Columbus battery

[crasher]

Is there room for two batteries if you have the inboard generator? One I looked at seemed to have a single battery box with a snorkel tube routed to an exterior vent. It seemed to be mounted at an angle which I thought strange. Not sure really why you'd need a battery box at all considering there were multiple 2" holes in the floor of the lp/battery/genset compartment.

[Christopher Columbus]

Yes there is room for 2 battery's when gen. Is installed
Thanks
Chris

[joelek]

Speaking of Columbus battery........This is from my 320RS. Low quality cell phone pic I know but you get the idea.




Some questions for the factory guys.

Why did they throw out the wingnuts and put in hex nuts? EVERY deep cycle battery I have owned came with wingnuts from the manufacturer.

Why did they use black and white wiring instead of red and black. Everyone knows black and red is 12VDC. Black and white is 120VAC. Some inexperianced RV owner is going to hook up the black wire to the negative side and the white wire to the positive side. This will be WRONG as the black wire is on the positive side of battery. It's like the factory was thinking 120VAC black wire is hot and white is neutral. I plan on wrapping crimp terminal and wire with black and red electrical tape.

Factory also forgot to take off the date code round dots on the battery. Maybe this is dealer prep stuff, who knows.

[crasher]

Believe the dealer fits a battery in a trailer. That's why you end up with a cheapo.
The wiring, of course is by the manufacturer.

So did yours not have a battery box?

[Christopher Columbus]

I'll look into the Color of wiring for the Battery hookup. We don't install battery.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by joelek

Speaking of Columbus battery........This is from my 320RS. Low quality cell phone pic I know but you get the idea.

Some questions for the factory guys.

Why did they throw out the wingnuts and put in hex nuts? EVERY deep cycle battery I have owned came with wingnuts from the manufacturer.

Why did they use black and white wiring instead of red and black. Everyone knows black and red is 12VDC. Black and white is 120VAC. Some inexperianced RV owner is going to hook up the black wire to the negative side and the white wire to the positive side. This will be WRONG as the black wire is on the positive side of battery. It's like the factory was thinking 120VAC black wire is hot and white is neutral. I plan on wrapping crimp terminal and wire with black and red electrical tape.

Factory also forgot to take off the date code round dots on the battery. Maybe this is dealer prep stuff, who knows.

Happens all the time black on negative white on positive then the converter fuses blow.

[joelek]

Battery fits into a recessed hole in the floorpan of the basement. Location is up front were the jackshaft is for landing gear - open up that door, it's on the right. There is a battery box "topper" with a flex hose to vent off explosive fumes from recharging battery. Kind of a cool setup actually.

Company I work for makes the systems that put labels on just about anything. Labeling batteries is just one market we do. Johnson Controls is the company that had the production lines for many lead acid batteries. Truth be told, many batteries are the same internal guts. Different case, different labels, but the inside design is the same accross MANY different battery brands.

Here is another dirty secret, cheap filters, oil, soap, toiletries, drugs, foods, etc. are actually the good name brand product. Just a different label goes on for the low buck stuff. It's all part of private brand labeling. Fortunatly I have had great experiance with Interstate brand batteries.

[joelek]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Happens all the time black on negative white on positive then the converter fuses blow.

Turbs is this RV standard - use black and white wire for battery? After the converter when it gets processed to 120Vac I understand it. But 12Vdc battery wiring is alway red and black in other motorsports industries. Never had anything 120Vac in my boats, cars, trucks, motorcycles, snowmobiles, mowers, etc. RV is the first "toy" I have had that mixes both AC and DC.

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by joelek

Turbs is this RV standard - use black and white wire for battery? After the converter when it gets processed to 120Vac I understand it. But 12Vdc battery wiring is alway red and black in other motorsports industries. Never had anything 120Vac in my boats, cars, trucks, motorcycles, snowmobiles, mowers, etc. RV is the first "toy" I have had that mixes both AC and DC.

For forest river it is . I know it's retarded but that's the way they do it .your 7 prong rv connecter on your tv uses black for positive and white for ground as well.
I'm assuming this is why but not sure.

Turbs

[onetonford]

Usually it is cheaper to get heavy wire 4/0 and up in Black or White They do sell colors in larger sizes but can be very expensive.....

[crasher]

Price premium for color choice in the jacket is for retail customers, not manufacturers. They buy in bulk and essentially pay the copper price plus a fabricator's margin.

[joelek]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

For forest river it is . I know it's retarded but that's the way they do it .your 7 prong rv connecter on your tv uses black for positive and white for ground as well.
I'm assuming this is why but not sure.

Turbs

I'm retarded especially after a weekend of partying in the RV during the summer. Red and Black tape is my cheap n easy fix. I used to wire/repair industrial control panels for a living. I'm more sensitive to wiring color codes than the average guy.

The battery - took it out of the RV for winter, bring inside house, hook up to battery tender jr. Reinstall after all the white manure (snow) goes away.

Gotta check water level too and see how much boiled off with the RV charging it up all summer. I'm in a seasonal park so she is plugged into 30/50amp panel 24/7. I only used it 3 months this year as I purchased the 320RS at end of June for July 4th weekend. What a fun summer!!!!

[Ed and Joy]

It is difficult to see in the picture of the battery but, Are the two lugs the same size?
I am used to seeing this type of connecting set up with one lug /eyelet larger than the other (with wing nuts) so making it difficult to get the wires hooked up in reverse.

[joelek]

Yup terminal posts and nuts are same size. Remember, the battery is picked and installed by dealer, not factory.

[joelek]

Originally Posted by Christopher Columbus

I'll look into the Color of wiring for the Battery hookup. We don't install battery.

Follow up - what did you find out Chris?

[huntr70]

Most manufacturers are using black and white now...

Don't know why, but every new towable on our lot right now has white and black.

[joelek]

My guess............
A - somebody got lazy - less color codes to keep track of
B - somebody tried to save a buck - less colors & larger spools of black and white
C- all of the above

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by 2008Wildcat

Most manufacturers are using black and white now...

Don't know why, but every new towable on our lot right now has white and black.

Because vehicle trailer wiring is white and black.

[TheEdge]

Our 320rs has one battery recessed in the floor and I can see space for a cutout for a second battery. We have an Optima battery and during Sandy it was enough power for us to run the furnace, frig, and hot water plus lighting for over 12 hours when the power failed.
I love the energy efficiency of the Columbus with all LED lighting, etc. With a second battery we could go 24 hours including heating with outside temps in the low 40's to upper 30's.

[joelek]

Originally Posted by f1100turbo

Because vehicle trailer wiring is white and black.

They used 5 and 7 pin trailer plug wiring color code.
Black = 12Vdc +
White = 12vdc - aka ground

Makes sense if you think of an RV as a trailer - it is being towed. I get it now.