Progressive Dynamics PD4060K in MBS 2401R

[Wrightwood]

Tried searching for topics on the Progressive Dynamics PD4060K converter and surprised that I couldn't find anything.

We have one in our 2016 2401R and haven't had any issues but with it being so important to charging and maintaining the house batteries I'm interested in the experiences others may have had with this converter.

[dukeboone]

I have the same unit and so far I've been pleased with it, although I also haven't had it very long. I chose to keep my MH plugged in all winter and have not needed to add water to the batteries. I consider this to be a good testament of the hardware as it appears to have maintained my batteries without boiling off the water. From my experience there's two schools of thought, disconnect a lead from the battery so there's no parasitic loads and it will only minimally drop its charge. Or conversely, leave them plugged in and monitor the water levels to avoid boiling off too much water. So far it seems to have done its job well although I suppose I'm also wearing it out faster than if there was no current through the system during the off season.

[kysunseekermbs]

I kept mine plugged into shore power over winter as well and all is well. Same progressive model. No issues so far.


2016 Sunseeker W MBS

Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

[TURBS]

My unit also has a progressive dynamics load center.
It's plugged in 24/7 365.



2008 2500hd Duramax
2015 Columbus 320RS
2016 nights camped "0"
2015 nights camped "34"

[Still Kickin]

Why not just plug in a float charger for the long months of non use. I say that because all electronics have a life, so when only using it up to float the batteries, use a cheap china freight float charger instead. Just a thought.

[edt]

My unit is 500 miles away don't want power to the whole trailer so I disconnect battery and plug in Battery tender

[Joseph Carozzoni]

Originally Posted by Still Kickin

Why not just plug in a float charger for the long months of non use. I say that because all electronics have a life, so when only using it up to float the batteries, use a cheap china freight float charger instead. Just a thought.

Good advice. My 2014 (built in late June 2013) had the WFCO 8955. It was plugged-in for the winter of 2013, 2014, and 2015. It's parked a small trek from the house, and got lazy and didn't check it Jan/Feb/Mar. The WFCO had expired and the batteries were dead. For the pre-Progressive Dynamics units, you must have the Battery Disconnect in the ON position (i.e. not disconnected) to charge the batteries - which of course has parasitic losses.

I just installed a Progressive Dynamics PD9260CV and a pair of new Wal-Mart EverStart 27DC batteries. I also wired in a port into the steps for a BatteryMinder 1510. When not in use, the motorhome will not be plugged in, the battery disconnect switch will be OFF (batteries disconnected), and the BatteryMinder 1510 (with a 10-year no quibble guarantee and about 1/4 the cost of the PD) will keep the batteries charged.

[ScottBrownstein]

Frankly I do not understand FR's penchant for wiring the converter so that it cannot charge the batteries when the disconnect is in the off position. i suppose someone could indicate that it is a safety issue, but heck, the BCC is still connected and "alive" all the time, as are the parasitic loads, steps, etc. The converter has a breaker and fuses. Now, in some TTs and coaches, the converter feeds the DC power panel and gets to the batteries from there, so you could not have the disconnect off without rewiring the converter to the batteries directly, but heck, you need heavy gauge wire anyway, why not do it?

When I connect my solar I will wire around this and let the PD charge the batteries when the disconnect switch is in the off position as well as the solar charge controller.

Anybody have any reason not to do this?

[backdoctor]

That's what I did when I installed my solar panels. I just wired straight to the batteries, via the trimetric shunt. I wanted to get a good perspective of what was happening, and to be sure the batteries were getting some juice despite where the disconnect is positioned. The only glitch is that my solar controller, Tracer 2210RN, only reads 47% SOC (state of charge) despite the fact that my trimetric says I'm at 92%. Not sure why, as the voltage is at 12.5 v after a night with the furnace running often... It's 30° here in Syracuse. Waiting for CW to open before we head home to Ottawa.