Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 10-02-2013, 04:42 PM   #1
Winnebago Camper
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 5
Battery draw problem

Have an 08 Vectra with three Trojan 225 batteries and with the disconnect switch off and the inverter off I still get a draw on the batteries from somewhere in the coach. It's enough to draw the batteries down from 12.8-12.9 volts to 12.2-12.3 volts in a matter of 3-4 hours. Has anybody had this problem or related and how did you track it down and fix it?
Thanks ahead of time.
robt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-02-2013, 04:53 PM   #2
Winnie-Wise
 
BFlinn181's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Cincinnati
Posts: 486
To track it down with a multimeter, you can pull one fuse at a time and see which circuit is using the current when everything is 'off.' In addition, usually the CO and LP detectors are hard wired to the batteries and bypass the fuse panel completely. Wireless door locks, security systems, etc. also can use energy waiting for a signal. Good luck, let us know what you find. On mine, my chassis batteries do fine after using the disconnect. On the house batteries, even with disconnect off batteries will drain over time. Installing a knife switch on the battery terminal has solved that issue for storage purposes.
__________________

Bob & Donna
'98 Gulf Stream Sun Voyager DP being pushed by a '00 Beetle TDI
BFlinn181 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-02-2013, 04:56 PM   #3
Winnie-Wise
 
garykk's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Southern NM
Posts: 327
Are there any other connections between the batteries and the disconnect switch?
If you are not the original owner, the previous owner might have installed something.
Second thought is the first voltage reading might just be the surface charge....how old are the batteries?
__________________
2014 Phaeton 40 QBH
2015 GMC Sierra SLT 4x4
garykk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-03-2013, 02:57 PM   #4
Winnebago Camper
 
camaraderie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 19
No battery starts at 12.8...full charged is 12.7 so the 12.8 indicates that you are seeing a surface charge from recently being charged. It may be that the 12.2 to 12.3 readings you are seeing after a while are NOT indicative of a battery drain...but instead are reflective of the surface charge gradually disappearing and having 3 batteries in deteriorated condition that are near their end off life.

You should get a clamp on multimeter and clamp it on your red positive lead to your battery bank while making sure there is NOTHING ELSE connected to the positive terminals of your battery bank that might be direct connection draining devices. The clamp on multimeter will show you IF there is a DC current flowing from your batteries when everything else is turned off. It is not unusual to have some MINOR parasitic loads that are always on... but with the voltage drop you are seeing in a short time...you should be seeing some mid to large whole numbers of amps...not fractions of amps! If you don't see a large amp draw...then your batts are probably the issue and it's time for new ones soon or immediately depending on your use needs.
If you are seeing small or large amp draws...do the fuse pulling as Bob suggests to track down the issues. If you pulled any red wires off the batteries earlier...reconnect them one at a time and clamp on them to see if one of them is the culprit.
Good luck!
__________________
Cam... Georgetown 280DS 2015
Vespa Lx150 2013 Stella Auto125 2014
camaraderie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-03-2013, 04:02 PM   #5
YC1
Winnebago Owner
 
YC1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 126
Three hours and three batteries fully run down. The cables would probably be hot to the touch.

As suggested, especially if the batteries are original, they are shot. Have them tested if you do not know how.
__________________
Myron & Deborah
08 HR Endeavor 40 SKQ
2012 Ford Edge Limited FWD 3.5L
Aluminator tow bar, Demco base plate
YC1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-04-2013, 10:19 PM   #6
Winnie-Wise
 
SuperGewl's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Oregon
Posts: 477
Quote:
Originally Posted by BFlinn181 View Post
To track it down with a multimeter, you can pull one fuse at a time and see which circuit is using the current when everything is 'off.' In addition, usually the CO and LP detectors are hard wired to the batteries and bypass the fuse panel completely. Wireless door locks, security systems, etc. also can use energy waiting for a signal. Good luck, let us know what you find. On mine, my chassis batteries do fine after using the disconnect. On the house batteries, even with disconnect off batteries will drain over time. Installing a knife switch on the battery terminal has solved that issue for storage purposes.
That's not true about the CO2 and LP detectors from what I have seen and experienced on Winnebagos.

Now back to the problem, 3 batteries (coach) is NOT normal. 4 6volt or 4 12 volt makes more sense to me. 2 12volt starting batteries, diesel, one gas.
__________________
Retired Navy Submariner
2014 Itasca Sunstar 35F; 5 Star tuned; 2014 Jeep Cherokee TrailHawk
SuperGewl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2013, 08:13 PM   #7
Winnebago Owner
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Lowell, Arkansas
Posts: 139
To get a better understanding of what is going on you need a little electrical theory. Things attached to your battery (B+) use current (Amps) or electrons pushed by 12 volts of pressure. Measuring voltage is of little value. If you had one small light on in closed compartment the voltage loss would be very small but the current loss will add up over time. It's like a small water leak in a hose. The pressure drop would be small but over time the water (current) loss would add up.
You need to put a clamp around a B+ lead to determine what kind of a current drain you have when everything is shut off. As suggested when you hook up an amp clamp around the Battery lead it will show how much current is being drained with nothing turned on. A little is OK. I can't remember what the limits are for key off current drain but if you are loosing (draining) 1/4 of an amp with everything off that's probably way to much. Once you determine that you have an excessive current drain remove one fuse at a time to determine which circuit is involved.


TeJay
__________________
TeJay Auto Instructor/4-yrs USAF/ Liz: RN/ WBGO 2014 Vista 30T/ F-53/CHF/5-Star/Koni * Bella & Izzy * Golden /Cocker mix/ Louie The Cat* All Retired
TeJay is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
battery


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Inverter battery draw malk415 Electrical | Charging, Solar and Electronics 6 09-01-2013 02:41 AM
Can the battery charger be turned off or set to draw less Gary G. Electrical | Charging, Solar and Electronics 23 05-06-2012 08:13 PM
Dimensions Inverter "Battery Charger Draw - Set Input" theroc Electrical | Charging, Solar and Electronics 8 05-24-2008 07:12 AM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Winnebago Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 04:56 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.