Chassis battery drain - Page 2

Beabop · 04-13-2005, 07:04 PM

Winnebago says they aren't drawing enough current to pull the batteries down in a week but they don't test running the slides or the awnings. Freightliner says it is all the electronics that both they and Winnebago have on the coach so we just bought a Battery Minder. Works fine.

UPS 34 · 04-16-2005, 02:52 AM

I did all the tests. Found draw from Transmission,Engine ECU and Air dryer. ALso draw from the coach. Think it is the smoke detector,steps,radio. Had it to Winny and 2 Batteries were replaced. Still dead in 2 weeks. I am BEAT... Bought a battery Minder. WIll install it this week. Problem solved with a band aid. Think the people that make this stuff could have made it right. Oh well RVing is to be fun. Not playing with Batteries.

The Shadow · 04-16-2005, 06:41 AM

I found that my chassis batteries would drop from 12.7 to 12.2 in 7 to 10 days. Then, I'd put the charger on for a couple of hours and it would charge and go on float. This was a 2-6-10 Smart Charger (for house batteries they recommend 2-6-12) and I didn't really want to leave it outside and connected. I decided I'd better get a Battery Minder as well. Ha, it says don't leave outside. So, I have an extension cord plugged into the outlet in the electrical compartment and have the BM in a plastic bin (large - going to get a small one for this purpose). It seems to be the right thing as it keeps the chassis batteries right where they should be. We had to move our MH from our rented lot to the lot we bought on April 1. MH hadn't been started for 3 months (CAT suggested turning it off and leaving it off) and it started immediately. We will use the BM whenever we are going to sit for more than a couple of days (and for 5.5 months in Florida.

McLee · 05-01-2005, 11:48 AM

I've had similar battery drain problems in my 1004 Itasca Suncruiser on both the chassis and house batteries. Thew wouuld go dead in less than a week. The chassis battery was replaced as defective, but the drain continued. Finally,the dealer found a bad connection in the inverter which would not let the electronics go to sleep. When that did not fix the problem, I discovered that the courtesy light in the driver's door stayed on even when the door was closed. It is located way down on the door and cannot be seen during the day. It was noticable only at night when in the driver's seat, and we haven't driven the rig enough at night to notice it. We replaced the door switch, and then the light operated in reverse--on when closed, off when open. The dealer found that there was a bad connection in the wiring harness that reversed the light logic.

I am sure that has fixed the problem, but I can't be certain since I installed a pair of battery knife switches that I now disconnect every time I store the rig. My rig is located on a lot where I can't use a float charger. When I get the chance, I will connect the knife switches and check the voltage a day or two later.

Ken and Paulette · 05-21-2005, 11:37 AM

Reading with great interest the problems with chassis batteries draining down. Has happened to us twice on our three month old rig. I purchased a battery minder and question the best location. Optimal is having a 110 volt connection that plugs into the chassis. Where did you locate yours.

Vet Man · 05-21-2005, 11:52 AM

Another irv2 member that I meet at a recent rally, and is also a GM mechanic had what I thought was a good idea. He took the leads from the solar charger off the house batteries and moved them to the chassis battery, and it keeps the engine battery up to full charge. It does not put out enough to help the house batteries anyway. Vet Man

Ken and Paulette · 05-21-2005, 12:05 PM

Vet Man, thank you for the post. Do you know how he connected the solar power leads to the chassis battery? Sure would like to know.

vicsryd · 05-21-2005, 12:36 PM

In another never-ending twist between Winnebago and Freightliner a grounding problem was found on my 05 Journey that may be endemic to the FCCC XC Chassis. See House Battery Charging Problem Solvedfor details that you may want to discuss with your dealer.

Vet Man · 05-22-2005, 07:54 AM

Ken & Paulette, I sent a Message to the member I got the info from. I asked him to post what he did to change the solar panel charger to the chassis battery, on the Winnebago forum. Vet Man

Ken and Paulette · 05-22-2005, 06:11 PM

Thank you for your help. Friends in our FMCA club just brought home their 2005 Itasca Meridian and we feel responsible for their choice as well. We will keep them informed of what we learn.

Horsepowerfan · 05-24-2005, 06:39 AM

Hi all,

Vet Man asked me to share with the group how I re-wired my factory solar charger from the coach batteries to the chassis battery. While I can't speak to the specifics relating to any other coach but an Adventurer on a Workhorse chassis, I can only assume that the procedure would be similar. I can say this was an easy modification and has proven to be a good one for me. I did it over a year ago and the chassis battery stays fully charged at all times and has not overcharged. There are some things to consider before you make this modification to your rig so I recommend you CLICK HERE to read a thread on this forum which discusses the topic. Jim.