Caie wrote:

> Hello chaps and chapesses,
>
> A couple of questions which you experienced owners might be able to
> help me with.
>
> 1. When my van hasn't had any use for over a month it is quite common
> that there isn't enough juice in the battery to turn the starter long
> enough for the engine to engage.

<SNIP>

Is the van parked anywhere near a Mains outlet such that you
could employ a small battery charger? After being fully charged
(during a highway run), the battery should be kept at roughly 13.5V
while idle. This is called a "float charge" where no actual
charging is going on but just enough voltage is present to
counteract the tendency to discharge.

Caution: Don't use a "trickle charger" as these can over-charge
the battery over a long time.

(It's also possible that there is some load from an accessory
discharging it or that the battery is reaching end of life.)

Loads more battery info he
http://www.uuhome.de/william.darden/
http://www.batteryuniversity.com/partone-13.htm
http://www.4unique.com/battery/battery_tutorial.htm

Speedy Jim
http://www.nls.net/mp/volks/