Engine Battery Disconnect

[bluestreak]

I have a 09 43 QRP with a Cummins 425. After sitting a couple of weeks the batteries are down. Is there a disconnect for the chassis similar to the one for the house batteries?

Thanks in advance

[wagon217]

Yes! mine is located in the area of the chassis batteries...kinda hidden from view. You may need to follow a power lead to trace it down.
Even with the battery disconnect off there is still some power draw from those batteries.... the electric door locks, steps and the chassis computers.

[kannonvaggon]

I think pretty much all the DP coaches have a battery disconnect for both the house and chassis batteries.... Mine is also in the chassis battery bay. A rotary switch.

I've been down the road of rather high residual draw with both disconnects open. On our Spartan chassis there is also a " master engine cut-off " switch on the PS side of the rear engine bay. Our 12V disconnect by the main door did not function at all.

I took my coach to the chassis factory in Michigan for it's first service, and complained about the apparently puny batteries and a lot of residual draw down. After testing, they found I had like around 3.8AH draw with both battery disconnects open and the inverter head disconnected too. That's a lot for storage even of a less than a month.

To make a long story a bit shorter: Ended up using all three disconnects and opening the 12V relay also. I also unplug the battery maintainer from the chassis batteries when in storage. It has a bit of draw when it's hooked up but not charging from SP. Now I still have around a .2AH draw if I recall it corectly. Everything is off including the CO detector and such, but the ECM and chassis power control integration module are always on battery unless you take the negative leads all off the battery for instance.

I don't suggest you make a practice of doing that, cuz it can mess up the brain of your control module with a voltage spike upon reconnecting them wires and such. Don't ask....

I just recently got "home" and parked in storage for a bit less than three weeks.... and still had 11V on the chassis batteries and it started up OK. This is better than the last times I tried that and ended up jumping the coach to get it started. The house batteries have always stayed up real fine no problem, just the chassis battery drain is my issue.

YMMV

[bluestreak]

Thanks for the info. You pretty much nailed it. If it persist I will take it to Spartan to be checked. Thanks again

Steve
09 43 QRP

[CraigAllegro]

There is a silver switch above the battery - rotary, usually hidden behind the cables a bit. The solar panels can be jumped to maintain the chassis batteries as well in the house battery compartment. When you are plugged to shore power there is a 2 amp maintainer in the transfer box compartment (plugged into a 120v) it runs all the way over to the coach battery compartment, that is where you would jump the solar leads to.
Alternatively, you can get a small solar and connect that - leave it just about any where, I have mine on my bake rack out back!