Winnebego Journey w/Residential Refrigerator

[joebeador]

My friend has a new 2012 Journey 36M with the 110V only residential refrigerator including the six AGM batteries and the 2800 watt inverter.

We are going to the FMCA Northwest Rally in Coos Bay, Oregon on June 19th and will be dry camping for five days.

We would appreciate some advice from present owners of this set-up regarding the proper procedures to keep the refrigerator and batteries running properly while dry camping.

He has the autostart function on his generator but would like to use that as an insurance pollicy for the batteries.

Any "do's and don'ts" and best practices and procedures would sincerely be appreciated.

Thanks,

 

[az bound]

Depending on the AGS system, it just a matter of programming it and it will maintain the batteries on its own. We have done so many times for more than a month of boondocking. Ours is an Onan Equanox.

 

[joebeador]

Thank you for the response az bound.

It sounds like it's a matter of programming the autostart system. I assume there is a way to set it up so it doesn't come on in the middle of the night or during generator quiet hours?

Can some Journey owners with the residential refrigerator option chime in with some specific recommendations?

Thank you.

 

[KirbyRVA]

While I don't have the residential fridge in my older Journey (plan to when the Nocold dies), I do have the auto gen start. Yes, you can program the AGS to not start during 'quiet hours.' There is a default quiet time in the AGS but you can go into the menu and program whatever quiet times you want. Otherwise, the AGS will start the genset when the house battery voltage drops to a certain level.

I do know that many folks who boondock or dry camp much add more solar panels to help keep the batteries maintained. That would be another option. Otherwise, the AGS should take care of battery maintenance.

Some of the fridges allow you to shut off the auto defrost option which lowers the power usage. Suggest he check with the manual or perhaps Winnebago to see if that is an option.

Just curious, which brand and model of fridge did Winnebago put in that coach?

 

[joebeador]

It's a Stainless Steel Maytag with the double french doors on top and a full drawer freezer on the bottom. It's a nice unit.

 

[az bound]

I would like to know which AGS system Winnebage is installing.

 

[KirbyRVA]

I would like to know which AGS system Winnebage is installing.

I would think Onan since they seem to use primarily Cummins/Onan gensets. I added the Onan EC30W wireless AGS and love it. It was more pricey than the hard-wired unit but very easy to install.

 

[az bound]

I was curious as to whether it may be the Onan Equanox system. Thanks anyway.

 

[joebeador]

So, after checking iRV2 all day for some detailed answers to the question of using the residential refrigerator while dry camping, it appears the answer is as simple as programing the AGS (Automatic Generator Start) system! :blush:

Thanks for your responses.

 

[az bound]

So, after checking iRV2 all day for some detailed answers to the question of using the residential refrigerator while dry camping, it appears the answer is as simple as programing the AGS (Automatic Generator Start) system! :blush:

Thanks for your responses.

You got it, now go have fun.

 

[bobmac-WO]

Winnebago uses the Onan EC-30 "Energy Command" wired AGS. I would suggest you google and download a copy of the manual. It is extremely flexible and offers multiple programming options. You can program it for either a timed start or when battery voltage drops to a specific level. You can specify how long the voltage is at that level to avoid false starts when short duration/heavy current use occurs. You also specify the voltage that it shuts off at. It is a great product that offers more options than the wireless version but hook up is complex unless done during the build so it is not a widely installed aftermarket product. Most are also wired so that the thermostat will turn on the generator if it calls for air conditioning use.