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FRED MASINO · 05-31-2021, 08:37 AM

Where is the ground fuse for the house and chaises batteries?

andy29847 · 05-31-2021, 01:05 PM

I haven't pursued the grounds from the battery compartment yet. I know there are to major ground lugs in the engine compartment. One on the engine and one of the frame (back of the battery box. I don't know why you would have fuses on those grounds (the positive side is fused). The starter is fused on the ground side.

Winemaker2 · 05-31-2021, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andy29847

I haven't pursued the grounds from the battery compartment yet. I know there are to major ground lugs in the engine compartment. One on the engine and one of the frame (back of the battery box. I don't know why you would have fuses on those grounds (the positive side is fused). The starter is fused on the ground side.

I have never seen a starter Neg ground. Can you point out where it is on the schematic posted?

Winemaker2 · 05-31-2021, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FRED MASINO

Where is the ground fuse for the house and chaises batteries?

Why fuse ground?
Pos fuse as close as possible to the batty protects the balance of the wiring/ circuit against shorts or overcurrent draws.

andy29847 · 05-31-2021, 05:23 PM

I haven't seen batteries fused on the negative side.

My coach has a fuse in the passenger rear compartment labeled "Ground Fuse" (circled in orange). I haven't traced the cables from the fuse, but I have this Western RV drawing that shows one end to the starter and the other end to the engine ground stud.

Don't ask me to explain the theory. I don't know.

Winemaker2 · 05-31-2021, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andy29847

I haven't seen batteries fused on the negative side.

My coach has a fuse in the passenger rear compartment labeled "Ground Fuse" (circled in orange). I haven't traced the cables from the fuse, but I have this Western RV drawing that shows one end to the starter and the other end to the engine ground stud.

Don't ask me to explain the theory. I don't know.

Thanks
Hard to read / follow as printing blurry when enlarged.
Interesting and first time I have ever seen this.
Appreciate the resonse.

andy29847 · 05-31-2021, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Winemaker2

Thanks
Hard to read / follow as printing blurry when enlarged.
Interesting and first time I have ever seen this.
Appreciate the resonse.

I often use "copy image" and then view the photo by pasting it in something I can zoom in with (most often IrfanView).

andy29847 · 06-03-2021, 07:09 AM

I continue to be humbled by my mistakes.

Changed one label on the battery compartment drawing from "house always on" to "HWH Pump". The HWH pump feed appears to go through the house disconnect switch in the stairwell.

andy29847 · 06-09-2021, 07:55 AM

Youse guys are probably giggling because I'm keeping this thread alive.

I've had fun doing this and I ma happy with how the project turned out. Anyway, here is another tidbit I learned doing this project.

I tried several different methods of cutting the new battery cables before I settled on 3/4" Fiskar Anvil Pruners. The Fiskar Pruners were recommended in one of the internet posts I read leading up to this project. There are cheap and strong. The only thing I struggled with was getting the ratchet system to engage for the 2nd and 3rd stroke. This morning, I was pruning trees and I figured it out.

The secret is to hold down the anvil while the handle resets after a stroke. OF COURSE, YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR FINGERs CLEAR. Tools are not selective when they are working. Don't end up like this:

The Fiskar pruners give a clean square cut.

The finger photo is a spoof. I have all 5 digits.

andy29847 · 06-09-2021, 08:05 AM

Last post unless someone has a question or I find another error. I have continued to refine my drawings of the power systems for my coach. I can't go back and delete or replace the old ones, so I have to share the latest in a new post. I want to do one more - a drawing that shows where all the fuses are. That will probably come after my summer trip. I'm also including some factory drawings I found while doing research. Be advised that there may be variations between the drawings and how your coach may be actually wired.
Best regards and thanks for the knowledge youse guys have shared here.

paul65k · 06-09-2021, 05:46 PM

Andy,

Looks good to me. One thing that I would highly recommend is that you install a shunt-based battery monitoring system. Even with LA batteries, it is an invaluable tool for managing your power, as well as monitoring your charging and all can be done via Bluetooth from your smartphone.

Victron is the class of the group and their SmartShunt is a good addition for $125 on Amazon.

NV_Alpine · 06-30-2021, 07:47 PM

I have replaced my cables 3 times since 2004. Always founds it best to keep the original size cables..
Thanks

vet652000 · 06-03-2022, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andy29847

As OLD WEB pointed out, the factory drawing for fuses and batteries had an error on it. I fixed the error. Here is the corrected version.

Thanks for posting the diagram, but can someone tell me how you are getting 5-7 4/0 cables or even 2/0 cables on one battery post as the drawing shows??
I contend that this is impossible!?

andy29847 · 06-03-2022, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vet652000

Thanks for posting the diagram, but can someone tell me how you are getting 5-7 4/0 cables or even 2/0 cables on one battery post as the drawing shows??
I contend that this is impossible!?

Earlier in this thread, there were several photos posted that showed battery connections as wired by the factory. When I reworked my battery compartment, I used the same size wires as the factory (2 and 2/0) and added buss bars to avoid having to connect multiple cables on a single battery post.