2013 Palazzo. Our second year in the RV world, still newbies, continuing to realize that there is a lot to learn, and always projects, which is good - keeps me out of trouble and continuing my education and learning. Very thankful for this Forum and the Participants willing to share their experience, knowledge and wisdom. I have found this forum to be much more helpful than talking to the folks at Thor Technical Support.
OK, first trip of the season just completed. Our coach had been in heated covered storage and hooked into 120v shore power since December. By the time we got to our destination (about 2 hours), red light fault indicator was on solid and our electric residential frig was no longer running. The message was 'bad battery'. On to 50amp shore power and all was good. Did not run the inverter on the trip home. Once home, plugged in 120v shore power. Called Thor and was told either bad batteries or bad isolator relay. Checked house batteries next day (4 - 6 volt, AH rating 235 (20HR) 190 (5HR) - not sure what exactly the two different AH ratings means. Indicator said batteries fully charged. I checked voltage and found the batteries at 6.24v, 6.34, 6.35 and 6.60 volts. As a test, I unplugged shore power and turned on inverter and frig. Less than 4 hours later, the fault light was back on as well as message displaying low battery (11.7v), frig not running. While driving, should the chassis battery not keep up with the minimal draw from the frig? Will I need to setup my AGS to maintain A/C current while driving between shore power or generator for boondocking? So, guessing that I need new house batteries, or?? I'm ok with replacing batteries but want to be certain the problem is batteries and not a relay. Oh, and also, the inverter fan never ran at all on this trip. It usually does come on after a trip.
If new batteries are needed, I will most likely go with AGM. Questions - 1) replace with 4 - 6 volt batteries or 2 - 12 volt? 2) Any changes needed for the charging/inverting system? 3) I am fairly mechanical, but would I do best to opt for 'professional' installation?
I thank you in advance for any advice or sharing of similar issues and solutions. So sorry for the long winded question.,
OK, first trip of the season just completed. Our coach had been in heated covered storage and hooked into 120v shore power since December. By the time we got to our destination (about 2 hours), red light fault indicator was on solid and our electric residential frig was no longer running. The message was 'bad battery'. On to 50amp shore power and all was good. Did not run the inverter on the trip home. Once home, plugged in 120v shore power. Called Thor and was told either bad batteries or bad isolator relay. Checked house batteries next day (4 - 6 volt, AH rating 235 (20HR) 190 (5HR) - not sure what exactly the two different AH ratings means. Indicator said batteries fully charged. I checked voltage and found the batteries at 6.24v, 6.34, 6.35 and 6.60 volts. As a test, I unplugged shore power and turned on inverter and frig. Less than 4 hours later, the fault light was back on as well as message displaying low battery (11.7v), frig not running. While driving, should the chassis battery not keep up with the minimal draw from the frig? Will I need to setup my AGS to maintain A/C current while driving between shore power or generator for boondocking? So, guessing that I need new house batteries, or?? I'm ok with replacing batteries but want to be certain the problem is batteries and not a relay. Oh, and also, the inverter fan never ran at all on this trip. It usually does come on after a trip.
If new batteries are needed, I will most likely go with AGM. Questions - 1) replace with 4 - 6 volt batteries or 2 - 12 volt? 2) Any changes needed for the charging/inverting system? 3) I am fairly mechanical, but would I do best to opt for 'professional' installation?
I thank you in advance for any advice or sharing of similar issues and solutions. So sorry for the long winded question.,