2017 Breeze 32BR House Battery replacements

[Tall Guy 3]

New to the Tiffin family: We purchased a 2017 Breeze with 30K miles on it 2 weeks ago; a move up from our previous Sprinter chassis. We got to our first boondock campground two nights ago after driving several hours and previously being at a FUH campground. The house batteries were down to 12.1V according to the hall monitor within a few hours, even with minimal electrical usage. Ran the genset for several hours yesterday, but within an hour or two of shutdown we were back to 12.1V and dropped more overnight. I turned the residential refrigerator off in the middle of the night. The house batteries look like they are probably the original batteries, but in any event, I need to replace them. My question is whether the 215 AH batteries are generally sufficient for boondocking or should I go for a heavier (more expensive) battery. There's a 255 AH Duracell reasonably priced at a nearby Batteries Plus store. It's about half the cost of a similar Trojan (which isn't nearby).

Related: Battery box looks very tight. Much difficulty in removing and installing new ones?

Thanks,
Mike

[grthigpen]

Interesting, on my 2017 32BR its drops fairy quickly like yours but then seems to hold around the 12 Volt mark for several hours if i turn the Fridge off. I have from factory the Duracell batteries FYI.

[Tall Guy 3]

From my boating days, I've always known that discharging below about 50% (12.2V) is harmful to lead acid batteries and reduces their ability to hold a charge. At 12.0V, you're down to 25%. If your performance is typical, Tiffin's choice of house batteries is woefully inadequate. House batteries should be sized to power a minimal load overnight, including the refrigerator. Maybe you need new batteries, too! ;-)

[grthigpen]

This is the chart I use, may not be what you go by.Got it from a battery for campers site.

[randyrupert]

Take a picture of your battery cables before you carefully remove them.
Average battery life is 3-5 years.

[Tall Guy 3]

Yep. Learned that the hard way on my previous RV.

[SteveJ.]

Do keep in mind that battery temperature has a significant effect on state of charge voltage.



Copied from Google and Forest River Forums.

[Mark_K5LXP]

Originally Posted by Tall Guy 3

The house batteries were down to 12.1V according to the hall monitor within a few hours, even with minimal electrical usage

But it's under load, so you have to use the appropriate SOC/voltage table similar to the one grthigpen posted. Unknown is how much current over what period of time was drawn to reach this point. Does your battery monitor display amp hours or watt hours? That's a better indicator of energy used.

The house batteries look like they are probably the original batteries, but in any event, I need to replace them.

You could test them and know for sure. They very well may be wounded but testing would prove that. I would study the existing bank to see if there might be some other problem with the converter or charge profile.

My question is whether the 215 AH batteries are generally sufficient for boondocking or should I go for a heavier (more expensive) battery.

What works for some doesn't work for others, only you can determine what your energy usage and replenishment habits will be. Knowing what the various devices in the coach draws and what your typical use cycle might be will get you a lot closer than throwing new batteries at it and seeing what happens.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

[PKI]

It is my understanding that the Breeze monitor is voltage. A bank under load will under report. Example - after a night at 23 degrees, the two cell bank min our trailer read 12.2 volts at 4:00am. In a panic, I shut down the furnace. About 30 minutes later, after the bank normalized, we read 12.4 volts. Also, you can run good strong batteries lower than 50% occasionally. It will shorted their life, but unless you run them flat, they should continue to be functional. If the cells are wounded, keep to the 50% rule and save for replacement cells.

So, your bank may not be in best of shape, but it also may not be dead.

However, a four cell bank is minimal. Best to have a six (6volt deep discharge) cell bank or move to Lithium (Battleborn).

Note - best practice is to run the generator 2-4 hours in the evening while watching TV and cooking. Then shut down the refrigerator and keep door closed until morning. Then run generator another 2 hours in the morning to recharge the bank and provide power for breakfast. Some folks run the generator another hour to support making lunch around noon. Knowing where you use electrical power and how much you use helps to minimize your consumption. Shut down all un-needed electrical loads to extend your run time capability.

The best solution is the most battery that you can afford. We are going to try the low cost option - wet cell for around $100ea and see if we can fit 6 cells in the battery bay. May look at a double stack if they fit .... do not know yet. But our plan is not to dry camp. Use will be with W/E or FHU when possible and only dry camp if it is our only option. If we planned to dry camp on a regular or extended basis, I would be working overtime to earn enough money to install a six cell Battleborn Lithium bank. Intent would not be to run more stuff, but rather to run the fridge and heater when we need it and run the generator as little as possible. A pure sine wave inverter is likely a good upgrade.

Note - a battery monitor can really make either option easier to manage.

Good luck with your bank.

[Tall Guy 3]

Mark,
I only have the original volt reading that came with the vehicle, so I can't determine overall load or draw in terms of amps or watts. But, with nothing more than any vampire draws, a couple of LEDs, and the reefer, I'm running lean.
Since this is my last boondocking until returning home, I've decided to have my son (mechanical engineer/electrical contractor) look at it when I reach his house.

Because this is a new-to-me motorhome, I have no idea what kind of use/abuse the batteries received from the original owners. It may be possible to recover capacity, but after 3 1/2 years and 30K miles, I suspect these batteries may have hit their limit.

This thread brings to mind the threads I saw on a trawler (pleasure, not commercial) listserv I used to visit. The two primary topics were always battery life and diesel polishing. I could never tell which got more attention! At least here, we don't have to worry about fuel polishing. :-)

[Mark_K5LXP]

Originally Posted by Tall Guy 3

I only have the original volt reading that came with the vehicle, so I can't determine overall load or draw in terms of amps or watts.

A $20 monitor from amazon or wherever fixes that.

nothing more than any vampire draws, a couple of LEDs, and the reefer, I'm running lean.

A residential refrigerator is a huge load on batteries. And until you measure it you don't really know what loads your battery is supporting. The forums here frequently have folks that have battery troubles and discover their phantom loads are much higher than they thought.

You're right, you don't know what your bank has been through and very well may be on it's way out. You can prove that though and if the set were to test good it would be a clue to check other parts of the system. Without knowing your loads going forward you have no idea how to manage your usage and replenishment. Especially with a device like a residential refrigerator, knowing your battery bank status will be very important to keeping the lights on and fridge cold.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

[HighDesert]

Just curious here as I looked at the 2017 32BR brochure and it does not specify 4 house batteries with the domestic refrigerator. Do you have just the two? If only two, and you're replacing, I'd sure consider AGM or Lithium for better capacity.

[twinboat]

While shopping for AGM or flooded acid batteries, of the same Group size, in side by side comparisons , in most cases, the flooded batteries will have more capacity.

For the same physical dimensions, the AGM will have less AH capacity then the flooded battery.

[Tall Guy 3]

Have been off the Internet for a while. I found the original list of options, which included "residential refrigerator w/ 4 house batteries." I believe the two additional batteries are on either side of the generator. Will verify when I visit my son the electrician in a few days.