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Batteries on shore power.....what to do?

jwstrout
Explorer
Explorer
Hello All,

At the end of June, my wife, and I are traveling to Yellowstone for 8 days, and 7 nights.

I have two 6 volt golf cart batteries on the trailer that I installed last year. They have been on a maintenance charger all winter, and are showing 12.6ish volts. Upgrading to a smart converter/charger is on my short list of upgrades this year, but it is not going to happen before this trip.

The campsite we reserved has a shore power connection. So I am thinking that leaving the trailer plugged into the shore power, and letting the power run through the old school converter/charger for the entire trip is a bad idea. I'm inclined to disconnect the batteries while we are there to prevent overcharging and/or possible damage.

Thoughts?

Thanks,

Jeff
22 REPLIES 22

MEXICOWANDERER
Explorer
Explorer
Battery drier-outer's, were commonly BW Magnatek converters.

I had a 775-2 unit in the 80's that I installed piggy-back schottky rectifiers in parallel with the silicon rectifiers. Could not leave it connected even overnight but it was a step up from the regular ferroresonant bleeder converters of the day.

As the capacitors aged voltage crept upward. Wotta hoot

j-d
Explorer
Explorer
Very surprised at the C-C in our 2003 Jayco Class C. Coach is VERY entry level, and being that old, I thought its IOTA brand C-C would be a Battery Boiler. Wrong! We have a single 12V Deep Cycle from Walmart. Used GP27's but last time they were out of them and a GP29 just fits my tray. Point is, We've lived in the RV 2-weeks at a time, 1-month at a time, 2-months at a time, and always leave the coach plugged in at home to run a dehumidifier. Adding water is about a twice-a-year event. That IOTA, and I'm sure it's a cheap one, from 2002, does its job right.
If God's Your Co-Pilot Move Over, jd
2003 Jayco Escapade 31A on 2002 Ford E450 V10 4R100 218" WB

enblethen
Nomad
Nomad
Voltage sounds good!
Have a good trip!

Bud
USAF Retired
Pace Arrow


2003 Chev Ice Road Tracker

jwstrout
Explorer
Explorer
So, after sitting all day with the charger disconnected, they are reading at 12.91. I assume that's good?

I won't worry about the converter/charger for this trip, but will get an upgrade this season.

Thanks for the replies, and the assistance,

Jeff

red31
Explorer
Explorer
jwstrout wrote:
They are reading at 13.2 volts, using my nicer multi meter


good that means something, they do hold a surface charge.

time2roll
Explorer II
Explorer II
I believe Elixir will charge and float at 13.6 volts and is perfectly fine in moderately warm temperatures. If you were full time in Phoenix maybe take some precaution in the Summer.

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
MrWizard wrote:
a 2007 is not old school battery boiler

you will be find, leave batteries connected

My 2007 Winnebago had an old school battery boiler in it when new. It took me about 3 years to figure out that I needed to replace it.

To the OP, you will be perfectly fine for this trip. When you get back, put a good converter/charger on there.

The problem with the old school battery burners was long term use and lack of maintenance of the batteries. One trip does not constitute long term use.
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

troubledwaters
Explorer
Explorer
JimK-NY wrote:
Something is not right. If your batteries are on a maintenance charger the voltage should read well over 12.6.
enblethen wrote:
Disconnect charger and load. Wait three to four hours. Use Voltmeter to check voltage.
report back!
What difference does it make, he's not even going to be using the batteries. If he was going to be relying on the batteries for power it would be important. In this case, doesn't make a difference.

jwstrout
Explorer
Explorer
I am not sure which converter/charger is installed. It is the one that came with the panel. In doing research for a replacement, the Elixir panel gets horrible reviews. So I assume the converter/charger is not all that great.

Jeff

wa8yxm
Explorer III
Explorer III
What "Old schoool" Converter charger do you have.
ONE: (Magnetek) was noted for boiling batteries dry fairly swiftly But this unit insists on either a battery or a "Battery Simulator" being installed. The latter is now-a-days known as a "Hardening Cap" or "Hardening Condenser" from high end auto audio stores.

New converters like the Parallex 7300 (Which is the current replaement for the old one I just mentioned) do not (usually) damage the batteries like the old one did.

Of course if you have something like a Progressive Dynamics 9200 (stand alone) or 4600 (Replacement for the ELECTRONICS portion of a combined Converter/power panel) .. Well better it does not get.
Home was where I park it. but alas the.
2005 Damon Intruder 377 Alas declared a total loss
after a semi "nicked" it. Still have the radios
Kenwood TS-2000, ICOM ID-5100, ID-51A+2, ID-880 REF030C most times

jwstrout
Explorer
Explorer
They have been disconnected for about 3 hours. I will let them sit through the day, and report back this evening after they have sat for the day.

Thanks,

Jeff

SoundGuy
Explorer
Explorer
jwstrout wrote:
Batteries are US Battery brand, and the model number on both is US 2000 XC2. They are properly topped off with distilled water, and now disconnected from the charger. They are reading at 13.2 volts, using my nicer multi meter.


That's surface charge and means nothing, fully charged flooded batteries should read ~ 12.7 volts after resting a day.
2012 Silverado 1500 Crew Cab
2014 Coachmen Freedom Express 192RBS
2003 Fleetwood Yuma * 2008 K-Z Spree 240BH-LX
2007 TrailCruiser C21RBH * 2000 Fleetwood Santa Fe
1998 Jayco 10UD * 1969 Coleman CT380

jwstrout
Explorer
Explorer
I appreciate the replies. I will take the advice, and just leave everything connected.

To answer the questions above.....

My trailer is a 2007 Starcraft Travel Star 18SD. It is equipped with a 45 Amp. Elixir panel. Nothing associated with the panel has been changed or upgraded. I do plan to upgrade the converter/charger this year.

Batteries are US Battery brand, and the model number on both is US 2000 XC2. They are properly topped off with distilled water, and now disconnected from the charger. They are reading at 13.2 volts, using my nicer multi meter.

Thanks again,

Jeff

enblethen
Nomad
Nomad
Disconnect charger and load. Wait three to four hours. Use Voltmeter to check voltage.
report back!

Bud
USAF Retired
Pace Arrow


2003 Chev Ice Road Tracker