Battery Disconnect 2022 Adventurer 30T

[Silvernelle]

Hello Winnebago people. We have recently bought a 2022 Adventurer 30T, and so far find it quite nice! We were in a 29 foot Class C, and can't believe the difference 2 feet makes for storage options! Of course, the whole Class A experience is amazing in itself.


When we first got it home, I though we should turn off the batteries while it was stored next to the house. I went to start the engine up (a whole long story about the Advance Trac System going out on us on the way home with the new rig), and nothing happened! When we switched the main power back on, the rig started just fine. Evidently, somehow the house batteries and chassis batteries seem to be connected.



Is there another switch in the Winnebago that keeps the chassis battery connected when the house batteries are disconnected, or is it designed to be all or nothing?


Thanks for any thoughts on that.

 

[Eagle5]

Hi Emel,
First of all, welcome to the forum!
Secondly, I found your observation to be unexpected. I checked in your Owner's Manual on page 6-10, and it does seem to be that you have a disconnect switch for both the Chassis Battery (for the engine,) and for the Coach Batteries (or the House Batteries.) So, when this manual was written there were two separate switches, but could it be that Winnebago has everything disconnect (both Coach & House) with one switch? It seems odd to me, but who knows?
Thanks, Eagle5

 

[HoosierZimBob]

+1 to Eagle5's welcome and comments.

We have a 2021 Adventurer 29B, and it has separate chassis and coach battery disconnect switches. They are located on the stairs, just to the left as you enter. I'm not aware that Winnebago has this config'd differently in the Adventurer models or across the recent model years, but I suppose it is possible.

 

[Silvernelle]

Aha! IF I had looked closer in daylight...instead of in the dark...AND paid attention, it would have been clear as day. It does appear to have a separate switch for each.


Color me I think because our old rig wasn't as fancy as this one. Another fun thing we did was with the hot water heater. On our trip on shore power, we decided to test the hot water heater with electric, and, you guessed it, it didn't work! Who knew there was another switch outside to turn that part on? LOL...We do now!



Thanks to all. I appreciate the help, and though I'd like to think otherwise, I bet I'll be back for more Winnnebago 101. The owners manual is good, but sometimes I need a picture drawn!



Happy trails all, and happy thanksgiving.

 

[creativepart]

Be aware, that even with both disconnect solenoids "off" that you can and likely will still run down your batteries in storage if you don't have some means of trickle charging set up for BOTH batteries. (If you have lead acid batteries that is. LiFePO4 batteries are much less likely to experience this problem.)

Solar panels... a separate trickle charger... or shore power in storage will do the job. Solar would be preferred if not covered or covered with snow. But you should visit the RV every 4-weeks or so to start it, exercise the generator and to move the motorhome enough to reposition the tire patch on the storage lot pavement.

If you are storing for the winter I would disconnect the battery cables at least. But bringing them home to a garage would be best for long term freezing issues. Once at home put them on a smart battery maintainer type trickle charger. Though this makes exercising the generator impossible.

 

[Silvernelle]

Thanks. Luckily, we pretty much use our rig year round, and no need to leave in storage. The only "storage" situation will be in leaving it at a service center for weeks on end until they look at the brakes. I know! We don't know for sure there is a problem, and if there is it is probably minor and easily remedied, but it will sit on a lot until someone can pop it on a lift and actually look at it. I don't even want to anticipate the length of time it will continue to sit awaiting repairs or parts or whatever if it isn't a simple thing.



Unlike a lot of folks, we don't worry about winterizing. Summerizing is a huge thing though. The inside of the rigs are like ovens in the summer if they are left here, and stuff melts, like the glue on the walls or command hooks. Of course, we got the thing so we can go somewhere else for the summer months. Gee, I hope we get it back from this "brake check" by then!


Thanks again, though, for the tips. All good information!

 

[Bones2003]

Regarding your Advance Trac System problem, check out this thread on IRV2. It is a well documented problem. IRV2 is a sister forum to this Winnie Owners forum.

https://www.irv2.com/forums/f23/new-2021-ford-f-53-service-advancetrac-message-532864.html

 

[Silvernelle]

Thanks, Bones2003. It surely looks like a common problem...that fortunately usually fixes itself like ours did.

 

[Din]

If the house batteries are out for the winter how do I exercise the generator?

 

[Morich]

How and when to exercise the genset is one that takes a bit of thought for each situation.
The why of doing the exercise is a place to start and combine that with the local weather. There is cold and then REALLY cold.

We need to do the routine on the generator for various reasons and one is to make sure the fuel doesn't gum up in the system. That varies with what fuel is used as propane in fine for much longer than gas or diesel.

So how do you deal with storing things in your areas like lawnmowers and things that use the same fuel as the generator? Do they add some form of additive to slow the gas from degrading and clogging the carbs? One of the reasons we exercise gasoline engines is to move fresh fuel in OR we can use additives if that fits us better. One of the big advantages of propane is that we can store it for really long periods with no harm.

But then a second question can change the recommendations for starting the engine to exercise it as starting in really, really cold weather is prone to ADDING wear when we are trying to prevent it! A cold engine that has set for a month, will have very little oil lubing the moving parts and until the cold oil gets back to all those places, we can be adding wear!
Sometimes it works better to skip a few months on routine starts, just to avoid that wear! But if I do that, I would certainly want to make sure there is some form of additive in the fuel.
The bottom line is that there is no one perfect answer for all locations and all users. It's good to exercise the machines but not if we have to nearly wear the starter out before we get it started!
Jump starts off a car or putting the battery back MAY be what you want to do but that gets down to lots of personal thoughts. I might hit a hybrid idea and do the routines but also skip a few months of the really brutal stuff.

 

[Din]

December is not that cold. I want to run the generator but I do not want to put the house batteries back in.