Coach Disconnect Switch

rkobaly73 · 10-01-2018, 08:49 PM

Hello Everyone,
My wife and I just bought a used 2013 Winnebago Sightseer 33C. We owned an ITASCA years ago but have moved now to the Sightseer. Only took it on a short camping trip and now trying to get it ready for storing in for the winter. My question is this. I tried to push the Coach disconnect switch to off but the little green light on the switch stayed on. Does that mean the switch is not working? They say it's bad to allow the coach batteries to keep draining while in storage. I have to start the generator up once a month for it's work out, but that will be hard if the batteries are dead. Does anyone have a suggestion?
Russ

powercat_ras · 10-02-2018, 01:53 PM

Were you unplugged from 120 volt shore power when you tried the switch?

The LED is wired to a fuse in the coach 12 VDC power distribution panel so that it won't go out unless you operate the disconnect switch AND you disconnect from shore power (or have generator off if not on shore power), because the shore or the running Onan generator AC power drives a 120 VAC to 12 VDC power converter that continues to provide 12 VDC to the coach power distribution panel even with the coach battery disconnected.

You should leave the coach and chassis battery switches normal if you are storing for the winter with AC power connected to the RV. You should only operate the switches to battery disconnect mode if you are storing without AC power.

rkobaly73 · 10-02-2018, 05:00 PM

Thanks but I was planning to disconnect the Shoreline for the winter. The Manual from Winnebago states not to leave the AC connected while in storage. It states that the batteries can overheat being on a constant charge. I have to go in and start the generator once a month but I wanted to turn on the coach battery disconnect at that time. I have no idea where the solenoid is located, the dealership has been no help.

powercat_ras · 10-02-2018, 06:56 PM

OK, but have you tried operating the coach battery disconnect switch with generator off and AC shore cable disconnected yet? If so what happened?

rkobaly73 · 10-02-2018, 09:35 PM

Yes I have. The generator was off and the shore line disconnected. The chassis disconnect will turn off but the coach disconnect will not turn off. Items such as the LP detector, water pump, some light will still come on. Even the tank and battery monitor is still on. The only source of power has to be the Coach batteries. I managed to find a wiring schematic and the location for the solenoid and relay for the coach disconnect. I just don't know how to trouble shoot them or what to do. I really appreciate your help.

rkobaly73 · 10-02-2018, 09:37 PM

Here is the link for the schematic https://www.winnebagoind.com/diagram...ire_180347.pdf

Dennis L · 10-03-2018, 11:37 AM

That link is for assembly drawing not schematic

powercat_ras · 10-03-2018, 12:48 PM

You can pull out the coach battery disconnect switch and look for a wire on it marked LJ. Check to see if 12 volts is present on that wire. If not that's causing your problem. On the Vista, that wire is fed from the coach battery via the battery side lug on the coach battery disconnect relay by a 5 amp in-line fuse located in the Chassis Electrical Box behind the circuit breaker panel.

To check that fuse, you have to remove shore power and also disconnect both coach and chassis batteries (either positive or negative, don't need to disconnect all) and you then can safely remove the circuit breaker panel (held in by screws) from the chassis electrical box to see the two 5 amp in-line fuses behind it. One is for the chassis battery disconnect circuit and other is for the coach battery disconnect circuit. Don't know why Winnebago buried those 2 fuses back there in a hard to acess location.

The coach battery inline fuse will have wires LJ and GJ on it.

You should check with Winnebago customer service to see if the Sightseer is the same. Chances are you won't find any wiring diagram to download for the Sightseer Winnebago stopped posting the wiring diagrams for coaches around 2014. Don't know why. I have complained about it and received no response other than it was a cost saving decision not to do it.

puttin · 10-07-2018, 04:20 PM

Powercat ras has the right info. Just fyi to the o.p.- I'd advise keeping unplugged from shore while in storage. When you get the disconnect working properly it should shut off every possible load drawing source in the rig- my '08 Sightseer does that. I leave everything off for up to two months and still have enough to start the genny, run the water pump, and a few lights upon my return. The converter/charger will eventually boil off electrolyte in the batteries- destroying them if you leave the rig plugged in. I get six to seven years off my lead acid batteries using them this way.

Snakebite · 10-08-2018, 06:58 AM

The best way to store is to disconnect the batteries and hook them to a "Battery Tender" . These chargers will NOT boil out the water and they will greatly extend the life of your batteries.

jerichorick · 10-08-2018, 08:27 AM

To save water and help stave off corrosion on the terminals I have used mineral oil in the batteries after topping them off with distilled water.

With the ground off, the batteries should be good for a few months.

In the OP #1 post, I can't figure out if he is looking for the disconnect switch or if it is not working?

marcusf · 10-08-2018, 10:33 AM

You may have a bad latching relay. You may want to consider adding a switch to disconnect the battery negative terminal (recommend the rotary bolt twist type) since if you have an inverter, it will drain your battery in about a week. The battery disconnect was bypassed when Winnebago installed these. Not nice but very hard to change.

powercat_ras · 10-08-2018, 11:30 AM

If you have the OEM Xantrex inverter on your Sightseer, it will not drain your battery if you have it switched off on the in RV remote panel. Only draws 4/1000 of an amp when switched off at the remote panel in the RV. It is true that it is connected directly to the the Battery connecting block ahead of the Coach disconnect relay.

If you have the stock 2 coach battery arrangement on your Sightseer you could lift the ground connection that runs from the batteries to the ground bus bar. If you do use a switch be sure to buy a good one and not a cheap junk switch from Harbor Freight or etc. The cheap switches do fail - ask me how I know :-(

marcusf · 10-09-2018, 08:18 AM

I realize what they claim the drain to be using their control panel, unfortunately in many cases the drain is more than claimed with the system shut down. Mine is over 100 mils. I use a good quality screw type disconnect that has worked well for over 2 years. I check my batteries every 2 to 3 months.

Meridian42e · 10-09-2018, 11:53 AM

For what it's worth, my 2013 coach and chassis switch kills the little green lights when off. Interesting, the coach switch fades out - takes a second or two - not instant like the chassis switch.

If I had the choice to leave it plugged in and on, I would. I think the batteries would be fine maintained by the inverter. I share a 20A with others so I just use battery tenders. Last year I did nothing and it cost me 6 AGM series 31 batteries.

Vinnie Via · 02-03-2021, 10:12 AM

Is resurrecting an old thread better than starting a new one?
I have a similar problem as described in the initial post.
First time I have tried to use the battery disconnect switch.
I depress the battery disconnect switch (it "rocks" to the right), and the green light stays on regardless of position.
My additional problem is that the switch will not stay off, but springs back to the original position. Don't know if the switch is bad, or what. Coach is a 2013 Via we bought about 2 months ago, with less than 10,000 miles on it.
Thanks for any help provided!

puttin · 02-03-2021, 10:37 AM

My logic suggests this would mean the solenoid is stuck closed...but I'll wait for the right answer.

sundog964 · 02-03-2021, 11:15 AM

That is what our Coach Disconnect Switch does. Rocks back and forth both ways, but then goes back to "neutral". One way it is on, the other it is off.

I have a cell phone charger with a status light that is always plugged in and visible from the switch location. I can see when the coach power is off.

Morich · 02-03-2021, 01:58 PM

Some small points make big changes. The switch is often a momentary switch and it does go back to center. But then it is also tied to a relay which is called a "latching relay" which is different than most really, in the when we operate it with the switch it stays "latched" in the position until we operate it the other direction. This is important as it lets us use battery power to move the relay but we don't have use use power full time to keep it there!
Big deal is that we get it where we want it, connected or disconnected and then we can stop using the battery power up!

Don't confuse the mode solenoid with the disconnect relay as they do different things. Solenoid connects the start and coach batteries together at different times for different reasons, like to charge the coach batteries as we drive or to use the coach batteries to "boost" the start battery if it is weak.

Battery disconnect does disconnect much of the coach battery drain but it can get us into trouble because it often DOEs NOT disconnect all the drain as there are often safety items like the CO2 and propane detectors still connected and using power.

Very easy to slip up and run the coach batteries totally dead while stored if we think we have cut off all power uses!!! Depends on the RV at times.

We don't get the really good info on the newer RV to tell but I might assume the 2020 will still be connected, so perhaps worth a look to see if the propane or CO2 have lights left on?? You may save your batteries dying a slow death way too soon !

Morich · 02-03-2021, 02:10 PM

This is the way the 2013 Via disconnect works. Power comes into the battery disconnect relay from the left, if the relay is operated, the power goes through to the right blue arrow and up to feed most of the breakers in the coach.

But the kicker is that there is a connection on the left side of the relay that I've marked in yellow and it stays hot , no matter which way the relay is left and it does feed power to the 6 amp breaker and WILL stay hot , no matter the relay operation!

Click the picture to get a better view?