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  1. #1
    Left The Driveway
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    Newbie looking for battery advice - Help!

    Picked up our new Imagine 2970RL a little over a week ago! We're excited, but worried we may have already destroyed the batteries. I've been reading everything I could find here about batteries, but I'm still confused - a lot of the discussions are too technical for me - definitely a complete newbie! Ready to learn, but was hoping not to have to learn some of this so soon

    Any help will be very much appreciated!

    Here's the deal:

    There was one battery on the travel trailer when we looked at it last fall. The sales guy had to plug into a golf cart to get stuff working. Didn't pay attention at the time, but having read up on batteries now I'm wondering if that was a problem since apparently the battery had been run down enough to not be able to power things. They took the battery off for the winter and stored the trailer there. We had them put on a second battery, which we're also realizing may have been a mistake now since they weren't both put on at the same time (may be different age batteries). We picked it up and towed it to the storage lot. No shore power available. We put the slides out twice and used the tongue jack, but otherwise no real use. Unfortunately, we also forgot to turn the battery disconnect thingy. A week later, we went back and no power - everything is dead. Oh yeah, we're also in Minnesota and just had a mid-April blizzard, meaning things unexpectedly dropped below freezing.

    It looks like the dealer put in 2 Deka DP24 dual purpose 12 volt marine batteries. (Dealer also said there was no maintenance, but from what I can tell they need us to keep water levels up or something).

    So, we're now trying to figure out where to go from here.

    1. Obviously, we need to somehow get the batteries charged back up (assuming they're not just expensive bricks now). We have a generator and the truck and are thinking we need to purchase a battery charger. We don't have a volt meter thingy but will get one today and see what that tells us. Any advice on best way to charge them up would be great.

    2. If we've killed our batteries, any advice on what to get to replace them (can't afford lithium) would be appreciated.

    3. How should we keep them charged up in the storage lot? We've looked a little at solar charger, but are worried about theft.

    That's it (unless I'm missing something). Arghh!

  2. #2
    Rolling Along JColeman's Avatar
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    Others will chime in but here is what I have learned from research here and other places:

    1 - You may have two bricks but the best way to find out is to disconnect them from the trailer and charge them with a battery charger overnight. Then let them rest for a while and check the charge with your new voltage thingy. That "may" not be definitive as a load test is really required and can be had for free at most auto parts stores.

    2 - You have a few choices other than lithium. Cheapest and easiest but not the best solution, replace both 12v batteries and keep going. Better alternative, (2) deep cycle 6v batteries with higher amp hour ratings and better duty cycle life for about the same price. Then the choice is standard lead acid or AGM and that is really just a budgetary issue. AGM will be less maintenance but costs twice the price.

    3 - If leaving them for a few months, get them fully charged and just disconnect them. They will hold most of the charge just fine. Otherwise, for charging with no 120v available to you in storage, solar becomes your best choice.

    Hope this helps.
    Jeff and Jen
    2016 F250 CC Lariat 4x4 6.7L, Firestone Airbags, Pullrite Superglide
    2017 Solitude 310GK, a little solar, a little lithium, disc brakes and a few suspension mods

    Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. - Ben Franklin

  3. #3
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    Thanks. Follow-up: why 6v vs 12v?

  4. #4
    Rolling Along JColeman's Avatar
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    6v golf cart batteries are typically built to a higher standard than 12v. Golf carts are run hard and recharged a lot and 6v batteries typically have higher amp hour ratings which is what you are looking for in an RV. You will need to cable them for serial rather than parallel use (no big deal) but they will normally last far longer than the equivalent 12v batteries.
    Jeff and Jen
    2016 F250 CC Lariat 4x4 6.7L, Firestone Airbags, Pullrite Superglide
    2017 Solitude 310GK, a little solar, a little lithium, disc brakes and a few suspension mods

    Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. - Ben Franklin

  5. #5
    Site Sponsor Cate&Rob's Avatar
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    Your Imagine has a built in battery charger (in RV terminology called a "converter"). I would suggest plugging the RV into your generator and using the built in charger and your new voltmeter to figure out what is going on.

    Charge the batteries one at a time. Disconnect the negative cable to the second battery. Make sure that all other connections are tight. Make sure your battery disconnect switch is in the ON position. Note the battery voltage directly across the battery terminals before starting. Fire up the generator and you should see the voltage across the battery terminals jump up substantially. Run the generator until you get that battery up to about 80% (12.5V). Then disconnect that battery and repeat the same process for the other battery. After the first battery has been disconnected for a while, recheck its voltage. If the battery is serviceable it should still be at 12.5V. See attached chart.

    What Jeff says about 6V vs 12V is all true. I run two 12V because if I lose one, I still have a source of 12V. There is a simple switching strategy . . . but, we can get into that later. With two 6V batteries, if you lose one cell in one battery, both batteries are useless to you until the bad one is replaced.

    Let us know how this goes . . . and don't hesitate to ask more questions .

    Rob
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails 12-v-Battery-State-Of-Charge.jpg  
    Last edited by Cate&Rob; 04-14-2019 at 10:24 AM.
    Cate & Rob
    2015 Reflection 303RLS

  6. #6
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    Extremely helpful - sounds like something I can pull off

  7. #7
    Long Hauler howson's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tamxen22 View Post
    Extremely helpful - sounds like something I can pull off
    This is not specifically addressing what to do about your current dead batteries--info only.

    With the battery shutoff set to OFF (key is removable) there is still 12V available to some systems on the trailer (emergency disconnect for brakes, smoke alarms, etc). A battery will eventually run out of power due to the small amount continuously being consumed over time.

    That's why when storing the trailer it is best to manually disconnect the battery by removing the negative cable.

    P.S. My Reflection manual has the following: "There is a master battery disconnect switch (see photo) located in the large, front pass-thru compartment. When the RV is not in use or storage, shut the battery disconnect switch off and disconnect one of the battery cables <emphasis added> from the auxiliary battery terminal. Remember to reconnect the battery cable and turn the battery disconnect switch on when you are ready to use the RV or perform periodic maintenance checkups."
    Last edited by howson; 04-14-2019 at 11:48 AM.
    2017 Ford F-350 DRW 6.7L Platinum
    2019 315RLTS (purchased 16 Jul 18 from Campers Inn RV in Byron, GA)

  8. #8
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    I don't have the experience level of the guys that already answered but I had a situation sort of similar to yours. I've got no shore power in storage. I questioned whether my 2 12 volt batteries were fully charged when I took delivery. I used battery power to open & close the slides a couple times. And I ended up with batteries that needed some TLC.
    I pulled mine out & took them home. I charged both, took a couple days. They seem to be holding a charge just fine. Time will tell.
    Things learned along the way. Slides use a lot of power. To open & close, draws a lot out of batteries. Best if connected to shore power. Second choice is connected to generator. I suppose third choice would be connected to TV (not sure about this one.) And lastly, I learned that if you connect a generator to your rig and you have a hard wired Progressive EMS, the EMS will not allow power to your rig unless you have an Edison plug plugged into your generator.

    Edit--added link to TucsonJim's thread on the plug for the generator to post. -Moderator Howard
    Last edited by howson; 04-15-2019 at 02:21 AM.
    Pete & Joyce
    2019 Reflection 337 RLS
    2019 F-350 6.7 Diesel Srw 4x4 CC Short Bed
    Andersen Ultimate Hitch

  9. #9
    Big Traveler
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tamxen22 View Post
    Picked up our new Imagine 2970RL a little over a week ago! We're excited, but worried we may have already destroyed the batteries. I've been reading everything I could find here about batteries, but I'm still confused - a lot of the discussions are too technical for me - definitely a complete newbie! Ready to learn, but was hoping not to have to learn some of this so soon

    Any help will be very much appreciated!

    Here's the deal:

    There was one battery on the travel trailer when we looked at it last fall. The sales guy had to plug into a golf cart to get stuff working. Didn't pay attention at the time, but having read up on batteries now I'm wondering if that was a problem since apparently the battery had been run down enough to not be able to power things. They took the battery off for the winter and stored the trailer there. We had them put on a second battery, which we're also realizing may have been a mistake now since they weren't both put on at the same time (may be different age batteries). We picked it up and towed it to the storage lot. No shore power available. We put the slides out twice and used the tongue jack, but otherwise no real use. Unfortunately, we also forgot to turn the battery disconnect thingy. A week later, we went back and no power - everything is dead. Oh yeah, we're also in Minnesota and just had a mid-April blizzard, meaning things unexpectedly dropped below freezing.

    It looks like the dealer put in 2 Deka DP24 dual purpose 12 volt marine batteries. (Dealer also said there was no maintenance, but from what I can tell they need us to keep water levels up or something).

    So, we're now trying to figure out where to go from here.

    1. Obviously, we need to somehow get the batteries charged back up (assuming they're not just expensive bricks now). We have a generator and the truck and are thinking we need to purchase a battery charger. We don't have a volt meter thingy but will get one today and see what that tells us. Any advice on best way to charge them up would be great.

    2. If we've killed our batteries, any advice on what to get to replace them (can't afford lithium) would be appreciated.

    3. How should we keep them charged up in the storage lot? We've looked a little at solar charger, but are worried about theft.

    That's it (unless I'm missing something). Arghh!
    Tamexan22,
    You can remove your batteries, fully charge them and take them to an auto parts store and have them load tested. The Deka is a good brand Once your rig is winterized you should at a minimum completely disconnect your batteries or better yet, remove them as they will freeze if completely discharged. Once frozen, they will most likely be shot.
    Jim
    Last edited by MidwestCamper; 04-15-2019 at 05:02 AM.
    MidwestCamper

    Jim & Dawn
    Near Milford, Michigan
    2017 Imagine 2600RB
    2015 GMC Sierra 1500 Double Cab 4x4

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