House/Coach Batteries -water evaporates

jwd53 · 10-30-2010, 05:28 PM

I have a 08 voyage 32h Workhorse. The two house batteries have nearly completly gone dry twice during our last 10 month trip. Just what exactly is going on to cause the batteies to loose their water. When I have refilled them (nearly 1/2 gallon) of distilled water, they keep their charge and function fine. We have camped a combination of dry with generator use, 30/50 amp for one to two weeks at a time throughout this trip. I have not used a trickle or solar charger.

Finhawk · 10-30-2010, 06:28 PM

Sounds like you need to check them every month. My batteries lose it just thru normal use and being charged by the engine and gen set. The batteries in my boat do the same thing.

skigramp · 10-30-2010, 09:17 PM

1. Perhaps you need to check your batteries more often ... add distilled water so that the plates are covered but the water is below the bottom of the fill hole ... if the plates are left uncovered with water it decreases the amount of charge that your batteries can hold

2. Perhaps your charger may not be working correctly ... either the voltage is too high ... or it does not recognize when the batteries are fully charged and does not go into "float"

MntDriver · 10-30-2010, 09:19 PM

The first thing I did was get rid of that horrible Paralax single stage converter, and replace it with a PD 7245 three stage converter/charger with a charge wizard and remote pendant. That lousy Parallax converter that Winnebago installs as OEM is a hunk of junk, and is boiling your batteries dry.

I got mine on Ebay for about 2/3rds what they cost elsewhere.....less than $200, and 10 minutes replacement time.

Midniteoyl · 10-31-2010, 04:25 AM

Agreed on both:

You need a good charger that actually will 'float' to keep your batteries full w/o boiling them. Get a good 3 stage if you dont already, and have yours checked if you do.

AND

You MUST check them once in awhile. Make a habit of checking them every month. In fact, its a good idea to check over the whole charging system while your at it.

jwd53 · 10-31-2010, 08:12 AM

THANK YOU...This is my first Class A....I'm on a learning curve for this one....I'll do some more research on the 3 stage converter/charger. I never heard of this before. Any sites you know to speed my search will be appreciated.

bdaball · 10-31-2010, 08:25 AM

after you get your charging and charger straightened out think about adding 1-2 oz of mineral oil to each cell. That seems to reduce the evaporation quiet a bit. You can buy a 12-16 oz bottle at Walmart. Ask at the pharmacy and they will give you a plastic syringe for free.

Finhawk · 10-31-2010, 10:49 AM

I installed a "Trickle Charger" in my rig. It keeps the batteries up with no problem at all. There is also a battery filler that mounts in place of the caps. A hose with a bulb. Stick the end in a jug of distilled water, pump the bulb until you can't sqeeze it anymore, and the batterys are full. Forgive me but I don't remember the name of it.

dirko · 10-31-2010, 02:18 PM

Hi Ho: Heat is actually the biggest variable in water evaporation. I can go from October to April without adding water even with the motorhome plugged in and charging. However, in the summer water is often needed after 4 or 5 weeks.

It is important not to let the plates of the battery be exposed to air. This will cause not only less battery capacity but will destroy the battery. So make sure they don't get that low.

If your charger/converter does not provide for this it is also a good to provide an equalizer charge a couple of times a year.

Dirk

Wayne M · 10-31-2010, 06:05 PM

I had that same problem as the original poster. After replacing the batteries it stopped. I have the Tirk-L-Start charger. It's been several months since I have had to add distilled water. If there is one cell that is bad or going bad, it will cause the other cells to over charge. This causes boiling, and that is the evaporation.

That's as much as I know.

RV'nOldTimer · 10-31-2010, 08:26 PM

Two things usually bring about excessive "boiling" or "gassing" a battery.

First, overcharging. Put a voltmeter on the battery and check the charging voltage on each of the charging systems -- the motor alternator, the house generator and the shore power charger. If any of these are putting 13.8 volts or more to the battery after being on for a few hours, you have charging rate issues that need correcting. As others said, a good three stage charger, either as a part of an inverter or a converter, is best, especially if the rig is plugged in for long perions.

Next, defective batteries will bring on gassing, but if they are holding a good charge, this is unlikely your problem but having them checked is easy and free.

JT
WN4O

justimagination · 10-31-2010, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Finhawk

Sounds like you need to check them every month. My batteries lose it just thru normal use and being charged by the engine and gen set. The batteries in my boat do the same thing.

Exactly, it's just part of maintenance like everthing else.I keep a gal.of distilled water on hand.
David G.

jwd53 · 11-01-2010, 08:19 AM

Thanks for the practical soluntions...I will try them....OK...here goes...what do I look for to see if I already have a converter. Where would it likly be located in relation to the batteries??...I do have a 600 watt inverter... I did look up the PD 9245 (new #) but that also just raises more questions on how to install??

wa8yxm · 11-01-2010, 09:32 AM

What is the cause? Overcharging

What converter do you have?
(NOTE: I am going to assume that on your fuse/breaker box door appears the word Magnatek and the number 6300 or 63xx

(xx is 2 digits which I can not predict)

If this is the case then upgrade the converter PLEASE

My batteries do loose water too,, I top them off with Distilled every mother's day.. My converter is a PDI 9180 with charge wizard.. I would recommend a 9260 for 2 group 27's or 2 Golf Car batteries.

jwd53 · 02-20-2011, 12:34 PM

Sorry I fell asleep at the wheel on this thread. Will some one Please tell me where to access and change out the converter. I don't want to mess up the electrical. Since my last post I bought 2 new 27 class Marine batteries. I'm sure this is the problem and want to upgrade systems.

dc8cappie · 02-20-2011, 02:43 PM

This wiring diagram for your coach on plate #5 showes the converter mounted to the bath cabnet with stck on. If installed.

Hope it helps.

http://www.winnebagoind.com/diagram/...ire_161509.pdf

jwd53 · 02-21-2011, 06:15 PM

THANK YOU dc8cappie....This was very helpful.

Rocket Heart · 02-21-2011, 06:47 PM

Mine did the same thing - main problem is the batteries themselves - not deep cycle. Check at a NAPA store and you will find the recommended battery. A lot of difference - first thing you'll notice is the weight - about 10# heavier.

RV batteries should be deep cycle.

DuaneMiller · 02-22-2011, 11:26 AM

Hey guys,

I have a question to throw out there regarding batteries and chargers... I basically had the same thing happen to me that the OP had, except when my batteries boiled dry, they didn't want to come back to life.... Well approx $400 later and 2 new batteries, I have been diligent about checking the water until I can replace the Parallax converter that I have now...

Fast forward to this past Sunday, I went out to the MoHo to check on things and found that the house batteries were dead. The "electric house cutoff" has been off for the last three months, and I have not had the MoHo plugged in to the electric. So basically it has just been sitting isolated for the past three months out in my back yard. Okay, so I plug it in overnight to charge the batteries back up and go out to check on things and find that the house batteries are still dead. I plug the MoHo back in to the electric and check the voltage at the battery posts, and all I can get is about 5.5 volts. Shouldn't the charger be socking it to the batteries at this point with at least more than 5 volts?

I'm wondering if the charger/converter/pos is the culprit here...? Like one of the previous posters, I have used Progressive Dynamics converters in the last two trailers that I had and never had these issues. The batteries in those trailers would last me more than 2 years at minimum...

What do you guys think?

Midniteoyl · 02-23-2011, 12:00 AM

If its plugged in and your not seeing 14+ volts from the charger, then I would be looking at it as the culprit... but you need to look around and make sure its not something simple, like a fuseable link, breaker, cut-off, etc...