Lippert Level Up 3.0 power question

[jlonginav]

All, I have battled getting my rig side to side level for about two years. Finally yesterday I watched my battery inverter monitor while the rig performed a Auto-Level and my storage yard. Sure enough while pushing up on the driver side it error and powered off. I finally determined the load cause my voltage to drop to 11.7 or below. I hooked up the tow vehicle and re-did the auto level. This was successful but just barely. The control panel did flicker.

So now the question. I currently have two 6 volt batteries. Would two 12 volt batteries handle this load better?

My trailer is a 2018 Cougar 367FLS. 3 slides and the kitchen are on the driver side so common sense tells me it is the heavy side

[busterbrown]

Two 6 volt (golf cart) batteries in series will provide much deeper discharge cycles than two typical Interstate 12 volt batteries wired in parallel that are supplied by the dealer. One of the best upgrades an RV owner can do is make the change to a 6 volt battery bank just for the extra amp hours.

[bobbecky]

If your batteries are good, those two 6 volt batteries should be more than able to provide enough current at 12 volts. What may be happening is, you might have loose connections somewhere in the circuit to the leveling system, and if so, that will cause poor voltage. Try to get to every connection you can find and tighten them. You might be surprised how many loose connections you may find.

[Roscommon48]

something isn't right and I am going to say it is your batteries or wire connections.


you should NOT have any issue with leveling with 2-6 volt batteries.


call lippert and talk to them. 2 years of issues? get them on the phone monday.

[Daryles]

There is a service bulletin put out by LCI to replace the 50A breaker with an 80A breaker
https://manuals.heartlandowners.org/Exterior/Stabs_n_Leveling/Lippert/80%20amp%20breaker%20lippert0058.pdf
Common problem.

[bobbecky]

That is for the hydraulic leveling systems, not the 3.0 systems

[chuckster57]

I spent 1 1/2 hrs on the phone with tech support last year doing a ton of tests and during that conversation I was told GC 3.0 will give an error if the battery voltage goes below 12.0 for any length of time. If your batteries are 2 yrs old, I would be checking for a bad cell.

[ChuckS]

At 2 years of age the GC2 batteries should be in excellent health provided electrolyte level has been maintained and proper charge...

A quick specific gravity check with tell the story with the batteries... if yo7 dint have a hydrometer any auto parts store will have a low cost one you can buy..and should have

I’d remove those battery cables and clean the posts and cables with wire brush and reconnect. Also check DC connection from battery to DC bus bar and ground connection from battery to chassis ground.. remove that ground connection and clean it...

Visually looking at connections tells you nothing... physically cleaning them is only way you will know what you have

My GC2 batteries are 4 years old on my fifth wheel..
I can run the leveling system several times without shore power and have no issues

And yes...if the 12 volt source to the level up up control panel or control module drops below 12 volts for even just a second or so during “auto level” you will error out...

These should also be a red wire from battery post directly t9 the level on control module.. not the panel. It has an inline fuse...remove fuse and clean fuse connections and also reseat that single red wire on the control module itself.

[ChuckS]

This pic should be your 3.0 electric level up system. Check all points I’ve circled in yellow after cleaning battery post and verifying condition of battery

[jlonginav]

ChuckS, thanks for all the detail. I’ll run thru it all, hopefully today, and let you all know.

[jlonginav]

All,

Got back over and this is what I found/did.
On Battery 1 2 of 3 cells showed fair. Cell 3 showed good
On Battery 2 all 3 cells showed good.

I checked and cleaned all battery connections. I pulled connections from the Lippert 3.0 controller. Gave them a shot of electrical connection cleaner and them reseeded them.

Reloaded the trailer with all the gear I removed and then tried out-level. Voltage did drop to 11.8 but auto-level did complete.

I will keep a eye on battery 1. If cells remain at "fair" I will replace.

Any other suggestions are appreciated and all your input so far has been great.

Happy Camping

[JRTJH]

...
I will keep a eye on battery 1. If cells remain at "fair" I will replace.

Any other suggestions are appreciated and all your input so far has been great.

Happy Camping

One suggestion: If you replace one battery, "suck it up" and replace both. If there is anything defective (or worn) about the older battery, it will "draw down" the new battery to its level. In other words, if the new battery has a capacity of 105 amps and the "older, partly worn battery" has been degraded to a point where it has a capacity of 85 amps, then the new battery will never achieve it's full potential and could damage the new battery.

Chances are good (or at least probable) that if you have one "weak/bad" battery, it's inability to accept a charge and provide a discharge has already affected the other battery, just not to a level that you can recognize when comparing the two "compromised batteries" together. It won't be the same when you compare a new battery to the "partially damaged, but still functional" battery....

It's easier and usually more reliable to replace ALL the batteries in a bank at the same time to prevent that "mismatch issue".....

[Ccsluke]

With (2) 6 volt batteries in series you double your voltage but your amp hour rating stays the same as one single battery.
With (2) 12 volt batteries in parallel your voltage stays the same but you double your amp hour capacity.
ALSO: with (2) 6 volt batteries, if one goes bad, it’s GAME OVER!
With 12 volt batteries, if one goes bad, just disconnect the bad battery and your back in business. Albeit half capacity but, at least you have power and time to deal with the issue.

[Tooth Ferry]

After fighting this battle for 5 yrs. I just leave the power cord to the running truck connected while using the Level up. No problems since then. I did try two12 volt batteries but still had problem.

[NotyetMHCowner]

We have had re-occurring problem with ours all along. We have 4 6V golf cart batteries but have a lot of front weight (batteries, washer/dryer combo, generator, closet full of her clothes,haha) and mine has almost always dropped to 12V or less and strained to lift. It came with a 40amp breaker but I consistently pull over 60amps so I installed an 80 amp breaker. I think with such a load, you cant ask a 12.7 volt source to not drop to around 12V with that kind of current being drawn. I also installed larger wire from the breaker to the LCI controller

[jlonginav]

All, Just got the rig back from El Toro RV (I recommend them if you are in So Cal). We agreed to replace both 6V Interstate batteries. They tested the Lippert motor and found no issue. Since it is rated for over 80amps they installed the 80am breaker. They re-tested and all is good. I know the 80amp is mentioned by Lippert for the Hydraulic systems but looks like using on the electric may also be a benefit.

[flybouy]

With (2) 6 volt batteries in series you double your voltage but your amp hour rating stays the same as one single battery.
With (2) 12 volt batteries in parallel your voltage stays the same but you double your amp hour capacity.
ALSO: with (2) 6 volt batteries, if one goes bad, it’s GAME OVER!
With 12 volt batteries, if one goes bad, just disconnect the bad battery and your back in business. Albeit half capacity but, at least you have power and time to deal with the issue.

All true BUT.....If using 2 6 volt TRUE deep cycle batteries i.e. golf cart batteries, or batteries designed for solar panel use, etc. and not a 6 V antique car battery, then the batteries will survive the deep discharging and recharging cycles far better (read last longer) than any 12 volt battery that I'm aware of.

This a I believe accounts for the 2 - 6 volt deep cycle popularity among frequent boondockers.

[MJCougler]

Excellent suggestions from everyone.



One related problem I have had with this (2012) system is when the controller does not work, has a blank screen, and it is beeping. I believe this has to do with low voltage condition also. I solved this by disconnecting the red voltage wire going over to the controller, plugging it back in, the beeping stopped, and it will then the controller will work.
mjc

[ChuckS]

The RED wire you mention is the power source for the controller and display unit... it routes directly to the battery and has an inline fuse

Have you removed the red wire connection at battery and cleaned it and verified the connection is good... also I remove fuse and inspect fuse socket and make sure there is no oxidation on it or the fuse

With two GC2 batteries properly charged that system should never drop below 12 VDC... my hydraulic system maintains 12.1 to 12.3 minimum during operation of leveling system even in 20 degree temps when load draw due t9 cold hyd fluid is quite high