Inverter fuse bad, need to charge batteries

[FlyingDiver]

Started having a problem yesterday, no AC output from inverter. After checking with Magnum, and taking a meter to the DC inputs on the inverter and the output from the battery bank, it looks like the fuse between the batteries and the inverter is bad. 12+ volts on the battery side of the fuse, < 1 volt on the inverter side. So I ordered some fuses online. This is a Class T 350 amp fuse, no luck finding it locally. I ordered 2.

But, the battery bank has had no charge since saturday or sunday, so it's down to 12.1 volts. I just hooked up my little portable battery charger I use for the toad, it puts out 6 amps @ 12 v. Anyone see any problem with just leaving that connected until I get the new fuses? Could be a week.

joe

[GaryKD]

Hi FlyingDiver,
How many batteries is the charger charging? Me thinks a 6 AMP charger on 8 or so coach batteries will need to be monitored to allow the charger to keep up with any load put on the batteries.

[FlyingDiver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GaryKD Hi FlyingDiver, How many batteries is the charger charging? Me thinks a 6 AMP charger on 8 or so coach batteries will need to be monitored to allow the charger to keep up with any load put on the batteries.

8 AGMs. I'm watching the battery voltage from the panel inside, if it gets anywhere near 13 v I'll disconnect the charger and see where it's really at. We're keeping 12v usage to a minimum to give the charger a chance to actually charge the batteries. When I hooked it up, the readout on the disconnect panel was 12.1 volts. It's up to 12.3, so I think it's slowly making headway on the charge.

joe

[GaryKD]

You have the right idea and process. This should not be a problem.

The charger also needs to be watched. I do not know if you are overloading it. Running an electrical device at its' rated maximum for any length of time can cause overheating, etc.

[FlyingDiver]

Yeah, I just checked the charger and it's pretty warm. It has a 2 amp setting as well, which I used for the motorcycle battery when it needed to be topped up. I'll set it to 2 amp overnight, then back to 6 in the morning when I can watch it.

joe

[Iron Man]

Do you know what happened to the fuse? I recently had an issue dealing with that "fuse holder".

[FlyingDiver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iron Man Do you know what happened to the fuse? I recently had an issue dealing with that "fuse holder".

Not yet. I haven't actually removed the old fuse yet. It's a really tight area between the two battery banks (house and chassis), and I think I might have to remove at least one battery to get in there and get it out. So I was waiting until I have the replacement so I don't have to do it twice.

joe

[FlyingDiver]

FWIW, I replaced the dead fuse yesterday. Kinda a pain, since I had to move several of the house batteries to get room to reach the fuse holder. Those things are HEAVY. Once it was in, and all the cables hooked up again, everything works fine. So I still don't have any idea what caused the fuse to blow, but at least I have a spare now.

joe