Dead

[ken56]

When a battery sits for a long time not charged the lead on the plates hardens and will not accept a charge well after that. The chemical reaction between the acid and the lead is what generates the electricity and the lead must be able to go back into suspension in the acid to do its magic. More batteries are killed because of this neglect. Car batteries are charged every time you drive so its not a problem with them.


I think more batteries are damaged while at the dealer awaiting warranty service than any other reason. New battery is allowed to deplete and then is damaged and we pick up our rigs and wonder why the battery won't last as long as it used to. I took my rig in for warranty work once and after a week I called and told them to put it on a charger, yeah, right, I showed up to check on them and their eyes got a little bit big because I caught them blowing smoke up my backside. I took the battery home to keep it charged and told them I will bring it back with me when I pick it up. They can plug it in if they needed power. That was funny. They did not know how to react.

[sourdough]

Just have to piggyback on this conversation;

Took my trailer in for roof mtce. and to clean/service the AC. Called me to pick it up. Got there and knew something was wrong just by looking at the trailer. Tried to raise the tongue jack and it was dead (new Interstates when I took it in). Plugged the truck in and I heard all the brake magnets kick in. They had pulled the breakaway switch at some point and just left it out until the batteries were dead (fully charged when it went in). I was not happy.

I advised them that completely depleting the batteries would reduce the cycle life by about 50%. They disagreed and said depleting them had minimal effect...maybe 5%. I sent them the link below with the Interstate guidelines for their deep cycle batteries. Note that they should not be depleted below 50% and then note the chart on what discharging them does. A complete discharge reduces the remaining battery cycles by over 88%. So, as one poster mentioned, you get the trailer back and charge the batteries and go on down the road. Then you wonder why in 6 mos. the battery won't hold a charge.....now you know. It was news to the dealership folks and I'm sure it happens everyday. As I told them it was their mistake and I don't intend to pay for it in a few months.....it is awaiting new batteries in the shop on their dime as I write this...as it should be.

https://www.intechtrailers.com/image...nce-Manual.pdf

[Tbos]

Originally Posted by sourdough

Just have to piggyback on this conversation;



Took my trailer in for roof mtce. and to clean/service the AC. Called me to pick it up. Got there and knew something was wrong just by looking at the trailer. Tried to raise the tongue jack and it was dead (new Interstates when I took it in). Plugged the truck in and I heard all the brake magnets kick in. They had pulled the breakaway switch at some point and just left it out until the batteries were dead (fully charged when it went in). I was not happy.



I advised them that completely depleting the batteries would reduce the cycle life by about 50%. They disagreed and said depleting them had minimal effect...maybe 5%. I sent them the link below with the Interstate guidelines for their deep cycle batteries. Note that they should not be depleted below 50% and then note the chart on what discharging them does. A complete discharge reduces the remaining battery cycles by over 88%. So, as one poster mentioned, you get the trailer back and charge the batteries and go on down the road. Then you wonder why in 6 mos. the battery won't hold a charge.....now you know. It was news to the dealership folks and I'm sure it happens everyday. As I told them it was their mistake and I don't intend to pay for it in a few months.....it is awaiting new batteries in the shop on their dime as I write this...as it should be.



https://www.intechtrailers.com/image...nce-Manual.pdf

I’m glad they took responsibility for their mistake. It’s amazing how much we can teach others including the dealers.

[Ksupaul]

Originally Posted by Logan X

I’m curious to anyone who’s trailer sits for long periods of time with the battery disconnected. Does the battery stay charged when it is completely disconnected or do you have to connect it to some type of power source to maintain the charge?

My trailer is always plugged in when I’m not using it so I don’t have to deal with the battery being disconnected. I guess I was under the impression it wasn’t good for the battery to sit for long periods of time without a maintenance charge because the battery will discharge over time even if there is no load on it.

I disconnect the cable off my battery every time I leave it. Usually it’s for a couple weeks at least. Sometimes up to 4-6. Battery is always ok and charged enough when I hook it back up. Only a two year old battery though. I bring it home for the winter and turn tender on every 2-3 weeks for a few days. Back it goes after dewinterization and stays with the TT with the positive cable unhooked until I want to use it.

[B&T_NF-NY]

We always disconnect the battery and bring it home from the storage site. Only takes a minute or two and don't have to worry about it.

[RVDad]

So, the charger I had it connected to was a little trickle charger, so since there was no juice, it didn't bring the battery up at all. I was able to find a 4amp charger and get some juice in it before Friday.

Lesson learned. I'll be disconnecting the battery until I get a shut-off installed. Then, I'll pull the battery if it will be in storage for more than a couple weeks. Thanks everyone.

[Local150]

Everyone here seems to be scaring you. Put a simple disconnect switch in,then you can shut everything off,, I did what you did and put the disconnect switch in and took the battery out and took home and charged it for two days as slow as my charger would allow. A friend of mine worked for interstate batteries and most of the people that bought new batteries they t turned in as dead, he said he would charge them very slow, and most were fine,, when Reid what happened to you I did what he said and that was 4 years ago and still works just fine

[MarkEHansen]

Originally Posted by RVDad

So, the charger I had it connected to was a little trickle charger, so since there was no juice, it didn't bring the battery up at all. I was able to find a 4amp charger and get some juice in it before Friday.

Lesson learned. I'll be disconnecting the battery until I get a shut-off installed. Then, I'll pull the battery if it will be in storage for more than a couple weeks. Thanks everyone.

Why a trickle charger? You don't want to use this. If you leave your battery on a trickle charger you'll have problems. Instead, get a smart battery charger/maintainer, like a Deltran Battery Tender. These devices will provide good charging while the battery needs it, then switch modes until they're in maintenance mode.

If you use your trailer every couple of weeks or so, then you can just get a real cut-off switch. I don't use my trailer that often, so I bring my battery home and put it on a battery maintainer.

[SR71 Jet Mech]

A lot of good points here. Just to be clear, ALL batteries will lose about 3% of charge a week just sitting on a shelf doing nothing. A long slow trickle charger works great for automotive starting batteries and sort of okay for these 12v hybrid “deep cycle/marine” batteries (sort of). A battery will sulfate if drained too low. An equalization charge after fully charging the battery may save it, but ultimately it will have a decreased life span now. If You’re plugged in all the time camping you probably won’t notice it. If you boon dock at all, the 6v deep cycles are the way to go. Still 50% state of charge is the minimum with any FLA or AGM. It will or may still go for awhile....but.
Disconnect FoR sure. And/or a tender.

[Jmill8]

Ditto on Golf Cart batteries, I did this long ago and never a battery problem since.

[Rber1234]

I learned that lesson yrs ago. When in storage over winter months or anytime TT isn’t in use I keep it plugged into power to keep batteries charged. It only takes a month or less to discharge a TT battery.