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Old 03-15-2016, 03:59 PM   #1
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THOR #1727
Has anyonr hooked up 4 Batteries in a Two Battery Coach

I purchased a new Thor Chaeteau 31W in March 25 2015. The Two House Batteries which are Harris Part#27D170
20 Hour 160AH.
They will not run my Residential Fridge for more than 5 Hours. Can anything be suggested as to what can improve the longevity of these Batteries?

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Old 03-16-2016, 02:20 AM   #2
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answered in your other thread:
http://www.thorforums.com/forums/f27...-31w-3427.html
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Old 03-16-2016, 02:35 AM   #3
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Harris batteries are bad, answered in your other post. Buy some real ones and you will have a a happier life with your rig!
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Old 03-16-2016, 11:25 AM   #4
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Harris batteries are bad, answered in your other post. Buy some real ones and you will have a a happier life with your rig!
Thank you. I am going to do that. Also I will be putting Two extra Batteries.
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Old 04-03-2016, 11:56 AM   #5
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I installed two extra batteries and my refrigerator runs for at least 8 hours. My batteries are just Interstate. Installed at the dealer.

What are the best type of batteries?

Bill
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Old 04-03-2016, 02:18 PM   #6
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I installed two extra batteries and my refrigerator runs for at least 8 hours. My batteries are just Interstate. Installed at the dealer.

What are the best type of batteries?

Bill
I Purchased Trojans 30XHS T2 12V 130AH @ 20Hours. I am going to put in Four New Batteries. These cost me $208.00Ea.
I also bought Solar Panels. Renogy 200 Amp Solar Panels, 2000 Watt Inverter, Controller. I hope to figure out how to install these items without screwing up my Coach.
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Old 04-03-2016, 03:25 PM   #7
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I only use two Interstate batterires, 6v - 232AH each in series for 12v and 232AH. I then have 400w of solar power to keep the charging cycle going. Do you really need 4 batteries? With four batteries your going to be doing a lot of charging.
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Old 04-03-2016, 04:11 PM   #8
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Four Batteries????

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I only use two Interstate batterires, 6v - 232AH each in series for 12v and 232AH. I then have 400w of solar power to keep the charging cycle going. Do you really need 4 batteries? With four batteries your going to be doing a lot of charging.
I had a 2013 Phaeton 40' with four batteries. We were able to run our coach very well with this set up. So I figured I would do the same. Whether I need 4 or not I really don't know. But I have them now. This is also why I want to go solar on the roof to help keep my Batteries charged. This is all new to me and I am slowly learning how to do this, by listening to people like you, the internet, and YouTube.
Thanks,
Butch
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Old 04-03-2016, 08:15 PM   #9
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Next mod is replacing the two Interstates with a Lithium which replaces three AGM in same space. $1900.

Solar Systems for RV and Marine.
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Old 04-03-2016, 09:25 PM   #10
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Lithium batteries are in the process of being the next best thing, but...they are still in the process. Lithium takes a whole heap of looking after, too low a voltage, they are dead, big expenss for that to happen, but on the other side, they store large amounts of electricity for a large amount of time. I'm just not convinced yet as to their praticality in the RV world, no doubt they will be one day, just not convinced yet for today. Just the fire potential along is very high and talk about high mantenance. I'll wait until they have a few years behind them and the price comes down
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Old 04-04-2016, 06:14 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by Yosemitebob View Post
Lithium batteries are in the process of being the next best thing, but...they are still in the process. Lithium takes a whole heap of looking after, too low a voltage, they are dead, big expenss for that to happen, but on the other side, they store large amounts of electricity for a large amount of time. I'm just not convinced yet as to their praticality in the RV world, no doubt they will be one day, just not convinced yet for today. Just the fire potential along is very high and talk about high mantenance. I'll wait until they have a few years behind them and the price comes down
Lithium Iron Manganese Phosphate batteries (LiFeMnPO4), don't have the fire danger. But they do cost.
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Old 04-04-2016, 07:57 AM   #12
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Lithium Iron Manganese Phosphate batteries (LiFeMnPO4), don't have the fire danger. But they do cost.
Did a little research, and yes, much safer than the other chemical bound Lithium ion batteries. So I do stand corrected


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LiFePO4 (also known as Lithium Iron Phosphate) batteries are a huge improvement over lead acid in weight, capacity and shelf life. The LiFePO4 batteries are the safest type of Lithium batteries as they will not overheat, and even if punctured they will not catch on fire. The cathode material in LiFePO4 batteries is not hazardous, and so poses no negative health hazards or environmental hazards. Due to the oxygen being bonded tightly to the molecule, there is no danger of the battery erupting into flames like there is with Lithium-Ion. The chemistry is so stable that LiFePO4 batteries will accept a charge from a lead-acid configured charger. Though less energy-dense than the Lithium-Ion and Lithium Polymer, Iron and Phosphate are abundant and cheaper to extract so costs are much more reasonable. LiFePO4 life expectancy is approximately 5-7 years. - See more at: https://www.batterystuff.com/kb/arti....CHWxql8U.dpuf
So if you got some extra monies hanging around burning a hole in your pocket, go get um. I'll stick with what I got for now.
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Old 04-04-2016, 03:24 PM   #13
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Doesn't it come down to what you need from batteries? Different jobs require different tools. Cost is certainly a factor but eventually the greater overall benefit may surpass the added expense.

With lead-acid battery limitations we can't have electric cars that can travel 200 miles between charges, iPads that we'd want to use, or battery-powered hand tools regardless of how much we'd save. On the other hand the added weight of lead-acid batteries may not be a significant disadvantage in some applications like electric fork trucks. In that case the extra weight is often needed anyway.

For RV use lead-acid still seems cheaper than lithium but it's getting closer when number of cycles and greater depth of discharge are considered. And if an owner needs lots of energy to run an air conditioner overnight at a location where a generator can't be run, then lithium may be the only practical solution regardless of cost.

From a cost standpoint, I personally think a large lithium battery bank will be easier to justify initially if the cost of an expensive generator can be eliminated. The cost of a diesel generator for a Class B motorhome can already buy significant capacity of lithium battery. And depending on owners' needs, 10 kW-hours of battery capacity may add more value than a generator that may rarely get used. It would be for me.
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Old 04-04-2016, 06:12 PM   #14
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Ok, as a newbie I guess my question would be if the fridge was your only issue with the batteries, before going to a really expensive battery why not swap out the fridge for residential sized LP? Just as costly but should live way longer.

Since that is where my head went, now I have to wonder "what don't I know, and why would that not be the answer?" I really can't wait until I actually can be the one giving advice and not trying to learn from others posts....
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Old 04-04-2016, 10:16 PM   #15
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I have ten in our's. total 1450 ah
I have 4 batteries in each of the boxes and then 2 where the original batteries were.Click image for larger version

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Old 04-04-2016, 10:34 PM   #16
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My 2 cents .....

The cost of a couple of extra regular batteries to power a residential fridge should be much lower than installing a propane fridge. Additionally, the reason many manufacturers and owners are switching to residential refrigerators isn't just because of available larger sizes.

An example of this is the 10.7 cubic foot residential fridge that is an option in the new compact diesel pusher by Tiffin. I'd have to guess that option is not driven by size, but rather by it being compressor cooled like all residential refrigerators. That compact range of size seems ideal for smaller RVs that have limited room in the 2-foot wide by 2-foot deep by 5~6 foot high -- very common.

A quick check shows energy-efficient residential refrigerators of that size use just less than 1 kW-hour of electricity per day, so they should be able to run for an entire 24-hour period on 2 fully-charged average-size RV batteries; provided they are in good shape and nothing else is running. Given that 2 batteries are often needed to power other items anyway, then 4 batteries makes a lot of sense if powering a residential fridge for most of a day.
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Old 04-04-2016, 11:02 PM   #17
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I have ten in our's. total 1450 ah

I have 4 batteries in each of the boxes and then 2 where the original batteries were.

That's a nice setup! Did you do the work yourself? Can you provide more details? How long can you camp before having to run the generator? Which compartment on your 30.2 did you put the other 8 batteries in?

Thanks in advance,

Richard
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Old 04-04-2016, 11:18 PM   #18
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That's a nice setup! Did you do the work yourself? Can you provide more details? How long can you camp before having to run the generator? Which compartment on your 30.2 did you put the other 8 batteries in?

Thanks in advance,

Richard
all work was done by myself.
never ran generator yet( except to exercise) , but the longest stay was only 8 days. With the solar the batteries were always full going into the evening. the longest test so far was 9 hours with the a/c unit on. so I don't know how long the batteries would really last. the 8 batteries are between the drivers side basement and the drive shaft, under where the dinette both is. Presently we have 1240 watts of solar. adding 2 more mppt-60 controllers and probably 6 310 watt panels to the car hauler. then it will be complete. I want to call Morningstar and see what they think of having more watts than the controller can handle first. it's just I have a good deal buying the 310 watt panel at $238 each.
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Old 04-04-2016, 11:48 PM   #19
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all work was done by myself.
never ran generator yet( except to exercise) , but the longest stay was only 8 days. With the solar the batteries were always full going into the evening. the longest test so far was 9 hours with the a/c unit on. so I don't know how long the batteries would really last. the 8 batteries are between the drivers side basement and the drive shaft, under where the dinette both is. Presently we have 1240 watts of solar. adding 2 more mppt-60 controllers and probably 6 310 watt panels to the car hauler. then it will be complete. I want to call Morningstar and see what they think of having more watts than the controller can handle first. it's just I have a good deal buying the 310 watt panel at $238 each.
Nice.

Is your 1450 amp-hours based on 6-Volt battery ratings or 12-Volt ratings?

Just trying to get rough idea of how much your batteries might weigh. Can you share their type and sizes?

Sounds like you're already to point where generator isn't needed. That's a goal many share.
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Old 04-04-2016, 11:57 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by tlaffourtit View Post
all work was done by myself.
never ran generator yet( except to exercise) , but the longest stay was only 8 days. With the solar the batteries were always full going into the evening. the longest test so far was 9 hours with the a/c unit on. so I don't know how long the batteries would really last. the 8 batteries are between the drivers side basement and the drive shaft, under where the dinette both is. Presently we have 1240 watts of solar. adding 2 more mppt-60 controllers and probably 6 310 watt panels to the car hauler. then it will be complete. I want to call Morningstar and see what they think of having more watts than the controller can handle first. it's just I have a good deal buying the 310 watt panel at $238 each.
This is nice! I would like to know your set up i.e., parallel / serires or what did you do? What controller are you using to charge in 9 hours? I assume that is with full sun. Are your panels following the sun, or static? Do you have pictures?
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