battery charging

There was a blown 5 amp fuse in a separate fuse holder under the driver's seat. Fixed it. Thanks to everyone who tried, it was a great learning experience.

Now that you have found the correct solenoid, with the control wires as well as the battery wires, a photo is probably not necessary.

Dave22 wrote:
Is there a difference between "ignition on" and "engine running"?

i think not.

if no BIRD, and a manual says your engine is supposed to charge both batteries, then maybe the isolator solenoid is bad. also, there may be a 'black boxish' diode that does what the BIRD does.

i disconnected my BIRD and the 2 small terminal wires that trigger the isolator solenoid to couple the 2 batts (they are the 2 big terminals).

those isolator solenoids go out like camera flash bulbs. after the second iso solenoid ruined both new batts by being stuck on always, i disengaged it. the other solenoid for house battery disconnect is fine.

if your iso solenoid is bad and there is no blown fuse to it, it may be hot to the touch as one indicator. mine was stuck on and warm, but in your case, since it seems to be off, if there is no fuse (mine had none), maybe the diode thingy is bad, or maybe the previousowner did what i did.

if you hear the iso solenoid click when toggling the emergency start switch on the dash, it is connected to the ignition. a multimeter touching both small iso terminals would read 12+ V when the solenoid is on.

Is there a difference between "ignition on" and "engine running"?

My RV is a 2008 Coachmen Freelander. It doesn't use Intellitec but I found the info helpful in understanding. There are no "black boxes" associated with my system that I have found, just two solenoids (so far)and some wiring. Oh, the chassis is Workhorse. The two wires which go to my newly found solenoid are brown and white (and, also, the big wires from the batteries.)
I think I need to know where the solenoid gets its signal which indicates that the engine is running.

I found the correct? solenoid under the oven behind a drawer. The latch-in feature from the momentary "Battery disconnect" switch must be a characteristic of the solenoid because I found no other controls in the area. It seems to operate from the generator and from shore power but not from a running engine, my original problem.
Tenbear,
I looked at the procedure for posting a photo and it looks beyond me. I can email you a picture if you still think it helpful. Thanks.

Could you post a picture of your solenoid? It might help us understand better.

dave,

if you give your year and model, some others may steer you to good specific info.

RVs for a dozen yrs or so use an Intellitec BIRD that is well described in the pdf i linked. it is what controls the isolator solenoid responsible for how both batteries get charged.

the lower solenoid in my pics is typical to all RVs. it's the house battery disconnect thing. it may not be right there with the isolator solenoid for you, as for my rig. it is what you switch on/off, or USE/STORE via a toggle switch near the coach entry steps

The emergency start/booster button operates the solenoid I have been referring to in this discussion. I have found nothing else that operates this solenoid, not the generator or the shore power via the converter and certainly not a running engine. This solenoid is not defective.
I noticed the picture from burlmart shows two solenoids. I don't know how all this is supposed to work but I feel I need to look for another solenoid. If any of you have more suggestions I'm sure they will help.Thanks

burlmart's pic shows 2 large terminals and 2 small terminals on the solenoid. Some solenoids have only one small terminal, the case being the -12v connection. When the 12v is applied to the solenoid the 2 large terminals should be connecter together internally. The voltage should be the same on both large terminals. If it's not, the solenoid is bad.