Battery, Solar and Propane Alarm

[ande3118]

I'm from Minnesota and a new owner of a 2015 19. I'm storing it for the winter in a barn with no electricity. I plan to remove the batteries to store in my basement. So far I've unhooked the batteries...

I noticed the solar display still shows voltage. Is there anything to do to the solar system before storage?

Also, what is going to happen to the propane alarm without the battery draw? Is there anything I need to do?

Thank you!
Lucas

[C&G in FL]

Originally Posted by ande3118

I'm from Minnesota and a new owner of a 2015 19. I'm storing it for the winter in a barn with no electricity. I plan to remove the batteries to store in my basement. So far I've unhooked the batteries...

I noticed the solar display still shows voltage. Is there anything to do to the solar system before storage?

Also, what is going to happen to the propane alarm without the battery draw? Is there anything I need to do?

Thank you!
Lucas

Lucas, you probably should cover the solar panel with a blanket if the panel is exposed to any sunlight. The controller can be damaged if it is receiving current from the panel but is not connected to the battery. The propane detector has a limited lifespan (it will tell you when it needs to be replaced) but with the batteries removed it will not suffer any damage. So you do not have to worry about the propane detector.

[ande3118]

Thank you!

[bjp447]

Don't close the thread yet, I am another old guy with a question.
My Propane detector on my 2014 Escape 21, that little guy below the back bench seat on the port (passenger ) side. Has started beeping, light alternating red and green. I go in hit the reset, light goes green and than it starts again the next day or so. The trailer is in my driveway, hooked to 120 volt house power. Propane tanks are shut off and have been since the Pandemic started The Escape manual tells me to check the manufacturers papers which I don't have. The Interstate Battery is good at 12.8 volts.
Someone mentioned that the propane detector will fail and tell you.
1. Does the detector have a battery tha needs changing?
If so any special tricks to get at it?
If not what can cause the problem. RV is not being used, it is just sitting until all this COVID blows over
Any thoughts

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by bjp447

The Escape manual tells me to check the manufacturers papers which I don't have.

I have every piece of paper and instruction manual in plastic sleeves in a binder. Most can also be found online.
Here is manual, which contains info on what signals mean what.
https://www.mtiindustries.com/wp-con...ies-Manual.pdf


I suspect your detector's life has come to an end and that it needs replacement.

[jennykatz]

Yes my propane alarm keeps going off Propane is shut off I finally turned off battery switch so no more alarm How do we get anew one installed Does it unscrew or snap out I don’t want to break it Thanks for future reply Jim W

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by jennykatz

Does it unscrew or snap out I don’t want to break it Thanks for future reply Jim W

I don't know about yours, but mine is held in place by two screws.

[padlin]

Old Guy
Check the date on it, sounds like it may need to be replaced.

Another Old Guy

[bjp447]

Thanks for the manual on the propane detector. In the manual it clearly states to replace 5 years from its manuf date. Mine is over 6 years old so it is long past it's expiration date. I will order a new one and let you folks know how it works out. Looks like 2 screws and 2 wires in areal uncomfortable place for my bad knees.

[gbaglo]

The instructions that come with your new one will say replace five years after installation ( not manufacture ). I brought this up with the distributor when my brand new one was already six months gone. The clock starts when you connect it to electricity.

[75thRanger]

Originally Posted by C&G in FL

Lucas, you probably should cover the solar panel with a blanket if the panel is exposed to any sunlight. The controller can be damaged if it is receiving current from the panel but is not connected to the battery. The propane detector has a limited lifespan (it will tell you when it needs to be replaced) but with the batteries removed it will not suffer any damage. So you do not have to worry about the propane detector.

I've read articles about controller damage both ways. Some say damage is possible and others say don't concern yourself with it.

I have installed a breaker/switch in my solar panel cable (as many have here), and have no problem with turning it off to do whatever with the batteries.

The time the ETI installed GoPower solar is isolated from the battery should make no difference. The electronics must deal with it if a sec or an hour. At the very basic level it's just an open circuit. Is it not?

I forgot to turn my breaker/switch back on after replacing battery cables last week and it was off for 4 days. No harm done that I can find so I guess I join the faction that says, "Ignore it" Hope I don't regret it at some point!

Very seldom have the need to turn the switch off.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by 75thRanger

The time the ETI installed GoPower solar is isolated from the battery should make no difference. The electronics must deal with it if a sec or an hour.

During installation, as long as the battery is connected to the controller before the controller is connected to the panels, the controller is never 9even momentarily) exposed to the potentially problematic condition of having panels connected without a battery.

Originally Posted by 75thRanger

At the very basic level it's just an open circuit. Is it not?

Yes, but the controller is probably designed to get the power for its own operation from the battery side. That means that when the panels are connected (and exposed to sun) and no battery is connected, the controller may not be able to do whatever it needs to do... and what that is internally is unknown to us. It seems that some controllers may not handle this well, although that doesn't seem like very good design, given that in the real world batteries get disconnected.

[Vermilye]

I'd check the manual for your controller for the manufacturer's requirements when disconnecting the batteries. While the GoPower 30 manual does not specifically say not to connect the panels without a battery, on page 7 they state "Run wires from the solar array and the batteries to the location of the GP-PWM-30. Keep the solar array covered with an opaque material until all wiring is completed." (my bolding). Since I want to be able to disconnect the solar charging to my lithium batteries, I installed a 30 amp circuit breaker between the panels & the controller.

I've talked to Renogy about the warning in my Voyager 20 controller manual not to connect the panel without first connecting the battery since I planned to use it on a portable panel. Their answer was it would not be a problem with a small (100 - 200 watt) panel, but becomes important when you are close to the controller rating.

[75thRanger]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

During installation, as long as the battery is connected to the controller before the controller is connected to the panels, the controller is never 9even momentarily) exposed to the potentially problematic condition of having panels connected without a battery.


Yes, but the controller is probably designed to get the power for its own operation from the battery side. That means that when the panels are connected (and exposed to sun) and no battery is connected, the controller may not be able to do whatever it needs to do... and what that is internally is unknown to us. It seems that some controllers may not handle this well, although that doesn't seem like very good design, given that in the real world batteries get disconnected.

Now that I'm thinking about it I distinctly remember turning the breaker/switch on the panel cable on/off to test it after install. I was watching the charge rate on the controller to ensure the switch was operating correctly. It moved between zero and whatever when the switch was open/close.

The controller info screen stayed lite, switch on or off, so the power must come from the batteries. Unless maybe Magic.

Actually the screen lites in the dead of nite so where else would the power come from. DUh, (Forehead Slap)

[Fox hunt]

ours was beeping vacuumed it and that helped for a little while so we replaced it now no problems not hard to replace..

[tdf-texas]

Originally Posted by Fox hunt

ours was beeping vacuumed it and that helped for a little while so we replaced it now no problems not hard to replace..

Same here. It seemed that no matter how many times I de-dusted my three year old Atwood, it still wanted to go off randomly. A lot of posts here mentioned battery gassing as the cause so I took the Atwood out and powered it up in the house as a test. It still wanted to randomly alarm in the house so I replaced it with a MTI and the trailer has been quiet since.

Maybe there's a reason Atwood quit making that propane detector!