Question about winterizing and shore power.

[DmgGuy]

Hi All,

I have a Bighorn 3260 EL and just winterized the rig. Here is my question. I have a battery disconnect which I turned on (to disconnect). I store the RV in our yard. Can I run shore power to the rig now? I have been told it's OK, others have told me not to because it burns up the inverter. Any schools of thought on this?

Another question. The dealership where I bought our rig said I should run the batteries down about twice a year. Your thoughts?

Of course, any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Rrloren]

I have done the same thing with no problem. You will have no power to the coach until the disconnect is re-engaged. Batteries will not be charging while on disconnect.

 

[Speedy]

Why remove the batteries if you are going to stay plugged into shore power? Your converter will maintain the batteries during storage as well as your propane detector and other parasitic power drains. I can't imagine running your converter all winter long with little to no load on it being a good thing.

 

[danemayer]

Shouldn't have any problems plugging into shore power with batteries removed - although I agree with Speedy's comment - there's no reason to remove the batteries. Just check the water level every month or two. Or just switch the battery cutoff.

Shore power will keep the power converter running which will supply 12V to the fusebox and on to lights and other devices inside the coach. Hydraulics and slides will likely not operate or not correctly.

I'm not a battery expert, but I've read that running batteries down below a certain level shortens their life. I wouldn't do it.

 

[Rrloren]

Shore power will keep the power converter running which will supply 12V to the fusebox and on to lights and

Perhaps it's how the switch is hooked up but in my case there is no power that I can detect anywhere when I switch to disconnect. No lights , no external power , no nothing even with shore power hooked up.
, .

 

[Phil Smith]

A lead acid battery should not be fully discharged. Thyey are designed to operate at about 12.6V. At 12.0 it should be considered dead and in need of a charge. Fully discharging or discharging below 12.0V will deteriorate the battery life. If you do disconnect the battery, you will want to check the voltage every week or so. If you remove the battery from the coach, do not sit it directly on concrete or the ground. Be sure to place a board under it.

 

[priorguy]

Typically lead acid batteries are ok if not discharged below 8VDC. They can be recovered by recharging. Below that and it will nit recover. Many car manufacturers put in a lie battery cutout at this level to protect the battery.

You should charge the battery over the winter to maintain it. Leaving it off charge in the cold will kill it in a short period of time.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[porthole]

I have a Bighorn 3260 EL and just winterized the rig. Here is my question. I have a battery disconnect which I turned on (to disconnect). I store the RV in our yard. Can I run shore power to the rig now? I have been told it's OK, others have told me not to because it burns up the inverter. Any schools of thought on this?

You need to check your converter model and see if it is one of the "smart" versions.
If so you can leave it plugged in and turned on all year.

If not, the converter ususally supplied has an inexpensive option to add a "Wizard" dongle that will make it a "smart converter"

Another question. The dealership where I bought our rig said I should run the batteries down about twice a year. Your thoughts?

This is absolutely incorrect. Discharging a lead acid battery all the way down will drastically shorten the life.

If you remove the battery from the coach, do not sit it directly on concrete or the ground. Be sure to place a board under it.

That is an 'ole wives tale.


All lead acid batteries will self discharge anywhere from 1% -8% a month, so it is recommend that at least monthly you charge them back up. If you can't charge the batteries over the winter in the trailer then you should consider some other means to keep them charged up.

Batteries supplied by the RV dealer (manufacturers do not ship coaches with batteries) are usually on the low end of quality, so you may not get one or two years of use out them.

 

[DmgGuy]

Hi All,

I have a Bighorn 3260 EL and just winterized the rig. Here is my question. I have a battery disconnect which I turned on (to disconnect). I store the RV in our yard. Can I run shore power to the rig now? I have been told it's OK, others have told me not to because it burns up the inverter. Any schools of thought on this?

Another question. The dealership where I bought our rig said I should run the batteries down about twice a year. Your thoughts?

Of course, any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Wow! Several different opinions. Thanks for the feedback. Guess I'll go with battery disconnect and no shore power and about once a month turn batteries on for a day and hook up to shore power to top off charge (checking water level each month at same time). Anyone think this a bad idea?

 

[porthole]

Wow! Several different opinions. Thanks for the feedback. Guess I'll go with battery disconnect and no shore power and about once a month turn batteries on for a day and hook up to shore power to top off charge (checking water level each month at same time).

Anyone think this a bad idea?

Nope!

 

[NWILSON]

Wow! Several different opinions. Thanks for the feedback. Guess I'll go with battery disconnect and no shore power and about once a month turn batteries on for a day and hook up to shore power to top off charge (checking water level each month at same time). Anyone think this a bad idea?

Works for me!