Need clarification please!

[Pirogue]

I am not sure if I have a problem or not so I need help from some seasoned owners.
I am about 6 weeks into owning my very first RV. It is a Crusader 325RES fifth wheel. We have made one weekend trip and had a great time with no issues.
However the camper has been parked approximately 4 weeks and yesterday I attempted to lower my rear stabilizer jacks but they didn't even try to lower. I then checked to see if the front landing gear would move. No movement either. Ok, I assume onboard battery is dead for some reason. No biggie, I will just plug up to my truck and lower the jacks. Still no go.
Alright first off, I am not sure what drained my battery. The only thing I know of pulling any power would be the backlight on a clock/radio in the camper. There may be other sources I am unaware of so if you know anything I should check please advise. However, I wouldn't expect such a small amout of load to drain the battery dry so quickly. Regardless, it was completely dead. Less than 1 volt. I am currently charging it.
Secondly, should my jacks and gear have worked when I plugged into my truck? and third, if there is something that stays powered up normally when not using the camper, then I would think I need to disconnect the battery to prevent the same problem in the future. So should a disconnect switch be inline on the positive lead or negative lead.
I appreciate any advice.

Pirogue

[TURBS]

Boat man
A battery disconnect is a must.

[Herk7769]

I can kill the battery in my car playing the radio while I wax it in an afternoon.

Seriously, there is about 1 amp of parasite draw in every camper.
Most campers have about 75 amp hours of capacity.

In 4 weeks even high capacity battery banks would be dead.
Ditto on the battery kill switch.

[trudinator]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Boat man
A battery disconnect is a must.

Unless you keep it plugged into shore power at all times, which it appears you don't.

[wingriders]

Pirogue do you know for sure you have 12v power at your TV plug for charging the trailer battery? Throwing that out there why you didn't have any power for your jacks to work.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by trudinator

Unless you keep it plugged into shore power at all times, which it appears you don't.

correct you are!

I leave mine plugged in 24/7 365 but and there's a but.
My disconnect is selectable
battery 1 on 2 off
battery 2 on and 1 off
battery 1 and 2 both on
Or battery off 1 and 2

That way I have a reserve if needed or more capacity if needed

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by wingriders

Pirogue do you know for sure you have 12v power at your TV plug for charging the trailer battery? Throwing that out there why you didn't have any power for your jacks to work.

True! The relay may have not been installed on the tv.
Good catch!

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by wingriders

Pirogue do you know for sure you have 12v power at your TV plug for charging the trailer battery? Throwing that out there why you didn't have any power for your jacks to work.

It is possible that his dead battery was pulling down the alternator to the point there was no capacity left to run the motors.

[Clarewood Camper]

I always disconnect at the terminals when in storage for ANY period of time - unless you're plugged in. Also, I've read some other comments that slideouts, gear, etc wouldn't work with a dead battery even if plugged into a TV when it was noticed the battery was dead, and I believe it is because the battery still needs a certain level of power to operate the sliders/land gear and the power doesn't necessarily go directly through the vehicle (alternator) when you immediately plug in - so you can't really "jump start" a camper.. However, if you plugged back in to shoreline and you still had a problem, then I'd suspect fuse is the issue. Have you tried plugging in?

[wbdvt]

I found on a GMC Sierra I had that the fuse to charge the battery thru the 7 pin plug was not installed and had to be installed by me. Might want to check your TV manual as that is how I found out about mine.

[B47]

Originally Posted by wingriders

Pirogue do you know for sure you have 12v power at your TV plug for charging the trailer battery? Throwing that out there why you didn't have any power for your jacks to work.

wing - I may have just learned something here - are you saying that with a 7 pin TV plug you are charging your TT when you are plugged in to it? I was always told that the TV did not supply battery charging power.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by B47

wing - I may have just learned something here - are you saying that with a 7 pin TV plug you are charging your TT when you are plugged in to it? I was always told that the TV did not supply battery charging power.

That's what hes sayin!

[TURBS]

In chevys you install a fuse to make it work.
On fords its a relay
Not sure on dodges

[Herk7769]

It depends on whether the feature has been enabled on your truck.
With chevy's and GMC's they don't come hooked up at the factory due to the potential for killing the truck's starting battery.

[B47]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

In chevys you install a fuse to make it work.
On fords its a relay
Not sure on dodges

I stand corrected from my earlier post. I checked my 2012 Ram Truck manual and it says that with the 7 pin plug installed the #1 pin is for the battery, the #2 pin is for the Backup Lamps, the #3 pin is for the Right Stop/Turn lamps, the #4 pin is for the Electric Brakes, the #5 pin is Ground, the #6 pin is for the Left Stop/Turn lamps and the #7 pin is for the Running Lamps.

The factory installed 4 pin plug is for Ground, Park, Left Stop/Turn, Right Stop/Turn.

[autorot8]

On my Ford truck, if the trailer batteries are dead, I can plug in the pigtail and operate all 12 volt electronics on the trailer. But, the truck must be running.

[rracer5]

Assuming you have the auxilliary power to your 7 pin plug on the TV, plugging in the TT would take quite a while to charge the TT's battery (and the TV would have to be running) Because all the power from the TV would be going to charge the TT's battery, there wouldn't be enough to operate anything in the TT until the TT' battery has a near full charge, and that could take hours.

Several items in the TT draw power all the time, the propane leak detector (the one with the green light on all the time), and as you mentioned, the entertainment center. These will drain the TT's battery in 2-3 weeks unless you disconnect the battery either manually by taking off one of the terminals or installing a disconnect switch.

[RvBill3]

On my Chevy Avalanche the charging wire for the 7 pin was not connected under the hood. The owners manual explained this. I had the dealer connect it although I could have done it myself. Also if you are trying to draw power from the TV make sure it is in tow haul mode if equipped. That increases the idle speed which ups the output of the alternator.

[autorot8]

Originally Posted by RvBill3

Also if you are trying to draw power from the TV make sure it is in tow haul mode if equipped. That increases the idle speed which ups the output of the alternator.

This must be a Chevy or Avalanche feature, not sure if it works this way for Dodge. Ford, the tow/haul does nothing for the engine, only changes the shift points of the transmission.

[wingriders]

RvBill3
What year chevy do you have? I'm curious if this is something new on the newer trucks. I may have just learned something new!