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Old 04-09-2018, 01:32 PM   #1
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Question about charging battery

Hello, Have a 2002 Flagstaff for a few years now and am still learning so forgive me if this question seems silly. I just put my group24 battery back into my camper after storing it inside for the winter. Should I charge it with an automotive battery charger or is plugging the camper in to shore power at my house sufficient enough to recharge/maintain it? Thanks in advance.
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Old 04-09-2018, 01:36 PM   #2
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Just plug it into the camper. Your charging system should work fine.
If the battery sat for very long with no juice in it then it may not hold a charge any longer.
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Old 04-09-2018, 01:39 PM   #3
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Your camper should charge the battery just fine. Or you can charge the battery with a battery charger. I brought some new batteries a couple of years ago and just let the camper bring the batteries up to full charge
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Old 04-09-2018, 01:49 PM   #4
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You will get to a full charge faster using your battery charger. The converter will recharge the battery just at a slower rate then a stand alone charger
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Old 04-09-2018, 03:41 PM   #5
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Thanks for the info. I will leave it plugged in for a while and let it charge.
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Old 04-09-2018, 05:44 PM   #6
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Be sure to check water level in flooded batteries as well. Add water AFTER it has been charged unless the cells are very low. Only use distilled water and Don’t overfill. Hard to describe without pics tithe water should not touch the bottom of the fill hole. If you are going to charge using a charger, a multistage charger will yield the best results.

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Old 04-09-2018, 09:58 PM   #7
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You will get to a full charge faster using your battery charger. The converter will recharge the battery just at a slower rate then a stand alone charger
Yes, a external battery charge might charge faster but it needs to be larger than the normal charge rate of the onboard converter to do so. Also needs to be monitored so battery doesn't heat up and gas/boil. Fast charging that causes cells to create excess gas can shorten battery life.

Most converters do this automatically and don't cause water loss.
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Old 04-10-2018, 06:30 AM   #8
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Yes, a external battery charge might charge faster but it needs to be larger than the normal charge rate of the onboard converter to do so. Also needs to be monitored so battery doesn't heat up and gas/boil. Fast charging that causes cells to create excess gas can shorten battery life.

Most converters do this automatically and don't cause water loss.
You must be talking about old technology battery chargers like the old converters, I have three stand alone battery chargers and they all do exactly what a converter does (with different rates of charge) just at a faster rate and don't boil batteries.
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Old 04-10-2018, 05:27 PM   #9
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Originally Posted by Myfamilycamper View Post
Hello, Have a 2002 Flagstaff for a few years now and am still learning so forgive me if this question seems silly. I just put my group24 battery back into my camper after storing it inside for the winter. Should I charge it with an automotive battery charger or is plugging the camper in to shore power at my house sufficient enough to recharge/maintain it? Thanks in advance.
A battery charger will charge it faster, but without management. A converter/charger will do it slower but manage the rate. If you have a really good charger/converter, like a 35 amp 7 stage device, this will do the best job. It will toss heaps of power into it to get it off the floor, than in regulated stages, lower the charge rate until the battery is ready to 'float'. This type of charge can often (and did in my case) recover a battery that has been discharged beyond what should be its recoverable limit.
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Old 04-10-2018, 06:41 PM   #10
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A battery charger will charge it faster, but without management. A converter/charger will do it slower but manage the rate. If you have a really good charger/converter, like a 35 amp 7 stage device, this will do the best job. It will toss heaps of power into it to get it off the floor, than in regulated stages, lower the charge rate until the battery is ready to 'float'. This type of charge can often (and did in my case) recover a battery that has been discharged beyond what should be its recoverable limit.
There are two type of common stand-alone battery chargers-manual and automatic. They serve different purposes. A manual charger does not require a battery to show a charge, whereas, an automatic charger must have some charge to begin with. A manual charger is a dumb charger. It doesn't know when to stop charging. An automatic charger is able to sense a full charge and diminish the charge rate to float.
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Old 04-10-2018, 10:43 PM   #11
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If it is a group 24 then no matter what size charger you put on it...it will not ACCEPT more than about 15-20 amps in bulk mode so anything more is overkill that accomplishes nothing. Since they have 75 amps to refill when DEAD , a 50% dishcharged one will only accept a BULK charge of 20 amps for an hour or so before it ramps down into absorbtion mode until amps are 1-2 and you are full. I see no advantage in an old fashioned bulk charger over a 3 stage of 20 amps or more in the RV. Even if 80% discharged, you'll be "full" in 6 hours or so with a 20amp 3 stage..
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:15 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by Myfamilycamper View Post
Hello, Have a 2002 Flagstaff for a few years now and am still learning so forgive me if this question seems silly. I just put my group24 battery back into my camper after storing it inside for the winter. Should I charge it with an automotive battery charger or is plugging the camper in to shore power at my house sufficient enough to recharge/maintain it? Thanks in advance.
Back when we had an old TT,,,
I always charged the Battery before I reinstalled it !!!

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Old 04-11-2018, 08:27 AM   #13
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The converter in your 15+ year old camper may be no more than a single stage charger. Newer converters and chargers are mostly multi-stage, often 3-stage.

I'd use a quality automatic multi-stage unit regardless of how small. I see no advantage to a big charger doing a fast charge...actually to the contrary.
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:29 AM   #14
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In the winter, I put my TT and tractor batteries in the basement. I use a smart Battery Minder like this one:


Over the winter, I put it on my TT battery for a few weeks, then swap it to my tractor battery for a few weeks. Back and forth all winter. When it's time to mow grass and/or go camping, batteries are fully charged.
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:33 AM   #15
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The smart chargers are a great solution BUT; You need to carefully read the specs on smart chargers with desulfate functions as that function on some is a time based function and resets each time you move it. If you are counting on that function, you may be best to not move it.
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:37 AM   #16
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The smart chargers are a great solution BUT; You need to carefully read the specs on smart chargers with desulfate functions as that function on some is a time based function and resets each time you move it. If you are counting on that function, you may be best to not move it.
Never thought of that. It does go to desulfate when I move it, but I've never hung around to see how long it stays there. I'll re-read the manual when I get home.
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:41 AM   #17
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I keep a Battery Maintainer on my tractor in the barn,,, I use it to blow snow,,,
so I have to leave the battery in it !!!
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Old 04-11-2018, 08:46 AM   #18
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In the winter, I put my TT and tractor batteries in the basement. I use a smart Battery Minder like this one:


Over the winter, I put it on my TT battery for a few weeks, then swap it to my tractor battery for a few weeks. Back and forth all winter. When it's time to mow grass and/or go camping, batteries are fully charged.
2X
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