Phantom/hidden battery drain/draw?

I didn't see charging mentioned - when not plugged in. Or monitoring SOC while in use.

If you are using battery offgrid like you do your cell phone, running it until it starts beeping/blinking red - new pair of batteries won't last long. Though, when camping only occasionally, low total cycles could translate into several years.

Re-settable AH meter costs $25 on Ebay. Some maintenance-sized solar would be useful as well.

Old-Biscuit wrote:
2006 RV.......:H

So how OLD is the battery?

Well I confirmed today that the battery is definitely a good culprit. I found the manufacture date to be 3/11. A 7 year old battery can definitely stand to be updated. :)

azrving wrote:

Fuse buddy can be used on individual circuits

Fuse buddy is not a bad tool but just not required in this case.

Most modern fuse panels use "plug in" automotive fuses. These are fairly accurate "resistors", so by measuring the voltage drop across the fuse you can see how much each circuit is drawing ! There are a lot of videos on how to do this. Here is one :

The BEST Way TO Perform a Parasitic Draw Test

As others have said, you may just have a dead battery.

However, I think it's a wise decision with any kind of RV or travel trailer to install a battery disconnect switch at the battery. This way you can be absolutely certain no parasitic load is draining your battery when you are not using the RV.

When we first got our RV, the engine battery would go dead in between usages. Now the battery was shot, too (probably from being discharged so badly) but the engine computer, radio, and who knows what else were constantly draining the battery, so I installed kill switches on both the vehicle and coach batteries.

My RV was so old it did not have a hard-wired CO/Propane detector, but I quickly added one, so that would be an "always on" load on my coach if it were not for the kill switch. Likewise the TV is always in "standby mode" so it is drawing a little power whenever it is plugged in to 12V.

Battery disconnect switches give you peace of mind that your batteries are not wasting away while your RV is in storage.

Steve

cooldavidt wrote:
Costco Interstate golf cart batteries are the best deal in America

They might be the best deal but they certainly are not the best battery. I won't buy one.

Poor mans amp draw tester (very simple)
1) wait till dark....lightly touch batt cable to post, (should not see any arcing)
2) set HH volt meter to amp scale, series it tween batt cable and post
3) place a 10 amp fuse tween batt cable and post,...if no blow, get smaller fuse
4) place a reg tail lite bulb tween batt cable and post,....if bright...problem!

Costco Interstate golf cart batteries are the best deal in America

2006 Starcraft... *IF that is the original battery i8t is now 12-13 years old. Normal battery life is 7-10.

Step one: Paint wires hooked to positive terminal RED Paint nail polish or red electrical tape or split loom

Black on the negatives

Remove battery to Auto-Store for testing (or battery store)

IF BAD.

Measure and see if you can shoehorne a pair of GC-2 Golf car batteries

NOTE.. These usually fit a Group 24 tray but are TRALLER. (Each)

These are true DEEP CYCLE bateries and are priced about the ame as a Group 24

But a pair of Group 24's woudl be 150 ah of MARINE/deep cyle, perahps 30-40 amp hours usable power

The GC-2 pair is 220 amp hours of DEEP CYCLE..110 usable 3 times the power at no additional cost.

crazyro wrote:
Ever since returning from our last camping trip, the battery refuses to hold a charge.

One of the classic signs of a battery gone bad.

Disconnect one side of the battery.
Charge fully with an external charger.
Disconnect charger and let it sit for 12-24 hours.
If the battery goes flat by itself......then it's time for a new one.

Charging voltage needs to be checked too.

P.S. When not being actively used, the battery should be fully charged and then disconnected. Many units have a "battery disconnect" switch that accomplishes that.

cooldavidt wrote:
Can u tell me about a fuse buddy please azrving?

There are various models. They are used to check amperage draw. Some models can plug into the fuse slot to see how much draw there is on that circuit.