House Battery Water - Aria 3401

[ChiefBob]

Working my way through maintenance items on a recently acquired 2018 Aria 3401. Went to check the water on the house batteries and I can only get one cap out of 8 off because the cables are in the way. They are supposed to be less than a year old so replacement with AGM is not going to happen soon (hopefully). I'm going to see about repositioning cables but wanted to reach out and see what y'all do if you have a similar set up. Thanks

[Coveman2]

You have already started the process by taking a picture, next using colour coded tabs or tags label where each cable goes, (eg battery one negative, battery one positive etc).
Look for any straps holding the batteries in place and note how they come apart or hold the batteries down. You can now either remove all of the batteries and check underneath for any rust or even some critter nests and repair or replace if needed or move them around to check. You will also want to check the wires for any fraying or damage and clean them up again if needed.
Check the water level and use only distilled water to top up but do not over fill. Put everything back in place and you are good to go, or take the rig into an RV shop and have them do it and save a lot of time and only takes them about 15 minutes
Coveman2

[Grumpy Grampa]

Zip tie or color code, take pictures.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by ChiefBob

Working my way through maintenance items on a recently acquired 2018 Aria 3401. Went to check the water on the house batteries and I can only get one cap out of 8 off because the cables are in the way. They are supposed to be less than a year old so replacement with AGM is not going to happen soon (hopefully). I'm going to see about repositioning cables but wanted to reach out and see what y'all do if you have a similar set up. Thanks

Reposition the cables. Has to be done so get to it.

[Pete'sMH]

Replace the caps with a Flow Rite water fill system so you can check and add water without removing them in the future. Takes less than 5 minutes to fill them. You’ll still have to take it all apart but only the one time. I use the system and it’s so easy I have no real interest
In switching to the more costly AGM batteries.

[ChiefBob]

Thanks all.

[JIM SNYDER]

Originally Posted by ChiefBob

Working my way through maintenance items on a recently acquired 2018 Aria 3401. Went to check the water on the house batteries and I can only get one cap out of 8 off because the cables are in the way. They are supposed to be less than a year old so replacement with AGM is not going to happen soon (hopefully). I'm going to see about repositioning cables but wanted to reach out and see what y'all do if you have a similar set up. Thanks

Colored wire ties work best for labeling the cables.

But think about it....all of this 'bother' goes away if you replace them with AGM's !!!!

[MJC62]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

Replace the caps with a Flow Rite water fill system so you can check and add water without removing them in the future. Takes less than 5 minutes to fill them. You’ll still have to take it all apart but only the one time. I use the system and it’s so easy I have no real interest
In switching to the more costly AGM batteries.

Same system works great!!.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by JIM SNYDER

Colored wire ties work best for labeling the cables.

But think about it....all of this 'bother' goes away if you replace them with AGM's !!!!

So does a bunch of money out of his wallet,

[JimC]

Try a "Qwik-Fill Single Point Battery Watering System (Kit A) Dual Battery MP-2000" from ebay - $49.99. I wasn't able to access all my maintene caps or see ito the back battery cells. This effectively solved the problem without buying new cables.
JC

[HMCSW]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

Replace the caps with a Flow Rite water fill system so you can check and add water without removing them in the future. Takes less than 5 minutes to fill them. You’ll still have to take it all apart but only the one time. I use the system and it’s so easy I have no real interest
In switching to the more costly AGM batteries.

YES SIR!!!! I did this from advice on this forum. What a super solution. We keep a jug of water in our storage garage and every couple weeks and prior to leaving on a trip I take the 2 minutes to top off the batteries. No issue with the battery tie downs.

[Parne]

Originally Posted by ChiefBob

Working my way through maintenance items on a recently acquired 2018 Aria 3401. Went to check the water on the house batteries and I can only get one cap out of 8 off because the cables are in the way. They are supposed to be less than a year old so replacement with AGM is not going to happen soon (hopefully). I'm going to see about repositioning cables but wanted to reach out and see what y'all do if you have a similar set up. Thanks

You might have to take a post wire or two off to access the fillers on the batteries. Then use a meat baster to fill the batteries with distilled water. don't overfill.

[paulwadley]

I too vote for the flow rite dual battery hydration system. Works great and makes filling the batteries so much easier. No more removing the caps each time to fill each cell.

Paul

[Chateau_Nomad]

Simple solution. Move the hold down straps so they are at midpoint on the batteries... BETWEEN the caps, not on top of them. Then loosen the cables and pivot them so they are not interfering with the caps.

Provided you have room above the batteries, get a cheap (but effective) $10 plastic battery fill can from any auto parts store or Amazon. Typically you only need to add distilled water at 3 to 4 week intervals... find a pattern with frequent checking for a few weeks. You'll find that watering 4 easily accessible batteries takes all of 10 minutes once a month or so.

Bottom line... you have options. You can make this as complicated or as simple as you like. You can also spend thousands of dollars to solve simple "problems". I prefer the simple cheaper methods.

[Scubawise]

I finally have peace of mind since folks here recommended AGM. Use vmax .microwave hair dryer TV etc all last longer with inverter..and quicker solar charge. .so far
NO WATER CHECK THANK GOD

[Hooligan2]

Always Pictures and labeling --Most common complaint on batteries is-- "I just replaced/ re-connected my batteries and nothing or an important widget doesn't work"

[JIM SNYDER]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

So does a bunch of money out of his wallet,

Do the math....
The Class A unit cost abt $70000.
The AGM battery set will cost abt $300.
$300 is abt 0.75% of the $70000 up front cost.
So....eliminate the problem,,,buy the AGM's !!
Then...no muss..no fuss..no maintenance..reliable DC power !!
DUH !!!!

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by JIM SNYDER

Do the math....
The Class A unit cost abt $70000.
The AGM battery set will cost abt $300.
$300 is abt 0.75% of the $70000 up front cost.
So....eliminate the problem,,,buy the AGM's !!
Then...no muss..no fuss..no maintenance..reliable DC power !!
DUH !!!!

You need to go back to math school. He has 4 batteries (and they ain't small ones).

Each battery's AGM replacement costs at least $330.

$330 x 4 = $1320.00

That's over 4 times as much as you calculated; for what? The convenience of not having to water 4 good FLA batteries?

Buy batteries when you need to, not because you want to.

If money was not object for convenience, why stop at $70,000.00? You could get a lot of convenience for a couple mil.

[Beau388]

Originally Posted by JIM SNYDER

Do the math....
The Class A unit cost abt $70000.
The AGM battery set will cost abt $300.
$300 is abt 0.75% of the $70000 up front cost.
So....eliminate the problem,,,buy the AGM's !!
Then...no muss..no fuss..no maintenance..reliable DC power !!
DUH !!!!

AGM is just one type of VRLA battery. It has three advantages, it can be mounted on any side, it has a low self-discharge rate and it has a low internal resistance. A flooded VRLA battery is just like any other flooded lead acid battery except it never needs to be watered under normal condition. Its advantages is it is less 1/2 the price of the equivalent AGM battery. Because it has no glass mats, it will have about a 10% more amp-h when compared to the same size AGM battery.

[lwmcguire]

Originally Posted by ChiefBob

Working my way through maintenance items on a recently acquired 2018 Aria 3401. Went to check the water on the house batteries and I can only get one cap out of 8 off because the cables are in the way. They are supposed to be less than a year old so replacement with AGM is not going to happen soon (hopefully). I'm going to see about repositioning cables but wanted to reach out and see what y'all do if you have a similar set up. Thanks

You will get the typical battery response from most folks

My situation was:

Don't like cleaning battery acid/fumes corrosion products
Corrosion on frame and battery cables, requires replacing cables eventually
Having the extra maintenance including watering
The location of the battery bank collects road grime which needs to be cleaned each trip or it will discharge your batteries, not a big issue without the fumes/moisture build up

We use a lot of battery overnight so if you never boondock you can get by with sealed or FLA and be happy

Needed additional amps to overnight without generator

I have also found the AGM's charge quicker and are more forgiving, plus don't lose voltage as bad as FLA

Bottom line AGM's were worth the money for me