Am I charging the chassis battery?

[skiptut]

When plunged into 120 at the house, use/store switch in use, am I charging the chassis battery too?

[Beau388]

Yes. You can use your inverter to confirm this (if one is installed) by turning it on and observing the voltage on the display. Not charging the display will be 12.8 to 0.0 volts and charging will be 13.1 to 13.6 volts. The voltage maybe higher if the batteries are severely depleted (the charger is in the bulk mode). Your chassis battery will also be charged.

[Long & Winding road]

Yes, If no inverter and if you have a multi meter you can connect the to the battery.... put DC setting (mine says "9 DC") and it will show around 14.5 on quick charge (most likley battery is very low), around 13.8 normal charge.

12.8 or so with "no charging" the battery is full. (FYI = 12.1 is like 50% discharged).

Its best to check the charge of the battery itself (with a multi meter) after they have "rested" for about 30 minutes (that is After being plugged in or driving wait 30 minutes).

[Glensouth]

When you are plugged in to ac you are charging your house batteries as long as you keep the use/store switch in the use position.

[ComputerChips]

On most models it's supposed to work both ways. Plugged in or generator running "should" charge both. Engine running "should" charge both too. Many if us have had issues though so it's something that has to be verified from time to time.

[Diemaster]

on my 31e the Chassis does not get charged unless the V10 is running. my truth table is as follows.

Generator power = shore power
shore power = house charging. chassis no.
driving( AKA V10 running) = house charging. chassis charging.

im not sure if this is because i have a cheap thor isolator but i plan to get something like this to make sure when the house is being charged the chassis is too: (or i might replace the isolator with one that is more than a ignition controlled relay and allows bi-directional charging.

Battery Chargers | Auxiliary Battery Charger | Xantrex

[gmc]

From what I have experienced and seen from others:

On the Class A Gas models on F53/350/450 chassis - the answer has been yes - both should charge from shore power (or genny) or engine running...

On Class C Ford - at least some models this does not happen (by design..) - the chassis battery will not be charged by shore power/genny.
On Class C Sprinter - chassis battery only charged from engine.


So the normal answer: It depends...

[16ACE27]

For your coach: you should be. Ignore any reference to inverter voltage as the inverter is powered by the HOUSE batteries so it won't tell you anything about the chassis battery. Get a Harbor Freight free multimeter and measure your chassis battery voltage directly when plugged in to verify it is working correctly.

[RDC54]

Originally Posted by Tfryman

For your coach: you should be. Ignore any reference to inverter voltage as the inverter is powered by the HOUSE batteries so it won't tell you anything about the chassis battery. Get a Harbor Freight free multimeter and measure your chassis battery voltage directly when plugged in to verify it is working correctly.

"Harbor Freight free multimeter"??? Can you give more info on this?

[Bob Denman]

Originally Posted by gmc

From what I have experienced and seen from others:

On the Class A Gas models on F53/350/450 chassis - the answer has been yes - both should charge from shore power (or genny) or engine running...

On Class C Ford - at least some models this does not happen (by design..) - the chassis battery will not be charged by shore power/genny.
On Class C Sprinter - chassis battery only charged from engine.


So the normal answer: It depends...

This is what I was wondering: thanks for confirming my suspicions!

[skiptut]

Thanks for all the information from everyone. The worse thing I have to deal with is the electrical stuff that we can encounter. I loose sleep thinking about picking up a meter and playing with wires and batteries.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by RDC54

"Harbor Freight free multimeter"??? Can you give more info on this?

[JJMON]

Originally Posted by Tfryman

I picked up one of these last summer. Now I have two meters. One will stay in the tool bag for MH.

[Brad2018]

I purchased a cell phone charger with a built-in LED voltage display to remove any doubt about chassis battery charging. Plugs into the socket on the dash. It displays the voltage and will flash when low. If the battery isn't under charge it also shuts itself off.

[skiptut]

Originally Posted by Brad2018

I purchased a cell phone charger with a built-in LED voltage display to remove any doubt about chassis battery charging. Plugs into the socket on the dash. It displays the voltage and will flash when low. If the battery isn't under charge it also shuts itself off.

So do you remember the name of the cell phone charger with a built-in LED voltage display? Sounds like something that could take the guess work out of my little mind.

[16ACE27]

You could install this one and wire it to both house and chassis batteries:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...UKRB6RHF9&th=1

or pick any of the multitude of USB power sockets with voltage display available on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...=1P89JV33LCZUQ

[Brad2018]

Originally Posted by skiptut

So do you remember the name of the cell phone charger with a built-in LED voltage display? Sounds like something that could take the guess work out of my little mind.

Working from my phone here. It's the top-left one in the picture posted by Tfryman. My RV has power all the time when parked in the backyard. It's nice to walk in and instantly see the voltage.