'09 Sightseer 35J coach batteries

rotorjock · 04-08-2015, 05:30 PM

Well, winter is coming to an end and it's time to de-winterize and get on the road. however, it seems my coach batteries didn't hold a charge. No physical damage but they won't stay on or power anything at all. the chassis battery is still good. This is a little premature but what suggestions do you all have for type of replacements? It's still got a cover on it so I can't run the engine or get in to do anything more, but if they're truely dead I'll need new ones. And since I had everything off and the coach and chassis switches off, what would have drained them?

jerichorick · 04-08-2015, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rotorjock

Well, winter is coming to an end and it's time to de-winterize and get on the road. however, it seems my coach batteries didn't hold a charge. No physical damage but they won't stay on or power anything at all. the chassis battery is still good. This is a little premature but what suggestions do you all have for type of replacements? It's still got a cover on it so I can't run the engine or get in to do anything more, but if they're truely dead I'll need new ones. And since I had everything off and the coach and chassis switches off, what would have drained them?

You lost your coach batteries due to parasitic drains from the engine/transmission electronics that are not disconnected by the switch. If you have a cover over the coach you are covering the solar panel and I think (not certain) this may keep a small charge on the batteries.

I would try to get the same battery that it has now. Worked fine since '09, why give up a winner? If you can install a charger for the winter that would be good.

Starting the coach once a month or so is an option with a built in problem. The engine needs to be under load to keep the fuel from diluting the crankcase oil. It is not a great idea to have the coach in gear while parked and doing this. That means driving it to keep things in the drive train in best working order. So, we are back to a battery charger. If not the inverter then a solar array or a Trik-L-Start or the like. But, do you have access to 110V?

I hope you can work all of this out. Suggestions are free so they may not be worth any more. Keep us posted as to what you do. Thanks.

Rick Y

Cspringsrv · 04-08-2015, 08:56 PM

I have an Itasca 35j and replaceable batteries a year and a half ago with Interstates. So far still doing great. I do check the water levels a couple times a year, and fill with distilled water

rotorjock · 04-09-2015, 06:57 AM

I don't have any solar panels to trickle charge the batteries. The problem with a cover is that it's difficult to get inside, and you can't run it without lifting the cover sides to let air in and exhaust out. I will check the electrolyte levels as soon as I can, and fill with distilled water. I'm very surprised that any engine or transmission anything would be tapped off the coach batteries. I hope to get it out of storage this weekend or next week and start getting it ready to go. If the batteries take and keep a charge, I win. ifn ot, I'll replace them.
Thanks for the responses.

jerichorick · 04-09-2015, 08:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rotorjock

I don't have any solar panels to trickle charge the batteries. The problem with a cover is that it's difficult to get inside, and you can't run it without lifting the cover sides to let air in and exhaust out. I will check the electrolyte levels as soon as I can, and fill with distilled water. I'm very surprised that any engine or transmission anything would be tapped off the coach batteries. I hope to get it out of storage this weekend or next week and start getting it ready to go. If the batteries take and keep a charge, I win. ifn ot, I'll replace them.
Thanks for the responses.

There are "memory modules" that drain power. Also, cold will drain a battery over time.

Many of us put an oz or so of mineral oil in our batteries after watering them correctly. This is an old maintenance trick. We find the corrosion around the batteries is held in check and they need water much less often. Has no side effect on the cells.

Rick Y

nothermark · 04-09-2015, 06:02 PM

The engine battery get hit by the chassis electrics. The house battery gets hit by the propane detector and any other supervisory electronics or anything with a "soft" button.

A lot of things no longer have a power switch that actually interupts the power. Instead it supplies a signal to a microprocessor controller that actuates a relay. That is what gets you in the chassis battery and can get you with the house battery. That is why you will see a lot of folks advocating some kind of battery minder setup to float the batteries.

All batteries also have internal leakage paths that will run the battery down over time. It is a function of the chemistry.

FWIW I would charge them slowly and see what happens. Does not cost much to try. ;-)

Indy Itasca · 04-10-2015, 11:19 AM

I can't find the reference right now but batteries will loose a percentage of charge even if they are not hooked up to anything. (I assume you used the house batt kill switch by the door to remove the batts from circuit.) Not much help now, but if you're going to store the coach for the winter and not run the gen or engine periodically maybe you should pull the batts and store them some place where you can trickle charge them all winter?

rotorjock · 04-14-2015, 08:49 AM

Thanks to all. I guess I underestimated the draw on the batteries with the coach turned off at the switches. I finally got the cover off and access to the inside, so I turned on the switches and drove it home from the storage lot. in the 10 miles I got enough charge to run lights and start the generator. At home I plugged in shore power. The batteries are only 3 years old. I think I dodged a bullet in that the chassis battery was good, but the coach batteries were almost out of water. I added just short of a half gallon to each! Yes, it was distilled. I know that's a lot and I should have checked more often. Still learning, sometimes the hard way. Anyway, it looks like the batteries took the charge and are back to normal. We'll be heading out in 10 days for the first weekend trip of the year.
Again, thanks to all for the education.