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HappyGoLuckySai's avatar
HappyGoLuckySai
Explorer
Jun 07, 2013

Where is Eco-Charger on 2005 Safari Cheetah?

Greetings! Having difficulty with the coach batteries on my 2005 Monaco Safari Cheetah. I have lead acid batteries for the house batteries, charged by a Xantrex 2000 system. My coach batteries are gel cell, Sears Platinum. The Sears Platinum batteries are less than one year old and not charging up to 100% (have been on a Sears Diehard Platinum battery charger) like the Royal lead acid batteries which are four years old. Has anyone had this issue with mixing gel cell batteries with lead acid batteries? Thanks for any guidance provided!
Best regards,
Dave and Dawn
Fairbanks, Alaska
Class A

4 Replies

  • HappyGoLuckySai's avatar
    HappyGoLuckySai
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2013
    Thank you for your response. How do you set the xantrac to charge the gel cell and will this be ok for the Lead acid to charge at the lower rate?
  • Rich_D_'s avatar
    Rich_D_
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2013
    Gel cell batteries charge at a lower voltage than lead-acid wet cells. Charging the lead-acid chassis batteries at the lower rate won't hurt them but charging Gel batteries at the higher lead-acid wet rate will drastically shorten their life.

    Be sure your inverter/charger is set for Gel batteries and use a Xantrex Echo-Charger or similar device to allow your inverter/charger to maintain the chassis batteries. I used this setup on my last Bird and got 10+ years from the Gels and 7+ years from the lead-acid wet cell chassis batteries.
  • The_Texan's avatar
    The_Texan
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2013
    In 2005 Monaco did NOT have a charger connected to the coach batteries while connected to shore power. You must add some type of charging system yourself......Been there done that with a factory replacement control board from a company that is no longer selling to the public. Most folks just use a battery tender of some type.

    Go on the Monacoers forum and ask, they will give you several options.
  • rgatijnet1's avatar
    rgatijnet1
    Explorer III
    Jun 07, 2013
    I have a Xantrex inverter charges the HOUSe batteries only and it does not charge the coach/chassis batteries at all, so the type of battery I use for the engine would have no affect on the inverter charger.
    If you are having a problem with your chassis gel cell getting a full charge, it may be because your Sears battery charger does not have a "gel cell" setting. I know on the chassis battery charger that I use, I have separate settings for wet cell, gel cell, and AGM batteries. Perhaps this is what is causing your problem.

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