High Battery Light

[jffnkrn]

2009 Cheetah Safari - At start up, when you first get r going, the high battery light comes on for a bit and then goes off once you are running down the road. I am asking for a friend of mine who is not on this forum so i am not really sure of the details. I can get more once we figure out what we are looking for. thanks in advance, Jeff

[jffnkrn]

Thaks to all, I believe this got him squared away. as far as running the genset same time, "NO"and i have copied info to him so he will get with me if any more is needed.
Again thaks to all. I will try to get him to th eforum.
Thanks again, Jeff
Good Luck & Be Safe ! ! !

[dougrainer]

bullydogs1 wrote:
Let me give you the right answer..this is NORMAL on a Monaco based chassis and this is a Safari Cheetah 2009...high voltage will happen if you start the motor while plugged into shore power...this was a known Monaco characteristic and it would go off once you unplugged shore power. If you are not plugged into shore power you should have system charge tested to ensure alternator and voltage regulator are OK..I used to like when voltage regulator was separate and it was an easy thing to replace...Now alternator has to be replace to replace voltage regulator. High voltage triggers at 14 volts....

1. It is a KNOWN problem on 0lder(2004 and older) Monaco products.
2. The problem does NOT always happen on Shore Power. It happens because the Inverter/Charger(not a Power converter) will go to BULK charge on initial 120 volts applied. So, if camping on Shore Power and you start the chassis engine(Both Gas and Diesel models are affected) the Voltage light will NOT come on because the Inverter/Charger is in float mode.
3. If camped and you start the engine and either disconnect Shore Power and reconnect OR start the Genset for travel, the higher BULK charge voltage will trip the high Voltage warning light on the dash display.
4. THIS IS NO REAL PROBLEM.
5. Once the Inverter/Charger drops from Bulk to Float the dash light will go out.
6. You can also make the light go out when this happens by applying more 12 volt load to the chassis system---turning on the Headlights and/or running the Dash AC compressor.. Those 12 volt loads will drop the high 14 volts signal below 13.8 volts.
7. Monaco sent out a TSB 2003/2004 to rewire and add a Bosch relay thru the Genset 12 volt run signal to disengage the bi directional charge solenoid anytime the Genset was running in transit. This did not stop the problem if camped and you started the engine and the Inverter/Charger was in Bulk Charge mode. The Bi directional solenoid is what combines the Chassis and Coach battery systems to charge from the Chassis Engine Alternator.
8. This is why I asked the OP to find out if his friend was running the Genset when this problem happens.
9. Odds are the OP's system has failed to be disabled when the Genset is on if the Genset is the problem. Monaco fixed this problem after 2005. Doug

[bullydogs1]

Let me give you the right answer..this is NORMAL on a Monaco based chassis and this is a Safari Cheetah 2009...high voltage will happen if you start the motor while plugged into shore power...this was a known Monaco characteristic and it would go off once you unplugged shore power. If you are not plugged into shore power you should have system charge tested to ensure alternator and voltage regulator are OK..I used to like when voltage regulator was separate and it was an easy thing to replace...Now alternator has to be replace to replace voltage regulator. High voltage triggers at 14 volts....

[jffnkrn]

ok thanks for the replies, I will let him know what to check, do etc.
again thanks. anyone else that may have an idea of things to check, i will let him know that too.

[wa8yxm]

Have never seen a "High battery" light as standard. Do have one as an add on.

IS THIS a GM engine. GM alternators run a tad "hot" (high voltage) Ford not so much, not sure what Dodge uses..

Suggestion plug in a nice digital voltmeter and have your co-pilot make notes. Many auto parts places sell a nice plug in to the 12 volt acc outlet meter.

[dougrainer]

Is your friend ALSO starting and running the Genset at the same time? Doug

[ScottG]

When you first start a cold engine the system voltage will increase to quickly recharge the battery. The voltage is even higher if it's cold out. Because of this, I would not be concerned about an indicator that shows higher voltage for a short time.
I would install a real volt meter to know what's going on though. Even a cheapo digital that plugs into a lighter will do.

[Mr_Mark1]

We also have a 'high voltage' battery light. I'm not exactly sure what causes it but I would think it could be a bad voltage regulator or something related to the chassis battery charger (?). Anyway, there is a reason for it and should be checked out.

Good luck,
MM.

[ScottG]

Are you talking about the idiot lights on your tank level indicator?
If so it is meaningless.
If you want to know battery levels, get a voltmeter.

[BigSkyBob]

I don't even know what a high battery light is.

[Ivylog]

Sounds like the starting batteries are weak and alternator is charging harder/higher voltage. As long as it goes out I would not worry about it.

[Sam_Spade]

My guess is: Perfectly normal probably.

When first started, the battery voltage has had a chance to drop a bit and the charging system is ramping up to it's highest charging voltage for a short time........which would be too high if it persisted very long.