Question re: Long term Storage

[GregP]

I have a one year old AGM battery in the trailer and have a question regarding long-term storage. The unit has been stored with the battery installed since mid-May, and we are not going to be able to get away now until early Sept. The battery was fully charged when stored, and I turned off the battery disconnect switch at the time of storage to (hopefully) eliminate any parasitic draw. Was this enough, or should I be concerned that there are other draws which I am not aware of that may have left me with a dead or low-charge battery come time to take it out of storage?

 

[rhodies1]

With the battery shut off disconnected you should not have any draw if your unit was wired correctly when built.I see no issues with this timeframe but would not leave them for a longer period of time unless I put them on charge.You do not want them to sulfate from lack of use.

 

[sengli]

I would remove the battery , have it attached to a battery tender.

 

[GregP]

Thanks for the advice. I always remove the battery for off-season storage, but this is the first time I have been unable to use the trailer for an extended period during our normal travel season. I am hoping to be on the road again within a couple of weeks, so I will find out if the AGM stood up to the idle period. I left the battery in because I had hoped to be on the road more consistently, but things happen.

 

[ksucats]

Not sure about your coach but on mine there is still parasitic power drain when the battery cutoff switch is set to off -- propane detector seems to be the main one that I see. Apparently there is something else because my batteries will drain in a couple of days.

 

[danemayer]

Not sure about your coach but on mine there is still parasitic power drain when the battery cutoff switch is set to off -- propane detector seems to be the main one that I see. Apparently there is something else because my batteries will drain in a couple of days.

Are both your battery cutoff switches turned OFF?

 

[ksucats]

yep - both off and I still have a green light on my propane detector. I had an 'incident' when we first got the coach -- original propane detector is located behind the recliner seats in the dining room slide out - about as far away from the stove and furnace as they could put it. I had tested the propane (turned the stove on to ensure we had propane flowing and clearing any air out of it) and turned the stove off. For some reason I turned the back burner on but didn't light it. In any case, we went to our football game, came back and the coach reeked of gas. Opened up the windows and let it air out -- found the burner turned on at the lowest setting but no propane detector was going off. As I said, found it behind the seats covered up by the chairs, etc. Had the dealership install one close to the furnace/stove and it is the one that the light stays on. I'm wondering if they direct wired it - have not seen anything coming directly off the battery but that doesn't mean it isn't somewhere else.

 

[danemayer]

yep - both off and I still have a green light on my propane detector. I had an 'incident' when we first got the coach -- original propane detector is located behind the recliner seats in the dining room slide out - about as far away from the stove and furnace as they could put it. I had tested the propane (turned the stove on to ensure we had propane flowing and clearing any air out of it) and turned the stove off. For some reason I turned the back burner on but didn't light it. In any case, we went to our football game, came back and the coach reeked of gas. Opened up the windows and let it air out -- found the burner turned on at the lowest setting but no propane detector was going off. As I said, found it behind the seats covered up by the chairs, etc. Had the dealership install one close to the furnace/stove and it is the one that the light stays on. I'm wondering if they direct wired it - have not seen anything coming directly off the battery but that doesn't mean it isn't somewhere else.

I think you may have hit on the problem. Dealer probably grabbed power in front of the cutoff switch. The breakaway switch power and generator start wire are usually in front of the cutoff switch as well. If you trace the thick red wire from batteries to cutoff switch (both) you'll probably see some stuff attached.

 

[GregP]

Are there two cutoff switches? I was only aware of the one in my unit (2014 Bighorn 3010RE).

 

[danemayer]

Are there two cutoff switches? I was only aware of the one in my unit (2014 Bighorn 3010RE).

Trailers that come with a residential refrigerator have 2 cutoff switches, although Heartland built a few early residential refrigerator units with only one switch.