Issue with house batteries

[bgosden]

Second issue we could use some help with. We are brand new to RV'ing and have a 2003 Winnebago Itasca Sunova.

We were noticing issues with the house batteries staying charged, so we replaced them with brand new ones as it had sat for awhile and we suspected they might be bad.

We took it out for the first time, and while driving for about 7 hours, we lost all power in the house and from our levels check looked like the house batteries were dead, leading us to believe the alternator on the engine is not charging the house batteries. With the generator running, we started to get some charge back on them but thought with that long of a trip the alternator would also be charging the house batteries. I feel like this may be a simple fix and be due to lack of knowledge on our part of how things work, but any insight as to what could be the issue would be appreciated.

[mfinnerty]

It was a box in the corner along the outside wall towards the rear of the MH. It is always on. You should hear its fan running a lot.

[bgosden]

That is helpful. I highly doubt they replaced it, so it must be there although I did not see anything under there (but am not entirely sure what I am looking for) What did your original one look like? Does it have an on/off switch or it just runs all the time?

THANK YOU!

[mfinnerty]

I have a 2003 Itasca Sunova 33L. Unless the previous owners replaced it you have a basic converter. In my unit it is located under the refrigerator behind the circuit breaker panel. It is accessed by removing the drawers under the refrigerator. Early on I replaced the OEM converter with a smart converter that does a lot of things the original converter didn't do. I also changed the batteries to two 6volt batteries in series.

[bgosden]

Update to this- Still cannot find our inverter/charger after looking in all the compartments. I have no idea where this thing is so cannot check to see if it is on/off, wired up.

As of this morning, we still have power in the coach so could it be that we just drained the batteries with the incorrect trickle charger setup?

[bgosden]

Oh interesting. I will have to go have a look later and look in all the compartments. About how big is it? (just wondering if it will be easy to miss) I tried looking at wiring diagrams, and I see it listed as a part but cannot find it on the diagrams themselves for location.

[Executive45]

Often the inverter and lots of other stuff, is mounted on the roof in one of the compartments. Open the doors and look up....Dennis

[down_home]

bgosden wrote:
Thank you all for your comments. As an update here- We tested the batteries with a multi-meter- 12v each. Turned on the engine- over 13v each so it appears there is nothing wrong there.

We both feel really dumb for not realizing this, but when the guy that sold us the batteries told us to take the trickle charger off the chassis battery and put it on the house batteries, can you guess where it was plugged in? In the RV entry way.. So we were essentially charging our batteries with our batteries. I suspect this is what killed them on our trip?

We did ask the PO why they had the trickle and he said just as a backup to keep the chassis charged but not because there was an issue.

From the few comments, the way I am understanding this is that the generator will charge the house batteries when running- The alternator will keep the batteries from dying when the engine is running, but the main charging component of the house batteries is the converter? I prob do not know what I am looking for, but where is this located? Ive checked the battery bay, behind the drawers in the kitchen, and am not seeing anything. Any ideas where Winnebago hides this and is it a for sure that we have one? I also tried to find three knobs on the inverter/charger but I do not know where that is, if I have one.

Thank you all again so very much.

Yep but it is a charger/converter/inverter in one unit.
It should be near the battery compartment. Different RVs of course but ours is in thee compartment right in front of the battery compartment.
Our unit's book describes a Charger,Converter, Inverter.

[mchero]

Trickle charger on chassis battery normal!
When your plugged in the charger will charge just the house batteries. Some RV's won't charge the chassis batteries, thus the need of the trickle charger. Move it back to the chassis battery(s). The charger will charge the house batteries.

[MrWizard]

If you have an inverter/charger as original Winnebago equipment
You do not have a converter
There would be no need for it

[bgosden]

Thank you all for your comments. As an update here- We tested the batteries with a multi-meter- 12v each. Turned on the engine- over 13v each so it appears there is nothing wrong there.

We both feel really dumb for not realizing this, but when the guy that sold us the batteries told us to take the trickle charger off the chassis battery and put it on the house batteries, can you guess where it was plugged in? In the RV entry way.. So we were essentially charging our batteries with our batteries. I suspect this is what killed them on our trip?

We did ask the PO why they had the trickle and he said just as a backup to keep the chassis charged but not because there was an issue.

From the few comments, the way I am understanding this is that the generator will charge the house batteries when running- The alternator will keep the batteries from dying when the engine is running, but the main charging component of the house batteries is the converter? I prob do not know what I am looking for, but where is this located? Ive checked the battery bay, behind the drawers in the kitchen, and am not seeing anything. Any ideas where Winnebago hides this and is it a for sure that we have one? I also tried to find three knobs on the inverter/charger but I do not know where that is, if I have one.

Thank you all again so very much.

[down_home]

New Batteries should fully charge on the generator after some hours as you expressed.
I would check or have someone check the charging amps, which should be displayed on the house energy management panel. On low charge on the generator, it may be drawing over 15 volts or more. 14.5 is average on our son batteries that are low. Maintaining volts should be about 13.5.
If those batteries are good having only been discharged fully one time, they will charge back up but it will take a while.
The energy management system is adjustable. Read the manual...better yet find a good RV Tech. Check to make sure your generator switch is turned on. Freightliner didn't turn ours back on three weeks ago.
I suggests find a good Tech to check charging system and batteries.
If you are near the Kingman are I suggest Trotters. I'm a little tired tonight and slow.
If you had someone change out the batteries they no doubt turned off the main switch near the door, and they may have turned off the generator. And the inverter/charger check for three little knobs like on our ,or whatever on yours and make sure they are pushed in.

[wolfe10]

Most RV's have either a converter or inverter/charger to charge the HOUSE batteries.

A trickle charger will not keep a house battery charged.

A trickle charger WILL keep a chassis battery charged. This is correct!

Find a new RV tech!

[Executive45]

Here are a couple links to get you started. Don't be intimidated to ask anything on this forum. We have many knowledgeable folks on here willing to help. Be prepared for some snarky remarks at times, but simply ignore them. There are no stupid or innane questions. We help each other learn....Dennis

Some Basics
More in depth but necessary

On edit: You mentioned a trickle charger that was hooked up. Did you take a picture of that hookup? It sounds like your coach had an "issue" and the PO jury rigged it. My guess has shifted to that being your problem. Perhaps you need to change it back to how it was until you can determine why it was installed. Can you call the PO and ask? That may help you track down this demon.....Dennis

[bgosden]

Thank you all for the feedback. We are very much lacking in knowledge here and trying to learn as much as we can before taking it in for service so we gain the knowledge to troubleshoot ourselves. Did not get a chance last night to test the voltage or try flipping the disconnect a few times, but will try that tonight and report back. We are totally shooting in the dark because we are so new to this and not exactly sure what should be doing what as far as charging, keeping charged, ect.

One thing I will mention is when we went to replace the house batteries, there was a trickle charger on the chassis battery, plugged into the outlet in the entry and the person said that was unusual and it should instead be attached to the house batteries so we moved that.

If anyone has any good resources for reading up on basic RV electric, please send them my way. I have done a great deal of googling but it seems that there are many variations of how things work in different RV's that I am not sure I am gaining the correct information for what pertains to ours.

Thank you all again.

[theoldwizard1]

bgosden wrote:
We took it out for the first time, and while driving for about 7 hours, we lost all power in the house and from our levels check looked like the house batteries were dead, leading us to believe the alternator on the engine is not charging the house batteries.

You first need to find out WHY THEY ARE BEING DISCHARGED ! If you are not familiar with basic electrical diagnosis methods you can spend a lot of money and waste a lot of time "shooting in the dark".

I can't teach that in an online forum and sadly, finding an RV mechanic that can do the job is difficult and expensive. The two tools you need if your are going to attempt DIY are an old fashioned 12VDC incandescent (not LED) test light and a digital multi meter with an "amp clamp" like Uni-T UT210E.

Your vehicle will NOT re-charge your batteries, but it certainly should prevent them from going dead.