Well, my battery doesn't charge while plugged in

[jerem0621]

I just got back from an extended stay at a local RV campground. One of the nights we lost power at the campground for several hours and we used the battery for lights, etc.... The lights were more dim than with normal campground power. I have never ran on batteries before so I figured this was business as usual.

Well, when we go to hitch up the battery was stone cold dead. No power for the tongue jack. No biggie, I just used the manual function of the jack.

Did a little research on here and found out that not all TT's come with an onboard battery charger.. obviously, mine does not have an onboard charger or it doesn't work. There is nothing in my fuse box for a battery charger.

What do you all suggest to keep the deep cell battery charged? Take it off at home and leave it on a battery minder or trickle charger? What about at the camp site? I never want to be without a charged battery again.

Can I put the trickle charger on the battery and leave the battery connected to the TT while plugged in at the campground to shore power?

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[2112]

...If so check, replace or bypass the fuse or breaker...

Never a good idea to bypass a fuse. If it blew it blew for a reason.

[opnspaces]

I agree with others that your trailer has a charger, it may though not be working. There are a few things to check.

Trace the battery wires from the post back until they go into the trailer. Are there any fuse holders or circuit breakers (small box with threaded posts) on the wires? If so check, replace or bypass the fuse or breaker.

** Edit thanks to 2112 below, I was at work and typing fast and missed a critical step. Do not leave a fuse or breaker bypassed. As 2112 states they blow for a reason. If the bypass brings the system to life you have to remove the bypass and figure out what is causing it to fail.**

In your fuse panel you are looking for two things. First the circuit breaker for the charger. If nothing is labeled then flip of all the breakers. Now push them extra hard in the off direction to make sure they are actually off. Now flip them back on.

Now look on the side of the panel with the plastic automotive type fuses. There should be one or two larger fuses, possibly 40 amp that need to be checked. They might be labeled as Rev Pol or Reverse Polarity, or not labeled at all. Check or replace these fuses.

After that, you will need a meter that can measure voltage DC to see if you have fixed the issue. These meters can be picked up fairly inexpensively many places (Harbor Freight, Sears, Walmart, Autozone, Target etc)

[jerem0621]

coolestdude wrote:
Is your battery terminals clean? Just asking!

Happy Trails!

Yes they are. It's a brand new battery. Lol

[coolestdude]

Is your battery terminals clean? Just asking!

Happy Trails!

[path1]

What I'm going to do is get a Black & Decker SMART 4/10/20/40 amp battery charger with 110 engine start. Recommend by somebody here and gets good reviews from others. Cheapest price I've found is Walmart at $99.99 Has smart charge technology which my RV does not have. Should be able to recharge in about 2 3/4 hours in my set up. And when the rv elec goes then I'll upgrade and leave it in garage. They have several models that all look the same but are different powers, so don't be fooled. Model I'm getting is vec1093dbd. I have to order one in, local store does have other models that are not as good. And more that once camping have been asked for battery cables or jump start. Just MO

[2112]

Could have blown a fuse. Read This

[skipnchar]

Not nearly enough information to tell if your charger is working or not. It all depends on how good your battery is (or batteries are) and how much power you used while operating on batteries. If you were running your furnace and have a starting battery (Marine/RV battery) then you could EASILY have flattened it over night. You can TEST your converter/charger quite easily by disconnecting the negative lead from your battery, plugging into 120 volt power and measuring the voltage across the positive and negative leads at the converter. No voltage means it's not working. If you try to check it without disconnecting the battery you will read the voltage from the BATTERY instead of the converter. If it IS working you should get close to 14 volts (which also explains why lights are dimmer on battery power than when running from the converter. Running from the batteries they're running on only 12.6 volts compared to 14).
Good luck / Skip

[kevden]

open the door on your fuse/breaker box. on the 12v side there should be a large lug with the battery cable connected to it. with shore power plugged in, check for 12v to 14v on the lug with your volt meter. if no voltage there ckeck the fuse. if 12v-14v is present, check the other end of the cable at the battery. also, your truck's alternator should be charging the tt battery when your 7 pin trailer cable is connected. check for 12v-14v on the accesory pin on the truck's trailer connector while the truck is running.

[rbrumm]

jerem0621 wrote:
If its there, it doesn't work that is for sure. Should there be a breaker or a fuse for the charging component?

Thanks!

I would think it should have a breaker or a fuse.

[jerem0621]

If its there, it doesn't work that is for sure. Should there be a breaker or a fuse for the charging component?

Thanks!

[RoyB]

Your trailer is equiped already with a battery charger. It is called an CONVERTER/CHarger unit. This is the same unit that provides all of your 12VDC power when you are running from shore power. Its other function is to charge your on-board 12VDC deep cycle battery.

Here is a simplified electrical diagram for a typical 30AMP trailer.


Roy Ken