Fridge/Inverter

[Brandon241]

So we really haven't gone more than 180 miles from the house with the new 2018 4005. Not very familiar with the residential fridge and inverter setup. What's the average time folks are seeing off batteries? We are driving from north tx to Mt. Rushmore. Just wanting to make sure we can make it without the food spoiling. Thanks in advance.

 

[danemayer]

Hi Brandon241,

Texas to Mt. Rushmore can take several days of driving for most people. If you're plugged in to shore power overnight, and your tow vehicle's umbilical connector is supplying 12V while towing, your batteries should be fully charged most of the time.

If you're staying overnight without shore power, you'll draw the batteries down some, but they should get some charge back while towing. You probably don't want to try 3 nights in a row without shore power as the batteries may not fully recover while towing.

If using the furnace, you'll draw the batteries down much faster, but should still be good for an overnight stop as long as you get fully recharged the next day.

You can read more about how the residential refrigerator is powered in our owner-written Residential Refrigerator Guide.

 

[jimandjean]

Hi Brandon241,

Texas to Mt. Rushmore can take several days of driving for most people. If you're plugged in to shore power overnight, and your tow vehicle's umbilical connector is supplying 12V while towing, your batteries should be fully charged most of the time.

If you're staying overnight without shore power, you'll draw the batteries down some, but they should get some charge back while towing. You probably don't want to try 3 nights in a row without shore power as the batteries may not fully recover while towing.

If using the furnace, you'll draw the batteries down much faster, but should still be good for an overnight stop as long as you get fully recharged the next day.

You can read more about how the residential refrigerator is powered in our owner-written Residential Refrigerator Guide.

Just verifying how many coach batteries you have?


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[danemayer]

Just verifying how many coach batteries you have?


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I don't have a residential refrigerator. Our coach came with one group 27 12V. Because we took extended trips into extreme cold weather, I added a 2nd battery to give us more furnace run time during a power failure.

Rigs with residential refrigerators ship with two 12V batteries. A few people have added more and posted about it here.

 

[Jim_Hull]

Our unit shipped with 2 Group 27 batteries, but for peace of mind I added two more. We had issues in the beginning keeping the original two charged for a day, but that turned out to be a ground issue and once I made sure all ground connections were tight we have not had any more issues. We have traveled for two days without shore power with no problems and I would think we could maybe get three with the 4 batteries. I also did Jerrod's mod of adding a green LED light to the front of the unit that is plugged in to the invertor. It is lit any time the invertor is turned on, meaning that I know at a glance running down the road that the invertor is providing power to the fridge because the it is also providing power to the outlet powering the light. A great, easy mod that adds to my peace of mind.

 

[Jesstruckn/Jesstalkn]

Our unit shipped with 2 Group 27 batteries, but for peace of mind I added two more. We had issues in the beginning keeping the original two charged for a day, but that turned out to be a ground issue and once I made sure all ground connections were tight we have not had any more issues. We have traveled for two days without shore power with no problems and I would think we could maybe get three with the 4 batteries. I also did Jerrod's mod of adding a green LED light to the front of the unit that is plugged in to the invertor. It is lit any time the invertor is turned on, meaning that I know at a glance running down the road that the invertor is providing power to the fridge because the it is also providing power to the outlet powering the light. A great, easy mod that adds to my peace of mind.

Love the Green status light for the fridge. It works perfectly but I can't take credit for this one. This is Jim B's mod that I copied

 

[carl.swoyer]

I had a residential frig in my cedar Creek and I would turn off the power to the frig at night. I purchased a remote thermometer and put it in the fridge. This allows me to monitor the interior temperature with out opening the door. This works very well. Pretty much an ice chest. I never lost any food. I did it at night and after breakfast. The batteries last alot longer while dry camping. And as Dane Meyer mentioned your tow vehicle Charges while traveling.

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[NWILSON]

Our unit shipped with 2 Group 27 batteries, but for peace of mind I added two more. We had issues in the beginning keeping the original two charged for a day, but that turned out to be a ground issue and once I made sure all ground connections were tight we have not had any more issues. We have traveled for two days without shore power with no problems and I would think we could maybe get three with the 4 batteries. I also did Jerrod's mod of adding a green LED light to the front of the unit that is plugged in to the invertor. It is lit any time the invertor is turned on, meaning that I know at a glance running down the road that the invertor is providing power to the fridge because the it is also providing power to the outlet powering the light. A great, easy mod that adds to my peace of mind.

Jim,
When you say "ground issue" are you referring to the maze of battery cables or something elsewhere? I'm just wanting to learn things that need an eye kept on.

 

[Jim_Hull]

My "ground issue" was with the ground cables not being tight from the original install. So, I made sure each ground connection, all the way to the frame, were tight. Loose ground connections will give problems of all kinds until solved. Also, I guess I have a copy of a copy on the green status light, but it is a great mod. If you are interested, I think there is a link on here some where on how it is done step by step and the components needed. It is not hard nor is is expensive.

 

[danemayer]

Link to thread with details on installing the light that shows when the inverter is on.

 

[Mike-n-Justina]

When your plugged into shore power do my batteries get charged or do they only charge while plugged into tow vehicle and driving?

 

[Oregon_Camper]

When your plugged into shore power do my batteries get charged or do they only charge while plugged into tow vehicle and driving?

Shore power charges your battery via the converter. The converter does 2 things...charges your battery and supplies 12v power to the RV while plugged in.

Your truck will "charge" the battery, but very very slowly. Odds are very good it provides less power than your residential refrigerator is using, so you will be in a negative battery situation while towing. Some have installed a small solar panel to provide more power to battery while towing.

 

[Mike-n-Justina]

We keep our rig plugged into 50 amp at the house, but the last few times we went to leave the battery was dead. We put a battery charger on it few minutes and it's fine. We figure maybe we need a new battery. Could there be something else we need to check since its not charging while plugged in?

 

[esscobra]

so first time I checked water in batteries- lifted top of batt box off and the pos cable came right out of crimp at battery - so check all your battery connections and re-do or at least give re-crimp .