Do I need a battery charger?

[mnmbeck]

We just a 2010 Rockwood Roo 233S. I added a second battery (both new), and plugged the camper in to charge for about 24 hours. The camper does have an inverter. After one night of camping (using almost no battery), the indicator inside the camper is reading 1/2 charge. I have a friend who said that the battery charger in the camper is not sufficient and you still need to use an external charger....but his camper is quite a bit older than mine. Does anybody know if this is true? Hoping I will have enough charge for this minimal usage weekend!

[Chuck_S]

Your battery was probably nearly dead before you left for camping unless you charged it the night before you left. Trickle charge from the truck will barely charge it if it's dead.

Until recently a battery disconnect was not standard on any camper and not on the Roos. This means your radio and LP detector were siphoning power from the battery continuously at a rate of 0.15 amps. Tiny draw but that adds up to 25 amp hours a week! Since an indifferently maintained Group 80 battery really only supplies about 55 useful amp hours letting the trailer sit for a couple of weeks will pull the battery way down. An hour or two drive won't put much back.

Install a battery cutoff. Any boat shop will have a single -- On/Off -- battery switch that's weatherproof. Install it on the Negative (Ground) wire to cut all power from the battery to the trailer. Charge the battery overnight before your next camping trip, too.

-- Chuck

[KMP44]

mnmbeck wrote:
Yes...converter...whoops! We are dry camping and arrived around 11pm. Checked battery at 9am. The only thing we used battery for was a couple of led lights
..not an hour total...and about an hour of fridge use when I thought the gas wasnt working. How can I measure usage?

One other thing to check is your tow vehicle plug. Not sure what you are towing with, but I know Ford's don't come from the factory with a relay installed to power the prong on your hitch plug that charges the battery while driving. And I think GM leaves out the fuse. I would verify that you have 12 volts on that prong (can't remember off hand which one it is) with a multi-meter. Otherwise you are draining your batteries while driving to camp.

We have 2 batteries on our Roo and they are good for 4 days of dry camping and the factory converter charges them fine.

[bikendan]

mnmbeck wrote:
Yes...converter...whoops! We are dry camping and arrived around 11pm. Checked battery at 9am. The only thing we used battery for was a couple of led lights
..not an hour total...and about an hour of fridge use when I thought the gas wasnt working. How can I measure usage?

if the fridge is on propane, it still uses battery power.
it also doesn't work solely on 12v battery power. it's a 2-way fridge(110 AC and propane), not a 3-way fridge like you find in popups.
only the electronics run on 12v DC battery power. it will NOT do any cooling on 12v DC battery power.

[mnmbeck]

Yes...converter...whoops! We are dry camping and arrived around 11pm. Checked battery at 9am. The only thing we used battery for was a couple of led lights
..not an hour total...and about an hour of fridge use when I thought the gas wasnt working. How can I measure usage?

[bikendan]

as was said, you're talking about a CONVERTER, not an inverter.
and the converter that comes with your Roo, is a 3-stage converter/charger that should have no problem keeping the battery charged. there's NO need for a separate battery charger UNLESS your converter is going bad.
the one on my 2007 Roo is still going strong(knock on wood).

were you dry camping when this happened?
did you use the furnace?
and are you sure you hooked up the the batteries correctly and in parallel configuration?

[kaydeejay]

Don't confuse an INVERTER with a CONVERTER!
The former transforms 12V DC to 110V AC
The latter transforms 110V AC to 12V DC with sufficient capacity to charge your battery(ies) AND power all the 12V appliances in your unit.
You need to find your CONVERTER and check to make sure it is providing those 12V. If it is working properly it will charge your batteries just fine.
You probably do not have an inverter.

The other thing you need to check is the drain on the batteries when you are dry camping.
Fridge, CO detector, propane detector all draw a small current even if you are using nothing else.
Add a few lights, water pump and the furnace fan and you will not make it through the night on a single charge.

[RoyB]

Post your converter/charger manf and model number.

You need to have 18-20Amps of DC Current available from your converter for each battery in your bank if you have a smart mode converter/charger and want to re-charge your batteries in a quick three time frame....

If you have less DC current available your batteries will still charge but will take longer...

I suspect your 233S ROO has a 45AMP converter/charger installed.

Roy Ken