First weekend out

[Smaay]

2004 Knight 38PDD

we had a blast this weekend in the coach, however.... here are the few issues i discovered.

my house batteries dont last for crap. i didnt have hardly anything running. fridge on gas, water heater on its normals cycle, thats about it. the batteries were in the red and reported 10V the next morning. I couldnt start the generator in the morning. luckily the chassis batteries were good and I could start the engine, ran it for a few then start the generator. So do i need new batteries? I believe I have 2 6V batteries right now, do i need to upgrade to 4?

the other issue I ran into was the generator on the drive home. My fuel gauge was reporting 1/2 tank and I lost the generator. I know its shared to prevent using all the diesel it gets cut off, but not at half tank??? is that normal?

[Podivin]

Originally Posted by Smaay

2004 Knight 38PDD

we had a blast this weekend in the coach, however.... here are the few issues i discovered.

my house batteries dont last for crap. i didnt have hardly anything running. fridge on gas, water heater on its normals cycle, thats about it. the batteries were in the red and reported 10V the next morning. I couldnt start the generator in the morning. luckily the chassis batteries were good and I could start the engine, ran it for a few then start the generator. So do i need new batteries? I believe I have 2 6V batteries right now, do i need to upgrade to 4?

the other issue I ran into was the generator on the drive home. My fuel gauge was reporting 1/2 tank and I lost the generator. I know its shared to prevent using all the diesel it gets cut off, but not at half tank??? is that normal?

For the batteries, give them a full charge and then have them load tested. Otherwise you're just guessing about what might be the problem. Your favorite auto parts store can load test them.

The generator on mine 'runs out of gas' at just a wee bit below a half tank. Wish it would go to about a quarter tank, but I know that I have to fill at 1/2 if I want the generator to run. If you put gas in the tank and it runs like it should, then that's probably it.

[vito.a]

If you only had two issues then you are doing great.
Do you know the date on your batteries?
Most are good for 3-5 years, but the life is reduced if they are repeatedly discharged below 50%.
I've had very good luck with Trojan T-105 6v Golf Cart batteries.
Make sure you take a picture before removing the batteries.

You can remove the fuel pickup assembly and adjust the height of the generator feed line. Just be careful not to lower it too much. Also check the accuracy of the fuel gauge.

[jacwjames]

check the water in the batteries and top off, then get them fully charge and check with a hydrometer. It will tell you if you have a dead cell, which means the battery is toast.



If you are boondocking 2 batteries are marginal. Even if you are running fridge and water heater on propane there is enough of a parasitic draw on the system the batteries can't keep up. I have 325 watt of solar power on my coach with 4-6 volt batteries, limit our 12 volt usage, and can barely make it through the night.

[twinboat]

If you have an inverter/charger and a diesel generator, that starts from the house batteries, you should have 4 of them.

Sounds like someone took the cheap route with only 2, 6 volt batteries.

[Chris M.]

Originally Posted by jacwjames

check the water in the batteries and top off, then get them fully charge and check with a hydrometer. It will tell you if you have a dead cell, which means the battery is toast.



If you are boondocking 2 batteries are marginal. Even if you are running fridge and water heater on propane there is enough of a parasitic draw on the system the batteries can't keep up. I have 325 watt of solar power on my coach with 4-6 volt batteries, limit our 12 volt usage, and can barely make it through the night.

Wow that doesn't sound right. No solar for me. I have 4ea wet cell 6v coach batteries. We stop around ten or so at night. I can run the 2 furnaces in 30 degree weather, fridge lights etc. Watch tv and make coffee. On my inverter in the am. My batteries don't go in the red. Soon after I will need to start the generator or continue driving. I did switch the whole coach to led lights. I didn't think the leds would save that much. Am I missing something?

[Outbound]

I would take another look, hard to believe you only have 2-6volt batteries, maybe 2-12 volt batteries.

[Smaay]

thanks for all the responses, ill check out the batteries tomorrow, they might be 12V.

[Smaay]

so on to Solar, i have (2) 100W solar panels I used on my class C, how do i hook them up to the house batteries? as long as i hook them up in a 12V configuration i should be ok?

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Outbound

I would take another look, hard to believe you only have 2-6volt batteries, maybe 2-12 volt batteries.

2, 6 volt batteries in series will give you more capacity the most 12 volt battery pairs.