I've seen similar postings but have not found a solution to my particular issue yet. I have a mobile tech scheduled to come out in 2 weeks but I'm hoping to identify all possible causes and additional areas to look.
Problem:
The batteries only charge when the engine is running. They do NOT charge from shore power, solar, nor the generator. And when the Battery Disconnect is set to Use, the only items that are powered are the antenna booster and the console monitor for the cameras. I do NOT get any power to any other 12 volt items including the refrigerator, furnace and lights. When hooked up to shore power, the refrigerator, furnace, and lights DO get power. To keep the batteries from draining too fast, the Battery Disconnect is set to Store, therefore the antenna booster and the console monitor do NOT have power.
History: (Sorry this is long-winded, I'm trying to retell what the techs focused on when asking me questions)
I bought & moved into a 2015 Thor Vegas 24.1 in Sept. 2020. I drove to Washington in Oct. While there in Nov., I had the lead acid batteries replaced with Battle Born batteries, a PD4655LIV Converter, and a Victron battery monitor. In early Feb. 2021 I had 2 solar panels, charge controller, and invertor with a power strip installed. The batteries were staying charged and everything was working well.
Possible Cause:
In early March I stayed at a campground where a 30 amp breaker at the pedestal failed on me while I was connected with a Progressive SSP-30XL surge protector. Power to the RV occasionally turned on & off. In the middle of the night I woke up to find it turning on & off rapidly. I immediately shut the breaker at the pedestal off. The next day I used my 50 amp to 30 amp converter and hooked up to the 50 amp breaker. All seemed to be working fine. My guess is that this is when my problem started. Unfortunately I did not look at the battery monitor to verify if the batteries were charging or not at that time.
I travelled for two weeks to get to CA, I was on the road every other day so the batteries were getting some charge while I was driving. Once in CA, I spent a few days disconnected from shore power so I could test the solar charging. I had the engine & generator serviced (oil change and other maintenance checks). Later that I day I noticed that the solar wasn't charging the batteries and they were getting draining. I ran the generator to charge the batteries and noticed that they were not charging. After shutting down the generator, all power to the refrigerator and lights was gone. The only power was to the antenna booster and console monitor. I immediately hooked up to shore power and got power back on. Luckily I'm staying at a friend's ranch, but I'm stuck here until I can get this problem resolved.
After reading thru similar issues posted on this forum and talking to the techs who installed the batteries & solar, I've tried the following:
- Breakers & Fuses in the cabin - none of the breakers were tripped and all fuses are good. I switched the breaker for the converter off and on.
- The 50 amp breaker in the stairwell next to the batteries - the yellow tab was not tripped. II switched the breaker off and reset it.
- The little gray breaker with the black tab in the Battery Control Center - this breaker was tripped. When it was reset and the Battery Disconnect was set to Use, the batteries immediately started charging (I was hooked up to shore power.) I kept an eye on the charge rate for a few hours and all seemed good. Some time after the batteries reached 13.2 V, the batteries stopped charging. The gray breaker tripped a second time, I reset the breaker. Less than 1/2 hour later the batteries stopped charging again. This time the gray breaker was NOT tripped.
- Battery Disconnect switch - it "thumps" when switching between Use & Store. With the Battery Disconnect set to Use, I tested the continuity between the 2 posts of the solenoid after the gray breaker stopped tripping, there does not appear to be continuity. I did not test the solenoid before resetting the gray breaker. Note, this is my first time using a multimeter...
Questions:
- What typically causes the gray breaker in the Battery Control Center to trip?
- Since I get power to the antenna booster and console monitor when the Battery Disconnect is set to Use, does that mean that the solenoid is still good?
- If not, is it possible that the solenoid was NOT working before I reset the gray breaker?
- And could the solenoid have stopped working after the gray breaker stopped tripping?
- Are there any other breakers or switches that I should look for?
Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions.
Molly
Linear Mode
