Furnace / Battery

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Floating Cloud

If we are drawing 4 amps and we turn on the Maxx fan, we are still drawing 4 amps.

That's probably a newer unit with the 10-speed controller, on a low speed setting.

[gbaglo]

Back to furnace / battery.

Got a battery hydrometer and checked three of six cells. They read 12.50 ( in the white band "cell needs attention" ). So, I topped all six up with distilled water and I will be putting on charge again this evening, then check with hydrometer.
After charge this morning ( and waiting 20 minutes ) I got 12.84 on voltmeter. Two hours later after leaving the trailer with nothing running, I got 12.39
That's when I used the hydrometer.
Frustration and tarnation.

baglo

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

Back to furnace / battery.

Got a battery hydrometer and checked three of six cells. They read 12.50 ( in the white band "cell needs attention" ). So, I topped all six up with distilled water and I will be putting on charge again this evening, then check with hydrometer.
After charge this morning ( and waiting 20 minutes ) I got 12.84 on voltmeter. Two hours later after leaving the trailer with nothing running, I got 12.39
That's when I used the hydrometer.
Frustration and tarnation.

baglo

Don't give up so easy, try another full night on the charger or wait til you get home and charge for 24 hours non stop. If still low then it's time for a new one.

[gbaglo]

Gone fishing. Caught a feisty 13 1/2 inch rainbow and had a few refusals and two cold beer.
Came back to the trailer and plugged in the voltmeter and it now reads 12.62 and the Old Bag has plugged every remaining cranny in the fridge with Okanagan Spring Pale Ale.
I am a happy camper.

[thoer]

The fishing and beer parts sound like much more fun than the battery parts......

The good battery part is that one this new should still have some warranty left to it if it is kaput.

[cpaharley2008]

Maybe it's your spouse that is making the batteries stay charged??

[gbaglo]

Charged again this morning for an hour and got 12.81 after resting for 40 minutes.
Hour later I used the hydrometer to test the cells.
Got 12.40, 12.80, 12.40, 12.50, 12.25 and 12.50.
I'm going to put it on a battery charger when I get home next week, but I don't think it looks that good.

[Jim Bennett]

Maybe a battery shop can bring it back, but for me in the past, as new one always gave me more piece of mind.

[thoer]

Glenn if you have to go the new battery route, maybe consider a switch over to the dual 6 volt system? On a 17b I would think all it would take is a second battery box and a couple of extra cables to the second battery - but maybe there is much more to it than I know. But, I bet you would love the battery life you get with the dual 6's.

[Jubal]

Fully charge the battery before recycling it. The battery may still be brought to a full charge (between 1.275- 1.280). A difference of fifty points indicates a problem cell. Your hyrdometer readings indicate a low battery charge with borderline cell specific gravity difference. As Jim B. suggested have a battery shop do the procedure. Fully charge, desulfanate, load test.
A dedicated battery charger the is powered by a 110V circuit (10 Amp or more depending on your generator) is a better option than using the low 12v generator output.

[gbaglo]

When I get home, I'm gonna have a look at the battery charger that I already have. As I recall, it has a switch for 2A and 10A and some sort of boost switch.
It's a Crappy Tire Motomaster and I no longer have the instruction manual. Tried to find one on-line, with no luck. First, I have to see if it still works. After that, Lordco is nearby ( which is where I bought the battery ). I'll check with Escape on the dual 6V. Buddy Keath didn't bring his generator out at all, and he has dual 6V.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

It's a Crappy Tire Motomaster and I no longer have the instruction manual. Tried to find one on-line, with no luck.

Many Motomasters are made by Schumacher - you could check there for a simiar-looking unit.

[cpaharley2008]

Glenn,
Not sure but the dual six's on the 17 may require a frame modification, if I recall Escape need to know that option prior to start.

[lorrie]

Last year I contacted Escape to inquire about replacing the 12v with dual 6s on our 2007 17B and this was the response:

"To convert the trailer from a single 12V battery system to a dual 6V battery system would cost $400.00. We would rewire the trailer and install the batteries inside the trailer in a sealed box which is vented to the outside."

We ended up not going ahead as we make do with the dual 6s by being careful with battery usage when we are not hooked up. But if buying new, would definitely go with the 12V.

[thoer]

Originally Posted by lorrie

Last year I contacted Escape to inquire about replacing the 12v with dual 6s on our 2007 17B and this was the response:

"To convert the trailer from a single 12V battery system to a dual 6V battery system would cost $400.00. We would rewire the trailer and install the batteries inside the trailer in a sealed box which is vented to the outside."

We ended up not going ahead as we make do with the dual 6s by being careful with battery usage when we are not hooked up. But if buying new, would definitely go with the 12V.

Did that price include the 2 6v batteries?

[lorrie]

Hmmmm, good question. Not sure, but I assume not.

[gbaglo]

Camped Sunday night with shore power and Toad was in our driveway Monday with shore power.
Tuesday afternoon, I plugged in my battery charger and the 'Charged' LED came on. Amp meter indicated almost 100 per cent charge. Left it on charge at 10A for an hour and an hour after that I used the hydrometer and got a reading of 12.75 on all cells.
So, I think I'll just carry on, and carry the Motomaster charger with me camping.
Thanks u'all.

[thoer]

Good to hear that your battery is most likely in good shape Glenn.

[gbaglo]

Well, the battery is actually an on-going saga.
Trailer had been connected to shore power for several weeks. Cells are all watered.
I unplugged it for four or five days. Nothing on in the trailer, except the propane detector. When I checked the monitor, it barely read 'fair'. The Innova voltmeter was into the red zone.
Seems strange that the battery could drain that much in such a short time with next to no load.
I've got it on my 10A battery charger now. Watched a video on the Trojan battery site where they said you can equalize the battery by fully charging it, then unplugging the charger and plugging it in again ( some chargers - not mine - have this function built in ). They didn't go into details and I can't find the information in the text files so I'm not sure how this works or how long to keep it on the charger.
Any thoughts on these issues will help.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

Trailer had been connected to shore power for several weeks. Cells are all watered.
I unplugged it for four or five days. Nothing on in the trailer, except the propane detector. When I checked the monitor, it barely read 'fair'. The Innova voltmeter was into the red zone.
Seems strange that the battery could drain that much in such a short time with next to no load.

I agree - sounds fast to me.

Originally Posted by gbaglo

Watched a video on the Trojan battery site where they said you can equalize the battery by fully charging it, then unplugging the charger and plugging it in again ( some chargers - not mine - have this function built in ). They didn't go into details and I can't find the information in the text files so I'm not sure how this works or how long to keep it on the charger.

I assume that they're triggering a restart of the bulk charge phase, which goes to a relatively high charging voltage regardless of charging current. If that's what they're doing, it would presumably only need to be on until it switches to the next stage.