Community Forums

mb2875 · 10-01-2017, 01:56 PM

On the road to Albuquerque NM. First day on the road and the battery gauge on the dash is bouncing between 12.8 and 12.1 volts. It will spend some time at 12.8 but tweak suddenly back to 12.1 for a few seconds and back to 12.8. At one time during the drive today the alternator light flashed a few times. Does this unit have a voltage regulator or could it be the alternator? I will be in Nashville tomorrow and if I need service does anyone have a recommendation for service if needed? Thanks for any help!!

twinboat · 10-01-2017, 02:02 PM

Yes it has a voltage regulator but it's mounted into the back of the alternator.

Make sure the alternators drive belt is in good shape and tensioned.

nehog · 10-01-2017, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mb2875

... It will spend some time at 12.8 but tweak suddenly back to 12.1 for a few seconds and back to 12.8...

12.8 is too low for a full charge, you want between 13.7 and 14.0 volts typically. 12.1 volts is a no-charge condition.

Check your belt for slippage, and check connections on the alternator. (Caution: when working on the alternator, disconnect the batteries as the charging system is wired directly without going to the disconnect switch!)

mb2875 · 10-02-2017, 06:32 AM

Thanks for the response all. Checked the alt belt and the connections (from what I could see) were tight. I will drive on and keep my fingers crossed. Anyone have a good RV service place along I40 in Tennessee/Arkansas going west from Sevierville?

8.3Oilbuner · 10-02-2017, 10:26 AM

Good morning Mike; Have you tried putting a load on the alt. by maybe turning the dash fan blower on high or turning the head lights on. Also by any chance were you running the generator while what you said was happening with the voltage. On my Windsor, if the battery is fully charged, the alt. light will flash and I need to put a load on the system to get it to go out, although I show almost 14V on my dash gauge. I have a Silverleaf monitor which gives me better readings than the dash gauge. I would say that if you load the chassis side of the system and their is no voltage increase, you might have an alt. charging problem. Just thought this might be something to try to get you closer to the main problem. The reason I mentioned the gen. running is that sometimes the gen. charging the batteries and the alt. also wanting to charge batteries, the system gets confused. I know of a few people this has happened to so this might not be your problem at all. Let us know how things shake out. Good luck!

Outbound · 10-02-2017, 11:11 AM

I had a similar problem with my Alt light, I removed alternator and had local generator/starter repair shop bench test, ended up having to replace a couple of diodes, saved me a lot of dollars, repair cost was approx. $150.00. If your rig is a side radiator design and your handy with tools removal is not difficult. Of course if you are on the road this is not possible. Good Luck

Outbound
2002 Monaco Executive

mb2875 · 10-03-2017, 05:37 AM

Thanks again for the input. The generator was not running at the time.
Now in Nashville for a few days but when I am back on the road tomorrow I will try to load the batteries to see how it responds. So far I have had no starting problems or any other thing that would lead me to believe the chassis batteries are going down although when I plug into shore power as I have been the last day the chassis batteries do charge. I will keep you informed. Thanks again!!

RustyTools · 10-03-2017, 06:08 AM

Agree with nehog, 12.8 volts seems kinda low when the engine is running. Poor connections or a weak alternator would be my guess.

What happens if you press the 'Battery boost' switch?

buxtonworks · 10-05-2017, 11:06 PM

I have a trik-l charger on my chasse bat when I get a bad connection it has made the gage do what your talking about I have just the clamps on it because I want to move the two bats back one bin. good luck

Monaco Knight 30 PBD Allison 3000

mb2875 · 10-17-2017, 05:27 PM

Sorry it has been so long in reply to all those response to my original post about the alternator light flashing and the battery gage on the dash flickering. I have been on the road for 6-7 days since I posted and the needle is still flickering but I have not noticed the Alt light come on. I have even spent a few days dry camping running the generator a few hours a day. The bottom line is it still starts every morning and nothing in the house or chassis electrical is abnormal. I am going to assume everything is normal until I get back in a few weeks and have my repair shop check it. Thanks for all your responses!!

buxtonworks · 10-17-2017, 07:13 PM

One more thought my scan gage shows higher 13 volts and the gage shows high 12 volts the dash gage is wrong I just out that in last year. I would get a scan gage If you don't already have one .