Dry camping with furnace on

ragdogs wrote:
I was dry camping this weekend and had to put the furnace on for the first time. I was worried that I would kill the battery if I ran the furnace overnight. I was right :(. The house battery was dead in the morning. I have only one deep cell battery. Did it die because the battery is not that great ? It charged up quickly by starting the motor but was wondering why it drained the battery. Bi am going away last week in October and will need the furnace overnight. If I buy another battery will this solve the issue?


Thanks,

OK the battery was most likely not even close to full charge going into the evening when you put on the furnace. Bring some extra blankets and set thermostat 65(F) or less for sleeping and minimize burner time.

And yes the battery may not be that great. Group 24 is small capacity, 27 is normal, 29 is large. I recommend 2x 27 as minimum. Also condition might be poor or said that depending on maintenance battery can have reduced capacity.

Charged up quickly? From flat dead it will take 4 to 8 hours with the very best charging system to get tip top 100%. Probably 12 to 48 hours with what you have. The wall indicator is not going to tell much while charging as it is just reading voltage of the charger not the battery.

Plug in at home for a day and have the battery tested. You may need two batteries. Best to have a matching set. Measure and get the largest that will fit.

Plan to run the generator for an hour before bed and an hour in the morning. Also time to review your charging system. Post the converter model for best answers.


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The 12 Volt Side of Life

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