Battery Power Switch Questions..

Kimmytheone · 08-18-2022, 03:46 PM

2017 Sandpiper... My Question is about The red battery switch that is located inside the storage area on the Driver's side. If I am hooked up to shore power, Is the red battery switch supposed to be on or off? And, If the switch has been off for several months, & I have been plugged in to shore power the entire time, (Batteries are brand new & never been used) Do the batteries need charged or do I just turn the switch back on & let the converter auto charge them?
NOTE: The new batteries are Marine type that have distilled water in them.
Thanks in advance for any & all help you can give me.

GravelRider · 08-18-2022, 04:05 PM

I don't know specifically about your model RV, but they should all work roughly the same.

The battery disconnect switch disconnects only battery draws. It does not disconnect potential battery chargers. In other words, if you are plugged into shore power or you have a solar setup, your batteries should charge whether the disconnect is on or off. It doesn't matter if you leave it on or off while on shore power.

So in your case, if you've been on shore power the entire time, your batteries should be all charged up if things are working properly.

Do you have a voltmeter? If you don't, you should, and you should keep it with your rig. With the battery disconnect off and no charging (solar or shore power), check the voltage. It should be 12.6 volts if fully charged lead acid.

Reverse_snowbird · 08-19-2022, 05:01 PM

It's fairly easy to check which way the battery disconnect needs to be. Just turn on the overhead lights. If the battery is disconnected, the lights will be off. If the battery is connected, the lights will be on.

With the battery connected, if you're connected to shore power, it will charge the batteries as needed. Just check the fluid in the battery occasionally.

On most rigs, if the battery is disconnected it will not stop parasitic drains on the battery. In those cases, you have to disconnect the negative cable to stop it from discharging. Now some rigs do have a switch that will disconnect the battery. Now if you have solar, that can keep the batteries charged.

Basically, you need a voltmeter, as suggested, and figure out your system.

NavyLCDR · 08-19-2022, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GravelRider

I don't know specifically about your model RV, but they should all work roughly the same.

The battery disconnect switch disconnects only battery draws. It does not disconnect potential battery chargers.

On every RV that I have ever seen, the battery disconnect switch disconnects the converter from the batteries. When connected to shore power, with the disconnect switch off (batteries disconnected), the converter will NOT be charging the batteries.

Solar panels should be connected directly to the batteries, maintaining a charge with battery disconnect switch off, but not the converter.

jimmarako · 08-19-2022, 07:38 PM

I think the simple answer is anytime you're plugged in: camping, at home, storage,.... keep the batteries connected to the 12V system so the convertor will maintain them. Only if you are storing the trailer for some period of time with no power would I disconnect the batteries.

Now note what other people said, sometimes the battery disconnect does not fully remove the battery from the trailer. In my case it does. When disconnected there are no loads on the battery. Sometimes the CO/propane alarm or radio bypass the switch. You need to either move those connections to the switched side or pull the negative cable off the battery is storing for more than a week or two.

Jim M.

Kimmytheone · 08-19-2022, 09:13 PM

Thank you to all of you that have replied. Your help us so appreciated!!! I want you all to know that you are all so amazing to take time to help me/everyone else on this forum site. This is THE BEST site I've ever run across, & all of you are who has made it THE BEST site around. I truly ❤️ this forum site & each & Everton of you that have always been here to help everyone out. You are truly making a huge difference in my life. Thank you again EVERYONE!!! ��

CHICKDOE · 08-20-2022, 07:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kimmytheone

2017 Sandpiper... My Question is about The red battery switch that is located inside the storage area on the Driver's side. If I am hooked up to shore power, Is the red battery switch supposed to be on or off? And, If the switch has been off for several months, & I have been plugged in to shore power the entire time, (Batteries are brand new & never been used) Do the batteries need charged or do I just turn the switch back on & let the converter auto charge them?
NOTE: The new batteries are Marine type that have distilled water in them.
Thanks in advance for any & all help you can give me.

i thought the battery disconnect switch was located in the cable between the converter / fuse panel and the batteries. if the switch is in the off position (batteries are offline) any charge from the converter will not make it to the batteries. so if you have been on shore power for months, but have had the disconnect switch in the off position, it is entirely possible that the batteries have been depleted due to parasitic draws. you should really check this out!
if they are dead turn the disconnect switch to the on (batteries are on-line) position and let the converter attempt to recharge them. give them 48 hours or so to fully recharge.

the fallacy is that the factory installed disconnect switch normally do not disconnect all parasitic loads. these will still drawn down a battery.

in you case with you ability to connect to shore power just leave the disconnect switch in the on position so the converter can keep the batteries charged.

when you check the batteries please let us know what you find.

Kimmytheone · 08-21-2022, 04:14 PM

Hello! THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH for your help with this. We have had 2 days for the batteries to totally recharge. We are going to wait until tomorrow & give them a better chance to charge. I will definitely tell you all what the outcome is. Thanks to everyone & I'll let you all know what the outcome is. Peace & Love to you all.

GravelRider · 08-22-2022, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NavyLCDR

On every RV that I have ever seen, the battery disconnect switch disconnects the converter from the batteries. When connected to shore power, with the disconnect switch off (batteries disconnected), the converter will NOT be charging the batteries.

Solar panels should be connected directly to the batteries, maintaining a charge with battery disconnect switch off, but not the converter.

Hmmm. Maybe I have misspoken. I thought mine would charge when plugged in. Maybe not. I have a solar setup now, so I'm used to that charging no matter what position the disconnect is in. I haven't turned off the disconnect since installing the solar. Thanks for pointing out my mistake.

Kimmytheone · 08-24-2022, 06:47 AM

Hi Everyone!
I wanted to report what the outcome on was on this issue.... So we turned the battery disconnect back on after checking the 2 Brand new batteries fluid levels that were all great. We waited 3 days, & the batteries were all charged & we were then able to level up our camper.

The batteries were run down & we couldn't get the campers level up system to work. Alks well right now.
THANK YOU ALL AGAIN FOR ALL OF YOUR HELP!!! 💞

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