Will my WFCO 55 amp over charge?

[ivbinconned]

Or can I leave it plugged in all winter as a maintainer?
This is on a 09 Cedar Creek 5th.

[CJW8]

The parasitic load in most RV's is enough to keep the WFCO from going into float. I have swapped several WFCO's over the years. They are most times difficult to make them go into Boost mode. When I put one on my boat batteries with no parasitic load, it goes into float (13.2V) after a day or 2. the difference float (13.2) and bulk (13.6) is huge! At 13.6, you need to be checking your water levels monthly.

[Grit_dog]

philh wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
And I haven't really pulled it apart and looked at what it would take to replace. I know it's not just a standalone unit like in our old campers.

I replaced just the convertor charger unit. Drop in repleacement

Good to know, thanks

[hedgehopper]

My WFCO charger boiled my battery dry. To keep batteries charged during storage I use a BatteryMINDer charger-maintainer-desulfator. That has worked well for years.

[philh]

Grit dog wrote:
And I haven't really pulled it apart and looked at what it would take to replace. I know it's not just a standalone unit like in our old campers.

I replaced just the convertor charger unit. Drop in repleacement

[Grit_dog]

Gdetrailer wrote:

philh wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:
WFCO converters use a voltage and current sense along with timers, if too much current is being drawn during storage and the voltage is low enough over a specified time limit it will never go into storage mode (13.2V)

And yet when I replaced the POS WFCO, my problems went away.

They are well known for never going into bulk charge and not cycling storage. They are cheap junk POS.

:R

And yet, I did mention different converters handle some conditions better than others and some not as good.

I am merely telling you what the problem is and how you can adjust or correct the issue.

You could have saved yourself a lot of expense just by increasing the wire size (which is what others with same WFCO converters have reported on this forum). New wire is far, far cheaper than replacing a converter.

While I have a PD I would not be afraid of WFCO if I had one, just takes a WILLINGNESS to learn what the reasons are as to why it does or does not do and how to correct. You sir, most definitely are unwilling to learn :h

I'll trade you your PD for my WFCO then!
FWIW, after 2 campers with PD converters, I was surprised with our new camper with a WFCO that it never seemed to fully charge the batteries.
Although I have left it plugged in 24-7 and now after most of a year, still haven't needed to add water.
Last year camping I was ready to yard the wfco out and replace it, but I think it's a whole integrated fuse panel/converter. And I haven't really pulled it apart and looked at what it would take to replace. I know it's not just a standalone unit like in our old campers.

[dougrainer]

If you are not checking the Battery/s weekly or cannot, using the standard Power Converter will boil batteries dry within a few months. Of course AGM's do not have that problem, but standard PC's are not the best to use with AGM's or Lithium. The BEST way is to fully charge the battery bank and disconnect the Negative cable, leaving the RV NOT connected to 120. A LOT of battery disconnects do NOT completely remove all 12 volt appliances from the battery. So, it is better to disconnect the neg cables from the batteries. Also, if subfreezing temps are expected, better to have the batteries in a garage and not subjected to those temps. If for some reason the batteries go dead, freezing will crack the battery case. Doug

PS, YES, WFCO ARE JUNK. I WOULD NEVER UTILIZE A WFCO. I WOULD REPLACE WITH A GOOD POWER CONVERTER. Wfco products are all knock offs of USA built and designed products, all built in China.

[PerryB67]

philh wrote:
wfco chargers are POS and known for boiling batteries dry and/or never going into bulk charge mode.

According to the history in our Victron 712, our WFCO decided to charge our AGM batteries at 21 volts. After much surfing I found a couple of others who also had their WFCO charge at high voltage. When I replaced the batteries they were bulged at the sides. I replaced that WFCO with a free one from another camper who had his sitting after replacing it with a LiFePO4 charger.

I now have both reverse polarity fuses pulled, since we have no problem keeping our SiO2 batteries full with our solar and have been charging solar only since last February. How did I know to pull the reverse polarity fuses? Answer: because our batteries are not the only batteries a WFCO has ruined, and those other owners don't trust their WFCO either.

Enjoy,

Perry

[PerryB67]

Duplicate Post. Sorry!

[Gdetrailer]

philh wrote:

Gdetrailer wrote:
WFCO converters use a voltage and current sense along with timers, if too much current is being drawn during storage and the voltage is low enough over a specified time limit it will never go into storage mode (13.2V)

And yet when I replaced the POS WFCO, my problems went away.

They are well known for never going into bulk charge and not cycling storage. They are cheap junk POS.

:R

And yet, I did mention different converters handle some conditions better than others and some not as good.

I am merely telling you what the problem is and how you can adjust or correct the issue.

You could have saved yourself a lot of expense just by increasing the wire size (which is what others with same WFCO converters have reported on this forum). New wire is far, far cheaper than replacing a converter.

While I have a PD I would not be afraid of WFCO if I had one, just takes a WILLINGNESS to learn what the reasons are as to why it does or does not do and how to correct. You sir, most definitely are unwilling to learn :h

[philh]

Gdetrailer wrote:
WFCO converters use a voltage and current sense along with timers, if too much current is being drawn during storage and the voltage is low enough over a specified time limit it will never go into storage mode (13.2V)

And yet when I replaced the POS WFCO, my problems went away.

They are well known for never going into bulk charge and not cycling storage. They are cheap junk POS.

[ivbinconned]

The trailer does have a battery cut off switch. It’s off and I just checked to see if it charges the batteries when plugged in. It does.
So draw on them shouldn’t be an issue.

[wa8yxm]

WFCO should be a 3 stage converter and should not overcharge.

however that said they do have a high failure rate. However the most common failure is not going into BULK mode, so again it should not overcharge.

I had a progressive dynamics 3-stage and did leave it plugged in all winter. Worked fine.

[Gdetrailer]

philh wrote:
wfco chargers are POS and known for boiling batteries dry and/or never going into bulk charge mode.

WFCO converters use a voltage and current sense along with timers, if too much current is being drawn during storage and the voltage is low enough over a specified time limit it will never go into storage mode (13.2V).

Phantom loads like the stereo/entertainment system, fridge control board, water heater control boar, furnace control board and the LP gas detector even though they may appear to be turned of all draw a small amount of 12V current (AKA Phantom loads).. Typically those phantom loads are enough to prevent the converter from dropping into storage mode.

Not going into bulk mode is a issue which the converter does not "see" the proper battery voltages within specified time limits..

Pretty much ALL multistage converters have these issues, some just handle it better than others. But the real blame should be placed on RV builder placing the converter too far away from the batteries and using too light of a ga of wire for the distance.

Both issues can be "cured", removing the phantom loads generally cures the issue of not going into storage mode and upgrading the wire size often cures the bulk mode issue..

It is not all the fault of the converter.

As far as the OPs question goes, you should be OK to leave converter connected and running 24/7 as long as you check to make sure it is indeed dropping into storage mode of 13.2V. Basically converter monitors battery voltage and after a preset time that it sees no drop in voltage (like turning on lights) it is supposed to drop into storage mode. Sometimes however there are enough small loads like your stereo that may appear to be turned off but draw enough current that the converter is faked into staying out of storage mode.

Sometimes you can pull a fuse or two of the offending items and that will stop that issue.

You can of coarse, just disconnect the batteries once they are fully charged and leave them in the RV for the winter. Disconnecting the batteries gets rid of the phantom draws and reduces the discharge down to the self discharge levels. Fully charged batteries store well for 3-6 months at a time without needing charged and charged batteries will not freeze in cold weather.

Another way to go if one is hyper scared of WFCO, put the converter on a 24hr mechanical appliance timer ($10) set the on for 2-4 hrs per day (this would be same charging routine as if you had solar panels) and it won't overcharge the batteries.. You could jump up to a electronic timer which gives you more programing flexibility but make sure it is an appliance rated timer.

[MitchF150]

You didn't say how much access you have to your rig while in storage, but mine is next to my house and I have a battery disconnect and I too don't want to haul the batteries out anymore either.... (dual 12v is all I have).

I just check the rig every couple weeks and switch the batteries on before I open it up.. I usually leave it alone until it shows only 2 out of 4 lights on the panel, then I'll switch on the 120v power for a day or two and then turn off the 120v and switch off the battery disconnect..

My Dad would leave his rig plugged in 24/7 and he always had to replace his batteries every couple of years... I kept telling him to just unplug it, as it was in his shop the whole time and he spent a ton of time in there... Just plug it in once a month for a day or two, then unplug it... No, no, "the converter is supposed to maintain the batteries when they are charged and then float.."

He also thought that keeping electric heaters on during the winter would keep him from having to 'winterize' the rig.... NOPE... Froze the lines, even with it kept at 50 degrees on the heaters and had to replace several pipes and joints..

Anyway, that reminds me... I need to check my rig and probably switch the power on since it's been at least a month since I've checked on it.. (I can see it right now out my window too! ha, ha)

Good luck, Mitch