Motor Home RV House batteries
 

What are most folks using or suggesting to use for Motor home house batteries.
I use two 12v batteries and have a 600 watt inverter and a 60 watt converter/charger.
I have been using Optima Yellow top batteries the past two years but not having much success with them.
Two of them went bad in a matter of 8 months.
although they are covered under 3 year warrantee which they did replace them,
they seem to draw down over night with only a TV on and fridge on set on Propane. (dry camping at track)
the charger in the motor home does not charge the Opitma batteries very quickly.
My thought is perhaps the Yellow top is not a good choice being it only has 120 RC (recovery minutes).
Thanks in advance any input.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

No way two yellow tops should draw down that quickly, you might want to verify the charger settings are correct since lead acid, AGM and Lithium all require different settings. Does the charge rate seem to vary based on if it’s running on the Motorhome generator vs. shore power? You might also see how many AMPS are being pulled in the “overnight” mode, quite possible one or more of your inverted outlets has something pulling power besides the TV (note that old TV’s draw a lot more than newer ones). The fantastic fans in lavatory, Phone chargers, etc all add up.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Jim thanks for the reply.
when I tested the converter/charger, it was putting out 14.3 volts to the batteries which is good.
I dont think this converter has any type of settings.
two weeks ago I ran the inverter over night and it drew both batteries down to 50%.
that dropped the house voltage to 10.5 volts which when that low shuts the refridge down even set on propane.
only had the TV, phone charger and the battery charger in the trailer on.
I let the coach generator 7500 watt onan run all day and it still did not charge the yellow tops much. when I got home I put the optima charger on for a day for each battery and that brought them back to 100%.
spent the night in it this past Friday which I ran the coach gen most of the day. over night I ran my honda 2000 watt gen all night and the panel showed it only drawing 1amp. In the morning the batteries down to 11.5 volts. I did not have the inverter turn the inverter on that night. the next day I put the agm charger on the both and it took most of the day to bring them back to 100%.
Brought it home and plugged in shore power and this morning they were at 13.5 Volts at the panel. BTW I changed out both TV's long ago to newer flat panel. This has me puzzled.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

I use 2 Trojan T-105 6V golf car batteries wired in series. Never had any luck with the 12V deep cycle batteries.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Well I don't own a motor home and I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. However I know the Yellow Tops are good batteries.

Don't most motor homes use larger batteries?

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

As a 20+ year motorhome user (4 different units), there is no question that you will get a lot more longevity out of 6v golf cart batteries. You are using great quality 12v bats, but try some 6v ones that are designed for the environment you are exposing them to and you will get much better results.

Also, as stated above, make sure your power share, and battery-type settings are correct. I can't tell you how many times folks with house battery issues have been corrected simply by changing these.

Good luck - please keep us posted.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Thanks for the response.
What component would I be making any such settings?
The converter/charger in my rig does not have any setting adjustments that I am aware of.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

This could be alot of your issue. Have you been able to check the voltage before going to bed to make sure they're up to capacity?

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Another issue - your RV charger will not charge optima batteries the way they are supposed to be charged (different algorithm)

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

A few things first make sure whatever charger you are using is set on AGM setting ---do not charge it any other setting- second fully charge the batteries BEFORE you leave the house---third charge the batteries fully when you return home- fourth disconnect the batteries to prevent phantom draw during non usage periods--- all of these will assure longer life for the batteries but generally deep cycle batteries don't have a real long lifespan- yes some may get "years " while others only get a year or two but it all depends on how you take care of the batteries-FED 387

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Voltage before bed was around 12.8v.
the second time I used it I ran 2000 watt gen all night with TV off which means the only thing on was the Fridge on propane setting. the panel showed 1 amp draw. Fridge would be the only draw except the phone charger. Next morning the voltage was down to 11.6
Tonight I checked the amp draw with various things on and off.
with fridge on propane setting and one TV on, total draw was 1.45 amp. at the battery.
not much at all. I turned everything off I could possibly find and the draw is .25 amp.
Cannot find what is drawing .25 amps but dont think that is significant enough to bring the batteries that low. when I am not using the coach, I keep it plugged in all season because I keep the fridge on with some things in it. we use the coach a lot. tonight I am going to keep the fridge on set on propane with the inverter on and see what the batteries read in the morning. I am leaning to agree with some mentioning above the AGM batteries will not charge properly with the converter/charger that is in the coach.
I dont think there are other settings on the converter.The folks at Optima tell me that you can use any type charger to charge the Yellow top and it should not hurt them. it just may not charge them as quickly and fully as needed. when I keep the rig plugged in, it maintains the batteries at 13.6v.I am leaning toward switching to two 6v golf cart batteries.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Do you have any digital clocks like on a microwave or a alarm clock etc tv will draw a minimal amount even when turned off any computers etc

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

You are right. I forgot about the micro wave clock.
I am sure that will draw something.
Next time I do a test i will unplug it to be sure but I bet that is it.
regardless .25 amp draw is not going to make that much of a difference.
Soooo I am thinking the AGM is not the way to go. That leads me to either going back to two12v deep cycle or two 6V golf cart batteries.
unfortunately I may not have enough compartment height for the 6V.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

The 6Volt GC batteries are definitely the way to go !!! (best bang for the buck)unless you want to spring for Lithium ---they do require maintenance- but the ones in my MH were new in the fall of 2012---I do equalize them once a year BTW--- 2) 6V GC batteries are appx. equivalent to 3) 12V Maintenance Free in Amp Hours

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Here is an update.
This is getting real interesting.
So I took out the optima batteries (agree the current converter/charger is not giving enough charge to the AGM style battery), and I installed 2 6V GF batteries. This made some improvement on the overnight deal however with the generator running the next day all day, they only came up to about 12.3 volts. That is leading me to believe that although the Converter/charger is putting out 14.3 volts, it may not be putting out the amperage needed to charge the batteries. Hell on the 1.5 hr ride home the alternator did a better job charging. Sooooo now I may consider changing out the converter/charger (that is going to be a real pain in the azzz due to the location, Or do I upgrade my current inverter to one that has a charger combo. just not sure how they would work together if I leave the existing converter/charger as is.
Opinions welcome.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

I asked my son, who has been in the battery distribution business for twenty years to look at this thread.

He said he agreed with most of the recommendations especially going to 6 volt batteries.

Keep us posted.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Consider leaving the old converter in its current location and find a new spot for the new converter. Could save some aggravation.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

….Just finished going through some Inverter / Charger / Battery agg with our coach. Give Chris Hanrahan at Tekris Power Electronics in Farmingdale, NJ (right up the road from Wall Stadium) a call at 732-938-4996. He's a straight-up guy and will help you out with whatever you need.

-Don Bangs

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Will do.
Thanks Don.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

The results are in!
I decided to place the blame on the converter/charger so I pulled the old one and replaced it with a Progressive Dynamics 60 amp converter Charger. Bang, right off the bat when I fired it up the charge rate went from 12.3v up to 13.5v. This is a nice unit for the money. it has four automatic charge modes plus a remote switch to override when needed for a quicker charge..
Will be out racing this weekend so we will put it to the test on how long the batteries charge after a night on the inverter.
Thanks again for all the input.

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

That is, indeed, a nice reliable unit! Please keep us posted on how it performs this weekend. Good luck on the track too!!!

Re: Motor Home RV House batteries
 

Will do thanks!