Battery Charging

[rick-eureka]

When if any times is the RV main battery charging? When unit plugged in? Generator on? hooked to tow vehicle? I have a 2014 300 MP and the battery seems to be dead a lot. Bad Battery, or am I doing something wrong? Thanks for your help. Rick-Eureka

[GaryWT]

When the trailer is plugged in the battery should be charging if all equipment is in working order. Some units will charge when towing if the tow vehicle is set up that way. We leave ours plugged in all the time at home and at the campground. If you do not plug it in and do not have a disconnect on the battery, all the little things in the trailer that run off 12 volts will drain the battery.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by rick-eureka

When if any times is the RV main battery charging? When unit plugged in? Generator on? hooked to tow vehicle? I have a 2014 300 MP and the battery seems to be dead a lot. Bad Battery, or am I doing something wrong? Thanks for your help. Rick-Eureka

You gave a "couple of clues" to what may be your problem. First, yes, assuming your converter is working properly and the "reverse polarity fuses" in the converter are intact, the converter will charge your battery. Keep in mind that any "DC demands from the RV systems (refrigerator, pump, lights, TV/stereo, slide operation, etc) are priority and the battery "only gets what is left"... So, if you're using a lot of 12 volt power, you will charge your battery at a slower rate than if most of the systems are inactive. The same is true for your "charge while towing". Most tow vehicles are limited by wire size and fuse to about 15-20 Amps from the tow vehicle to the trailer. It usually takes a significant lengthy tow to adequately charge a "low battery". Don't think that 30 minutes of being hooked to the truck will charge a "dead battery". You probably won't notice much added charge, if any with such a limited time frame.

Now, to your clues. You indicated you have a single battery and a 36' twin slide fifth wheel. Just extending the slides on battery power will significantly discharge your "single group 24 deep cycle battery", so you'll find that when you disconnect the tow vehicle, run the front jacks up/down to level, extend the slides, awning, start the water heater and switch the refrigerator to propane, you'll have used "probably" half the power in your single battery.

So, if the "clues" are accurate, you'll find that, in your situation, you'll be "charging the battery" most of the time that you're camping. Do a forum search for "battery" or "battery systems" and you'll find that most people with an RV of any size, have either added a second 12 volt battery (usually GP 27 or 31) or have converted to a 6 volt system with two or four golf cart batteries. Even then, most of us, if dry camping, will leave the tow vehicle "hitched and running" during setup, especially until after the slides are extended.

[Tbos]

I have a single battery and if not plugged in, the parasitic drag will almost always drain it within 2 weeks.

[dcg9381]

Originally Posted by Tbos

I have a single battery and if not plugged in, the parasitic drag will almost always drain it within 2 weeks.

Mine, much faster than that...
Once a battery has been fully discharged, you probably damaged it's capacity. Multiple discharges and it's marginally functional. Easy to test at autozone to be sure.

Regardless, seems like all Keystones need a battery disconnect. A real one anyway.

[Tbos]

Originally Posted by dcg9381

Mine, much faster than that...

Once a battery has been fully discharged, you probably damaged it's capacity. Multiple discharges and it's marginally functional. Easy to test at autozone to be sure.



Regardless, seems like all Keystones need a battery disconnect. A real one anyway.

Ditto on the cutoff. I've not made that investment yet. I did buy some wing nuts to make it easy to disconnect. For now it's in the garage on a maintenance charger.