Converter vs battery

MFuhrman · 10-26-2021, 07:27 PM

2014 Montana 3582rl 5th wheel. We have been on road trip for 9 days. Last night we woke up with no lights. All the 110v appliances were still working. We had been plugged into 50amp shoreline every night. The LCI panel shows today 11 to 11.6 if all lights are shut off. If we are plugged directly to truck while driving we got up to 12.5, but decreased rapidly dwn to 11 when parked. We have new deep marine batteries. Is this a converter issue? I made sure the converter wizard button is in boost mode (which should be when battery voltage is low) any advice. In Missouri now heading back to California.

bobbecky · 10-26-2021, 07:54 PM

I would make sure the battery disconnect switch is closed. Closed is when the red key can not be removed. If the key can be pulled out, the switch is open and that’s why power from the converter can not get to the battery to charge it.

roadglide · 10-26-2021, 08:30 PM

You mentioned a new battery if you hooked it up wrong and got one little spark you blew the fuses on the converter .

GHen · 10-27-2021, 03:51 AM

11-11.7 means your battery is dead and needs recharging. 12.7 is good coming from your truck is good but not much charging gets back to the rv due to the small wires. You will know the converter is working when you see voltages around 13.3 up to 14.4.

I would also guess fuses would be the first place to look as well as the battery disconnect. Reverse polarity fuses, converter breaker. Clean and Tighten all the battery connections.

**flybouy** · 10-27-2021, 07:56 AM

Also check the 12v dc autoressiting breakers. At 7 to 8 years old they are likely corroded. Follow the battery positive cable back to what looks like Leggo block.

**JRTJH** · 10-27-2021, 08:08 AM

The most reliable way to check the converter output is to disconnect the trailer battery and, while on shore power, measure the voltage on the battery cable terminals. It should be 13.6 VDC with no battery connected. If you have the battery connected, assuming you have a good battery, it could be either 13.2 VDC (in float mode), 13.6 VDC (in absorption mode) or 14.4 VDC (in bulk mode). With battery connected, if the battery is "bad", then all bets are off and you could get any "unreliable" DC voltage, and complicate or even nullify any troubleshooting indications. In other words, with a battery connected to the converter, you can't troubleshoot the converter and obtain any reliable results.

If the voltage on the cable terminals that connect to the battery is less than 13.2 VDC, there's either a corroded/loose wiring connector, a shorted cable in the wiring or a bad converter. If the voltage is more than 14.4 VDC, there's a problem with the rectifier/regulator circuit in the converter.

It's all in the WFCO converter owner's manual: https://wfcoelectronics.com/wp-conte...-Manual-RP.pdf

ChuckS · 10-27-2021, 08:14 AM

Also in the future carry a small battery charger with your RV.. I do and have for a long time.. If the converter does fail you can use the battery charger to continue till you can TS and replace converter.. if it failed

MFuhrman · 10-27-2021, 08:35 AM

Thank you everyone. We do have a solar battery tender and it works great. We kept everything off last night and the voltage was dwn to 10 this morning. We tightened all connections, no corrosion anywhere. We noticed upon unplugging shoreline the voltage instantly went up to 11.6 and climbing. Also, my wizard button on panel is showing solid green. Never have had a red light. We can make due til we get home to get this resolved.

Falcon67 · 10-27-2021, 10:01 AM

FWIW - 50A shoreline, no charging - could be that you're running off only one leg of the 50A/240. And the converter is on the dead leg. Just something to keep in mind that might contribute to the problem.

CedarCreekWoody · 10-27-2021, 03:54 PM

As suggested above pick up a battery charger to use until you resolve the issue. You are ruining the batteries letting them get that low.

gearhead · 10-27-2021, 05:45 PM

On the road....last week in Melvern Kansas. Hooked up to 50 amp pedestal. Woke up to very dim lights and the batteries showed less than 7 volts. Drove into Emporia Kansas to a WalMart and bought 2 deep cycle batteries and a Schumaker charger. Got back to the camper and the charger wouldn't work. Back to WalMart. Hooked up the charger. All is well. Probably replace the converter when we get home.
Lesson: always have a battery charger aboard.

gearhead · 10-29-2021, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gearhead

On the road....last week in Melvern Kansas. Hooked up to 50 amp pedestal. Woke up to very dim lights and the batteries showed less than 7 volts. Drove into Emporia Kansas to a WalMart and bought 2 deep cycle batteries and a Schumaker charger. Got back to the camper and the charger wouldn't work. Back to WalMart. Hooked up the charger. All is well. Probably replace the converter when we get home.
Lesson: always have a battery charger aboard.

I suggest reading the specs on the battery charger before purchasing and using. I discovered the newly purchased Schumaker charger was reading that the batteries were not reaching full charge. We had a few LED lights on and the furnace would run occasionally. The charger would turn itself off deciding in its infinite wisdom that the batteries were damaged. So I bought another charger, a WalMart MAXX that will run 18 hours before making the decision to turn off.
Looking good so far. Batteries are maintaining 13.4 volts.

**flybouy** · 10-29-2021, 01:04 PM

IMHO Schumacher hasn't made a decent battery charger for a couple of decades. Last one I hought about 20 years ago didn’t last 3 monrhs. Got it replaced under warranty and that one failed in about 4 months. The one I had was a wheeled unit that had "engine start" mode. Inopened that one up and was amazed at just what a "gutless wonder" it was.

gearhead · 10-29-2021, 02:36 PM

I've got an old one at home, maybe 25yrs+, that still works. It has a light on it that says fully charged but the amp gauge shows it still charging. I just leave it on for a couple days.
I guess I'll be using this new WalMart MAXX and return the Schumacher.

BookPaul74 · 10-29-2021, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChuckS

Also in the future carry a small battery charger with your RV.. I do and have for a long time.. If the converter does fail you can use the battery charger to continue till you can TS and replace converter.. if it failed

They also work wonders on the truck when you’re 40 miles from anything. Just ran it off the generator in the bed.

I tried using the 12 volt connections on the generator but it was reading over 16 volts so I’ll just use the charger.

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