Help with generator / batteries

[lwmcguire]

Originally Posted by ky bob

I jumpered across the isolator solenoid and still no luck.
All the house batteries have fluid in them.

What is a good way to rest the house batteries ?

When the driver dash panel says low battery, is it referring to the house batteries or the engine batteries ?

Dash low bat would be chassis

[gpounder]

This may be a dumb but if this is a new coach to you there is a start process to staring the generator. Assumes you get the battery stuff figured out.

If gas generator you need to prime it first. Hold stop for 30 sec then start.

If diesel then hold down start, light will flash fast, this is a preheat and may hear clicking. Keep holding and in about 15-30 sec it should switch to starter engage.

[ky bob]

Originally Posted by lwmcguire

Dash low bat would be chassis

I am including a picture of the Magnum panel and it showing a very low voltage on the house batteries.



So if chassis battery are the 2 batteries to start the diesel engine that would mean these would be low on charge, but the diesel engine starts up easily and every time.


I drove it from Orlando , Florida to Louisville, Ky and the headlights and everything worked all night through the drive. I would have thought the lighting etc would have dimmed etc if the alternator was not charging the chassis 2 batteries.




I will try to get readings on the chassis and house batteries tomorrow.


Bob

[ky bob]

I placed a jumper across the two large terminals of the isolation relay. Here is a picture.

It is the battery isolation relay on the right of the picture. It is the Trombetta solenoid relay

Since I suspected the relay wasn’t connecting the two
Terminals, I placed a jumper across the two terminals.

Let me know if there are any questions

[gpounder]

I can't say I know your rig exactly but it seems like the battery stuff is new to you. It sounds like the engine battery is okay. The magnum is showing a nearly dead battery for the house. You need to get the batteries charged right away or they will have to be replaced and it may already be too late. At a minimum turn everything off overnight. Jumping the terminals is a good idea if your going to run the engine. The engine will charge the batteries but may take many hours. If your jumper is a good one then after about 20 minutes at high idle you should try to start the generator. That should get you going again. If the batteries are savable then run the generator for at least 4 hours and that may not fully charge them. Buy a specif gravity tester and see what your charge state really is. You may have other problems which caused them to go dead. PM me and I can walk you through it.

[Milford 47]

Originally Posted by ky bob

Update...
When I toggle thru the dash display, it says “Battery Low”

Is this monitoring the 4 coach batteries ?

Chassis batteries only

[Milford 47]

Originally Posted by ky bob

I placed a jumper across the two large terminals of the isolation relay. Here is a picture.

It is the battery isolation relay on the right of the picture. It is the Trombetta solenoid relay

Since I suspected the relay wasn’t connecting the two
Terminals, I placed a jumper across the two terminals.

Let me know if there are any questions

I got my replacement off eBay with the best price available for a perfect match for the continuous duty. About 85 then

[Milford 47]

Originally Posted by ky bob

I am including a picture of the Magnum panel and it showing a very low voltage on the house batteries.



So if chassis battery are the 2 batteries to start the diesel engine that would mean these would be low on charge, but the diesel engine starts up easily and every time.


I drove it from Orlando , Florida to Louisville, Ky and the headlights and everything worked all night through the drive. I would have thought the lighting etc would have dimmed etc if the alternator was not charging the chassis 2 batteries.




I will try to get readings on the chassis and house batteries tomorrow.


Bob

I often get the low battery for the Chassis if just starting or sitting a long time, should clear quickly as the alternator kicks in, especially in cold weather and yes the engine does start easily

You can easily check the 6 volt batteries with your voltmeter, battery terminal to terminal and should be 6.3 or higher

If one is quite a bit lower it is bad or going bad

[ky bob]

Originally Posted by gpounder

I can't say I know your rig exactly but it seems like the battery stuff is new to you. It sounds like the engine battery is okay. The magnum is showing a nearly dead battery for the house. You need to get the batteries charged right away or they will have to be replaced and it may already be too late. At a minimum turn everything off overnight. Jumping the terminals is a good idea if your going to run the engine. The engine will charge the batteries but may take many hours. If your jumper is a good one then after about 20 minutes at high idle you should try to start the generator. That should get you going again. If the batteries are savable then run the generator for at least 4 hours and that may not fully charge them. Buy a specif gravity tester and see what your charge state really is. You may have other problems which caused them to go dead. PM me and I can walk you through it.

OK, I got the generator started, I simply wasn't holding the switch long enough. I ran the generator for about 5 hrs today and the levels in the house batteries are now up at a much higher voltage.

I will test each 6 volt battery with a hygrometer to test each cell of each 6 volt battery, and a digital volt meter asap.

Does anyone know if the generator is supposed to shut off at fuel level of 1/4 tank? It would be nice to know if this is normal.


Mine shut off on me by itself today. Maybe it was because the fuel level in the tank was right at 1/4 tank.


I started the engine on my coach after the generator shut off and did not see a light on the Magnum display monitor indicating that the batteries were being charged. Shouldn't the charge light be on when the engine is running ?



Bob

[twinboat]

Yup, the generator will shut down at around 1/4 tank. Now that that happened, its going to take longer to start once you get fuel.

Leaves you some fuel to get to a station.

With engine running, the alternator should charge the house batteries, but only after the engine batteries are charged and voltage conditions are met.

The charging control needs to sense 13.5 volts before it closes the isolation solenoid, tieing the chassis batteries to the house batteries.

I don't know if the Magnum display will indicate that, but it should show 13.5 volts or more.

[HaRVey 74.5]

The dash panel reads the chassis (starting) batteries. I had the same issue and Thor said it's normal and due to the Cummins engine air intake heating element pulling a lot of power during startup when the outside temperature is below ~45° (I think that's what temp Thor said) and explains why I never had that problem/reading until it got cold out.

[parks0412]

The charge light on the Magnum does not light up when the alternator is charging the house batteries. However, you can check that the alternator is charging the house batteries by reading the voltage on the Magnum. 13.5+ volts indicates the alternator is charging.

I had similar battery problems on my maiden voyage. I had to replace the trombatta solenoid. Got a new one from Napa. I also ended up purchasing two 200ah lithium batteries. Best upgrade I've made.

[gpounder]

One more little piece about the solenoid.

It gets activated by either of two operations:

1. By the boost switch. This effectively jumps the engine battery with the house batteries to get the engine started.

2. By oil pressure. This allows the alternator to charge the house battery while the engine runs.

It is easy to check the solenoid, with the engine off you may hear it click when you press the boost or with a volt meter see if the solenoid is powered up.

To check the oil pressure switch (when you know the solenoid is good). look at the magmun volt panel and check the voltage engine off. Run the engine at high idle and if the voltage jumps then the oil switch is good.

[ky bob]

Originally Posted by gpounder

One more little piece about the solenoid.

It gets activated by either of two operations:

1. By the boost switch. This effectively jumps the engine battery with the house batteries to get the engine started.

2. By oil pressure. This allows the alternator to charge the house battery while the engine runs.

It is easy to check the solenoid, with the engine off you may hear it click when you press the boost or with a volt meter see if the solenoid is powered up.

To check the oil pressure switch (when you know the solenoid is good). look at the magmun volt panel and check the voltage engine off. Run the engine at high idle and if the voltage jumps then the oil switch is good.

Hello,
I will check the battery isolation relay, but if when I run the engine, its' coil isn't energized, then I guess the oil switch is not sending a signal for it to energize. Do you know where the oil switch is located ?


Bob