Thanks Peg Leg. This was super helpful. The update is that I think it's all fine. When I plugged in later all the lights functioned as they were supposed to. I has mistakenly thought that the lights were always on to indicate battery level but they only do that when it's actually charging.
In terms of what runs off the batteries I understand that more too thanks to all the helpful responses. We'll mostly be dry camping along the way, so I guess the rule is to get the inside chilled as best we can and then keep doors closed. I do have a genny but don't plan to use it that much depending on where we camp.
thanks again!
Peg Leg wrote:
justinae wrote:
Hi all. I'm still new to RVing but learning a lot more thanks to the kind people here.
I just had the two cabin batteries replaced at Les Schwab today and when we went to test them the inverter didn't have any LED lights on. Apparently the inverter was left on while they replaced the batteries. Does that fry the inverter?
You may have inverter and converter mixed up. These are two separate things. A converter which most RV's have is used to charge the battery and provide 12V DC power to things like the lights, furnace fan and water pump. An inverter which most RV's don't have is used to invert 12v DC back to 120v AC for things like air conditioner and microwave. Things that plug into a receptacle like in your house are 120v AC.
Everything seems to still work, but the fridge uses gas instead of AC when in auto mode. Shouldn't it use battery power first now that the batteries are fully charged and new?
The fridge will use gas unless you have the RV plugged into a power source via the power cord. When on gas there is usually 12v DC from the battery for the control board. Once you plug the RV in it will automatically switch to AC it it's in the Auto mode.
Also, can my air conditioner run off battery power?
Not unless you have an inverter. Even then with one battery your not going to get an hours worth of air before the inverter shuts down due to low voltage, normally at 10.5 volts. A battery is considered to be at 1/2 capacity and needing recharged at 12.0 volts.
Anyway, my understanding is that the inverter/charger is supposed to have a constant LED light indicating battery charge level.
If your referring to the converter, each one is different. The only easy way is to have a volt meter to monitor battery voltage. A hydrometer is used to check the specific gravity of the acid in each cell for state of charge of that cell for really detailed battery condition.
When I turn the inverter off, wait a minute, then switch to auto like the manual says to reset, the LED lights come on for a second and then go off.
I probably don't have a full understanding of it all so any insight is appreciated.
thanks!
Justin
