Need a quick answer from the battery guru's
I thought I remember this being talked about, but knowing that the battery chargers in the RV/trailer tends not to deliver enough amps to bring the batteries up from a low charge (say like overnight u...
Forum Discussion
KATOOM wrote:
I have a WFO 55 amp Power Convertor and the trailer is a 2005. Does that help? I was told through other threads that most convertors dont go into boost mode and wont charge the batteries more than a trickle when using the generator. Thats when I was also told that forgoing the power convertor and just using a separate battery charger would work better to bring the batteries up to a more reasonable charge in a short amount of time.
Test the WFCO before spending money. When the battery is low you are looking for voltage to steadily rise into the 14.0 to 14.5 volt range over 20 to 60 minutes. Measure both at the battery and at the fuse/converter panel. If voltage sticks closer to 13.4 - 13.6 then you are just slow charging.
If you decide to replace the WFCO I recommend the PowerMax replacement main board assembly. This is the most direct bolt in replacement. 1 battery I suggest the 35 amp, 2/3 batteries 45 amps, and 4+ get the 55 amp.
http://www.bestconverter.com/WFCO-Powermax-Main-Board-Replacement_c_196.html
Progressive Dynamics and IOTA are also excellent.
If you must get a portable I would go with the 40a B&D linked above. Yes you can run this at the same time as the converter. Although I would get the portable started first and plug in the main RV cord second.
Either way it will take 2 to 4 hours to get a low (<50%) battery up to 90%. The last 10% takes an additional 4 to 8 hours so that can wait until you have utility power and lots of time.
