Charging house batteries with the built in charging system - 2005 Mountain Aire 4304

[Doug427]

Guys,


I posted the below thread in the batteries/systems forum, but I could really use some help from guys familiar with Newmar's of my vintage. I'll attach the link here rather than copy everything over here. I need to charge my house batteries and I'd like to use the built in charging system plugged into the 110v outlet at my parking spot, using adapters from my 50 amp cord to 110v, all of which I have. However, I don't know how to configure all the switches to properly do it. Any help you guys might have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!


https://www.irv2.com/forums/f54/4-x-...to-483355.html

[twinboat]

Simple, turn off house battery disconnect, turn inverter off, plug in and see if charging light is on.

If you have manual switchs near the batteries leave them on.

If charging light is on, all is well.

[Doug427]

Originally Posted by twinboat

Simple, turn off house battery disconnect, turn inverter off, plug in and see if charging light is on.

If you have manual switchs near the batteries leave them on.

If charging light is on, all is well.

You're talking about the little "charge" indicator next to the Magnum panel display window? What's the function of the white oval on/off charger button if the charger comes on automatically?

[twinboat]

Not all have a charge button. Leave it on.

You can leave that on all of the time. It doesn't do anything until you plug in.

[Persistent]

If you use your digital volt meter and check the voltage at the batteries you should see 14.6 volts the same as the monitor shows.
14.6 volts means the charger is fast charging and probably delivering high current. Maybe 4 hours later it could drop to 13.8 volts and continue charging for another 14 hours. That will provide a full charge to the batteries.

[Doug427]

I got to the storage garage - the batteries were down to 11.6v. They were so low that the battery disconnect switch wouldn't connect them to the RV. I plugged into the wall outlet using the dogbone adapter, and the charge light on the Magnum panel didn't come on. I pressed the "charger" button and the green charge light started blinking. I had things to do on the coach so I just left it as is while I worked, hoping that it would charge a bit and get back to normal. When I went back inside about 20 minutes later, the charge light was off, no longer blinking. I touched the charge button again and it came on solid, and the display read "Charger Standby - DC - 11.8v - 4A" Again, I left it alone and did some more things outside. Came back in and it said "Bulk Charging - DC - 14.2v - 104A". Later it had changed to "Absorb Charging - DC - 14.2v - 100A" I might be off on the voltage reading when it was bulk charging, as I forgot to jot it down at the time.



Once it got to the Absorb Charging stage, I had to go. I left it like that, disconnected the batteries using the store setting on the battery disconnect panel up front, left it hooked up on the charger on 100v wall outlet power through the 50A cord, and went home. Does all this sound normal?



As it sits now, the residential fridge breaker is off, the coach is plugged into 110v using an adapter on the 50A line, the batteries are disconnected using the store setting on the battery disconnect in the coach. Does that all sound correct? How often do I need to check the water on the batteries with it set up like this? Am I correct in assuming that while the batteries are on the charger they will "use" water occasionally?



How is this Magnum equipment that I have? Is it pretty good stuff, or is it lower quality or outdated?


What is the number with the A in the lower right hand corner of the Magnum display? In the case of the pic below, where it says "106A"? It doesn't make sense that it's amps, then what is it? Also, why does the load meter "see pic below" indicate 30A when it's plugged into 110v?



Lastly, can anyone tell me why my photos are suddenly loading sideways and sometimes upside down? How ti I fix and prevent this?



Thanks guys, I'm learning as fast as I can! Can't thank you all enough for your patience and help.

[Persistent]

Neumar's tend to have the best energy management system. Your's look to be excellent.
The side ways pictures are an artifact of the iRV2 website. I have found that the only solution is to turn the camera and take another picture. It is easier to just turn my laptop monitor.
The screen shows what you think it does. 14.6 volts at 106 amps. Having got it through the bulk phase, it was then in the absorption phase. What ever phase it is called, it needs another 10 hours of charging.
I don't have a Neumar system, so I don't know what turning it to grid power will do. It is possible it is still charging the long slow end phase. It is possible it is in a maintenance and trickle charging. It is possible it is in standby and will automatically increase current when voltage drops.

I would wait a few hours then test the voltage at the battery terminals. If the voltage drops to 13 volts or below, charging has been turned off. This means you have to turn it back on for another 10 hours or more. This is the way lead/acid batteries work. They need this to prevent build up of sulfate crystals on the plates.

If it is 13.3 or 13.6, it is doing the long slow slog to finish the charge. And every thing is fine.


I wish you good luck and happy trails ahead!

[twinboat]

Its showing 30 amps because 30 amp service is also 120 volts. It can not tell the amps.

You have to manually turn it down to 20 amps, while using a standard wall outlet.

The switch is below the indicator.

[Doug427]

I went back to the storage garage this morning and found the Magnum panel saying it was in "Float Charging" mode, and showing 13.3 volts. That sounds good to me, but then again what do I know?


What I don;t understand is that the "Charge" LED is not illuminated. Can anyone explain why that is and if that is normal or a problem?

[Doug427]

Originally Posted by twinboat

Its showing 30 amps because 30 amp service is also 120 volts. It can not tell the amps.

You have to manually turn it down to 20 amps, while using a standard wall outlet.

The switch is below the indicator.

Does it serve a function other than informational? What does it do incorrectly if I don't switch it over to 20 amps? I'm not real up at all on what that panel does.



I'm pretty caught up on a basic level on the rest of the coach, but I have a long way to go with the whole electrical system, the panels, and what they all do.

[twinboat]

It prevents the system from drawing more then 20 amps from the wall outlet.
That way you hopefully don't trip the circuit breaker where ever it is in the storage place.

[JOELJ]

Your charge light will go into a sleep mode and the light will go out. Hit any button to exit sleep mode. My new Newmar did it and a thorough reading of the manual helped a lot. If it lists as float charging your good to go. Google “simple guide to battery life in an rv Newmarhoots.com. And it will also explain a lot and help you set the parameters of the setting.

[JOELJ]

Even when you set at 15 or 20 ,it will display as 30.

[Doug427]

Originally Posted by twinboat

It prevents the system from drawing more then 20 amps from the wall outlet.
That way you hopefully don't trip the circuit breaker where ever it is in the storage place.

Understood, it just lowers the electrical draw limit for protection. Thanks!