Battery longevity

[heagle52]

Purchased our 5th wheel new in July 2012. During the past winter I disconnected the cables from the battery. Went out for a weekend in March and battery was OK. Since then I have tried to charge at home but it will not keep a charge. I have not had the battery checked.

If my battery is dead it only lasted 20 months. Is this normal for an RV battery or could I have done something to cause a shorter life?

[mr__ed]

I just removed one of my fiver's batteries a few months ago at about 6 years old. It was getting hot, so obviously defective. I'll be replacing the remaining (good) one when I get a chance since it's the same age. I'm considering using only one battery since I'm always plugged in and don't need the extra battery. Saves weight, too.

[Pauljdav]

It sounds like it is sulfated. Look at the plates and if you see anything on them that looks like white calcium or salt etc it is sulfated and not much you can do about that. All batteries will sulfate if they are not in fully charged condition at all times. If they are sulfated you are better off replacing them.

[kennethwooster]

Bought the Cameo 2011 in June of 2010.. Last fall I left a switch on and left at rv repairmen. Battery was dead. Had to move trailer to a body shop thanks to a tree, and told them about the batteries not being up. Said they would charge them up. I don't think they did. Couple of months later it was repaired. Moved to rv park and all was fine. Got it home and put in storage. Went back a few weeks later and the RV Marine batteries was dead. Mechanic said these were very good batteries, so had him order same brand. I think the freeing weather took them out after they became dead while waiting for body work.

[RoyB]

X2 on what WRONGWAY says...

I got my OFF-ROAD trailer in 2008 and finally got my battery bank up to 255AHs in early 2009...

My batteries from 2009 are still going strong. They are just now starting to show some lack of performance.

I watch my DV VOLTS like a hawk using my Battery Monitor SETUP and make sure if my Batteries get drained down to 12.0VDC that I will start up a re-charge when camping off the power grid.


I leave my batteries on the permanant charge when sitting in CAMP BACKYARD so most of the time my Battery Monitor Panel is reading 13.6VDC or 13.2 VDC. I can watch the smart mode battery charge process go throught its steps using the battery monitor.

I also still check my battery fluids on a regular basis but seem to always find the levels normal since I installed the smart mode converter/charger setup in 2009.

Has worked out great for us over thepast five years. We camp off thepower grid for the most part and can do as many as 12-14 cycles of 50% to 90% State of Charge and the batteries perform great. Each of these smart mode charges takes around three hour to complete. After theses many battery charge cycles then you start noticing the battery bank doesnt want to hold the charge as long as before and this is when you should re-charge to a full 100% charge which in my case takes around 12 hours of samrt mode charging.

As long as you monitor your batteries and never let them drop below the 50% charge state before re-charging back up to at least 90% SOC you should be able to get a few years out of them

Roy Ken

[WrongWayRandall]

heagle52 wrote:
Purchased our 5th wheel new in July 2012. During the past winter I disconnected the cables from the battery. Went out for a weekend in March and battery was OK. Since then I have tried to charge at home but it will not keep a charge. I have not had the battery checked.

If my battery is dead it only lasted 20 months. Is this normal for an RV battery or could I have done something to cause a shorter life?

Batteries need to be kept fully charged when not in use and never discharged too deeply. The typical dual purpose battery you get from the dealer is likely a marine/deep cycle 12v, nothing overly special nor a true deep cycle battery. In order to get the most out of any battery you need to do a few things:

1) Keep from discharging them too deeply: Don't allow the battery to go below 12.0v, 12.2v is even better. If you find that you need to draw more from it than this limitation allows, you wither need to add another of the same battery (adds some capacity) or move to a bank of true deep cycle batteries (adds a lot of capacity.) The more often a battery is deeply discharged the more poorly it will perform over time and the shorter it's usable lifespan will be - frequent light discharges are much better than infrequent but deep discharges.

2) Keep the water level up: Charge the battery fully, then open the filler holes and add DISTILLED water (and only distilled water) until the fluid level is just below the plastic that protrudes into the reservoir. Fully charged, the fluid should be approx. 1/8th of an inch below where it would be touching the plastic. Check the battery monthly whether you use it or not.

3) Keep the terminals clean at all times: When cleaning terminals, be sure to never allow anything to seep into the inside of the battery through the filler holes - this is bad.

4) Keep the battery charged at all times when not in use: Get a good quality charger and use it on the battery (or batteries) when they are not in use so that they stay fully charged. Poor quality chargers can overheat a battery and cause boil-over or excessive evaporation, both of which are bad for the battery.

Even a dual purpose battery should last at least 3 years. I usually get 5-7 years out of my batteries (both staring and camper batteries), but everyone will have varying levels of performance and reliability. A good place to do some free reading is a website called '12v side of life' - it is a good primer on batteries, their care, and how they work.

- Randy

[Buckeye_Chuck]

tegu69 wrote:
We bought our new 2012 fw in August of last year (2013). A couple of months ago, the battery would not hold a charge. Since it had a 12 month free replacement warranty, I called a local dealer for the battery and the guy says to bring it in. I take the battery to him and he takes one look at it and says that it was made in December of 2010 and couldn't do anything for me, it was just too old. Since I had to get a battery I went to another dealer and bought a different make of battery. I also contacted the original battery company (Deka) and explained the situation. I provided proof of when I bought the trailer and yesterday I get a check from them for the replacement cost of the competitors battery. Kudos to them

Shame on your dealer. You bought the trailer new from them. It's not your fault the battery was five years old. A good dealer would have replaced the battery and then went back on the manufacturer of the trailer for a refund.

[Buckeye_Chuck]

kellertx5er wrote:
Have to partly disagree Buckeye. Yes, heat kills but an untended battery in sub-freezing temps will have loss of life as well. Keep a trickle charge on it if exposed to freezing temps.

I agree a trickle charger (battery minder) is always a good way to go.

[Randyl81]

I have a 2008 and I just replaced both my batteries, I was told the way to tell if your batteries need replaced is to charge them to full then test them they should read 12.7-13 even though its only a 12v battery, then wait a couple weeks or so test them again, if they drop below 12 they are losing a charge. They are deep cycle RV/Marine batteries. I take mine out of my rv during the winter, they also told me to make sure they are fully charged when I store them, (disconnect from charger when stored) check them several months later if below 11 replace them, just a couple ideas.

[greatwhitenort1]

I got 9 years out of the 2 batteries for my boat. I removed them every fall, stored in my garage & trickle charged them couple times thruout the winter. Gonna put new ones in this year, they owe me nothing.

[kellertx5er]

Have to partly disagree Buckeye. Yes, heat kills but an untended battery in sub-freezing temps will have loss of life as well. Keep a trickle charge on it if exposed to freezing temps.

[tegu69]

We bought our new 2012 fw in August of last year (2013). A couple of months ago, the battery would not hold a charge. Since it had a 12 month free replacement warranty, I called a local dealer for the battery and the guy says to bring it in. I take the battery to him and he takes one look at it and says that it was made in December of 2010 and couldn't do anything for me, it was just too old. Since I had to get a battery I went to another dealer and bought a different make of battery. I also contacted the original battery company (Deka) and explained the situation. I provided proof of when I bought the trailer and yesterday I get a check from them for the replacement cost of the competitors battery. Kudos to them

[dezl_dr]

If you have a good charger (like the charge wizard) then leaving it plugged up all the time would be best.
I'd guess 5 years if left plugged up on a wet cell and more on an AGM style.

[Buckeye_Chuck]

A.quality deep cycle RV / Marine battery should last 4 years or more. Even though deep cycle batteries are designed to be discharged never completely discharge the battery. Also check the electrolyte level frequently. There is no need to remove the battery during winter storageas long as you disconnect the cable or Turn off the battery switch. Cold is not the enemy of your battery heat Is. Be sure your battery has a full charge when it is put away for the winter. A battery minder is always a good idea if you have electric near where you store.

[waltbennett]

There should be some kind of date sticker and it may be several years old. Inexpensive 12v marine deep cycle batteries may only last a few years, but better ones one or two more (at least that's all I get out of them).