Battery Disconnect switch

[SHobbs]

I have looked everywhere in the owners manual on my coach and have found nothing about it. What is the purpose of this switch and does it need to be on or off while set up at a park?

 

[BillnBama]

The only time I turn my battery switch off is when my 5er is in storage. . the LP sniffer is 12v and will drain your battery over time. . If you are hooked up to shore power there is no need to turn off the switch

 

[starkmr]

Learned about the LP sniffer the hard way myself. My 5er doesn't have a battery disconnect switch.

 

[HBarlow]

Your 5er has an AC/DC convertor which converts 115vac from shorepower to 12 vdc to power 12 volt dc loads and to recharge or maintain the charge in your "house" batteries. Opening a batter disconnect switch when connected to shorepower removes the load from the convertor and could cause it to fail. It also deprives 12 volt loads of the battery and would require the convertor to supply any and all load demands.



A battery disconnect should only be used when your 5er is in long-term storage.



Harvey

 

[Prairie Dog]

I always turn off the batts when I store the rig, even just for a week or two. There's just too many parasitic loads that slowly drain it which results in sulfation.

As a side note, most RV converters won't fully charge the batteries. If you monitor your battery voltage you'll see the converter only provides arround 13. 8 VDC.

If you don't charge beyond that level for long periods of time, the life of the batt will be shortened.



Scotty

 

[SHobbs]

Thanks guys, I am trying to figure out what isn't working. For some reason it seems that the battery is not getting enough to keep it somewhat charged. I also have the little solar panel on the a/c which as I understand provides a trickle charge to the battery. The other day the electricity went out where I am set up and it was then I found out the battery must be dead. I had no 12v power to the lights or the water pump.



My last 5er had an Inteli-power converter and I never had any problems with the battery. Current 5er has a MagneTek and in only three years the battery is toast. I am thinking of tossing the MagneTek and going back to Inteli-power. Any other suggestions out there?

 

[Bill Stockard]

My last 5er had an Inteli-power converter and I never had any problems with the battery. Current 5er has a MagneTek and in only three years the battery is toast. I am thinking of tossing the MagneTek and going back to Inteli-power. Any other suggestions out there?

Your best option!



Bill

 

[K5IP]

Get the inteli-power, or some other modern switching power supply. Then add a "wizzard". This neat (and cheap) little device will also program the power converter and occasionally ramp the voltage up into the mid 14 vdc range to properly condition and fully charge the battery. it also allows for quickly charging your batteries if you are off the grid and want to charge batteries with a minimum of generator time.

Aint this new technology wonderfull?

Rog

Rog