Community Forums

Macbow · 08-10-2019, 07:12 PM

My main string battery dies after about a week.
I’ve been shutting off the manual disconnect under the hood.
This is a pain. Any suggestions on possible culprits. Don’t see any easy solutions.
2002 pace arrow gas 36R.

Ray,IN · 08-10-2019, 08:21 PM

The positive way to eliminate battery drain is to disconnect the negative battery cable.
If you have an LP detector, likely it bypasses the onboard battery disconnect.
If you have an inductive DC ammeter or can rent one, measure current draw while the battery disconnect is opened.
Have your battery load-tested, interstate usually offers this free service. This either eliminates or confirms battery wellness.

Gary RVRoamer · 08-11-2019, 08:01 AM

There are a few things that bypass the battery disconnect, e.g. LP detector and step motor. If you have an under-step light, make sure it isn't staying on - that can drag the chassis battery down quickly. It's also quite possible that some equipment added or repaired over the years has cross-connected the chassis and house systems. Maybe a lazy RV tech or a previous owner.

The first step is to measure the amp load. With everything in your normal "storage" status, disconnect the negative terminal and place an ammeter between the negative terminal and the chassis ground cable. That will tell you how much current (amps) is actually being consumed. If more than 100 milliamps, you probably have some "phantom" extra loads you need to find. To find them, pull fuses one by one until the amp load changes.

leadman · 08-11-2019, 08:38 AM

When checking for draws remember that most dash radio draw power for the memory. It is very little but combines with other possible draws could be your issue.
A battery with a bad cell can also be your problem.
I have also seen alternators that had issues cause a problem.

Mudfrog · 08-11-2019, 03:55 PM

The chassis battery on ours will last close to two weeks. After that, it won't have enough juice to crank the engine. Been this way since we bought it in early 2003.

My first try at a remedy was to hook up a 5 watt solar battery charger to the battery. It helped somewhat but didn't alleviate the problem. if you try this, make sure to get one larger than 5 watts.

Second try at a solution was to install a battery disconnect switch next to the battery. This did work but as mentioned by the OP, was sort of a pain because it erased memory from radio and clock. I also became concerned that applying/removing power might not be a great thing to be doing to the Workhorse ecm.

I installed 30 amp service to the RV port last year so now have power to run converter charger and a stand alone charger for the chassis battery. But instead of keeping the coach powered 24/7, I have a timer set to power on once a week for 12 hours. This has worked perfectly for my situation.