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gauto5150 · 08-03-2014, 12:13 PM

Hey everyone,
Here's an issue I have now. I have a good friend who is using my 2004 Fleetwood Discovery Cat DP for a family vacation.
(That's not the real issue haha)
What has happened is that the alternator is going out (based on the symptoms he's described for me). I had an issue just like this when I bought the motorhome. I fired the generator up and the chassis batteries were charged while I was driving until I got home and then I changed the alternator. Luckily I was only about 150 miles from home when the alternator went bad. But luckily the generator saved us.
Now, my friend ran the generator and it isn't charging the chassis batteries. So much to the point that the motorhome's transmission selector wouldn't work while parked. The chassis batteries read 11.00 volts per the gauge on the control panel above the passenger seat. The house batteries are 6 months old and are charged fully at this point. I've read about a battery bridging solenoid possibly being bad, but this was only in general terms and descriptions. I did not find anything specific to my model. And the battery switch to jump the house and chassis batteries did not work either. It would run power up the gauges and seemed like it was working, but when he went to crank...nothing.
He's going to Freightliner tomorrow but that's only going to get the alternator replaced.
I had just recently last month had the motorhome out with the family and had no issues like this. Of course almost every time I lend something out, something weird happens.

If anyone has any ideas, please share. Thanks!

BFlinn181 · 08-03-2014, 12:30 PM

If you can tell him where the solenoid is, you might suggest tapping it with the butt of a screwdriver to jog it to work.

Gary RVRoamer · 08-04-2014, 09:09 AM

Your generator doesn't really do any charging - it's just the alternate 120v power source. Your regular house charging system is what does it, and Fleetwood coaches provide a Battery Charge Controller that activates a relay to also charge chassis batteries when needed. The relay could be bad, or the BCC could be bad, or the BCC logic may have decided not to do it. It won't charge chassis batteries until the house batteries reach some predetermined voltage (usually 13.3), and there are probably other criteria as well.

gemini5362 · 08-05-2014, 12:11 AM

All of these fancy systems that charge the chassis batteries when the coach batteries are fully charged or when the sun rises in the west or something like that is very complicated. I have a nice little automatic battery charger that takes up almost no space. It plugs into 110VAC and run off of either the generator or shore current whichever is available. It is permanently wired to the batteries. If I have any doubt about whether or not it is working I can go look at it and see a nice little green light that shows power is applied to it. If the light is on and I decide my batteries are not charging I can use a multimeter and then go spend another 50.00 to get a new one if there is a problem.

gauto5150 · 08-05-2014, 06:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

Your generator doesn't really do any charging - it's just the alternate 120v power source. Your regular house charging system is what does it, and Fleetwood coaches provide a Battery Charge Controller that activates a relay to also charge chassis batteries when needed. The relay could be bad, or the BCC could be bad, or the BCC logic may have decided not to do it. It won't charge chassis batteries until the house batteries reach some predetermined voltage (usually 13.3), and there are probably other criteria as well.

Thank you, that makes more sense to me. Based on the voltages he's given me, the house batteries are not at full voltage so the the controller must not be giving the ok to charge the chassis batteries.
As it turns out he got the alternator replaced and the idler pulley locked up 150 miles later so the saga continues.