lights dimming

[patfromnc]

Hi y'all we have a 1993 holiday rambler 5th wheel imperial model and at times our lights will get really dim then get bright again , not sure what could be causing this , or where to begin to look . it doesn't do it all the time and its mostly at night when there's not much running. Thanks yall

[patfromnc]

Thanks again y'all were going to get a new battery and converter this weekend , easier to change the risk having a fire . hubby know quiet habit about connecting power boxes and he has electration friends who wouldn't mind making a buck

[ken_burke]

patfromnc wrote:
Ok thanks
another dumb question if were hooked to power all the time do we need a battery? When we first got this camper there wasnt a battery so my hubby just put a battery we had in there , i dont how good the battery was . I will have him check and we will get one . We dont plan on going anywhere but you never know we are in florida after all
thanks again yall

All of the 12 volt DC equipment in the RV (lights, fans)run off the batteries, even if you are connected to shore power.
I have more problems w converters than batteries. Make sure that the converter is bad, then replace it. You can do the work yourself. Just look at the way the old one is hooked up. 4 or 5 wires. The converter costs about $150, and a RV tech will charge you $150 to put in the new one. It is a 10 minute job.
There are old threads that tell you how to check out the batteries and converter.

[laknox]

patfromnc wrote:
Ok thanks
another dumb question if were hooked to power all the time do we need a battery? When we first got this camper there wasnt a battery so my hubby just put a battery we had in there , i dont how good the battery was . I will have him check and we will get one . We dont plan on going anywhere but you never know we are in florida after all
thanks again yall

To the best of my knowledge, yes, you need to have a =good= battery in place in your coach. There are likely several circuits that only feed off the 12v system, which means the battery.

Lyle

[Wadcutter]

Veebyes wrote:

Battery load testers are not expensive & are well worth saving the effort of removing batterys & lugging them to a battery shop then lugging them back & reinstalling if nothing is found to be wrong with them.

That's true and well worth the cost. However I hate to recommend anything to anyone not knowing how 'technical' they are. Some folks have difficulties setting time on a digital clock. If they had a tester they wouldn't know how to read it or know what it means.

[patfromnc]

Ok thanks
another dumb question if were hooked to power all the time do we need a battery? When we first got this camper there wasnt a battery so my hubby just put a battery we had in there , i dont how good the battery was . I will have him check and we will get one . We dont plan on going anywhere but you never know we are in florida after all
thanks again yall

[Veebyes]

Wadcutter wrote:
Start with the cheapest solutions first.
Check the fluid in the battery. If connected full time it's possible the fluid level has dropped. Low fluid level will cause exactly as you describe.
If that doesn't fix it then pull your battery and take it in where someone in a battery shop can test it. They can quickly tell if a cell is bad.
While converters do go bad it's a lot more likely it's the battery. Converters don't go bad nearly as often as batteries.

Battery load testers are not expensive & are well worth saving the effort of removing batterys & lugging them to a battery shop then lugging them back & reinstalling if nothing is found to be wrong with them.

[Wadcutter]

Start with the cheapest solutions first.
Check the fluid in the battery. If connected full time it's possible the fluid level has dropped. Low fluid level will cause exactly as you describe.
If that doesn't fix it then pull your battery and take it in where someone in a battery shop can test it. They can quickly tell if a cell is bad.
While converters do go bad it's a lot more likely it's the battery. Converters don't go bad nearly as often as batteries.

[RoyB]

Just be aware that with the converter turned off your battery is not being charged and will probably drop below 12.0VDC pretty soon. Continuing operating the battery below 12.0VDC (approximately 50% charge state) usually does harm to the battery requiring it to be replaced as well...

You can hook-up a portable battery charger to your battery setup if you have one.

You need to make DC VOLTAGE measurements to determine what is going bad...

You should read 12.6VDC across the battery terminal when not on shore power and the battery is fully charged.

Turning on shore power which in turn turns on the on-board converter/charger should read 13.6VDC on the battery terminals. (Your ceiling lights should get brighter when you do this). If you have a smart mode converter/charger installed on your trailer then the DC VOLTS OUTPUT will normally be at 13.6VDC or sometimes 13.2VDC. It will produce 14.4VDC when in boost charge mode for around three hours but for the most part will read 13.6VDC when it is turned ON. Some model converters/chargers will go to above 15.0VDC for about '15 minutes' every 20 hours doing battery maintenance. Mine does the 14.4VDC when doing this maintenance mode. A smart mode charging system should not boil out battery fluids but you should always get in the habit of checking battery fluids. I check mine every two weeks or so.

Roy Ken

[ckwizard777]

Mine did the exact same thing just before the converter quit working.

[Veebyes]

Before ripping everything to pieces & buying parts that may not be needed, start with the basics right at the battery. Are the terminals clean? Are the connections tight. So often the simplest things cause problems.

[patfromnc]

Well since were hooked up to shore power he turned the charger part off yesterday afternoon and the light have not dimmed at all so maybe it is the battery and not the converter
Thanks y'all for the help

[RoyB]

A shorted CELL in a battery will cause this. I would most definitely check the batteries fluid levels and see if the battery case is getting hot to touch when this start happening.

Roy Ken

[donn0128]

Shorted bttery could be sucking all the juice the converter can make qnd then some start with the basics. Battery, then wiring then converter

[TucsonJim]

It's not too hard to do, but if you aren't familiar with the electrical system in an RV, it might be better left to the pros.

There are troubleshooting techniques you can use to isolate the converter, and safety practices you must follow when replacing. The most important safety instruction is to disconnect from shore power and disconnect the battery before you start to remove it.

If you have some basic mechanical and electrical skills, it's fairly straight forward. Disconnect from the 120VAC and 12VDC sources. Remove the screws holding the converter in the housing. Pull the converter out, and disconnect the 120V and 12V wires. Take a picture of the wiring before you disconnect it so you'll know how it goes back together. Install the new converter and reconnect everything.

FWIW - The last time my converter went out, the primary symptom was the lights getting dimmer and brighter which are the exact same symptoms you are describing.