Battery location: 1993 Jamboree Searcher

[simonov]

You're not going to believe this, but I am pulling my hair out and am really confused.

I have a 1993 Jamboree Searcher 26' on a Ford E350 chassis. It has been sitting idle for almost two years, and I would only start it to move it or to take it down to the emissions testing station.

This year I tried starting it again and the battery seemed to be dead. I put a trickle charger on what I assumed was the chassis battery and fully charged it and the car wouldn't start. Then I charged the other battery, which I thought was the house battery, and once it was charged the car would start. But this battery wouldn't hold a charge and I was obliged to put the charger on it again the next time I needed to move the rig (a couple months ago).

Today I decided to replace both batteries. There is a battery on the passenger side, which I assumed was the chassis battery, and which is charged to about 12½ volts. The battery on the driver's side won't hold a charge, and currently shows about five volts. The starter won't even tick with the auxiliary switch on.

Now, my assumptions:

o Passenger side battery, only a couple wires coming off it, 12½ volts, can't read any of the labels due to dirt and other ****. I thought this was my chassis battery.

o Driver's side battery: lots of wires coming off it, including a big knife switch, and it's an ACDelco car and truck battery (I'm sure if it was a deep cycle battery the label would indicate this). I assumed this was my house battery.

Both batteries were installed by the previous owner.

Questions:

o If my assumptions are correct, why wouldn't the rig start when the chassis battery was fully charged, but only after the house battery was charged?

o Can you really use an ordinary truck battery for a house battery?

o Are my assumptions incorrect? Could the passenger side battery be the house battery and the driver's side battery be the chassis battery?

o If I am buying new batteries for this rig, what do I want to get and where do I put them?

The manual, as many of you already know, is so general as to be almost useless.

[ksg5000]

I am glad you resolved your problem. It would be unusual for Ford or Fleetwood to switch the std position of the batteries. You might consider disconnecting the passenger side battery and see if the rig starts. If it doesn't then you have some more work to do. Better to diagnose/fix on your driveway than on the road.

[simonov]

Thanks everyone for your assistance.

I found the problem: the chassis battery is on the driver's side with this rig. Also, I was confused by the wiring. In fact, once you get your head around the fact that the batteries are reversed, everything makes sense.



I bought two new batteries, installed them, and everything works great now.

[ksg5000]

simonov wrote:
Any ideas why the car will only start when the house battery is fully charged? Maybe the auxiliary start switch is jammed?

It's possible that the battery isolator solenoid is stuck - they tend to fail and maybe yours failed when closed. Suggest you check your battery cables and grounds. Also - note that Ford stuck another relay/solenoid between the chassis battery and the starter. It sits up front next to the radiator in front of the chassis battery -- worth a look/test.

[enblethen]

I would check the cables between the chassis battery and the Ford starter relay.

[simonov]

Any ideas why the car will only start when the house battery is fully charged? Maybe the auxiliary start switch is jammed?

[ksg5000]

House battery will be on the drivers side - chassis battery on the passenger side. On the firewall (above and to the left of the House battery) will be a silver solenoid battery isolator - that solenoid should make a click when you turn the ignition key - when the engine is running it puts both the chassis and house batteries on-line/parallel which allows the alternator to charge both batteries. In a rig that old the converter will not charge the chassis battery unless you add something like a Trik L Start.

[77rollalong]

on our 77 e350 the pass side battery is for the engine, and drivers side for the RV, easiest way to find out which is which is to disconnect the neg terminal of one battery , and then try the ign of the truck and see if you have any dash lights or rv lights. you could still have to replace both batterys because of sitting discharged for so long.

[enblethen]

The chassis battery system charges the coach battery via a relay. It is normally adjacent to the coach battery.
It should also charge via the converter. There should be a circuit breaker adjacent to the battery.