Community Forums

spider13 · 10-18-2015, 10:21 AM

My 1997 bounder has been sitting in yard, on 30amp shore power,for 2 months.Why are house batterys not fully charged?
Do I have to run gen. Or engine to bring up to full?

Starsekr · 10-18-2015, 10:49 AM

Answer to first question should be no, and second question should be no. How do you know they are not full charge? What happened? Do you have a digital voltmeter? What's the voltage across the batteries? Do your inside lights turn on and look bright? Have you checked both the AC and DC Circuit breaker/Fuse panel? Is your battery disconnect relay on battery connected.

spider13 · 10-18-2015, 03:17 PM

On our last trip out,after setting up ,the slide would not go out.After checking everything we found water levels very low in both house batterys. After refilling with dist. water and sitting the night on shore power in the morning the slide worked.I am concerned that l might need new batterys.I have had this coach two years.I learn something new every day.
The volt readings are 6.25and6.42 the hydrometer reads1.25 or recharge in all cells.

EasyPace · 10-19-2015, 07:09 AM

When plugged into shore power or when the generator is running, you can measure the voltage across the batteries. It should be somewhere around 13.2 -14.7 volts which would indicate that the converter is doing it's job snd trying to charge your batteries. Your batteries being low on water can have a serious life-shortening effect, and is likely the reason that your specific gravity of the electrolyte is low. The reason that the batteries were so low is likely caused by an old converter that may not have a gentle float cycle that simply maintains the batteries, but actively tries to charge them all the time and boils the electrolyte. My old 1999 Georgie Boy's converter used to boil the batteries if I left it sitting plugged in for too long. I think that you're going to need some new batteries, and should consider upgrading your converter so that it doesn't happen again.

pcurt23 · 10-19-2015, 07:21 AM

I have used this device for charging batteries correctly.

Charge Wizard RV Battery Charging and Battery Monitoring Products from Progressive Dynamics

Karl0525 · 10-20-2015, 05:39 AM

Do you have the original (Dumb) charge/converter?

wa8yxm · 10-20-2015, 07:53 AM

What converter do you have.. Some makes and models and comments

Magnetek 6300 (older rv's only) Very bad. It is a very slow charger so it takes a long time to charge the battery... But once it is done charging it keeps on pumping in the amps boiling the battery dry and eventually damaging them if you do not water (distilled only) fast enough.

Parallex bought Magnetek so newer RV's have Parallex converters

Parallex 7300.. Much better, still it's a single stage charger so it will never fully charge the batteries or.. See above on overcharging (boiling them)

Progressive Dynamics 9200 and other Wizard controlled models.

Best converters made. Bar none. I have a 9180 with optional wizard, And a nice new pair of DEKA G-20's (GC-2) 230 amp hours.. They are about 19 months old, I've been parked here since July last year due to a blown engine so they are plugged in full time.. I still do not need to add water. The original Interstate U-2200s (slightly smaller) needed watering annually when new.

AS THEY AGE, they need more frequent watering.