How many batteries does the Rockwood 2104S come with?

Sagecoachdriver · 09-05-2019, 09:46 AM

Reason I'm asking is a good friend is joining us on a dry camping trip and I wonder if he's going to have issues with providing enough power He does have a Honda 2000, but genny hours are limited. He shouldn't need the furnace and most of the draw will be from fridge, water pump, water heater and lights.

gbaldwin · 09-05-2019, 10:05 AM

Bet is if new, comes with one.

My experience on similar rig with 1 12 V deep cell... Boondocking....

I will run genny for 2, 2 hr sessions per day, AM and late afternoon, and occasionally when I need 110 power for something. .... This is plenty to hold up if battery is in good condition.

Suggest running fridge on gas.... (does take minimal battery to ignite occasionally) Also run water heater on gas as needed.

Will most likely not run AC. If no heater, any number of good batteries should be fine under normal "limited generator " run hours and just concious conservation.

**bikendan** · 09-05-2019, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sagecoachdriver

Reason I'm asking is a good friend is joining us on a dry camping trip and I wonder if he's going to have issues with providing enough power He does have a Honda 2000, but genny hours are limited. He shouldn't need the furnace and most of the draw will be from fridge, water pump, water heater and lights.

Towables don't "come" with a battery. They are a dealer-installed item. So it depends on what the dealer wants to put in. Nearly all install the cheapest 12v marine battery they can find.
Agree that the Honda 2000i will not run the a/c unless he installed a Micro Air unit. If he doesn't need to run the a/c, he'll be able to run everything else.
Doesn't he know what battery he has?

joeuncool · 09-05-2019, 10:40 AM

Most bumper tow trailers come with 1 very low end (group 24 Marine) dealer installed battery. With the generator they should be fine. Fridge on gas, water heater on gas, and you said you don't need the heater. Run the generator during the day to put amps back in the battery and they will be fine.

In regards to the gas, the fridge and water heater don't use much at all. Turn them on gas and let them run the entire trip. We boondock for 5 days, run the furnace periodically overnight, fridge, water heater, plus cook and grill and we come home with a half full 20lb tank.

Sagecoachdriver · 09-05-2019, 12:05 PM

That's what I thought, 1 group 24. No need for air conditioner or TV but may need furnace but doubt it. Mild temperatures in sierra's.

CaptnJohn · 09-05-2019, 01:42 PM

My dealer only installs 1 group 24 on TTs and 1 group 27 on 5ers. Anything with a residential fridge gets 2 group 27. Depends on the dealer.

lewisra · 09-05-2019, 02:37 PM

Depends completely on the dealer. Mine came with 2 supplied by the dealer. Actually it was the setup maintenance guy, he told me he always puts 2 on TT’s with a residential frig.

67L48 · 09-05-2019, 03:46 PM

RVs don't come with batteries. Dealers will usually include one, though ... and it's usually the cheapest, crappiest Group 24 battery on the planet. Of course, I'm talking about the lower-priced Mini Lite trailers and the higher end trailers may be supported a bit better.

jackconn · 09-05-2019, 04:20 PM

As you can see from the footer, we have a 2017 2104S and it came from the dealer with one Interstate SRM-24 deep-cycle battery. Certainly not best quality out there but (after we replaced the original), it's been fine. Very easy to install a 2nd battery which I did after the first season - fits perfectly in the cradle next to original and easy to wire up. Your friend might want to do that if they're going to do much boondocking.

I have a Honda 2000 knockoff generator (Predator) which works great. I've never boondocked long enough to need it for recharging batteries but when I've used it (to get 120V so DW can run her sewing machine) the batteries charge has improved.

Most important for all this, IMHO, is a power monitor. We've got a TriMetric TM2030 and it's priceless for watching how much power is being consumed (to shut things off when not needed) and how far down the batteries have been drained.

When boondocking, our fridge automatically runs on LP so nothing to do there. The big loads in our 2104S are the power tongue jack, slide and awning (we always run these while still connected to TV power, as much as possible), heater fan, bathroom and range hood fans and any lights that aren't LED. For us, this includes the porch light and the original range hood lamp.

Bottom line is that - assuming the battery they've got is in good shape - they should be fine for 2-3 days at least. With the generator they can go forever...if they're conscientious of what they've got turned on and for how long.

Hope this helps!

**bikendan** · 09-05-2019, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 67L48

RVs don't come with batteries. Dealers will usually include one, though ... and it's usually the cheapest, crappiest Group 24 battery on the planet. Of course, I'm talking about the lower-priced Mini Lite trailers and the higher end trailers may be supported a bit better.

Motorhomes do come with batteries from the factory.

67L48 · 09-05-2019, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bikendan

Motorhomes do come with batteries from the factory.

Sure, pretty obvious. Couldn't drive one off the lot without. This is the General Travel Trailer & Fifth Wheel Discussion > Rockwood forum. So, we're not talking about Motorhomes.

Sagecoachdriver · 09-06-2019, 12:03 AM

I guess my friend should be fine then with just the one battery and the genny. MY forester drains about 1.3 amps every hour during daylite and when we don't run the TV or satellite, we have a daily drain of 35-45amps. So he will need to run the genny probably every day for 3-4 hours to recharge. Only for 3 nites.

chriscowles · 09-06-2019, 12:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sagecoachdriver

I guess my friend should be fine then with just the one battery and the genny. MY forester drains about 1.3 amps every hour during daylite and when we don't run the TV or satellite, we have a daily drain of 35-45amps. So he will need to run the genny probably every day for 3-4 hours to recharge. Only for 3 nites.

There are steps you can take to reduce parasitic loads such as cutting off the heat strip between the refrigerator and freezer doors, and install a cut-off switch on the entertainment center. (Otherwise it's never really off.)

Sagecoachdriver · 09-06-2019, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chriscowles

There are steps you can take to reduce parasitic loads such as cutting off the heat strip between the refrigerator and freezer doors, and install a cut-off switch on the entertainment center. (Otherwise it's never really off.)

Yes. I know full well of that issue. My Forester always has a .2 amp draw regardless of of turning off everything and cut off switch. Only remedy is to remove the negative cable from the battery and that won't help my friend since he needs his fridge and water pump during the day. But from the responses, he should do fine with a bit of power conservation on our trip.

lswartz · 09-06-2019, 07:05 AM

You might suggest that he make sure the battery terminals and cables are clean with some of that nifty battery grease applied as well. I always learn the hard way

trailerdude · 09-10-2019, 10:22 AM

I would highly recommend a solar panel. I have a 100 watt portable and haven't used a generator since I bought it. There was one time at the Grand Canyon when it snowed all day. I just plugged in the truck and ran it for 30 minutes to charge the battery. The truck was a much quieter generator. I hate listening to those things, kind of ruins the camping atmosphere.

**bikendan** · 09-10-2019, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trailerdude

I would highly recommend a solar panel. I have a 100 watt portable and haven't used a generator since I bought it. There was one time at the Grand Canyon when it snowed all day. I just plugged in the truck and ran it for 30 minutes to charge the battery. The truck was a much quieter generator. I hate listening to those things, kind of ruins the camping atmosphere.

My Honda 2000i is just as quiet as my F150's engine, when charging the TT battery and WAAAYYY more efficient. It would take much longer for the engine to recharge the battery, than the Honda and it would burn more fuel and cause more pollution. So the engine would be running for more hours, to provide the equivalent recharging that the Honda could do in 2 hours.
Plus you can't run the microwave or a/c from the truck.[emoji6]

trailerdude · 09-10-2019, 07:57 PM

We looked at a flagstaff 21ds yesterday (same as 2104s) it had a two battery box and the sales guy said it came with two group 24 deep cycle battery. Also came with 2 7 gallon propane tanks.

**bikendan** · 09-10-2019, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trailerdude

We looked at a flagstaff 21ds yesterday (same as 2104s) it had a two battery box and the sales guy said it came with two group 24 deep cycle battery. Also came with 2 7 gallon propane tanks.

Those aren't true deep cycle batteries. They're dual-purpose marine batteries. I bet they have a CCA rating. [emoji37]

chriscowles · 09-11-2019, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bikendan

Those aren't true deep cycle batteries. They're dual-purpose marine batteries. I bet they have a CCA rating. [emoji37]

Possibly true but you can't be certain unless you look at the battery specs. Group 24 true deep cycle (not dual-purpose/marine) batteries are readily available and not more expensive.

E.g.:

True deep cycle battery, $89
https://www.batteriesplus.com/produc...le/12/sli24mdc

Dual purpose marine battery, $99
https://www.batteriesplus.com/produc...ultra/sli24mdp

I state the obvious not for your benefit, but for those who may not understand the difference or be familiar with what dealers often supply. (Why they do, I don't get. Deep cycle batteries aren't more expensive.)

You may also like: