battery

[JIM Q]

there is a house battery and engine battery went to MH and the 12 volt lights were very dim tried to start engine and would not start. plug in my battery charger and hook up to engine battery and got the engine started my question is if im plug into 110 should that have kept charge on batteries?? I could not even start gen and that comes off house battery?? not sure how these batterys are hook up. Im going to replace the engine battery but is there a device in the MH that when hook to electric that charges the battery? thanks

[deandec]

Starting battery might be charged from shore power. Plug in shore power and test the voltage at the starting battery terminals. If being charged should see about 13.0 vdc.

If not, some folks install a $50 Trik-L-Start to charge start batteries from generator or shore power.

Remove negative wire from your charged up start battery. Try to start the generator. If it starts, then house battery also starts the generator. If not then the starter battery starts the generator.

Some rigs have a boost switch that temporarily links the house battery to the engine start battery in case the start battery is weak. You may have one somewhere.

The boost switch solves the problem of shore power not wired to charge the start battery.

Manufacturers build the above two concepts differently.

[GaryKD]

Hi JIM Q,
It would help us to know the details of the coach you own. Year, make, model, inverter, charger, etc.

Basically, take a VDC reading from the charger connections to the house battery(s). It should read 13.5 VDC or higher. Take a VDC reading on the house battery(s). It should be the same as the reading from the charger. If so, the coach battery(s) are being charged. If not, the charger or a component between the charger and the coach battery(s) is suspect. The coach battery could also be bad.

The chassis battery may or may not be charged from the charger. It all depends on how the coach is wired.

[JIM Q]

thanks for the replys
Gary it is a 07 fourwinds harricane
I do think the start battery is bad

[JIM Q]

this is what is confussion to me. past summer could not get the gen started when I was comming home. pulled into a rest area and plug into a 110 outlet and got the gen to start. so the engine battery dose not start the gen. I replace the house battery It was bad. I thought the 12 volt stuff came off the house battery but maby not. the 12volt lights were very dim and could not start the engine nor the gen?? I jump the battery and the lights got bright and i could start the gen I will replace the eng battery