Newbie with solar not lasting Epro 19fbs

[tomkatb]

On the Trojan battery site they have a chart of number of charges the batteries will take. The graph supports the 6 volts are more durable as they have double the charges.

The Costco Interstate batteries were $75 last year. I have 4. 430 or so amps.

For people with deep battery boxes the six volts are taller.

Interesting is comparing amps available per pound is similar between 12s and 6s.

The theory is the larger plates of a six volt battery take abuse better.

And they are pretty much standard in golf cars.

Lithium are superior but, 8-10 times as expensive unless you plan on keeping your rv 20 years. I would get 8-10 years out of dual six volt batteries in my 63 MGB. Owned one since 72. Current car is on the second set since 2003.

[babock]

Originally Posted by tomkatb

On the Trojan battery site they have a chart of number of charges the batteries will take. The graph supports the 6 volts are more durable as they have double the charges.

Care to share that chart? Every piece of literature I see says they are identical.




2 exact chemistry Trojan batteries...one 6V and one 12V.


12V with 50% depth of discharge, 2000 cycles.
https://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/da..._12_225_DS.pdf


6V with 50% depth of discharge, 2000 cycles.
https://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/da..._06_255_DS.pdf

Originally Posted by tomkatb

And they are pretty much standard in golf cars.

They are not. Almost every golf cart made these days are 48V and either use 4 12V or 6 8V batteries.

[Danieloneil01]

Mine have power without the inverter on or shore power connected. I’m pretty sure if you unscrew the plate the electrical wires run to the cigarette lighter.

[Brian Brown]

Yeah, mine (2019 Geo Pro 19BH) didn't have the usb charger by the TV like yours did. I bought one of these marine dual usb chargers:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I wired it from the connection to the back of the cigarette lighter.

Works great and actually charges quickly.

[ClaudeP]

On Sunday, coming back from our first trip with our E-Pro 19QB, we had a message in the Colorado dashboard "Check Trailer Cable". We stopped and checked - sure enough there had been a spark and the upper pin of the cable was black. I unplugged and plugged back in - no further error message.

Yesterday I noticed that the TT's DC is out - there is still DC for the power tongue jack and the inverter does work fine, but everything DC in the trailer's control panel is dead.

I checked the fuse in the A beam at the fron of the trailer, it's fine. All breakers and fuses in the panel are fine. I suspect the problem may be with the converter, but I wasn't able to find it.

A couple questions:

1 - Is my diagnostic OK?

2 - Where can I find the converter in an E-Pro 19QB?

3 - Is there something else I missed?

The TT is new and under warranty but I'd rather do it myself to spare the 50-mile round trip to the dealership.

Claude

[kwindrem]

Originally Posted by ClaudeP

On Sunday, coming back from our first trip with our E-Pro 19QB, we had a message in the Colorado dashboard "Check Trailer Cable". We stopped and checked - sure enough there had been a spark and the upper pin of the cable was black. I unplugged and plugged back in - no further error message.

Yesterday I noticed that the TT's DC is out - there is still DC for the power tongue jack and the inverter does work fine, but everything DC in the trailer's control panel is dead.

I have a Geo Pro QB which is the same design.

There is a battery disconnect switch located on the frame below the propane tanks so I'd check to see if that's turned on.

When I took delivery of my trailer, the battery disconnect switch was turned off. We did the delivery inspection powered from shore power so everything ran off the converter until I got home. The lights dimmed when running the tongue jack. When I disconnected from the tow vehicle, all lights went out.

The inverter is wired directly to the battery with a fuse mounted to the frame just below the battery boxes.

It is possible that the burn on your 7-pin connector is due to the trying to power the trailer from the tow vehicle with the battery turned off, or the connection just might have been loose. I'd have the parts replaced that have burned pins so you won't have problems in the future. Check the tow vehicle's connector also.

I checked the fuse in the A beam at the fron of the trailer, it's fine. All breakers and fuses in the panel are fine. I suspect the problem may be with the converter, but I wasn't able to find it.

A couple questions:

1 - Is my diagnostic OK?

2 - Where can I find the converter in an E-Pro 19QB?

It is located in the fuse/breaker panel just inside the door.

If you have DC when plugged into shore power, your converter is fine.

3 - Is there something else I missed?

Power flows from the battery through the disconnect switch and then to two circuit breakers at the front of the trailer. There's one screwed to the frame below the batteries and another under the trailer. One runs the slide, the other feeds the DC input to the power panel at the back of the trailer. Both of these are automatic reset breakers (no reset button).

Use a multimeter or DC circuit tester to trace power until you find the problem.

The power panel has a main 30 amp fuse plus one the shuts down the DC input to the panel with reverse polarity. (This could have happened when the dealer installed the battery, or if you had the battery disconnected for some reason.) I believe the main fuse has an indicator light but the reverse polarity one may not. Remove it and check with an ohm meter or beeper.

It's also possible there is a bad crimp in the wiring to the back of the power panel. You can access it through the bathroom sink cupboard.

Be patient, you'll find the problem with some troubleshooting.

[ClaudeP]

Thanks Kwindrem,

That was a lot of useful information.

I found the battery disconect and it was in the "On position" so I switched it to "Off". It worked because I was able to measure 12 volts DC after the switch

I also found the two fuses on the driver's side of the trailer; both are OK.

Unfortunately I was not able to find another section of open connector or wire to check voltage.

I looked at the section behind the fuse box from under the washroom sink and I went, "Oh my God!" There's so many wires there that I don't even dare start exploting.

I'll have to take the unit to the dealership and have them check on that. I don't regret my efforts however because I now have a much better understanding of the QB's electric system.

To be continued...

[ClaudeP]

So before I did the 50-mile return trip to my retailer, I gave them a call.

Turns out that there is a very small breaker (more of a micro switch) in one of the three grey plastic boxes attached to the frame of the trailer, just behind the A-frame on the driver's side. Mine is not an auto-reset. Sure enough, it had jumped and putting it back resolved the issue.

According to my retailer, there was probably a spark in the trailer cable / truck connector assembly that made the breaker jump. I fixed the loose connection. I think I'll be all right for now, but as Kwindrem suggests, I'll have both the trailer's cable and the truck's connector replaced as soon as I can. Better safe than sorrry.

Claude

[NJKris]

Claude, thank you for coming back with the solution to the problem. We will all be better for it.

[tc cruiser]

Finally seen another E Pro in the wild last weekend on 6/8 in Pickerel point campground at Promised Land state park in PA. No one was around to say hi to though. Also had 2 black bear come through the campground at dark while sitting at the fire. Passed about 15' away and was glad they kept going. That was enough excitement for the night. Amazing that you don't even hear them .

[NJKris]

You won't hear the bear. Just the other campers in tents screaming. Somebody on this forum called tent campers in sleeping bags the soft tacos of the bear world, lol. I know our hard side campers aren't bear proof, but it's nice to know there is something between you and the teeth/claws. Always camp next to tents or pop ups. They will hopefully be too full to bother us in our hard side units.