Where do you store your lead acid battery in the winter?

djemgoss

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2016
Messages
223
Location
Brookfield, WI
In the past I have stored my battery in our basement, hooked up to a battery maintainer. Last year I put in a 30 amp outlet next to where I park our camper. The camper is always plugged in there when were home. The battery stays charge as long as the camper is plugged in.
Is it OK to leave the battery in the battery box in the Wisconsin winters or should I bring it into the house hooked up to a battery maintainer?
Just wondering what others do!
 
Moved thread from the Rockwood sub-forum to the Electrical and Charging Systems sub-forum since the OP's questions are specific to that particular sub-forum and not specific to just Rockwood.
 
I fully charge my 6v lead acid batteries at the end of November and leave them disconnected outside until the end of April when they get a top up charge.
Temps are well below 32F all winter.
They lose approx 5% charge over the winter.
My previous batteries lasted 10 years.
 
I just leave in place. A fully charged lead acid battery will not freeze until it gets unliveably cold.
 
Ours stays in the battery box located on the A frame of our trailer. A fully charged battery will not freeze.

Now with this said, disconnect the negative battery cable at the battery and lay the cable aside. This is to keep parasitic drain from discharging the battery. Otherwise, it won't be a fully charged battery for long and will freeze.

We are fortunate in that I do keep shore power connected as our trailer sits beside my shop. I just winterize the plumbing and that's it.

Bob
 
when you change to Lifepo4 cold weather will be a problem

but... you do get lots of benefits from the switch over :trink39:
 
I follow the recommendation of the US Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research & Engineering Laboratory
Cold Regions Technical Digest
No. 91-4, May 1991
Automotive Batteries at Low Temperatures
a239115.pdf

"Batteries should be stored in a cold place, say, about -15°C (+5F), although when fully charged to a specific gravity of 1.280 or greater they can be stored at -1C indefinitely without deteriorating.
In addition, all batteries experience some degree of self-discharge during storage. This can be greatly reduced by storing them at lower temperatures. If a piece of equipment is to be left for a long period, it is best to remove the negative terminal, as the parasitic electrical loads in most equipment will eventually drain the battery. Most vehicles normally have a small, continuous discharge on the battery of as much as 20 milliamps due to digital clocks and other electronic devices. In addition, there may be a fault in the vehicle's electrical system that can discharge the battery even when all the accessories are turned off. This is especially likely in extremely cold areas, where wire insulation may become brittle in the cold and crack or break away.
Batteries should be kept clean and dry, as they will slowly discharge through the film composed of dirt and small amounts of acid that tends to accumulate on the surface. The battery can be cleaned using a solution of baking soda followed by rinsing with clean water. This will also prevent corrosion of the posts. Anti-corrosion rings also reduce this problem. These felt rings, impregnated with a compound that neutralizes the acid, fit over the positive terminal beneath the connector"
Based on info in the document a battery at 50% SOC doesn't freeze until about -35 F.
I leave my battery in the battery box on the a-frame. Only reasons I see to pull it is if there are worries about it getting stolen and when it needs to be replaced.
 
Last edited:
I follow the recommendation of the US Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research & Engineering Laboratory
Cold Regions Technical Digest
No. 91-4, May 1991
Automotive Batteries at Low Temperatures
a239115.pdf

"Batteries should be stored in a cold place, say, about -15°C (+5F), although when fully charged to a specific gravity of 1.280 or greater they can be stored at -1C indefinitely without deteriorating.
In addition, all batteries experience some degree of self-discharge during storage. This can be greatly reduced by storing them at lower temperatures. If a piece of equipment is to be left for a long period, it is best to remove the negative terminal, as the parasitic electrical loads in most equipment will eventually drain the battery. Most vehicles normally have a small, continuous discharge on the battery of as much as 20 milliamps due to digital clocks and other electronic devices. In addition, there may be a fault in the vehicle's electrical system that can discharge the battery even when all the accessories are turned off. This is especially likely in extremely cold areas, where wire insulation may become brittle in the cold and crack or break away.
Batteries should be kept clean and dry, as they will slowly discharge through the film composed of dirt and small amounts of acid that tends to accumulate on the surface. The battery can be cleaned using a solution of baking soda followed by rinsing with clean water. This will also prevent corrosion of the posts. Anti-corrosion rings also reduce this problem. These felt rings, impregnated with a compound that neutralizes the acid, fit over the positive terminal beneath the connector"
Based on info in the document a battery at 50% SOC doesn't freeze until about -35 F.
I leave my battery in the battery box on the a-frame. Only reasons I see to pull it is if there are worries about it getting stolen and when it needs to be replaced.


Leave it to the Army to over complicate things.
 
Well, I might be the exception to what most of the poster on this thread do.

I removed the battery from the trailer and bring the battery home and store it in the garage on my workbench. There is a 4AMP trickle charger/maintainer connected to the battery over the winter months.

I have done this with all of my trailers from my pop-ups in the 70's to my current 5th wheel.
 
Well, I might be the exception to what most of the poster on this thread do.

I removed the battery from the trailer and bring the battery home and store it in the garage on my workbench. There is a 4AMP trickle charger/maintainer connected to the battery over the winter months.

I have done this with all of my trailers from my pop-ups in the 70's to my current 5th wheel.

And there is nothing wrong with doing so if you are so inclined but totally unnecessary. I have been fully charging, disconnecting and storing batteries right where they are and doing so for many, many years, with no ill effects.
 
In the past I have stored my battery in our basement, hooked up to a battery maintainer. Last year I put in a 30 amp outlet next to where I park our camper. The camper is always plugged in there when were home. The battery stays charge as long as the camper is plugged in.
Is it OK to leave the battery in the battery box in the Wisconsin winters or should I bring it into the house hooked up to a battery maintainer?
Just wondering what others do!

I do it in Minnesota. But I have an electric outlet in my storage unit and have a maintainer hooked up. One year though, I didn't have power available so I just turned off the thebbattery disconnect and left it. The batteries didn't go completely dead over the winter but were very low so I wouldn't recommend that. But as long as it's plugged in or has a maintainer hooked up, it's no problem. I also put my Corvette in the same unheated storage unit on a tender. The battery in my 2001 lasted twelve years before I had to replace it. When I traded in my 2014 last Feb, it still had the original Chevy factory battery. Batteries will last a long time, even sitting over the winter when on a decent maintainer.
 
And there is nothing wrong with doing so if you are so inclined but totally unnecessary. I have been fully charging, disconnecting and storing batteries right where they are and doing so for many, many years, with no ill effects.

I would agree, though I do use a maintainer. After all, my garage is no warmer than the unheated storage unit where the trailer is sitting. Removing the batteries would serve no purpose unless I was going to bring them inside...which I've never done.
 
I leave it in place. The trailer has solar and that keeps the battery topped off. Even with the RV covered, I can see the panel is still sending a charge to the battery. When I switch to lithium next year, I'll get batteries with the low temperature cut off so they won't charge if the temp is too low.
 
I do it in Minnesota. But I have an electric outlet in my storage unit and have a maintainer hooked up. One year though, I didn't have power available so I just turned off the thebbattery disconnect and left it. The batteries didn't go completely dead over the winter but were very low so I wouldn't recommend that. But as long as it's plugged in or has a maintainer hooked up, it's no problem. I also put my Corvette in the same unheated storage unit on a tender. The battery in my 2001 lasted twelve years before I had to replace it. When I traded in my 2014 last Feb, it still had the original Chevy factory battery. Batteries will last a long time, even sitting over the winter when on a decent maintainer.

And so, you experienced what is mentioned on every R/V forum I visit... battery disconnects often DO NOT disconnect everything. Many times, there are parasitic draws that remain on, even when the disconnect is off.

It is always recommended to fully charge, then disconnect the battery at one of the battery terminals.

A fully charged and properly disconnected battery will loose about 3% of its charge per month and won't freeze until around -50ºF or below.
 
Leave it to the Army to over complicate things.

Also consider that the topic is “storing” batteries. Leaving a battery hooked up and charging from either a battery tender or converter is not the same as storing, but in my opinion is the better answer unless you live in a very cold area.
 
I pull mine out and put them on a tender in the garage for winter [6 months]. Things that aren't looked at regularly have tendency to go sideways. Here in Alaska, the "HAWK" is your winter nemesis, and unforgiving at that.
 
Mine and my Brother-in-law leave them in the units and are plugged in at home all winter. Mine's is a 5th wheel and his is a travel trailer. Both have sealed batteries. So can't be checked for water level.
 
I have a 2024 Rockwood 2608BS . For me, I just turn off the main DC switch next to the battery and let the solar panel keep the battery fully charged.

Did same with my previous trailer and never a problem
 

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