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Old 10-17-2020, 10:41 AM   #1
Red14
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Battery Issue?

Just returned from our camping trip and had a question in regards to my battery. I used the generator to top off the battery when it got to 50%. The following morning my battery was completely dead. The only thing ran overnight was the fridge but it was on auto with propane opened. I’ve heard this could be caused by the fridge not switching back over to propane after generator use. Anyone have any other possibilities?

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Old 10-17-2020, 10:48 AM   #2
Javi
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If your fridge is propane/120 volt the only time it uses 12 volt is to light the burner.
If you have a residential fridge then the inverter will draw from the battery to power the fridge with 120 volts if you're not on shore power or generator .
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Old 10-17-2020, 10:50 AM   #3
bobbecky
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If you only have one battery and dropped it to 50%, how long did you charge it with the generator? And is there only one battery, or two? If the fridge was working over night, and you did not have the generator running, it was on propane, as it's either using 120 volts or propane. It's also possible that your battery died and possibly you discharged it way below 50%.
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Old 10-17-2020, 11:47 AM   #4
Red14
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Most definitely only about 50%. And used the generator for about 1-2 hours for it to show full charge on the panel. I only used propane on the fridge and it’s propane and 120 volt and I did not run power from generator overnight it was only for the couple hours
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Old 10-17-2020, 12:14 PM   #5
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When you ran the gen, were you using the monitor panel to gauge how much charge the battery had? If so it will just show how much voltage is going to the battery from the converter, and not really the true state of charge.
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Old 10-17-2020, 12:35 PM   #6
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If your battery/ies were down to 50% it would take several hours of generator running to charge to near full charge again.
If you've discharged to 50% repeatedly your batteries are probably on their last leg & even at full charge may not last but a few hours.
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Old 10-17-2020, 01:17 PM   #7
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I was using the panel to see while charging however it showed full when I stopped the generator to check the panel after 2 hours of use. This was the first time I’ve ran the battery to 50% and only the second trip with this trailer and only the one battery we have.
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Old 10-17-2020, 01:17 PM   #8
Canonman
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Chuckster is right! Your panel will read full charge while the generator is running and powering the convertor which is providing 13+ volts to the batteries. The fridge wouldn't run down a charged battery overnight, but the furnace fan or something like that would.
If nothing else was running then you likely didn't have a full charge on the battery to start the evening with.
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Old 10-17-2020, 01:27 PM   #9
flybouy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red14 View Post
I was using the panel to see while charging however it showed full when I stopped the generator to check the panel after 2 hours of use. This was the first time I’ve ran the battery to 50% and only the second trip with this trailer and only the one battery we have.
If you checked the battery shortly after shutting down the battery you will not get a true reading. The panel meter isn't very accurate or truly reflective of state of charge but using any volt meter after charging you need to wait an hour or so for the battery to settle down before you get a true indication of the voltage. I'd suggest you pull the batteries out and have them load tested. Charging for a short time (partial charge) repeatedly will damage the battery as well.
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Old 10-17-2020, 10:11 PM   #10
travelin texans
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red14 View Post
I was using the panel to see while charging however it showed full when I stopped the generator to check the panel after 2 hours of use. This was the first time I’ve ran the battery to 50% and only the second trip with this trailer and only the one battery we have.
Check that the dealer installed a true deep cycle battery. If on the battery top if there's CCA with a number then it is not a true deep cycle, it's marine hybrid used to start boat motors & run trolling motors. If that's what they installed I'd be back there for them install the proper battery.
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Old 10-18-2020, 04:40 AM   #11
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The LED battery level indicator on your RV panel tells you nothing other than glittering generalities. They are junk and have been for decades

The only way to know what your true battery charge is would be by using a hydrometer ... if battery is flooded cell type..

And charging for 2 to 3 hours is only putting a quick surface charge on the batteries and will over time result in a battery that never gets fully charged

I’d also have a multi meter to do a quick battery charge percentage test or if you have some bucks to spend a nice panel mount RV voltage meter

And if getting a stand alone dedicated meter to monitor your batteries true condition get one with a shunt..

A good simple read....

https://www.rvwithtito.com/articles/...ttery-monitor/
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Old 10-18-2020, 05:12 AM   #12
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Yes to the hydrometer...but I also mounted a “not expensive “ (HF model) multi meter in the battery compartment and hard wired it to the terminals...all I had to do was reach in and turn it on to get an accurate (after batteries have rested for awhile) reading.
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Old 10-18-2020, 06:06 AM   #13
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I only have one battery mounted behind my tongue jack. I mounted a battery disconnect in the top of the battery cover and a digital voltmeter (water proof) in the vertical section of the cover. This way when I approach the camper I turn on the battery and immediately know the condition of the battery. That voltage reading will tell me if the shore power and converter is working or if it's not on shore power I know if the battery has sufficient charge to use the jack or deploy the slides.
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