Battery Use

Piperflyer

Well-known member
When hooked into a power pedestal and drawing power, are you drawing any power from the 12v batteries on the coach?
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Even with everything turned off, there are a few parasitic drains from things like alarms and radio control panels. But if plugged in, the shore power connection will provide 120V AC to the Power Converter, which in turn will power those parasitic devices. The Power Converter will also keep the battery charged.

You'll want to leave the battery cutoff switch in the normal operating position and you should check the water level in the battery monthly and add water as necessary.
 

Piperflyer

Well-known member
Even with everything turned off, there are a few parasitic drains from things like alarms and radio control panels. But if plugged in, the shore power connection will provide 120V AC to the Power Converter, which in turn will power those parasitic devices. The Power Converter will also keep the battery charged.

You'll want to leave the battery cutoff switch in the normal operating position and you should check the water level in the battery monthly and add water as necessary.

That's the answer I was looking for because I was thinking if I turned off the battery cutoff switch and isolated the batteries, I would not have to check them for water boil off due to charging until I was ready to turn the cutoff back on
 

Lynn1130

Well-known member
I think the cutoff stops power to the rig but not from the converter to the battery. If you are plugged in I THINK you are still putting a charge to the battery which will cause some boil off but not near as much. You have just eliminated most all of the drain to the battery.

I have a Battery Tender hooked to my batteries while in storage, and the cutoff engaged. I still have to add water to the batteries every so often. Not much but some.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
I think the cutoff stops power to the rig but not from the converter to the battery. If you are plugged in I THINK you are still putting a charge to the battery which will cause some boil off but not near as much. You have just eliminated most all of the drain to the battery.

I have a Battery Tender hooked to my batteries while in storage, and the cutoff engaged. I still have to add water to the batteries every so often. Not much but some.

The connection between the battery and Power Converter is at the buss bar. The battery cutoff switch is in between the battery and the buss bar.

Here's a Landmark 365 example. The battery is at the bottom. The power goes through a connection to the emergency breakaway switch and the generator start, and then to the cutoff switch, and then to the buss bar. If you turn the cutoff switch to OFF, the only things that are still powered are the breakaway switch and generator start. And the battery will not get any power from the Power Converter.
 

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dibbly

Member
Hi I am new here so sorry if I post this in the wrong place! We have recently bought an Elkridge over here in the UK and have no manual! We have managed to download one but we still have a million questions! The first one is - on the control monitor for the water,battery use etc on the battery monitor it has ,from top to bottom,the letters C,G,F L. Can anyone tell me what these mean please. Thanks. Debbie.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Hi I am new here so sorry if I post this in the wrong place! We have recently bought an Elkridge over here in the UK and have no manual! We have managed to download one but we still have a million questions! The first one is - on the control monitor for the water,battery use etc on the battery monitor it has ,from top to bottom,the letters C,G,F L. Can anyone tell me what these mean please. Thanks. Debbie.

Hi Debbie,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. Those letters probably stand for CHARGED, GOOD, FAIR, LOW. On most panels, the greater the charge on the battery, the more of the lights will be illuminated.

Because the Power Converter (120V AC --> 12V DC) and batteries are both used to power the interior 12V DC systems, when you're plugged into shore power, that control panel should always read fully charged (all lights on). When shore power has been disconnected for a few minutes (10-20), you'll get a more accurate readout on the battery charge.
 
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