Winnebago View 2009 Chassis battery

pattd2 · 05-17-2015, 03:20 PM

Newbie Question: The Winnie has been sitting for about a month without me starting it and I had to use the "Battery Boost" to get it running yesterday. Ran it off and on all day yesterday. Then this morning, same thing? Does this mean my chassis battery is bad? What do you think is happening? As far as I can tell, nothing is on in the cab and the aux battery shut off is "off" when not in use.
I am a single 70 y/o woman who has never owned an RV before but willing to learn and enjoy the RV life.

Still learning..........thanks for any help I can get.

ChasA · 05-17-2015, 04:29 PM

I think you're harming your chassis battery by starting the engine too frequently and not running it long enough. When you start the engine, it takes a lot of energy from your battery. It can take more than a half hour of running to put that energy back into the battery. Now, with that all said, your battery could be bad. If you can drive the motor home, drive it to an auto parts store and ask them to come to the parking lot and test your battery.
Welcome to the forum.
Also, in the future, please include information about your coach... Year, model name and number, and chassis make.
Good luck.

Deny · 05-17-2015, 06:26 PM

Good advice. Do not fool around with a dead battery, it will kill a good alternator!

Then you will buy a battery and an alternator- about a $550 party.

Get the battery checked & replaced, if necessary.

Buffalo Bill · 05-18-2015, 11:27 AM

I agree with others that you should get the battery checked. If you have 120v power available where you store the rv, you should get a Trick-l-Start or a Battery Boost to keep a constant charge to the engine battery. Welcome to the rv world. If you have more questions, we look forward to helping. There is also a View specific forum on Yahoo [moderator edit]

pattd2 · 05-18-2015, 10:50 PM

I have a 2009 Winnebago View 24A, it has a battery boost and a Trik L Start. I had my neighbor mechanic guy test the battery while in the coach, engine running and it was showing 8-9 volts. He took battery out and checked it and it read 11-12 volts. Looked inside at the water level and some sulfide? white stuff, was floating inside. He shook up the battery, check it again, still 11-12 volts. Checked the alternator, checked out okay. Check the cables, okay. Check to see if there was a drain from some other source, nothing, put battery back in, went to start engine, nothing...waited a few minutes, then started up? He thought maybe glow plug, cold last night and over week end? Check fuses against what the owners manual said should be in there and it did not match??? So will be calling La Mesa RV and asking many questions...any thoughts? I just bought it at end of March and have not really used it yet, just read books and trying to learn how to use it by practicing in the back yard. I am so upset about all this that I am second guessing my decision to RV in the first place, maybe buyers remorse? Sorry for rambling on, just need some answers and help...........thanks for listening.....Patt

twinboat · 05-19-2015, 05:36 AM

My best suggestion is to keep the "neighbor guy" away from your stuff.

8 volts, while running and the alternator is good? The fact that it starts, says he is measuring the wrong battery.

Shake the battery, and retest?

Glow plugs don't track weekend weather, They sense cold engine, when you turn the key.

My best advice is to find someone, familiar with your style MH, to help you identify which battery does what and go from there.

Over time, you will get to know your system.

Posting specific questions here, can help.

Buffalo Bill · 05-19-2015, 09:57 AM

First of all, don't second guess your decision to take up the rv lifestyle. This is one small problem that WILL get fixed, and then you can get out on the road. Your View will take you to beautiful places and you will meet many friendly people at rv campgrounds. We just finished a month long trip up highway 1 and 101 in northern California and into Oregon. Many beautiful beaches and views of the coast, whales and gigantic waves. The big advantage of the View is that when you see a great view you can pull into almost any layby or view point. We camp for 2 or 3 days and then use our Via to sightsee and shop along the way to the next campground, and on this trip, we planned to travel between 75 to 125 miles per travel day. At this time of year best to book campgrounds ahead of time, particularly for those on the coast. Check our RV Park Reviews for info on campgrounds. RV Park Reviews Link: http://www.campgroundreviews.com/

Don't give up on the rv lifestyle, but get out there and try it.

OLYLEN · 05-19-2015, 10:23 AM

Looking at the age of your RV, that battery, if it has not been replaced, might just be at it's life's end. Sounds like it will take a surface charge that will allow a restart but wait a while and it;s dead again. If you have a battery shop near by just run the RV over and have the battery tested. At 5-7 years on start batteries if they even hic-up I replace, car, truck, or RV.

LEN

FIRE UP · 05-19-2015, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pattd2

Newbie Question: The Winnie has been sitting for about a month without me starting it and I had to use the "Battery Boost" to get it running yesterday. Ran it off and on all day yesterday. Then this morning, same thing? Does this mean my chassis battery is bad? What do you think is happening? As far as I can tell, nothing is on in the cab and the aux battery shut off is "off" when not in use.
I am a single 70 y/o woman who has never owned an RV before but willing to learn and enjoy the RV life.

Still learning..........thanks for any help I can get.

PattD,
Well, first off, you have an '09 Winne coach. It's presently 2015. That means, using advance math, the chassis battery (if it's not been changed at any time between now and the time it was new in '09) is somewhere at or near, 6 years old. You're in the time frame of the length of duration that the AVERAGE chassis battery will last. I say A-V-E-R-A-G-E, for the folks that will get their shorts in a knot because they've had theirs last for longer.
Now, does this mean yours is on its way to the big battery place in the sky, not necessarily. But, just some suggestions for you.

1. Find some one you trust, friend, neighbor, relative, etc. that will have some general to good knowledge of auto electronics. Preferably one that will have that knowledge in RV electronics.

2. Have them or, a local battery supplies center, i.e. Napa, Interstate, OReighly Auto parts etc., do a LOAD TEST on that chassis battery. That will tell you if that battery has any STAYING POWER. That is, the ability to sustain quite a bit of cranking and, reserve power. A battery that has what's called a "surface charge" will basically tease you. In that, it most likely will start your coach but, if the coach was hard to start or, something was left on for even a slight amount of time, you'd loose all the cranking capability.

3. Either you or, your trusted friend/neighbor/tech, do a thorough search to make sure, you've got nothing "ON" that is connected to the chassis battery system.

4. Starting your coach a few times in the same day WILL NOT HURT ANYTHING! Repeatedly doing it without a fair amount of engine running time in between, will eventually damage the battery to the point it will not accept a charge.

5. One thing that's vitally important here is, check all the battery connections. Make sure they are very clean and tight. Having any corrosion etc. in between makes for lousy capabilities in both starting and charging.

6. Finally, have that friend/relative/tech etc. EXPLAIN in layman's terms, just how YOUR PARTICULAR SYSTEM(S) work. That is, how your engine running which, turns the alternator which, CHARGES BOTH SETS OF BATTERIES. And, then ask for him/her to explain WHAT CHARGES THE COACH BATTERIES when plugged into shore power or, the generator is running. When this knowledge is presented to you in a fashion that you can understand, you'll know better how things work and therefore, you'll have a better grip on when things ARN'T WORKING CORRECTLY!

Now, once all the those items have been checked off, you should be in good shape for an eventful life in RVing. Good luck and have fun.
Scott

Deny · 05-20-2015, 05:04 AM

Replace the Vehicle Battery! 5 years is about how long they last.

Get your battery from a place that sells lots of batteries (then you will get a fresh one)

Do not fool around with old batteries, problems only get more expensive.

pattd2 · 05-20-2015, 08:21 AM

Thank you everyone for you time and experience. Battery was replaced and it did the trick. My wonderful "Mechanic Guy" and neighbor walked me though and taught me how to take out the battery, replace it, check all connections. Seems it was just the battery being 7 years old and on its way out. It was only charged at 35% when the Auto Zone guy put it on their tester. He said he could charge it for me and get a few more uses out of it but I thought the best thing to do was to just replace it, and I did and all is okay now. I need to "Get a Grip" on how I react when things break....things can be fixed! I just over reacted...gotta fix that now.........thanks for all your experience...Patt

FIRE UP · 05-20-2015, 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pattd2

Thank you everyone for you time and experience. Battery was replaced and it did the trick. My wonderful "Mechanic Guy" and neighbor walked me though and taught me how to take out the battery, replace it, check all connections. Seems it was just the battery being 7 years old and on its way out. It was only charged at 35% when the Auto Zone guy put it on their tester. He said he could charge it for me and get a few more uses out of it but I thought the best thing to do was to just replace it, and I did and all is okay now. I need to "Get a Grip" on how I react when things break....things can be fixed! I just over reacted...gotta fix that now.........thanks for all your experience...Patt

Patt,
You're ahead of the game now. You've learned that you had a problem, had it analyzed by people WHO ARE IN THE FIELD OF REPAIR and, cured the problem. Now, if I may suggest something. You are apparently at least somewhat computer savvy, correct? If so, then go to your favorite writing program, i.e. Excel, Office, etc. and, create a sort of, "Spreadsheet" of valuable stats, repairs, VIN number, chassis number, Engine, transmission info and other pertinent information. Any modifications, alterations, repairs, replacement part numbers, places you purchased the parts, phone numbers, dates and mileage when parts (i.e. "Battery") were replaced.

You also would put in all maintenance, oil change dates and mileage, type of and weight of oil, amount, oil filter make/brand and part number and of course, cost. That way, when it comes time for PERIODIC maintenance, you can use your own spread sheet as a reference for everything.

This way, you'll have a clear, concise, one spot place, where all valuable information pertaining to your coach, is located. All you do is, click on it, and, all the information about your coach, anything you've done, and more, is all in front of you. And, simply ADD to it, when ever any other repairs etc. are done. It also makes for a really good sales point if and when, you decide to sell your coach because you've got a real good maintenance record to present to the prospective new owners.

Anyway, glad you got your issue taken care of. It's ALWAYS nice when an issue is resolved, in the first attempt and, the right way.

Scott

dwaugh10 · 05-20-2015, 11:51 AM

I used to have a 2010 Navion ( same as the View). I found that there was enough draw on the chassis battery during storage to discharge it by at least 50% in about 3 weeks. So if you don't have any way to keep a charger on it while in storage, you will end up with a discharged battery pretty quickly. Do that several times and you'll end up ruining that new battery. There is a battery quick-disconnect cable next to the "gas" pedal. You can use that to stop the discharge.

David
2013 Vista