Battery cut off

[marter]

We just bought a 2013 Montana with a battery cut off switch or in this case a plastic key that you turn to off when you don't want the battery to get a draw. My question is should this also disable the landing gear and stabilizers? My battery keeps drawing down even with the switch turned to off. Nothing inside the camper works even the LP gas detector is off so I am making an guess that the control box is still powering up to get power to jack system. It is quite a draw as when I connect the battery I get a pretty good spark. anyone have any ideas?

[marter]

opps all ready replied

[mena661]

Hey thanks for the update!

[marter]

had brakes checked and no problem found might have taken some life out of the electric brake stuff but everything works great.

[mena661]

I know the OP found his problem but our disconnect switch turns off everything except the converter output.

[beemerphile1]

Hope you didn't damage the brakes. You should have them checked. There have been reports of damaged brake magnets from people doing the same thing.

[marter]

Well found problem. The emergency brake controller at hitch I would disconnect there when unhooking trailer and leave out. What that does is put constant 12 volts to brakes even with battery switch off. Well live and learn. :S

[Homey_B]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:

ZERO should bypass an RV battery disconnect switch except solar voltaic panels

I respectfully disagree. Somebody posted (in a separate thread) that you should make sure the emergency brake "breakaway" switch should go direct to the battery. This way, if you pull out of a campground and your battery is disconnected/switched off, you still have power to the last-ditch brakes in case something goes badly awry down the road.

j

[BFL13]

A draw like that with the switch open and you are not running the jacks or slide, could be the usual suspects:

A. you have pulled out the breakaway brake switch and your battery has the brakes fully on. If so put the pin back in--do not try to tow the trailer like that! If so and it has been on for a while, have the brakes inspected (magnets etc).

B. tank heaters left on by mistake --might or might not be via disconnect switch though.

[uncle_t]

Not sure what battery turn off switch you are referring to. The one in the battery compartment kills everything. The one most likely found on your dash, sometimes referred to as the salesman's switch turns off all 12volt system EXCEPT the reefer control system on most coaches.

[Veebyes]

Surprised nobody has suggested following the wires. There should be only one wire from the switch to the positive battery post. Everything, one way or another, should be connected to something on the trailer side of the switch. Preferably the switch cable goes to a positive bus bar somewhere which everything gets its power from.

Also ideally there should be a negative bus bar somewhere which in turn is grounded to the trailer frame, sometimes at the same point as the battery negative cable.

[Dave_H_M]

If you think you got a parasitic draw that can be checked by soldering up ap 12V light bulb and disconnecting the + batt terminal and hooking the light bulb between the batt post and the disconnected lead.

If that is as sort of weak flashy spark when you reconnect the batt, I have found that that does not necessarily mean a draw - maybe just charging up capacitors and stuff like that.

[wa8yxm]

Motor homes usually have two batteries.. Chassis and House, some of the systems you listed may be hooked to the other battery (Jacks are on my house).

Some may, as the other poster suggested, bypass the battery cut off. Same with the Propane detector, it may bypass, and the converter may bypass (or not) (Of course this charges the battery)

If you have an Inverter, it likely bypasses the switch.

Beyond that I'd need hands on to determine anything.

[bucky]

Pull the battery and charge it, knock off the surface charge and load test it. The dealers usually install the battery, who knows what they put in your unit. It may be kaput and not holding a charge, mimicking a draw.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

ZERO should work with the switch shut off except solar panel maintenance charging of the battery. Not a single light bulb, pump, indicator light, landing gear, NADA! Just like unplugging and ripping the battery out by its roots.

Just like a circuit breaker. "It disconnects everything except the part that catches fire".