ptourin
Jericho, VT
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Joined: 05/06/2012
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Hi -
I recently picked up a 2005 Pleasure Way, and I'm having an aux battery problem - I need to have the RV out the next few weekends, so I'm hoping someone can either give me some suggestions or point me to an electrical system troubleshooting document.
My aux battery is going down very fast - my memory from past RV's is that there's not usually a problem going through the evening and into next morning on batteries, if all I do is run a few lights. But I've been out about 5 days since I bought the RV, and I keep running out of battery. I've been running the fridge on 120v when the van is at home, and LP when on the road, so it's not the fridge that's pulling the battery down.
The symptoms: When I pull off the road and check the battery level, it's up, but within a few hours it's down to a single light on the battery indicator. Since it's up after driving, I'm assuming the charging circuit is charging it. Since the van has 27,000 miles on it, I wondered if it was the original battery and was just at the end of its life, but I pulled it and found that it was bought last year. Water/electrolyte level was fine. I'll still pull it over the next day or two and have it load tested, but I'd be surprised if it were that bad after a year of use.
Does anybody have some suggestions for a logical troubleshooting process, or links to a site that goes over how to troubleshoot RV electrics? I'm pretty familiar with automotive/motorcycle electrical work, but I'm not very familiar with how the RV's handle aux battery charging, use and isolation.
Thanks - Peter
Peter Tourin
'05 Pleasureway Lexor TS
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1775
NY
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Joined: 09/30/2009
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If you plug the Pleasureway into shore power and let it sit for 12 hours does the aux battery charge to full power? Does it hold then? Does your vehicle battery stay charged? Do you have an inverter built in? Is if Off? Is the aux battery a deep cycle battery - as it should be? Is there anything that runs on 12 volts in the coach that could be on and draining the battery? Just a few things to make sure of.
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Meryl and Me Hit the Road
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ptourin
Jericho, VT
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I just got home this evening - plugged into shore power now. When I get home from work I'll pull the red key and start to check the battery - just watching what happens to the unloaded voltage. But I think I'll need it load tested to really see if it's OK. Yes, the engine battery stays charged - no problem with it. No inverter. The aux battery is a deep cycle battery. I can't think of what would be pulling it down in the camper, other than the fridge. There's a possibility I didn't switch the fridge off auto to LP, but when I start testing tomorrow I'll have it switched off.
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old guy
Oregon (pronounced Or e gun)
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Joined: 03/15/2006
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you could have a dead cell and it won't hold a charge.
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smkettner
Southern California
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Check the water is covering the plates. Check charging voltage with a meter. Have the battery load tested.
My random guess is bad battery.
BTW whatever the outcome consider some LED light replacements for much longer run time.
2001 F150 SuperCrew
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My Roadtrek
Tucson, AZ.
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Joined: 03/20/2002
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It sounds like when you think the battery is charged, you are just seeing a surface charge. A surface charge will drop very quickly, so you need to check the battery after about 20 min. Plug it in for 8 hours, then wait 20 min. and check the battery. It takes 12 hours or more of running the engine to charge a depleted battery, so shore power is the fastest.
If it still doesn't hold a charge, my bet is a bad battery. Batteries can easily go bad in a year if they have been neglected or subjected to very hot, or very cold temps.
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ptourin
Jericho, VT
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Thanks for the suggestions. My bet is also a bad battery - I don't think I have a bad cell, as the voltage immediately after charge is up - but I can't see what else would give me these symptoms. I'll unplug shore power, pull the red key and run a series of voltage checks this evening and we'll see what we see.
Haven't tried the LED lights yet, but I'm very interested to see what they look like - if they're a pleasant color temp I'll be getting them - won't like them if the light is harsh and white. Just finished building an Energy Star house, and I've been through a lot of bulb choices in the house over the last few years - you really have to try them, some are just fine and others sound great on paper but are less than wonderful in real life ...
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NewsW
US
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Joined: 02/06/2012
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Remove the battery.
Fully charge it.
Then load test (dealer will do it for you) after letting it sit for 12 hrs past charging.
If it is battery, that will turn up there.
Off hand... think the battery is gone.
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ffjeff
Coloma, CA
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Joined: 09/30/2006
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Pleasurway uses Interstate AGM batteries, if it still is the Interstate AGM, most likely it is the battery.
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kenfield
Vermont
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Joined: 10/24/2009
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It's quite possible that the battery was not fully charged before putting the RV into storage for the winter, and living in Vt. the cold could have damaged the battery. I usually plug mine in once or twice during the winter to maintain a charge.
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