Battery works only when plugged into electricity

[Celtic74]

What exactly is “AGM”? I replaced the old one with a 210amp deep cycle/RV battery. Is that a name brand?

[Agashi]

Originally Posted by Celtic74

What exactly is “AGM”? I replaced the old one with a 210amp deep cycle/RV battery. Is that a name brand?

No it’s a dry cell battery. The dealer talked us into one because it holds a charge for longer, better dry camping. Found out this type battery was throwing the reset button. We now have two RV batteries.

[Celtic74]

Originally Posted by Agashi

No it’s a dry cell battery. The dealer talked us into one because it holds a charge for longer, better dry camping. Found out this type battery was throwing the reset button. We now have two RV batteries.

How do you like the two battery set up? I’m thinking about doing that too. How long can you run your fridge, hot water heater and a couple lights on that setup? How long does it take to charge them? I’m not sure but the previous owner had this camper “winterized” and had turned off the red battery, master power, in the cargo space at the front of the camper to store it. I wonder if that flipped it the switch? He had a regular deep cycle battery and not one labeled for RV. I upgraded it though.

[Morich]

Not to say for sure but I would be very slow to buy new batteries based on type as a battery of each type should work very much the same. But I also did not know there was a rest there to begin! I am often faced with new equipment that I'm not fully trained to fix, so one of the reasons I like to always look at drawings first is that it will tell me things are on the circuit, even when I was not aware of them.
It does sound possible that batteries which have lost much of their water would need to be replaced but that is a different question than changing types of batteries.
Each type has advantages and disadvantages. While newer design batteries like dry cell can give longer lasting power, they are also very much more expensive and there is very little way to maintain them to make them last longer.
I use wet cell batteries for a number of reasons that fit my personal use. One is that I rarely dry camp, so extended run time on batteries is not a primary need and a well maintained wet cell will often last longer than others. I also like being able to change out both my "regular " batteries easily at lots of places almost anywhere and for the price of one of the newer design batteries.
The wet cells that I often work on are often as much as twenty years old but they are also large and maintained monthly.
What works best for each of us will depend on lots of personal choices.

[Kayak73]

Originally Posted by Agashi

No it’s a dry cell battery. The dealer talked us into one because it holds a charge for longer, better dry camping. Found out this type battery was throwing the reset button. We now have two RV batteries.

AGM= Absorbed Glass Mat battery. It works essentially the same as FLA (flooded lead acid). In traditional or FLA batteries the electrolyte is liquid and that liquid level must be maintained. In AGM batteries the electrolyte is absorbed into a fiberglass mat next to the lead plate. There is no liquid moving around or to maintain in AGM so they are referred to as "maintenance free" although other types of FLA batteries are sometimes labeled the same. The electrolyte in AGM is more like a paste which saturates the glass mat.



If you don't want to check the electrolyte level of FLA batteries spend the extra cash for AGM. AGM batteries may be more sensitive to overcharge and undercharge and discharge beyond 50% which will shorten their life cycles.


AGM batteries have lower internal resistance than FLA and recharge slightly faster. It is usually acceptable to use AGM deep cycle in any application for FLA deep cycle.


AGM batteries are approximately double cost of FLA batteries. Rough estimate.


https://www.crownbattery.com/news/ag...u-need-to-know

[Morich]

My first thought for this case is how the reset is supposed to work differently with different type batteries. A rest is a form of "breaker" and would be assumed to trip due to higher than rated current flow. So my first question would be why a dry or wet cell would have enough difference in the current , either when charging or discharging, to trip a breaker. I normally think of breakers as being able to handle the normal flow plus some for avoiding unnecessary tripping.
I have no info on what this rest button does, nor how it is rated, etc. but I do know how many repair shops are advised by the industry mags to help them increase the profit margin. They may call it "profit enhancement" but from a customer standpoint, I call it a scam in a number of cases.
I don't have enough info to say but before changing battery types, I would want to ask if it is really a case of the reset button getting weak and tripping too easily as the amount of current drawn by each actually makes the battery type very much the same if the reset is not really too close to the normal current expected.
Looking at a landline phone bill and asking what a "cost recovery fee" really means will give an idea of the business ethics involved!
To me, the cost recovery is very close to being "increased profit"!!

[Kayak73]

I agree, it makes no difference what type of battery, AGM or FLA, in tripping the reset breaker. Zero. Those push button breakers (reset button) are known to fail by getting weak. That wiring box is a rat's nest for sure. I'd be looking for a way to open the "other side" and run those wires to a good weatherproof switchable breaker.



I run Trojan FLA, not paying double for the privilege either, checking the electrolyte is just regular maintenance to me. Other folks don't like checking electrolyte levels and prefer to spend the cash on AGM but it doesn't make any difference in tripping a breaker. AGM batteries don't out-gas either so that's a point for location specific needs.

[Agashi]

Originally Posted by Celtic74

How do you like the two battery set up? I’m thinking about doing that too. How long can you run your fridge, hot water heater and a couple lights on that setup? How long does it take to charge them? I’m not sure but the previous owner had this camper “winterized” and had turned off the red battery, master power, in the cargo space at the front of the camper to store it. I wonder if that flipped it the switch? He had a regular deep cycle battery and not one labeled for RV. I upgraded it though.

I like the two battery system. We use propane for the frig and hot water. We also have a small solar panel that helps. We had a battery monitor installed so we can know just how much time. We have left.

[Morich]

On the question of what tripped the "reset button", I would assume the button to be a breaker of a different design than we see in breaker boxes but I would think it should operate the same. Breakers trip or fuses blow because more current is flowing than the wiring can handle safely. But we know that breakers do get weak and do trip too easily as they age and I would assume that "reset buttons" might do the same.
Using the battery cutoff switch is designed to keep the batteries from being drained while the RV is stored and should never cause a major peak in current flow to trip a breaker. Certainly one hidden away, out of sight, in a box should not be tripping on normal use of the RV. Putting it there in the first place is pretty suspect!

[Yoders2Go]

Do you have an inverter, that you aren't turning on while you're unplugged? None of our house plugs work if our inverter isn't on when we are on engine power or unplugged.

[Morich]

Originally Posted by Yoders2Go

Do you have an inverter, that you aren't turning on while you're unplugged? None of our house plugs work if our inverter isn't on when we are on engine power or unplugged.

It might be noted that the OP has found a reset button hidden in an electrical box. First problem /solution found but we might question WHY it was tripped.

[bamaboy473]

To the OP, you asked about using battery power for uses that included water heating. Don't do that. High-draw appliances like water heaters, stoves, microwaves, hotplates, will wear your battery down really, really, fast.

[Celtic74]

Originally Posted by Yoders2Go

Do you have an inverter, that you aren't turning on while you're unplugged? None of our house plugs work if our inverter isn't on when we are on engine power or unplugged.

I found a reset switch for the battery power under the camper, in a junction box on the A-frame. Does the micro mini come with an inverter? I know it has the converter. But wouldn’t the inverter make DC power into AC power and make the electrical sockets work when not plugged in to shore power? I’m new at this, but it the standard converter that comes with the micro mini also an inverter?

[Morich]

Originally Posted by Celtic74

I found a reset switch for the battery power under the camper, in a junction box on the A-frame. Does the micro mini come with an inverter? I know it has the converter. But wouldn’t the inverter make DC power into AC power and make the electrical sockets work when not plugged in to shore power? I’m new at this, but it the standard converter that comes with the micro mini also an inverter?

Yes, you are correct in that the two items are somewhat the opposite as one goes AC-DC while the other uses battery DC to make AC and it is quite common to have AC to DC as that powers lights, pump and all kinds of basic things while the DC to AC is a pretty "awkward" way to get AC, if we have a place to plug and it does drain batteries really fast, partly due to the loss involved doing this change. I suspect the inverter is only as an option on many trailers. That takes knowing the specific unit to really know.

[Blubugger]

Hello....while looking into documentation on our 2106ds power panel, I found a section on how to check if your battery charger is working. That is the module which takes up half of the panel. With the battery disconnected and on shore power, read voltage on the battery cables...it should be around 13.6VDC assuming your rig is similar setup. Here is the URL

https://www.google.com/search?q=wf-8...tZcd08f232fwM:

Hope this helps. Good luck.

[Blubugger]

Likewise here, on '18 2106ds, no electrical problems at present, but in an effort to find as much info regards this unit, I opened the electrical box [under the frame, towards the front left side]...no circuit breaker or reset switch. But perhaps you may also have a 20amp hardwired fuse [?] shown below. Could be blown? Thus far, I cannot find exactly what this fuse is for.

[Rookyrenter]

Originally Posted by Celtic74

Attachment 171997
Apparently there is a tiny “reset switch” inside a junction box, on the left side of the A-frame.. the owners manual doesn’t talk about it.. thankfully there are some friendly campers out there!

My husband and I are pulling a micro Minnie across the country and were stumped because all of a sudden the trailer battery seemed dead and wouldn’t hold a charge. We replaced the battery, and still nothing. I googled and Celtic74 was a life saver!!! His post of the photo of the super-double-secret-reset button was exactly what was wrong! The box of wires on the 2020 Micro Minnie is on the left side of the frame of the trailer, not quite to the wheel- about where the bed would be inside the trailer.

My husband and the autozone employee went under the trailer and I held up the photo from Celtic74 while they looked, and they found it- although my husband said you really have to dig around under and in the wires to find it! They pushed the reset button and the whole camper came on. I mean- we were in the Mojave Desert and it was 118 degrees at 6:30 pm and our food was spoiling in the fridge. Thank you for your post of the picture and description!!! I would buy you a beer if I could! Happy Trails!

[Howard]

Thanks for posting that pic. I had a similar problem with our lightly used 2020 2201MB that we purchased last week. No interior lights when we got home from dealer. Battery tested ok but no battery voltage at the inverter. Found and reset this hidden switch and now all is good!