Community Forums

twinboat · 12-18-2021, 05:12 PM

Confirm your getting 13.4 or more volts on the BIRD coach battery terminal.

It may be on the solenoid cable but not on the BIRD sense wire.

Patty1301 · 12-19-2021, 06:02 AM

Started engine and watched the BIRD function properly and bridge battery banks. Not sure if this means anything but I noticed when on shore power the BIRD was not producing any power from the relay terminal BUT the ignition terminal showed very slight voltage 0.019v. I thought maybe any ignition voltage would hinder the BIRD so I disconnected that wire and there was still that slight voltage on the BIRD ignition terminal. Have not ordered a new BIRD yet but this thing certainly has me puzzled.

Patty1301 · 12-19-2021, 06:07 AM

Yup I was getting 13.54 v at the BIRD…. Unless that terminal is dirty or something. I’ll pull it off and clean it. If it’s something that stupid I’m going to be mad at myself.

twinboat · 12-19-2021, 06:08 AM

You should see ignition voltage on the wire that goes to the BIRD controller when the engine is running and none when the ignition is off.

Patty1301 · 12-19-2021, 06:12 AM

So the BIRD must be my issue

Fefanatic · 12-19-2021, 09:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patty1301

So the BIRD must be my issue

Your issue is with shore power and the converters charging. If your batteries are charging while the engine is running and not charging with shore or generator power then you have a issue with the converters, not the BIRD.

The bird doesn't know whether it's on shore power or engine running other than the ignition wire. Do you have 12v at the batt terminal of the BIRD? Does the batteries charge with the ignition switch on and engine not running while on shore/generator power?

If the batteries charge while on shore power and the ignition on then it could be the BIRD. If not then you have to find out why the converters aren't charging the batteries. Have you done what I asked and checked output of the converters while on shore power?

YC1 · 12-19-2021, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fefanatic

Your issue is with shore power and the converters charging. If your batteries are charging while the engine is running and not charging with shore or generator power then you have a issue with the converters, not the BIRD.

The bird doesn't know whether it's on shore power or engine running other than the ignition wire. Do you have 12v at the batt terminal of the BIRD? Does the batteries charge with the ignition switch on and engine not running while on shore/generator power?

If the batteries charge while on shore power and the ignition on then it could be the BIRD. If not then you have to find out why the converters aren't charging the batteries. Have you done what I asked and checked output of the converters while on shore power?

POST 3: and four indicate he has shoreline charging fine.

" At the BIRD coach battery terminal the meter reads 13.5 volts. At the solenoid as well as the bird relay terminal I have zero volts. I’m waiting for a call back from Intellitec but I think the BIRD is not functioning properly."

YC1 · 12-19-2021, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patty1301

Started engine and watched the BIRD function properly and bridge battery banks. Not sure if this means anything but I noticed when on shore power the BIRD was not producing any power from the relay terminal BUT the ignition terminal showed very slight voltage 0.019v.This is just "stray" voltage and does not mean anything. A digital voltmeter can pick up all kinds of strange things. Disconnecting confirmed this to you. I thought maybe any ignition voltage would hinder the BIRD so I disconnected that wire and there was still that slight voltage on the BIRD ignition terminal. Have not ordered a new BIRD yet but this thing certainly has me puzzled.

You have been given enough evidence and ways to diagnose this thing. Post the part number on the controller please.

Your solenoid is working as is the shoreline inverter charging properly and the alternator is providing a charging voltage as well.

You are just missing the command from the controller to tell it to do the combining when there is a large enough charging voltage.

You do need to confirm AT the controller what the house battery voltage is showing in case that wire is not seeing the proper voltage. It should be identical to that across the house battery terminals, less any copper losses. That is, resistance in the run of the wire.

We used to have a challenge sometimes. "I can diagnose this (whatever), in one, two, three, four measurements". That was fun, but of course we were intimately familiar with the setups that were installed. Doing this via remote control there are a lot of variables and often the OP leaves off critical information by accident or does not feel it is relevant.

I think you have provided plenty of information to solve this mystery.

One more thing you can do for fun. Reverse the wires on the controller where the coach and chassis batteries are connected. The problem should follow the bad output from the house battery connection.

That is, it should then charge while on shoreline.

Patty1301 · 12-19-2021, 11:04 AM

00-00366-000 is the number on the BIRD. I believe the replacement is 00-00839-000. At least I hope it is because this is what I ordered.

Patty1301 · 12-19-2021, 11:05 AM

13.56 on both converters

Patty1301 · 12-25-2021, 05:33 PM

Update… put each bank on regular charger for a night each bank. Ran the coach for an hour to put a good boost on them and the BIRD functions properly. Both banks read 13.57 now. Very happy. Should have started by doing basic battery maintenance. Luckily figured it out before ruining batteries and spending a lot on replacements. Do your maintenance people! I’m a little embarrassed but I’ve got some spare components now and a much better understanding of my coach and charging system. Thank you all for your input.

Fefanatic · 12-25-2021, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patty1301

Update… put each bank on regular charger for a night each bank. Ran the coach for an hour to put a good boost on them and the BIRD functions properly. Both banks read 13.57 now. Very happy. Should have started by doing basic battery maintenance. Luckily figured it out before ruining batteries and spending a lot on replacements. Do your maintenance people! I’m a little embarrassed but I’ve got some spare components now and a much better understanding of my coach and charging system. Thank you all for your input.

Sometimes that understanding is well worth all the investment you may have spent. Glad you got it figured out. Now you will know next time.

BrokeDown · 12-26-2021, 05:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patty1301

Should have started by doing basic battery maintenance.

I've been following along and I am confused. What maintenance are you talking about? What do you think fixed the problem,?

My understanding of the BIRD is that when you are on shore power with the ignition off, the charge voltage is applied to the house batteries. When the voltage on the house terminal of the BIRD controller reaches 13.1 for 2.5 minutes, the isolation solenoid closes to connect the house batteries to the coach batteries so that both charge. The manual goes on to say that if the house batteries fall below 12.5 volts, the isolation solenoid will open to prevent the coach batteries from being discharged.

Did your house batteries fall below 12.5 and stay there?

-B

Patty1301 · 12-26-2021, 02:07 PM

I had a solid 13.56 volts on house batteries on shore power… chassis batteries were 12.7 and bird would not trigger the solenoid to bridge the banks. Has shore disconnected and noticed the solenoid clicked when I put a 40 amp boost on the house batteries with a shop charger. Basically both banks needed to be charged up separately before the bird functioned properly. This is why I thought it was the bird with a solid 13.56 to the coach terminal on bird and it did nothing.