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Old 03-11-2014, 10:26 AM   #1
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Battery Charge Drain on Freedom Elite 28Z

I purchased a 2013 Thor Freedom Elite 28Z in April, 2013, and have had problems with the generator dropping out unexpectedly, and the engine battery won't hold its charge. Have other 28Z had these issues? Any ideas on how to solve these problems?
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Old 03-11-2014, 10:11 PM   #2
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"Dropping out" does that mean it just quit when it was running? Not low on fuel, no other indication, it just quit?
Is the oil level up to full?
Normal load?
Was running fine before?
How many hours on the gen?
What kind?

It is likely your converter/charger does not charge the chassis batts - mine doesn't. But it should have enough reserve amps to start your engine unless you're letting it sit for weeks. Longer than about a month it should be put on a charger. If it just goes dead in a few days it is probably time to replace it. AGM batts don't self-discharge like flooded cell batts do. Most people install or use a maintainer/trickle charger for their chassis batts in storage. I have recently switched my 10w solar panel to charge the chassis batt instead of the house. The house got a new Iota converter charger.

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Old 03-13-2014, 07:34 AM   #3
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The generator has only 285 hours on it, and it seems to drop out at irregular intervals, whether or not there's a load, and whether or not I'm driving the RV. As to the chassis battery, as an example, a week ago I drove the RV about 40 miles, and a week later went out to start and run the engine, and it was dead. I'm thinking that the radio may be a drain, as the screen seems to be on a lot when the ignition is off.
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Old 03-13-2014, 08:20 AM   #4
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I'm curious about this term 'drop out'. Do you mean it shuts down? Or quits making power, or?

285 isn't a lot, it is curious though...my coach is 10 years old this year and it has 185 on the gen. We mostly dry camp. It seems like somebody sat out in the dez and ran the gen 24-7. Or they lived in it and ran it every day or something.

I'm also curios about your comment of 'whether you're driving or not' - does that mean you run the generator when you're driving? And if so, why?

What kind of generator is it? What is it powering when it shuts down? You have checked the oil level in it, right? They have an auto-shut down sensor for low oil and it doesn't take much. If it has been used in the dez make sure it has been serviced properly - clean air filter and changed the oil.

A dash radio has some parasitic drain but nothing that should bother a starting battery. A week should be okay. A couple of months - probly not. Batteries will discharge about 1% a day just on their own. It is highly likely that it has been run dead at least once which kills a starting battery - they are not made for that and will fail if run dead. Many RV's have a switch for the dash radio for house or chassis batts. I recommend you either replace the starting batt or remove it and have it charged and load-tested by a battery service center. It's highly likely it just won't hold a charge and a new one will be fine for you. You can also put an ammeter on it when shut down to see how much parasitic drain is on it.

Since I don't know what a '28Z' is I don't know if we're taking a C, B, or A coach. Not that it makes much difference, but just trying to get a general picture here.
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