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Old 04-18-2019, 10:30 PM   #1
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Coachmen Miranda 35KB
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THOR #7134
To Leave Motor home plugged into 110 Volt

Hello everyone, pretty new to this site but I find it very helpful. I have a 2012 Allegro Open Road that has a converter but not an Inverter, I keep it in a garage with access to 110 Volts and I wont be using it for a few months, I was wondering if I am wise to leave it plugged in all the time or should I unplug ever so often to give the converter etc. a break from usage. Please let me know your thoughts, I am in Ontario Canada and not worried about air conditioning or heating the RV. Thanks Al

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Old 04-18-2019, 10:33 PM   #2
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anything electrical likes to have electricity...so yes.

but, if you have no power, it wouldn't care, either.

either way, no issues.
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Old 04-18-2019, 10:39 PM   #3
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Thanks, I have electric and don't mind using it, just didn't know if it was hard on the converter/battery charger??
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Old 04-18-2019, 10:42 PM   #4
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Good idea to check your converter/charger and make sure it is dropping down to 13.1v and going into maintenance mode. If it continues to charge at 13.5v it could “boil” your batteries and ruin them. Always a good idea to periodically check the water of your batteries if you leave your coach plugged in all the time.
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Old 04-18-2019, 10:43 PM   #5
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I leave mine plugged in all winter in the Northeast. So no issues and keeps my batteries topped off.
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Old 04-18-2019, 11:56 PM   #6
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That is a very good suggestion to check the voltage, I just checked it and I plugged it in around noon today and it reads 13.57 Volt so I will check in the morning, my coach has a button that I can push and get the reading or should I be testing the house batteries themselves with a voltmeter??
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Old 04-19-2019, 12:12 AM   #7
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You should be fine. Tiffin makes a very good product and the converter/charger should be a multi stage which will limit battery water boil off but still check the cells regularly. I have my Hurricane in the driveway that when home is plugged in constantly. I also have a multi stage charger and no problems with battery boil off.

And yes you should check from time to time with a voltmeter. Important tool that you need to learn how to use.
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Old 04-19-2019, 12:17 AM   #8
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Originally Posted by Sweetbriar View Post
You should be fine. Tiffin makes a very good product and the converter/charger should be a multi stage which will limit battery water boil off but still check the cells regularly. I have my Hurricane in the driveway that when home is plugged in constantly. I also have a multi stage charger and no problems with battery boil off.

And yes you should check from time to time with a voltmeter. Important tool that you need to learn how to use.
Unfortunately he apparently has a Thor and for the Axis/Vegas at least, the converter/charger is not good quality. I have had two (a 2014 Vegas and 2016 Axis) and neither ever went to maintenance mode, even though the charger is supposed to be multi stage. Easy to check and expensive not to.
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Old 04-19-2019, 12:28 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by Oneilkeys View Post
Unfortunately he apparently has a Thor...
He says in the original post that it's a 2012 Allegro Open Road, a Tiffin.
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Old 04-19-2019, 01:32 AM   #10
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I tried to change my profile as I just purchased this Tiffin but there doesn't seem to be away to change from Thor to Tiffin. Thanks for all your helpful replies Happy Easter To All Al
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Old 04-19-2019, 02:14 AM   #11
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I tried to change my profile as I just purchased this Tiffin but there doesn't seem to be away to change from Thor to Tiffin. Thanks for all your helpful replies Happy Easter To All Al
Sure there is, just ask Bob Denam. I'm surprised he hasn't already posted in this thread.
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Old 04-19-2019, 02:39 AM   #12
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when you go to your profile info and go to Brand there is no Tiffin in the drop down menu, not that I could see Al
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Old 04-19-2019, 03:23 PM   #13
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when you go to your profile info and go to Brand there is no Tiffin in the drop down menu, not that I could see Al
Oh! You're looking at the pre-filled out field. Could be because Tiffin is not a Thor brand.

People with "other brands" use the "Still Looking" in that field, use SOB for the model, and put the actual coach info in their signature.

A la:

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Old 04-19-2019, 03:28 PM   #14
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That looks suspiciously familiar...
Plug it in; but just keep an eye on the water levels in your batteries.

Sorry that I'm late to the Dance...
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Old 04-19-2019, 04:14 PM   #15
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Thanks to everyone for all your thoughts, I will leave it plugged in, check the water level in the battery and make sure that the voltage runs around 13.1 when in the float mode, great site Thanks again Al
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Old 04-19-2019, 04:19 PM   #16
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How about some pictures of that Open Road?
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Old 04-28-2019, 06:24 AM   #17
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I have a Thor ACE 29.2 2012, I leave it plugged in normally with no issues.
Just a week ago the battery top covering 3 cells blew off with a bang.
Granted this was my fault simply because I forgot to check the fluid level in the cell and fill them when needed creating what i assume was off gassing that caused the top to blow off.
Definitely will need new batteries.
So be sure to check cell level at least once a month to prevent similar failure and possibly more if you live in desert climates like I do.
Your tiffin may have a better quality charging system/inverter than our unit and may actually shut down our reduce output based on battery charge level were many simply provide a continuous feed such as a topper and therefore must be checked frequently.
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Old 04-28-2019, 12:15 PM   #18
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Also check to see if your converter/charger is working correctly and actually going into maintenance mode. It should drop to to 13.1V when the battery is fully charged. If it is not working correctly (the WFCO units that Thor uses are not quality and I have had two that never went into maintenance mode) the converter/charger will continue to charge at 13.5v and boil off the electrolyte in you battery leading to an explosion.
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Old 04-28-2019, 03:13 PM   #19
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Thanks to everyone again for all your thoughts and knowledge, I definitely will keep an eye on the water level and I checked the voltage after being plugged in for a week, I have a test button and it reads 13.2 V and when I test the batteries it reads 13.5 do you guys think this is OK. Thanks Al
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Old 04-28-2019, 03:26 PM   #20
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Your “test button” and voltage at the batteries should read the same. If your reading at the batteries is correct (13.5v) after the coach has been plugged in for a week, then the converter/charger is probably not going into maintenance mode (about 13.1v). Putting 13.5v continuously into you batteries will “boil out” the electrolyte and can ruin them even if you continually add water. It’s not good for your batteries. In the long run it is cheaper to replace the converter/charger with a better quality one that works correctly. One of my WFCO chargers did not start in “boost” mode when the batteries were below 50% charge as well as never going into maintenance mode. By replacing the Thor converter/charger I got faster battery charging time as well as saving my batteries.
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