At this point I checked the caravan fuses & found the 15 amp fuse area on the box getting quite hot so turned it off.
The battery was flat and has gone flat, within 36 hours of being disconnected from the mains, twice since.
I can contact the selling dealer but was unsure as this van does not have a car/caravan switch and the battery condition gauge only shows in the green when mains are on or until the battery is flat.
I can't find anything left on that would drain it, so please help as I'd like to have a basic understanding of what is where & how it works.
Response
A 20A fuse on the car would normally be sufficient to run the fridge and charge the caravan battery, just check that the wiring within the caravan can safely handle a 30A fuse without getting hot especially if you say the caravan battery is getting discharged and would be drawing max charge current from the car's alternator.
On your caravan there's no car/caravan switch as such, only the older vans had these, yours is fitted with auto changeover relays situated within the PDU/charger unit. The only 12v made available within the caravan while the car is connected and the ignition on, is to the charger and fridge.
If the 15A fuse area is getting hot I would look for a loose connection behind the fuse holder.
With regards to the battery going flat there are a number of things that you need to consider:-
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Battery condition, check the open circuit voltage needs to be around 12.5v.
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With all 12v appliances on check the terminal voltage, needs to be above 12v.
If either or both of these don't check out, a new battery is needed.
With all the 12v fuses removed and charger isolated, check to see if there is any current draw from the battery, if so, you have a short somewhere which needs to be rectified ASAP and before you use the caravan again.
If OK, replace the fuses one by one and do the same test again, making sure the appliance each fuse controls is off. Any current draw here would indicate a wiring or controlling switch fault.
If all tests out to be OK, are you sure that you switch EVERY 12v item off when you leave the caravan and switch off the 12V heating controller or at least turn the temp down to near zero? Otherwise the circulating pump could be called in and discharge your battery.
Try these things first and come back if needed.
Many thanks, I will try what you suggest and will let you know how it goes.
