WFCO WF8955 complete garbage?

They work ok if you are plugged in most of the time, which is most people. If you dry camp and don't want to run your generator 8 hours a day then you need a 4 stage charger. Bestconverter.com does a good business selling drop in replacements for them, so it's not not just a few people bring obsessive.
Note my measurement was maxumum charge current into a totally dead battery was 11 amperes, out of a possible 55. It went down rapidly from there. They just never go into the bulk charge mode in the real world.

OK, so a question on mine.

We have a brand new Forest River trailer that we have on a permanent spot( with full hook up) where we snow bird for six months.
I have already decided that I will take the battery out and bring it home with us when we return to keep it charged during the summer months.

What can I expect as a life span out of mine figuring it will never be used during the summer months? - And never boon docking?

Jack L

I have two TTs that came with WFCO converters. Neither one could get into 14.4 volts for fast charging of a depleted battery and neither one got into 13.2 trickle charge mode once fully charged. They both only provided 13.6 volts constantly. This is not ideal for battery life and could eventually lead to premature battery failure. For only a few dollars more, many of us upgraded to the true 4 mode PD charger, which automatically monitors and keeps the battery in good shape using different voltages, and also has an automatic desulfation mode for longer battery life.
I agree that if you only camp with full hookups, the WFCO may function adequately, but if you dry camp, the upgrade is worthwhile.

cyntdon2010 wrote:
Cheap, Cheap, That's the norm when you purchase an rv. they use the Lowest price items not the best.

Of course manufacturers don't use "the best", why would they? ... other than a very few who might have researched the subject who would ever select a trailer to purchase based on which converter was in it? Since probably more than not camp on electric sites and rarely to ever dry camp a WFCO is in fact a reasonable choice. If you were manufacturing RVs you'd do the same. Compare prices for a new WFCO8955 against a similar competitor, even a Progressive Dynamics, and there's not all that much difference in retail price. Yes, you can purchase a much better converter / charger but it will cost a lot more.

There's always a reason and to simply declare it as "cheap, cheap" misses the point entirely. :W

Cheap, Cheap, That's the norm when you purchase an rv.
they use the Lowest price items not the best.
I have swapped out converter, propane gas detectors, Axles,tires

Progressive Dynamics makes a head unit for them and yes they do have a disproportionate number of problems, but they cost less and manufacturers want to save $.

I almost always have full hook-ups. For my needs it works fine as SoundGuy said. When it dies I"ll replace it with something else. Easy swap out when the time comes.

totaldla wrote:
So what is the real scoop on the 8955?

For those who don't rely solely on battery power often or don't deep discharge on a frequent basis the WFCO 8955 works just fine. The most common complaint is that as installed it rarely bulk charges at it's advertised 14.4 volts, a situation exacerbated by the trailer manufacturer just sticking the converter wherever there may be room, regardless of how far that may be from the battery location, and using light weight cable, usually 6 gauge, to wire it in. On a workbench, set up to bulk charge a deeply discharged battery, it might well achieve 14.4 volts ... but that does little good for those of us wanting to charge in the real world. :R Mine works fine but I've simply turned it off and instead use a portable CTEK charger that does bulk charge @ 14.4 volts - problem solved. :)