Newbie to RV use
Hello all, Thank you in advance for any assistance you all can give me. Trust me I do have a lot of questions! I do plan on looking to purchase (within the next few years) a Thor Axis, due to it...
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Look at USA brand batteries, supposedly as good as Trojans, but much cheaper. I bought two 6-volt to replace two Trojan T-105's,seem good so far.
Your RV cannot run the roof air conditioner on RV battery power. The compressor runs on 120volt AC power from the RV camp power or your generator. All generators are relatively loud and may get you hollered at by nearby RV'ers if you run it at night to operate your roof AC. You might get some sleeping comfort running a 12 volt fan off your house battery but battery may be dead by morning.
If you must camp in summer heat, use an RV Park with adequate AC shore power. Buy a line voltage meter and plug it in to monitor camp or generator line voltage, if it goes into the red while running roof A/C, shut down AC to avoid damage to roof AC. When everybody is running roof AC units, line voltage can become too low to operate your roof A/C.
BTW, your generator takes a long run time to recharge your house batteries maybe all day. Recharging house battery via your converter/charger on shore power also takes a long time( maybe all day) Modern converter/chargers such as the Progressive Dynamics Model 9245 have quicker recharge modes and are easier on your house battery in trickle/maintenance mode. Removing old converter/charger and replacing with new 9245 is easy and may be worth doing if you will keep the rig for some time. I got a good price from a local RV parts place, no shipping charge.
Your engine's alternator will recharge your house battery in a few hours of driving.
Running your house battery way down is not good for it, will shorten it's life. Get to know the whole 12 volt DC house battery power system and how to maintain battery electrolyte levels and clean connections. You need a battery filler "turkey baster", distilled water, a cheap digital multi-meter for checking voltages/verifying that charging system is working properly, etc. Resting voltage for a fully charged house battery should be 12.6 volts or better, while charging, on shore or generator, voltage should be around 13.6 volts, with engine running, voltage should be around 14 volts.
Your RV cannot run the roof air conditioner on RV battery power. The compressor runs on 120volt AC power from the RV camp power or your generator. All generators are relatively loud and may get you hollered at by nearby RV'ers if you run it at night to operate your roof AC. You might get some sleeping comfort running a 12 volt fan off your house battery but battery may be dead by morning.
If you must camp in summer heat, use an RV Park with adequate AC shore power. Buy a line voltage meter and plug it in to monitor camp or generator line voltage, if it goes into the red while running roof A/C, shut down AC to avoid damage to roof AC. When everybody is running roof AC units, line voltage can become too low to operate your roof A/C.
BTW, your generator takes a long run time to recharge your house batteries maybe all day. Recharging house battery via your converter/charger on shore power also takes a long time( maybe all day) Modern converter/chargers such as the Progressive Dynamics Model 9245 have quicker recharge modes and are easier on your house battery in trickle/maintenance mode. Removing old converter/charger and replacing with new 9245 is easy and may be worth doing if you will keep the rig for some time. I got a good price from a local RV parts place, no shipping charge.
Your engine's alternator will recharge your house battery in a few hours of driving.
Running your house battery way down is not good for it, will shorten it's life. Get to know the whole 12 volt DC house battery power system and how to maintain battery electrolyte levels and clean connections. You need a battery filler "turkey baster", distilled water, a cheap digital multi-meter for checking voltages/verifying that charging system is working properly, etc. Resting voltage for a fully charged house battery should be 12.6 volts or better, while charging, on shore or generator, voltage should be around 13.6 volts, with engine running, voltage should be around 14 volts.
