner fridges have to be removed for even routine maintenance, which is a pain. But on the plus side, corner fridges are usually more protected from the elements, so when you do get at it, you usually find that it is in decent condition. It is also a fair bet that because corner fridges are so hard to get at, they don't get routine maintenance, so there is a better chance that the fix will be straightforward.

What to do if you can't fix it yourself?

If you can't fix it yourself, then you will have to get it fixed professionally. The good news is that these fridges are not specific to Hymer, are very common in thousands of caravans and motorhomes, and can be fixed by any competent caravan engineer. You can either book it in at your local caravan place, or book a mobile caravan engineer to come to you. Of all the things that go wrong with caravans and motorhomes, this is one of the commonest. Unfortunately as with all things mechanical and dealers, you have to make sure they do an honest job. But by reading this article you should at least now be able to sound as though you know what you are talking about and get decent service. 

Recommended suppliers

For reliable repairs and advice - North Cotswold Motorhome Services in Stratford on Avon - they are Classic Hymer specialists.

For spare parts and good advice - Swordcrown Caravans and Motorhomes.

These are our two favourite suppliers, but by no means the only ones - if you have a favourite that you have used yourself and can recommend, then please let us know.

Old wives tales ...

If you ask online for help with a fridge, you will always get at least 2 answers. 1. Take it out and shake it up and 2. It must be level.

If the fridge is working on 220v, then you do not - must NOT - be tempted to take it out and shake it or rotate it. You could ruin the fridge. There is another blog on here about the specific circumstances you can do this.

As for being level - this is far less important than you would think. The manufacturer tolerance is 5 degrees, which doesn't sound like a lot, but is probably no more than you would be comfortable with in the van. If the fridge used to work OK, it is highly unlikely that it has suddenly developed an allergy to slopes.

Any more questions just ask on our Facebook group for recommendations and advice.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/297054424534823

Here is the Youtube video referred to above

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBxt2BG7JbE

This is a pretty good video. As I already mentioned - he makes the fridge really easy to get out, and he does work quite fast - but that is good because it keeps the video short. But he covers all the basics really well.

What's that smell? When you smell bad eggs in the van ...

It is quite common to get a smell of bad eggs in the van. There are 4 possible reasons for this - 1 of them dangerous, but quite rare - your battery, 1 of them rare and expensive - your fridge, 1 of them highly unlikely - exhaust catalyzer ... and the remaining one is the most common - it's your grey water tank.

So the first thing to check is the dangerous one - on occasion an old or mistreated battery can start to cook and give off a smell of hydrogen sulphide - rotten eggs. This is quite a rare situation, especially with modern batteries, but you have to dismiss it first. The easiest way to check is to look for the obvious - the smell should be obviously coming from the battery. If this happens to you, I can't advise you as to the best course of action - it depends on the situation. Disconnecting the battery is the obvious thing to do, but only if you can do so safely. Calling for help is the most sensible thing to do.

Next is the fridge - if your fridge is very old and you know it's very rusty (round the back), then there is a possibility that it may finally have rusted through and leaked its chemicals. However this will be more of an amonia smell than rotten eggs. It is a very rare occurrence - usually the fridge stops working before it leaks, because it gets blocked inside with internal corrosion.

Next is an exhaust catalyzer - pre 95 classic Hymers (the subject of this blog and the FB group) don't have exhaust catalyzers, but I include this for any owners of later vans - it is pretty common knowledge that a worn exhaust cat can smell like rotten eggs. But if you have a pre 95 classic Hymer, it is very unlikely to be that.

So that brings us on to the commonest cause - the grey water tank. The grey water tank is the tank that catches all the water that goes down the plugholes from the sinks and shower. It may come as a surprise that it can occasionally stink so badly - far worse than what you see goes down the plughole, but there are good reasons for this.

The common reason is simply old age and a combination of other factors. Most grey tanks get emptied regularly, so they never actually get full. So what happens is that over the years, bits of food waste and other nasties that go down the plughole begin to accumulate by splashing on the walls of the tank, and also in the slime on the bottom of the tank. What happens is that you get a gradual build up over the years, and because the tank gets emptied so regularly, it never gets full enough to wash off the upper reaches.

Then what usually happens is that you get the first sunny day in spring, and up it comes through the plugholes. The smell can vary from an occasional whiff that makes you think that somebody has let go a cheeky fart, all the way up to a real pong in the van - it all depends on how bad it is.

The easiest way to check is to get your nose right down to the plugholes and hopefully you will get a confirmation whiff.

In any event, you should give your grey tank the once over every year anyway - especially if you full-time or use the van regularly.

There are several ways to solve the problem, including the famous "cola" method. As soon as anybody posts a question online about a smell, you will always get half a dozen people piping up saying to empty several litres of cheap cola down the sink and then go for a drive. It probably works, but I have never tried it myself. 

The reason I haven't tried it, is because it seems to be a temporary fix that doesn't get at the root cause of the problem. What the tank needs is the upper walls and ceiling getting washed, as this is where most of the smell should be coming from. The cola method may well do enough to dissolve away some of the smell, but there won't really be enough in there to effectively reach the upper bits of the tank. Whether cola will work in a three quarter full tank, I don't know ... I just prefer traditional household chemicals.

To do this the tank needs to be around 75% full, then add some chemical, and then go for a drive. If you are a regular van user you can even just build this into your regular routine - instead of emptying the grey tank automatically every time you have the opportunity - let it fill up, and throw a cup full of bleach down the plugholes, then drive for a day or so and then empty it the next pit stop. 

Other methods include using a cupful of blue toilet chemical, and I believe that Thetford even make a dedicated product.

Personally I use cheap supermarket bleach, or cheap pine smelling disinfectant, or a combination of the two.

All you have to do really is to ensure that you regularly drive with a half or three quarter full gray tank, so that the movement of the van sloshes the water up and over the side walls and roof.Quite often I will delay emptying the grey tank after we have both used the shower, to give it chance to slosh about in there.

The problem is particularly evident in the spring when the weather changes - your van may have been in winter storage, or you might just be setting off on holiday when it happens - if so, you hardly have to think about the other possible causes - it is always the grey tank.

Another tip is this - if you want to get some water into your grey tank for cleaning purposes, and don't fancy running the water pump for ages and ages, then I have found that if you have the standard old Hymer waste outlet - the one with the round wheel valve, then you can usually stuff the end of a hosepipe up it and shoot water into your grey tank that way - give it a try - but don't overdo it and keep an eye out inside the van - if you fill up the tank right to the top by doing this, it can come out of the plugholes inside.

Another tip for full timers is as I mentioned above, if you get in the habit of a small quantity of bleach every week or so, you will minimise the chance of ever getting the smell ever again.

Yet another tip is to get up close and personal with your grey waste. Give it a smell when you empty it - you can usually get a bit of advance warning if you have a slowly growing problem inside the tank and you will generally detect it this way long before it gets bad enough to come up through the plugholes.

Don't taste it though!

Inverters in the motorhome ... for beginners!

An inverter is a box of tricks that takes 12V DC from your battery and converts it to 220V AC as you find at home. You can then plug in a 220v item - like you do at home. An inverter is specified as having an input voltage and an output voltage. A typical inverter takes 12V DC in, and outputs 220V AC, and the power of the inverter is specified in watts.

So in very simple terms, you connect your inverter to the 12V supply of your van, plug your device (ie laptop charger) into the socket on the inverter and away you go.

Unfortunately it is not quite as simple as that and you want to avoid many of the problems that can arise if you don't understand the basic principles of power. Many inverters are supplied with wiring to connect to your 12V supply. Usually this will be a twin core wire, coloured red and black. One end is connected to the inverter, and the other end will either be bare, or with spade connectors, or with a cigar plug. In a motorhome, you should never plug an inverter into a cigar socket, unless the only thing you are going to plug in, is a phone or tablet charger. NOT a laptop or TV. If you want to use an inverter for these higher power items, then you must connect the inverter directly to the battery with proper connections.

A good inverter will be supplied with a suitable cable, and a fuse may be in the cable, or installed in the inverter itself. You should attach these cables directly to the battery terminals, using spade or ring connectors - if you don't know how to do this properly, then get help. If the supplied cable isn't long enough, then it is OK to extend the cable using a wire of equal or thicker dimensions. If the ideal cable length for your particular installation is longer than about 2m, then you should use an even thicker cable, because longer cables at 12V DC can suffer from voltage drop. This is the reason that most inverter cables are quite short, and also the reason that most van inverters are located quite close to the battery.

Every van is different, but in a simple installation, you should install the inverter in a convenient place, close enough to the battery, and where you can also get at it to plug in your 220v stuff. If you can't find a convenient place, then you can install the inverter out of the way, and plug an extension lead into it. Remember that you need to be able to get at the inverter to switch it off when not in use - most inverters consume power when doing nothing. If you are wondering if you can have an inverter feeding all the same sockets that are in your van already, that are live when you are hooked up, then yes you can, but that needs a more complex installation using an autoswitching inverter, which is too complicated for this simple guide - contact me if you want to discuss this. You should also be aware that most inverters have fans - which can be quite noisy, so bear this in mind when you locate it.

So now you have a basic simple working inverter setup - there are a few more points about inverters that i would like to touch on.

One of the hardest things to understand about inverters is that you can't just plug anything into them. In a house, you never think about it, whether it's a phone charger, a laptop, a TV, a hairdryer, a microwave or a fan heater - you just plug them in and off they go no problem. This is because in a house, you are being fed by the national grid. which for all intents and purposes is unlimited and lasts forever. There is a maximum though - most plugs are rated at 13amps, which in watts is equivalent to 3000w, or 3kw. This is a lot of power - enough for a 3 bar electric fire on full.

But in a motorhome, the power is not unlimited, it is supplied by your 12v leisure battery, and compared with the national grid, this battery is tiny. So unless you understand the sums, it is very easy to innocently overload a leisure battery, by asking it to deliver too many watts - far more than it was designed for.

This is the point at which most people switch off because they don't like sums and calculations, especially where electricity is concerned. So I have found that it easier to break it down into simple rules. In a basic motorhome installation, with 1 or 2 normal leisure batteries, and normal wiring, then you should never try to power anything through an inverter that generates heat - this means heaters, kettles, toasters, coffee machines, microwaves, hairdryers, cookers, ovens, slow cookers - this list is not exhaustive, but you get the drift.

What you can use is as follows - phone chargers, tablet chargers, anything USB, radios, CD players, small TVs - up to about 23" and laptops. Basically anything low power. Special cases - that are possible but need careful consideration are - e-bike chargers and curling tongs - these are medium power items that are on the borderline, so you need to understand how to use them in more detail.

Now here is the technical reason, for those interested. As the volts go down, the amps go up, but the watts remain constant. Lots of amps need thicker copper wire. To calculate the amps you need at 12v, you simply divide the watts (of the appliance(s)) by 12.

So - at 12v - which is the voltage of your van battery, to supply 100w of power, you need 8 amps at 12v - you divide the watts by the voltage. The wiring of your van, and the capacity of your battery to deliver amps is basically around 20 amps - any more than that and things start to get hot and stressed. As a rule of thumb, a normal motorhome battery and wiring system is capable of delivering about 10 amps of 12v - in classic Hymer vans, the fuses are 16a. The battery is capable of a bit more, but you shouldn't ask for it!

At the other end of the scale if you look at an average coffee machine, the label will say maybe 1200w - that is an easy calculation - 1200 divided by 12v = 100amps. So if you bought and connected a 1500w inverter to your battery, and switched on the machine, it would ask for 100amps. Normal leisure batteries are simply not capable of delivering that amount of power, and the result would be a ruined battery. But in your house - it's no problem - why? because the voltage is 220v, not 12v - so 1200 divided by 220 = 5.5a, which is under half of the maximum of 13a available from a house plug, so no problem, and it only needs a thin wire So that is why the simple rule states that you should only try and power low power items from a basic inverter installation in a van with a normal battery setup. A normal van setup isn't capable of delivering much more than around 15amps at 12v. Now of course you can have whatever you like - if you want a coffee machine and a toaster, powered by your battery, then you can - but it will cost - you have to install big batteries, thick cabling and proper metering and monitoring - this can easily run into thousands of pounds.

But if all you want is to charge your devices and maybe a TV and laptop, then you can, with a simple inverter setup that can easily cost around £100 all in.

But remember - there is no free power in a van - whatever charge you take out of your battery, whether it's your lights, fans, TVs, gadgets, through your inverter or not - that charge has to be replaced somehow - either by the engine while driving, solar, or on hookup. So although this article is specifically about inverters, remember that all aspects of a mobile 12v system have to be taken as a functioning whole.

So what inverter should you buy?

Pure sine or modified sine or quasi sine? These are terms that you will see in inverter ads. My simple advice, is don't bother about it - it's a technical discussion and there is lots of rubbish talked. Basically you can use any inverter that is sold either in shops or online. Most inverters nowadays are pure sine, and that's all you need to know.

The next discussion point is what inverter to buy. Ebay and Amazon are chock full of a bewildering array of inverters of all shapes and sizes and at prices from £25 upwards. Again, lots of folk have opinions and love to make statements on Facebook on what is best. A favourite opinion is that cheap "chinese" inverters are "crap", and you get what you pay for. My answer to this is that while there is always a possibility that any electronic product can break, it is bad business to sell a faulty or unreliable product - Ebay and Amazon function on the principle of feedback, and nobody survives very long if half the stuff they sell comes back for refund. The reality is that chinese stuff isn't all that bad, and all you have to do is look at a range of prices, check that the supplier has decent feedback, and choose the middle way - not the cheapest, not the most expensive.

However it is worth bearing in mind that there are a couple of manufacturers who are famous for the quality of their products and the most famous of these is Victron. Victron are a Dutch company who have a vast array of quality products, and are generally regarded as the best available. There is another company called Sterling, who are UK based and have a similar reputation, although as with most things, opinions always differ. Victron make a wide range of inverters, and their small inverters are priced similarly to the bigger models of other manufacturers. When asked, my standard answer is usually, I would rather have a small Victron than a big chinese one. There is also another brand called Epever, who are famous for their solar controllers, and they also make good inverters at decent money.

A common mistake that many people make when choosing an inverter is over specifying. You will see ads that offer 1000 watt inverters, or more, and it is easy to think that more is better. However this isn't the case. You should size an inverter for the purpose you need it for, and big is most definitely not better.

However you also need to understand what the numbers actually mean. The words to look for are "peak" "power" and "constant". The Chinese are very fond of big numbers - so they will put numbers like "1500w" and "1000w" and even more, but when you read the small print, it will say "peak power". This means that the inverter is only capable of supplying that power for a few seconds. This isn't as dishonest as it sounds, because many appliances, especially those with electric motors, do indeed need a lot of power for just a few seconds when you switch them on, so it's not all rubbish - it's just that they tend to overemphasise the "peak" and under emphasise the "constant". Constant is what you want - around 500w constant is what you want for a normal low power installation as detailed above. Quality manufacturers like Victron, on the other hand, always quote "constant". So a 300w inverter from Victron will have a peak value of over three times that - they just don't shout about it!

Then there is the matter of efficiency. Most inverters nowadays are over 90% efficient so effcieincy losses are not as important as they used to be. Big Chinese inverters are less efficient than small quality ones, and even though we have already discussed that efficiency isn't everything, there is another aspect to efficiency that is quite important in a van, especially if you are a "normal" owner with a single leisure battery. This is about "no load" or "standby" power. This is the amount of battery power an inverter uses while switched on, but doing nothing. A big 1000w inverter can use 1 amp of your battery every hour it is switched on. This may not seem like a lot, but that 24 amps if left on all day and night. So a good rule to obey when using an inverter is - switch it off when not in use. I have seen many a flat battery because of this - people think that if nothing is plugged into an inverter, then it is using no power. This isn't true.

So generally speaking, if the main purpose of owning an inverter is to power your 130W laptop, then a 200w or 300w inverter is more than enough, and smaller high quality inverters use less power on standby than bigger cheaper ones. Victron inverters take this one step further by having "auto sensing" - they take hardly any power at all until they sense the need. This is a useful feature to have if you forget to switch it off as it won't drain your battery. Other manufacturers also offer auto sensing.

At the time of writing in 2020 I have started to notice a new type of chinese inverter on the market that not only supplies around 400w reasonably efficiently, it also has built in USB sockets to charge phones and tablets, and it also has a digital display so you can keep an eye on your battery voltage - and all for £40. It is hard to argue with these for the money.

If you need more information or have questions, then ask on the Classic Hymers Technical facebook group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/297054424534823/

A typical Chinese 400w inverter showing plug sockets, 4 usb sockets and voltage displays. All for under £40

How an inverter should be wired to a battery - there will of course be other wires on your battery, but this is the basic idea - no cigar plugs or crocodile clips please!

An Epever 500w inverter - also has a USB socket.

Another no name Chinese inverter - this one is rated 150w, which is at least honest! It also looks well built.

Ring - another good middle of the road make

These are posh Victron inverters - the new ones have Bluetooth so you can see all the numbers on your phone in an app. Well worth the extra money.