2 part question

I have never shut my refrig off in 20 years or so .
I have my RV on a separate electric meter . The only thing on that meter is my deep well pump and the RV . The bill runs about $20 in summer and $16 in winter . When you pay for electric in a campground you pay the campground rate which will include a profit and a hidden maintenance fee.

Well I guess I'll split the difference. If I am going camping within a week or two I'll leave it stocked and plugged in. Any longer break and I will unload,shut off, and disconnect. Thanks for all the replies though.

Hi,

An absorption fridge draws about 5 kwh per day--that is about 60 cents per day in many locations.

2oldman wrote:
Stay plugged in in storage?
Stay plugged in roast batteries?

Does that count as a 2 part answer?..:B


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D & M wrote:

bukhrn wrote:
I leave mine plugged in & fridge on & batteries connected, I do however check the battery water level monthly.

x2

X3 only I check batteries every couple of months

When you are using the RV as a vacation/trip vehicle and parking at the house when not in use I still can't see why everyone keeps it up and running with full power while it's parked?:?

I know "exactly" what the electric costs to keep a MH powered up for a month when I stay a month at a CG, they give you a separate bill for the electric. Those of you who have never stayed for a month in a CG with electric extra would never know just how much it costs!

Just don't see wasting THAT kind of money on an RV parked in a driveway. I'd rather take that money spent on electric for it to just sit in the driveway and put it towards gas money in that RV to go camping not pay for it to sit in a driveway! :B

Take a good look at what your electric bill is for a month with the MH hooked up and without it hooked up. You just might change your mind.

bukhrn wrote:
I leave mine plugged in & fridge on & batteries connected, I do however check the battery water level monthly.

x2

I turn off the fridge but keep the rig plugged in to insure my chassis battery stays fully charged. I have a smart converter so I am not concerned about damaging the coach batteries.

There are two issues that I am aware of with leaving the RV on shore power all the time. If the charger is a single stage not a smart charger, the batteries will be subjected to a voltage high enough to make them loose fluid more rapidly and also reduce battery life. If the fluid drops below the level of the plates, the battery will be damaged. The constant gassing from the battery also increases corrosion of the terminals and wires. The OEM Attwood converter/charger in our 2007 trailer was a single stage.

A second issue is that some of the older chargers needed the battery connected to provide a steady output of current. I haven't seen it mentioned in quite a while, but there use to be a device to put in place of the batteries so they could be removed when on shore power for extended periods of time. Attwood said that their charger could run without the battery, so I installed a marine grade battery disconnect switch on the A frame and disconnected the battery when plugged in for prolonged periods.

Our MH stays in the garage several months at a time. I keep everything connected and charge the house batts a couple of hours every week/ten days. Every so often I hook a trickle charger to the engine batt. and leave it on a few hours.