Do I need a battery cut off switch?

[1L243]

When not in use, I plugged the trailer in at home. I got into the habit of unplugging till the batteries dropped down to about 12.4 volts then I would plug back in for a few days.

Now we are on the road for an extended time and spending a lot of time at RV parks plugged in all the time. Should I install a battery cut off switch? I have recently checked the acid levels in the batteries and they are full with no evidence of overcharging. My converter goes into trickle mode when fully charged.

[burlmart]

1L243 wrote:
When not in use, I plugged the trailer in at home. I got into the habit of unplugging till the batteries dropped down to about 12.4 volts then I would plug back in for a few days.

Now we are on the road for an extended time and spending a lot of time at RV parks plugged in all the time. Should I install a battery cut off switch? I have recently checked the acid levels in the batteries and they are full with no evidence of overcharging. My converter goes into trickle mode when fully charged.

Your converter's trickle function at the CG should be safe enough to prevent 'cooking' over a few days.

Counter to what has been said, I think what you are doing at home is the right thing, also. A former student who was an electrician for 20 yrs told me some years back that exercising the batt like you are doing at home is better than keeping them on constant trickle for long periods.

So, I assume, keeping them at a sustained full charge by disconnecting is not as good as having a small drain that you periodically 'bump up'

[skipnchar]

1L243 wrote:
When not in use, I plugged the trailer in at home. I got into the habit of unplugging till the batteries dropped down to about 12.4 volts then I would plug back in for a few days.

Battery life span is MEASURED in the number of charge/discharge cycles. You'd be MUCH better off leaving the batteries connected if you leave the trailer plugged in. If you don't WANT to do that simply remove the negative lead from your battery bank so they don't discharge. Should remain well charged for a few months when nothing is drawing on them. Discharging them then recharging will kill the batteries before their time. IN times past some converters needed the battery to stabilize the 12 volt power but that would be RARE these days with todays converter/chargers.

Good luck / Skip

[Bumpyroad]

I keep mine plugged in with a timer so it comes on an hour or two a day.
bumpy

[Bill_Satellite]

Many of your systems are run on 12V so if these are the batteries you are talking about disconnecting you may find that some of your lighting and accessories do not work or are now powered by the converter. Both of these situations are bad as you want to be able to use the filtered battery output to power your coach and not the converter directly.

[wildtoad]

Then again, a cutoff switch will keep you from having to check the batteries and plugging in from time to time. Charge them up, cut the switch and leave them alone until you're ready to go somewhere.

[craiger4]

As long as you check the battery acid level once a month, you should be just fine.