Battery Load and Longevity?

[JWalker]

Original battery will no longer hold charge. Drops below 12 V quickly.
Factory set up
-2015 ElkRidge
-4 hydraulic slides
-Standard RV refrigerator (not a residential)

Question- about two years ago, we had Lippert install the six point Level Up. It has a separate hydraulic pump running the Level Up system. I have been running the original single battery. But I'm wondering if I should be running two batteries to use both heavy draw systems. Could this have caused the one single battery to go bad prematurely? Or is 2 1/2 years the common life span of a RV battery?

Thanks

 

[cookie]

I feel that a battery should last 5 years if properly maintained.
IMHO.

Peace
Dave

 

[JohnDar]

We still use the original battery, installed early 2009. I remove it during winter storage and put it on the charger every two months until the following spring.


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[szewczyk_john]

It is hard to say how long a battery will last because it might have been sitting in a unit on a lot for months before you got it not being properly maintained. If you can afford to do it, by yourself 2 Crown CR220 6 volt batteries. You will not believe what a difference these will make. The bad thing is that they are heavy, don't really fit in the stock 12 volt box and you need twice the footprint space to make them work. I believe it to be well worth the investment but then I do dry camp a lot more than other members.

You can probably get them for 125 a piece.

 

[JWalker]

I feel that a battery should last 5 years if properly maintained.
IMHO.

Peace
Dave

I thought that too. Five years was also premature for a battery.

We still use the original battery, installed early 2009. I remove it during winter storage and put it on the charger every two months until the following spring.
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I also pull the battery out every winter and it sits in my basement at 64° and I put it on the charger every 3-4 weeks.

It is hard to say how long a battery will last because it might have been sitting in a unit on a lot for months before you got it not being properly maintained. If you can afford to do it, by yourself 2 Crown CR220 6 volt batteries. You will not believe what a difference these will make. The bad thing is that they are heavy, don't really fit in the stock 12 volt box and you need twice the footprint space to make them work. I believe it to be well worth the investment but then I do dry camp a lot more than other members.

You can probably get them for 125 a piece.

The trailer was only a few weeks out of production when we picked it up. But the battery, I'm not sure of. It is a NAPA brand battery but the date of installation was not marked. So I have no idea if it was sitting at the dealers shop for six months, one year, three years.

We do not Boondock often. But I want to make sure I'm supplying the system with volts/amps to not have an issue.

 

[Oregon_Camper]

Original battery will no longer hold charge. Drops below 12 V quickly.

..........Or is 2 1/2 years the common life span of a RV battery?

I removed my factory batteries within 3 months of having the RV. They were not up to the task of dry camping. I felt our dealer put in the lowest priced one they could find.

Replaced with 2x12v Trojan T-1275's and LOVE them.

 

[RoadJunkie]

Unless two people are using the same battery in the same manner, then comparing the life expectancy of each others batteries is futile. Just because "Pete's" battery lasts five years doesn't necessarily mean you got screwed because your battery only lasted two years. Batteries fail for a bunch of reasons, lack of water, repeated undercharging and simply the number of times a battery is drained and recharged. In the OP's case, I would suggest the latter. Under charging, let's say you only drive your car a couple of miles a day, causes acid stratification and--essentially--shorts out the plates as the stratification moves up from the bottom.

If I were you, I would install two type 27 Interstate batteries (Costco), sit under the awning...have a cold one.

 

['Lil Guy']

I feel that a battery should last 5 years if properly maintained.
IMHO.

Peace
Dave

Dave, your battery ought to last for 5 years. Every rally I've seen you at you would sneak out at night and exchange your old core charge battery with someone else's rig. The way you do it they should last a life time.

Cmon man.

On a serious note, I just bought a deep cycle boat and RV battery at academy cheap. Once I have an issue with the battery on anything, I replace it. Just peace of mind. BTW, you didn't park next to Dave at a rally, did you?lol

 

[danemayer]

As you think about when to replace your batteries, something to consider is how they're being used.

The night our Transfer Switch failed, I needed the furnace to keep going overnight in sub-zero weather. The furnace was the only heat source and completely depended on the batteries.

I replaced my last set after 3 1/2 years because I wanted to be comfortable that in an emergency I could count on them.

If you have a residential refrigerator, think about running down the road for 8 or 9 hours. Are your batteries up to the task, or will they be depleted by lunchtime?

Think about a power outage at the campground. Will your batteries last overnight?

 

['Lil Guy']

Without getting to technical for an old man, would 2 6V be better than 2 12V. My rig came with 1 and no issues yet but its been sitting for a while. Just wondering about the best options if you are ready to replace.

 

[cookie]

Dave, your battery ought to last for 5 years. Every rally I've seen you at you would sneak out at night and exchange your old core charge battery with someone else's rig. The way you do it they should last a life time.
Cmon man.

Shh, for the cost of a couple of beers I can show you how to do that in seconds and no core fee.

Peace
Dave

 

[TravelTiger]

Our rig came with 2 group 27s but any time we've had an outage, I can tell the batteries won't last long. We plan on replacing with two group 31 AGMs from Sams, hopefully before our trip to Goshen.


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[dbbls59]

Hard to tell how long a battery will last but, they usually last out the warranty but not much more. That said, I had a starting battery on a boat that lasted 10 years. I was so pleased I replaced it with another just like it. That one lasted a year. So on average they lasted five and a half years.

 

[TxRoadWarrior362]

X2 on Interstate. It is what it is.

 

[LBR]

It's nice having the ability to check the shipping date of batteries....Like to verify dealer giving us fresh or old batteries in our new trailers, or off the shelf sales from a store...
http://www.batteries-faq.com/activekb/questions.php?questionid=53

 

[JWalker]

Unfortunately, the factory location for the battery is in the side compartment just big enough for one group 27 battery and the hydraulic pump for the slides. I can't go any larger battery in that location. If I add a second battery, it would have to go in the front generator compartment and run to the first battery over in the side compartment.
Maybe one single battery would be sufficient for our usage. Maybe, the original battery was old or just exceeded its lifespan. Not sure what I'm going to do yet.

 

[alwaysbusy]

It is hard to say how long a battery will last because it might have been sitting in a unit on a lot for months before you got it not being properly maintained. If you can afford to do it, by yourself 2 Crown CR220 6 volt batteries. You will not believe what a difference these will make. The bad thing is that they are heavy, don't really fit in the stock 12 volt box and you need twice the footprint space to make them work. I believe it to be well worth the investment but then I do dry camp a lot more than other members.

You can probably get them for 125 a piece.

We love to boondock. Agree 100% here. I've done so on singles and there is just no comparison to the reserve capacity of 2 gel 6 volt batteries together. I personally believe Interstate is the best way to go as I've had the best performance and longevity from them. However, there is a price.

 

[wdk450]

We love to boondock. Agree 100% here. I've done so on singles and there is just no comparison to the reserve capacity of 2 gel 6 volt batteries together. I personally believe Interstate is the best way to go as I've had the best performance and longevity from them. However, there is a price.

My dealer installed a 2nd battery in the front storage compartment before delivery for me. I had plans to go solar and boondock, bought 2 used wheelchair AGM batteries from a local wheelchair/scooter repairer off Craigslist, and did the wiring in the front compartment to give me a 4 battery system. That plus the Progressive Dynamics 9200 series smart charger with the timed daily desulphation mode has served me well. I have only replaced the original main battery so far in 6 years.

I personally think that the heavy task of lifting the trailer pin weight up and off of the truck 5th wheel hitch is a big challenge for a battery (system). To that end, I always plug in to shore power BEFORE unhitching, and leave shore power connected until AFTER hitched up. That way the 60 amps from the converter is helping out the battery system. Beware that the Heartland-installed converter/charger breaker on the battery buss bar is ONLY 50 amps, and the possible 60 amps from the converter can trip it.

 

[JohnD]

I personally think that the heavy task of lifting the trailer pin weight up and off of the truck 5th wheel hitch is a big challenge for a battery (system).

To that end, I always plug in to shore power BEFORE unhitching, and leave shore power connected until AFTER hitched up.

I do the same, not only for the front jacks but also when putting the slides in or out.

And if I can't plug the trailer in to an electrical outlet I'll leave it connected to the truck with the engine running until I'm done with the jacks and slides.

 

[MTPockets]

Battery maintenance is key. Our rig five years old, full time over four years, regularly fill battery with distilled water. Maintain charge. Battery is good today.