Opened up my plastic battery box on my 2 month old TT, and found it was full of water...there are a couple of ventilation slots on the tp so I guess it got in there.... I was worried something could short out or something? I drilled a half doz. holes in the bottom of the box so water will drain out.... Is this unusual? Why wouldn't the box have some sort of drainage? It sits right behind my propane tanks.

The battery box is designed to keep any leaking acids within the battery box. You should have asked before drilling the holes. Now a acid leak can leak onto the trailer frame, ground, or anything around it. I was going to suggest that you check the battery box water by adding a tablespoon of baking soda to the battery box, and if it is acid that leaked from the battery, it would foam up, and help neturalize the water, so it will not eat the pavement, or disolve any paint the battery acid gets onto. If the water was only rain water, the baking soda will not damage anything, and can be drained onto the ground. My battery box bottom is water tight, and I like it that way! I don't know why you don't have a leak resistant cover, the tie down straps usually go below the top of the lid, and not have open sections to allow in water. Fred.

I drilled a couple of holes in mine a long time ago just for that very same reason. I disconnect mine between trips, and take the box and battery into my house between trips, so I am not concerned with a leaking battery. As far as I am concerned, you did the right thingJackL

Most travel trailer come with a box that is vented on top. Yours is typical. Mine was the same way. I put one small hole in the bottom to let rain water drain out and have never had a problem after that. I agree with NanciL you did the right thing IMO

In an effort to reduce cost and save space, I'm thinking the trailer manufacturer used the battery box to store fresh water and the battery all in one neat little space savings package !!!!Not to worry, we all have drilled small holes in the box to drain water......

Well. It's apparant, that since it didn't burn your hands, It wasn't battery acid. I too driled holes in mine.

New TT battery box full of water | Good Sam Community

Boskie
Explorer
Nov 12, 2013
Camper G wrote:
On my layton I noticed my box was 1/2 full off water as well...a few holes in the bottom corners and all is well. Your battery should not be leaking...if it has a case leak it should be replaced. So if it's just rain water and the battery case is sound I see nothing wrong with putting some holes in the box to drain out the water.

Think I will drill a few drain holes in my box as well. The vent wholes on top allow some water to enter..
Passin_Thru
Explorer
Nov 11, 2013
Yes! It is unusual to drill a dozen holes. 4 would suffice. Did I answer your question? LOL
Camper_G
Explorer
Nov 11, 2013
On my layton I noticed my box was 1/2 full off water as well...a few holes in the bottom corners and all is well. Your battery should not be leaking...if it has a case leak it should be replaced. So if it's just rain water and the battery case is sound I see nothing wrong with putting some holes in the box to drain out the water.
RetiredSFC_97
Explorer
Nov 10, 2013
Mine gets water in it as well. After ten years I'm going to drill some holes as well. It won't hurt a thing. Just haven't got around to it yet, but it hasn't hurt anything by having water get in it.
DB2BRMI
Explorer
Nov 10, 2013
limbery wrote:
I'm hesitant to seal the vents at the top though, since they're there to vent gases right?

Check out the lid on your battery box. Mine has no shortage of "vent" opportunities due to the gaps between the lid and the top edge of the box. The lid is not sealed tight to the box (look at the gap where the cables exit the battery box - space for gas exchange). Sealing the two little "vents" at the top of the lid is not going to make your battery box an unvented space. But - sealing those vents on the top of the lid will keep rain out.
DB2
mrkoje
Explorer
Nov 09, 2013
Ironically I need to get a 9v square battery to put in my multimeter so I can check the reading on my trailer batteries. I'm hesitant to hook my slow charger right now because of the amount of water I here sloshing back and forth on the bottom of the battery. I've never heard that much water before even on the wet cell batteries.
bhh
Explorer
Nov 08, 2013
+38 (or so).

I found a couple of inches of water in the bottom of my new TT. Drilled some holes. My thought was, what's going to happen when that water freezes? Hopefully the box will crack and not the battery.
brulaz
Explorer
Nov 08, 2013
Well thanks to this thread I just checked the 2 new 6V golf cart batteries on my new trailer. And, sure enough, one of the "marine" cases was completely full, with water over the top of the battery.

Don't understand why that one was not shorted. Measured 13.3V across the both of them as they were being charged by the trailer which was plugged in to 110V.

Anyway, drilled the holes and drained the cases, disconnected the batteries from the trailer and am now bulk charging with my fancy charger. They look to be still good.

Thanks to you all.
Chuck_thehammer
Explorer
Nov 07, 2013
the only reason a battery will boil out water/acid. is being OVER charged...

and how often does the battery boil over in your car/truck. it has drain holes..

I just purchased my first TT (used)... and the battery box was full of water.. completely covering the battery.
had battery LOAD tested and drilled holes in box..

my opinion. retired auto mechanic 43 years...
RoyB
Explorer II
Nov 07, 2013
I drilled a couple of holes in the bottom of my battery case. The vents for my battery case remain in place as they are there to vent off battery fumes

In your case I would also check the battery for proper fluid level. The fluids you had in the battery box may have battery fluids...

Batteries may boil out their fluids if left on charge for a long time period using a single mode 13.6VDC type converter/charger. I have a smart mode type converter/charger unit on my batteries but always check the battery fluids every month or so. Just a good habit to get into...

Roy Ken