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04-12-2018, 07:04 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: West Jordan
Posts: 181
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Converter Recommendations
My RV is only a few months old. Haven't taken it out yet until the snow leaves. Anyway been reading a lot about the poor converters on RV's and how they do a poor job charging up your batteries so I am thinking about replacing mine with a good one before we head out this year. My RV is a 50amp so I am looking for recommendations for a replacement one.
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04-12-2018, 07:19 PM
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#2
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Site Team | Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Kansas City
Posts: 3,878
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Can't recommend one for you. I've owned 3 trailers and the converters on all 3 have worked as advertised.
If it was me. I'd save my money until it went bad and needed replaced if that happens. It doesn't come up very often in the forum.
Just my 2 cents. YMMV.
__________________
Chip Bruce, RPh
Kansas City, MO
2016 Impact 312
2017 Silverado 3500HD SRW
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04-12-2018, 07:22 PM
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#3
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Site Team
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Modesto
Posts: 20,351
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Leave it alone until it fails. If you can locate it, look for the model number, often times the Amp rating is part of that number. Shore cord amps doesn’t mean your converter is 50 amps. WFCO makes good converters, and if that’s what’s in your unit, I would figure on years of acceptable service.
__________________
2012 Copper Canyon 273FWRET being towed by a 1994 Ford F350 CC,LB,Dually diesel.
Airlift 5000 bags, Prodigy brake control, 5 gauges on the pillar.Used to tow a '97 Jayco 323RKS.
Now an RVIA registered tech. Retired from Law enforcement in 2008 after 25+ yrs.
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04-12-2018, 07:44 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Oregon
Posts: 783
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I just replaced my WFCO last December, with a Progressive Dynamics. The WFCO lasted five years. I like the Pro. Dyn. management system of keeping your batteries maintained. I could hear the WFCO fan... this one is totally silent, knock on wood!
BOOST Mode 14.4 Volts – Rapidly brings the RV battery up to 90% of full charge.
NORMAL Mode 13.6 Volts – Safely completes the charge.
STORAGE Mode 13.2 Volts – Maintains charge with minimal gassing or water loss.
EQUALIZATION Mode 14.4 Volts – Every 21 hours for a period of 15 minutes prevents battery stratification & sulfation – the leading cause of battery failure.
__________________
Jeff & Jan - Retired & Full-timing since 2013
2019 Ram Big Horn 3500 Aisin 4x4
2012 Alpine 3450-RL
Double Coin 235/75R-17.5/16 J rated 125lb
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04-13-2018, 02:37 AM
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#5
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Site Team
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Gaylord
Posts: 26,997
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If you really want to do something to protect and improve your electrical system, install a quality surge protector/electrical management system. It will serve you "miles further" in protecting your entire electrical system from over/under voltage, mis-wired campground circuits and electrical surges. Essentially, converters are much like tow vehicles or hitches, everyone has their "preferred brand" and shun the others. All converters are essentially equal, some have a unique feature, others have a different feature not offered by the first.... It's a sure bet that no matter which converter you have, all the electrical power not consumed by immediate demand (lights, etc you are using at the time) is directed to battery charging. So, no matter if it's a Progressive, a WFCO or another brand, if it's a 65 watt converter and you're using 10 watts to light the trailer and run the refrigerator, the other 55 watts is available to charge the batteries and all converters currently on the market will charge your battery bank with comparable speed.
So, as others have stated, save your money and use the installed, OEM converter. You'll probably get 5+ years of good, dependable service, possibly double or triple that time. If you haven't yet, probably a much more important and useful addition to your new trailer is a surge/electrical management system.
__________________
John
2015 F250 6.7l 4x4
2014 Cougar X Lite 27RKS
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04-13-2018, 08:20 AM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Oregon
Posts: 783
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[QUOTE=JRTJH;281198 So, as others have stated, save your money and use the installed, OEM converter. You'll probably get 5+ years of good, dependable service, possibly double or triple that time. If you haven't yet, probably a much more important and useful addition to your new trailer is a surge/electrical management system.[/QUOTE]
Amen John, as always great advice!
__________________
Jeff & Jan - Retired & Full-timing since 2013
2019 Ram Big Horn 3500 Aisin 4x4
2012 Alpine 3450-RL
Double Coin 235/75R-17.5/16 J rated 125lb
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04-13-2018, 12:35 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Texas
Posts: 1,090
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alpine
I just replaced my WFCO last December, with a Progressive Dynamics...
BOOST Mode 14.4 Volts – Rapidly brings the RV battery up to 90% of full charge.
NORMAL Mode 13.6 Volts – Safely completes the charge.
STORAGE Mode 13.2 Volts – Maintains charge with minimal gassing or water loss.
EQUALIZATION Mode 14.4 Volts – Every 21 hours for a period of 15 minutes prevents battery stratification & sulfation – the leading cause of battery failure.
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+1
I replaced my WFCO, last season when it turned up bad 2 weeks after the warranty period, with a progressive dynamics motherboard unit that fit in the WFCO load center. WFCO did honor the warranty and I sold the replacement unit to a member on here.
I like the fact that their boost voltage is higher and held longer than the WFCO, which charges the batteries quicker, when we are dry camping and using the generator to charge them.
The 4th stage, equalization mode, is something the WFCO did not offer and a nice feature if you leave your camper plugged all the time, like I do.
All in, switching to dual 6V GC2 batteries, replacing the converter, wires and battery box, I was just under $500.
-Brian
__________________
2014 Bullet Premier 22RBPR - let the camping commence!
2013 F150 Platinum - 5.0 - 3.55 ELD + towing package
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04-13-2018, 02:01 PM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Picacho, Az
Posts: 6,809
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For now I'd definitely take Johns advice & spend the new converter $$ on the surge protector/EMS NOW & wait on the converter. IMHO the surge protector should be mandatory on all rvs. I've had 6-7 rvs in the last 30 years & have never had to replace a converter, I'm sure they go out, but not sure I'd spend a couple hundred bucks +/- on a spare just in case.
__________________
Full-timed 10+ years
Sold '13 Redwood FB
Traded '13 GMC Denali DRW D/A
Replacement undetermined
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04-14-2018, 02:44 PM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: West Jordan
Posts: 181
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Thanks everyone! Good information. That was the first thing I did was put in a surge protector. I purchased the hard-wired one and installed it. See pic. I was just worried about the converter as I almost never stay in campgrounds with hookups.
I also emailed Progressive and asked them when I was looking. This was their reply...
What size is your converter in AMPS ?
The model number has this information. PD9260 is a 60 amp PD4045 is a 45 amp.
If you have a 60 amp converter and a 100 amp-hour battery discharged 50%
It will recharge to %95 in about an hour and then another 1.5 hours for the remaining 5%.
So approximately 2.5 hours for a 100 amp hour battery 50% discharged.
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