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CLOC-AdminYesterday, after the wife put the lounge chairs in the front storage area, the living room air con, the microwave, and the bathroom GFCI circuits no longer worked. The inverter panel read 12.5 – 12.7 volts. It usually reads 13.4 – 13.6. I started flipping breakers and pulling fuses, but nothing fixed it. Started thinking one of the 3 batteries crapped out.Today, after getting to a new park, the wife removed everything out of the front compartment and the micro, living room air con, GFCI and inverter started working correctly again.
That makes me think it is a loose wire or loose connection in the front. Before we roll out again I think I’ll get my tools out and tighten down every screw/connection I can find.
Posted: 8:00 PM – Oct 02, 2016Sounds like a plan. Our water heater quit working on the electrical side one time. Turned out to be a loose wire in the breaker panel. Dangerous situation. I posted a thread about it back when it happened. For everyone – remember when checking for loose wires in the breaker panel, be sure to remember to disconnect the shore and genset power. Good luck.Posted: 6:59 PM – Dec 08, 2017I purchased a 2013 LS36FW Nov. 2016. I had batteries dead upon purchase last year. The dealer replaced the (2) 12V at my request with (2) 6V golf cart batteries.– Within the next 3-4 months I noticed that the A/C’s (110) was defaulting back to reset levels. LIghts (12v) had been flickering as well?
– I could not figure why the A/C on solid shore power was experiencing glitches and on/off cycles? I checked EVERY wire in the front basement, EVERY lead I could see.
– I swapped out all standard bulbs, with LED bulbs, as I usually do with any camper, (as we had been full-timing at that time, 5 1/2 years).
– I soon had planned to add Battery Banks (2) with (4) 6v golf batteries each, in the front storage compartment.
WELL THIS IS WHAT I FOUND………
* While re-routing wires thru the drivers side leveling jack compartment and removing the ON/OFF Battery Switch to access wiring cavity behind the Switch, (WE found the Back side of the Battery Switch Leads) both positive and negative 12v were loose and ONLY finger tight!
– Apparently, the Carriage manufacturer assemblyman when installing the original owners options of an 1. Onan generator and 2. Satellite (roof mount), OR a later RV Technician, — DID NOT tighten the Battery On/Off switch leads. There is NO way anyone could have visibly seen such a blunder!
– I eliminated the switch all together. We pulled the good “camper side” leads into the front storage area and mounted a “Commercial 60amp, A/B/AB/OFF battery switch to plug batteries and Inverter into to.
– The intermittent and open circuit affected the 12v side. This inadvertently affected the Air Conditioner thermostat (12V) triggering AC flow to come and go to the 110v AC units. This LUCKY find was heaven sent. ALL has been good since. One (4) 6V bank done. One bank to go…….
Happy Camping to all!
Posted: 5:57 AM – Dec 09, 2017JT,Don’t forget to keep the battery terminals clean and tight.
You might consider putting all 4 batteries together in a single vented box. Different cable lengths between batties and battery sets creates significant inefficiencies versus connections internal to a battery. Varying cable sizes (much larger for the longer connections) can off set this in the modest charge/discharge cycles, but that imbalance is magnified when you run to the inverter and have heavy amp draws..
The run from batteries needs to be fused and as short as and as heavy as possible. Close is good. At the same time, batery acid off-gassing is incredibly corrosive on the inerds of the inverter so the inverter should not be in the same box as any batteries. Given the wrong battery condition, an internal inverter spark could set off a battery explosion. Lots of folks ignore this. Lead-acid batteries need venting in and out. If the inverter and batteries are to be located in a single area, particularly the relatively air tight forward storage, don’t skimp on the battery box or venting.
Your batteries will love being maintained with ample distilled water. That hoses and hand pump of a battery fill system greatly reduces the effort to accomplish this, but battery connections still need to be inspected for corrosion and being tight, particularly if you have a large inverter draw (startup of compressors, power saws etc).
Posted: 9:58 PM – Dec 14, 2017JohnD222 wrote:JT,Don’t forget to keep the battery terminals clean and tight.
You might consider putting all 4 batteries together in a single vented box. Different cable lengths between batties and battery sets creates significant inefficiencies versus connections internal to a battery. Varying cable sizes (much larger for the longer connections) can off set this in the modest charge/discharge cycles, but that imbalance is magnified when you run to the inverter and have heavy amp draws..
The run from batteries needs to be fused and as short as and as heavy as possible. Close is good. At the same time, batery acid off-gassing is incredibly corrosive on the inerds of the inverter so the inverter should not be in the same box as any batteries. Given the wrong battery condition, an internal inverter spark could set off a battery explosion. Lots of folks ignore this. Lead-acid batteries need venting in and out. If the inverter and batteries are to be located in a single area, particularly the relatively air tight forward storage, don’t skimp on the battery box or venting.
Your batteries will love being maintained with ample distilled water. That hoses and hand pump of a battery fill system greatly reduces the effort to accomplish this, but battery connections still need to be inspected for corrosion and being tight, particularly if you have a large inverter draw (startup of compressors, power saws etc).
John D222,
Thanks on the tips. Yes my banks, 1 and 2 do have identical batteries (all AGM 2, 6v x (8)). These are of course gas free, mainteinance free as I did not want any gases in the electrical cabinet where inverter and other circuits were located. We also do not like the idea of acid or gases in the 5th wheel. Additionally bank 1 and 2 each wired Series/Parallel I am wiring with identical size copper wire 2ga and both with identical length of wire runs. Oh the system is fused as I presently have a Magnum 2000 Inverter on board at present.
I appreciate your input and tips as I am certainly developing a deeper electrical battery bank, solar panel education. We are taking it one step at a time. My banks will be rated at 800 ah when finished. I hope to post pictures of my completed project. I also will build a plywood hat for on top of the vented battery boxes for storage above my battery banks after the testing period has settled. Thanks again and best camping always.
J Thomas
B.W.Gentry
Owner/Admin
2007 Carri-Lite XTRM5
Breckenridge, TX
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