Clay L
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
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It is activated in two ways:
1) By a wire connected to the run terminal on the ignition switch.
2) By a wire connected to the house batteries.
If you measure the voltage on the house batteries with the engine running and see about 14.4 volts then the solenoid is working.
Clay (WA5NMR), Lee (Wife), Katie (cat).
Full Timing in a 2004 Winnebago Sightseer 35N, Workhorse chassis, Honda Accord toad
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jannjim
USA
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Thanks Clay, that was the info I was looking for. The house batteries measure about 12 volts whether the engine is running or not. Thanks to all that replied with helpfull info. I will update the post when completed.
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OnaQuest
Old enough to be a
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jannjim wrote:My very first post states that I have a 2008 Winnebago Sightseer 29R.
Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I missed most of your first post.
As a prior poster stated, Winnebago uses a very simplistic approach to the subject solenoid. It's a defective solenoid.
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pnichols
Santa Cruz Mountains
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Joined: 04/26/2005
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I had intermittent problems a few years ago with the stock coach/engine battery connect solenoid that came in our Itasca, so I replaced it with this one ... it has silver alloy contacts so they will not corrode or oxidize. I have a coach battery voltage monitoring voltmeter on the dash of our cab and every time the I start the engine I see 14.XX volts on the coach batteries and they are now always charged up fully when we arrive at a campsite:
http://shopping.murcal.com/Catalog/Bear-........3921dcee21e.e3eSch4MaN4Re34Pa38Ta38Naxf0
Phil, 2005 E450 Itasca 324V Spirit
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Clay L
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
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pnichols wrote:I had intermittent problems a few years ago with the stock coach/engine battery connect solenoid that came in our Itasca, so I replaced it with this one ... it has silver alloy contacts so they will not corrode or oxidize. I have a coach battery voltage monitoring voltmeter on the dash of our cab and every time the I start the engine I see 14.XX volts on the coach batteries and they are now always charged up fully when we arrive at a campsite:
http://shopping.murcal.com/Catalog/Bear-........3921dcee21e.e3eSch4MaN4Re34Pa38Ta38Naxf0
That would be a very good replacement for the existing relay but because of where the AUX relay is mounted in my motor home it would have been almost impossible to mount it.
I got one from Murcal (very good service by the way) but when I opened the solenoid breaker box and took the panel off I found that since the Bear relay was somewhat larger than the old one I was going to have to drill at least two mounting holes and maybe reroute some wires.
Ordinarily that would have been a minor issue. However that box is mounted in the small compartment above the propane compartment on the wall next to the steps.
The compartment is only about 7 inches tall and I could barely get my head in there turned sideways. I could only get one arm in to work.
The relay is mounted toward the side of the box closest to the front of the compartment and it was hard to see a couple of the terminals because of the box lip.
In this case I decided there was no way I was going to be able to drill any holes or reroute any wires and returned the Bear relay and bought one like the original.
My point is - open the box up and see what is involved in doing work in there before you buy a different sized relay.
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pnichols
Santa Cruz Mountains
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I also had a rough time fitting the Bear solenoid in the compartment ... it took me the better part of an afternoon. I have a bit more room than it sounds like you had, though.
The solenoid's reliability and consistently low contact resistance has really improved keeping our coach batteries fully charged.
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MEXICOWANDERER
las peñas, michoacan, mexico
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One type of solenoid to be used for BOTH intermittent 500 ampere duty, and constant (but much lower amperage) duty?
What single solenoid does this? I mean an affordable one.
Thank you.
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pnichols
Santa Cruz Mountains
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Quote:One type of solenoid to be used for BOTH intermittent 500 ampere duty, and constant (but much lower amperage) duty?
What single solenoid does this? I mean an affordable one.
Certain of the Trombetta 12V models are for both continuous duty and can handle 600 amps peak inrush inductive current.
The model I used to replace the stock Winnebago El Cheapo coach/chassis interconnect solenoid meets these criteria. I thought that the Trombetta model I used ran a bit warm on case temperature when engaged continuously, so I measured it's case temperature and contacted Trombetta with the results. Their technician said my readings were well within design tolerances.
It's operated 3-4 years to date with narry a miss on supplying 14.XX volts from the alternator to the coach batteries on every engine startup - unlike the piece of junk Winnebago had installed - which sometimes engaged and sometimes did not. I can watch this happen on a voltmeter I mounted on my instrument panel. I wonder how many folks have intermittent interconnect solenoids and don't know it - but wonder why their coach batteries don't last long and/or why their coach batteries never seem to be lively when they reach their campsites after hours of driving.
However, I've never used the cab's boost switch to aid with V10 starting to see if starting currents would burn up the solenoid. I doubt that the solenoid would be affected.
Peace of mind was well worth the $30+ I paid for the Trombetta solenoid back then.
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jannjim
USA
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Finally got around to getting the solenoid replaced and the problem is fixed. The loction of the solenoid is almost impossible to access, why Winnebago put the dang thing where they did is crazy.
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