Battery Disconnect Confusion
Okay, so I went out on Monday to take off on my first trip in my (new to me) 2018 Leprechaun, and the engine battery was dead. Had to call for a jump start. So I learned if my coach is just sitting ...
Forum Discussion
DesertHiker wrote:
Okay, so I went out on Monday to take off on my first trip in my (new to me) 2018 Leprechaun, and the engine battery was dead. Had to call for a jump start. So I learned if my coach is just sitting in the driveway, I should turn the battery disconnect to OFF. (Kinda backwards .. turning a disconnect to off?)
But what confuses me is what happens if I camp without hookups for 7 or 10 or 14 days, which I often do?! How do I keep the engine battery charged so I am not calling for emergency road service in the middle of the back-country?
No, I don't have a "battery boost" for the engine battery.
Thank you!!!!
The battery disconnect switch usually has nothing to do with the chassis battery. It's strictly to disconnect your coach battery or batteries for idle times to keep them from draining.
If you want to keep the engine battery from draining, too, you could install a blade disconnect at the negative - terminal under the hood, or a Triklstart battery maintainer, to charge the chassis battery via shore power or generator, when you're parked with hookups or running the generator. It steals some current from the coach batteries. Or you could use a regular battery charger/maintainer under the hood to keep the chassis battery charged when you're not using the RV.
